New Call of Duty 3 details

US magazine Electronic Gaming Monthly has revealed some interesting new details about Call of Duty 3 - including news that it'll feature a multiplayer mode for up to 24 players.

As detailed on the Xbox.com forums, CoD 3 will offer single or splitscreen multiplayer, and a new 'War' mode. Axis and allied teams will battle for strategic locations and vehicles, and you'll earn new abilities as you earn points - for example, scouts will only be able to call up a couple of artillery barrages at first, but as they gain more experience they can order more sustained attacks.

Gameplay changes will affect the way you do stuff like planting bombs - there's no more plain old pressing of the A button, you've got to go through the proper motions now. You might find yourself attempting to row a boat whilst simultaneously firing at your enemies, and you can expect a bit of hand-to-hand combat too. They're getting rid of the load times between levels, rather neatly.

As for the visuals, characters are said to move more realistically, and environments feature more textures and shaders. There are lots of nifty little improvements planned, such as foliage which remains flat after you've walked over it, grenades that scorch the ground, and destructible cover. You'll be able to look all around you, since windows won't be boarded up, and different surfaces - such as grass, steel, wood and so on - will react differently, and realistically, to bullets.

Call of Duty 3 is out later this year on PS2, PS3, Xbox, Xbox 360 and Wii. You can take a sneak peek at the game over on Eurogamer TV.