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"The team's work can speak for itself so we're gonna jump right into the game. We're gonna take you to a weapon's manufacturing facility deep behind enemy lines in the Soviet Union. This is WMD."

After a brief introduction by Treyarch's Mark Lamia at an event in Los Angeles earlier this month, we were treated to our first look at the annualized, even-year Call of Duty production by Treyarch. Amidst all the legal posturing, accusations, departures, hires, and general unpleasantness, Call of Duty: Black Ops is finishing up its two year development and heading towards a November 9th release date.

While Black Ops isn't the next "Modern Warfare" game, this is a "modern warfare" title. The seemingly brief jump from World War II's 1940's setting to the Cold War's 1960's setting might not sound like much, but it's brought Treyarch's game into the modern era in a big way. The demo starts with a pilot - decked in full pressure flight suit, more astronaut than pilot - climbing aboard a massive SR-71 Blackbird, a "strategic reconnaissance aircraft" built in 1964 and a fabled "black" project.