
We were determined to make a very different Call of Duty, leaning into the darkness of war, making what we would become the grittiest World War II game of the franchise."

We wanted World at War to be a turning point in the franchise, we wanted to establish our house style. "We were still struggling to find our voice," he said. It was also a turbulent time in the studio, Lamia said. World at War came on the heels of Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, a game that launched the franchise into the modern era. World at War was designed to be a gritty, dark World War II game, the third such one created by Treyarch. In 2008, Treyarch was given their first shot at a two-year development cycle on a Call of Duty game. The mode bubbled up during the second year of development of 2008's Call of Duty: World at War, during what could only be described as the least opportune time possible. Lamia took to the DICE stage this week to talk about the birth of the-now expected cooperative zombie mode in every release of Call of Duty. "When you think about it, Call of Duty zombies shouldn't exist," said Mark Lamia, the studio head of Treyarch. It was also almost killed once it was discovered.


Call of Duty's infectious take on zombie warfare was "lightning in a bottle," "a signature moment for the franchise," a reinvigorating, beloved bit of surprise development.
