Members of the gaming world were given a treat yesterday, as Treyarch officially opened the gates of the Call of Duty: World at War multiplayer beta. If you are a well-connected member of the gaming press (or if you pre-ordered the game or logged onto one of the many websites who have keys), then you now have access to this most exclusive event.

The beta features three maps (Roundhouse, Castle and Makin) and four game modes (War, Team Death Match, Capture-the-Flag and Free-for-All) and allows you to play as the Soviet Red Army, the German Wermacht, the Japanese Imperial Army or the American Marin Raiders. The gameplay itself is nearly identical to that of Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, as the experience, leveling and perks system from the last game appears here once more. So if you love Modern Warfare, you’ll be getting a WW II flavored dose of it when World at War is released.

I got to spend some quality time with the beta last night and found it to be quite enjoyable. War mode is definitely my favorite, with both teams trying to snag one control point. As each point is taken, another is unlocked on the map, and the teams race over in an attempt to gain sway over that spot. The winner is determined by whichever team gets all the points before time expires. If the game ends without a winner, then the whole thing goes into sudden death, with the team that was trailing at the end of regulation facing a respawn penalty. Basically, the whole thing quickly turns into a series of vicious firefights over a bunch of hotly contested areas, and it’s genuinely a lot of fun.

Unfortunately, the beta is Xbox 360 only right now, with the promise of a PC beta coming soon. As for PS3 owners, well... it doesn’t look like that’s going to be happening. But hey, you got a LittleBigPlanet beta, so that’s something right? Right?

If you haven’t gotten into the Beta yet, be sure to stay tuned to TGR as we will be giving a few keys out in the next few days.