Cliffside

thumb|300px|right|A commentated game for this map Cliffside is a multiplayer map in Call of Duty: World at War. It is in a Pacific jungle setting and takes place on a Japanese cliffside next to the ocean. The level is fairly large and is conducive to snipers, as they can usually see from one end of the map to the other. However, the map has plenty of cover in the form of foliage, bunkers, and rocks.

Japanese snipers get an advantage on this level due to their far superior camouflage suits. They can easily blend in with many types of foliage throughout the level.

This map is from the single-player mission "Blowtorch & Corkscrew."

Structure
There are five main sections in this map.


 * Cliff: Located on the north side, it has some cover in the way of rocks and broken walls. It is possible to jump off the cliff, which will result in a suicide, and if you have not got it yet, the Sayonara achievement. The east end holds a bunker, which is normally used for camping.


 * Waterfall: On the east side there is a waterfall. It is surrounded by elevated ground, which can be used for sniping, though it normally goes unused because it is so out of the way. This is the least active part of the map.


 * Ruins: The south side holds ruins of what seem to be a shrine, which offers cover for snipers. A small, overgrown path leads to the ruins of a bunker, which also provides good cover.


 * Platform: The west side is a platform with cargo boxes on it which is usually used as a sniping spot early in the game, before it starts getting flanked.


 * Mausoleum: Located just north of the middle of the map is a mausoleum. It is the most enclosed section of the map and is a somewhat popular camping spot.

Game Mode

 * War: If the player spawns on the Imperial Army side, there are many places he/she can snipe any early-game runners. The most used one is the platform the player first spawns on. Others include the bunker to the south of the spawn, and, if the player is fast enough, the north cliff. Those going to the flag are advised to go through the mausoleum by going through the south passage for the enemy snipers can easily get set up before one reaches the flag. If the player spawns on the American side, it is advised that he/she goes south, so that the mausoleum will block the player from snipers. Also, if the player goes through the mausoleum, he/she are able to go to the middle flag easily without having to go out into the open to get there. Snipers who spawn here can snipe from the ruins, or from the obstacles right to the east of the first flag. The tall shrubs can easily conceal the players position.

Fighting Style

 * Sniping: There are many places where one can settle down and snipe. The places are the bunker above the caves and other bunkers, the ruins, and above the waterfall. These all have there flaws though, the ruins have many passages, following a passage usually in return helps in finding a sniper looking the other way. If they player is playing with friends or a very tactical team, have one of them defend the sniper with a sub-machine gun or a rifle. The bunkers may seem protected but they are very vulnerable against a gun with a scope or a sight, since the views are very open. And if the player is storming a bunker, just come from the side that the sniper is not paying attention to if possible, chances are the sniper will not notice. The waterfall offers very little protection against any other fire. The downed plane near the Japanese spawn point is actually an excellent yet underused sniping position earlier on in the match, as the plane and the foliage will often prevent detection from enemy players. However, once the player is found, he/she will not have a good chance of escaping.
 * Run 'N Gun: Most people who run and gun usually use a submachine gun. They try to flank the snipers and/or anyone who is in their way by going either through the cliffside path, or the southern path. They barely ever go through the middle for snipers that are usually looking over the area. The run and gunners usually also get a lot of kills if they manage to flank out the snipers. Seeing as how the submachine gun is more effective at close range, the snipers are usually killed by the run and gunner. A run and gunner will be easily be stopped by putting a Bouncing Betty on the north cliffside and the southern passage. The run and gunners will usually not pay attention, and might get killed by the trap. If the run and gunner is not killed, then the person who put the trap will at least be noted of the person/people going through the passage, and the person will be more ready.Cliffside Map.jpg

Weapon Choice

 * Bolt Action Rifle: Use these weapons if the player wishes to snipe.
 * Rifle: Use these weapons if the player wishes to have a higher rate of fire than a bolt action rifle, with a higher accuracy than the submachine guns.
 * Submachine Guns: Use these weapons with run and gun tactics.

Team positions
Cliffside demands more skill in teamwork than most of the other maps, if the team does not work together, then the team will probably lose. Use a long range weapon to pick off enemies. Always stick together and the team come on top. The sniper and the machine gunner could create a trap or choke-hold along the middle or anywhere that has cover and can be surrounded on the map for example, the sniper could be on the side of the map where the artillery cannons are while the machine gunner can be in the bunker with the rifleman being in the shrine in the middle while the Medic stays with the machine gunner defending him in the bunker.

Sniper: Although it just said snipers do not get much success here, a really good sniper should be one here. Use a weapon that has high power and high accuracy, but it should able the sniper to not rely on his/her teammates too much for support. Rifleman: The rifleman should not work near a sniper because they would both be vulnerable at close ranges.

Medic: As the name suggests, use a submachine gun, but get something with a good chance at medium range and a high magazine size with good power. But this person should also be a medic to the soldiers because the most important members on the squad here would be using second chance.

Support man: This person needs a lot of ammunition and superiority in both close and long range combat. This person needs a weapon that can give good suppressive firing volume, but can work alone or with squad-mates.

Tactical locations and weapon choices

 * Near where the marines spawn at the beginning of a game in team deathmatch, there is sandbag cover. Most Wii players start racking up kills here by sniping the other side. Use any bolt action rifle or anything with a good sniping capability. The Japanese will never come over to this side because they know it spells danger.


 * In the cave entrance near the cliffside, there is a bunker above there that most people see as a key point as it has good sniping potential, but as the map gets older more people know that most snipers go there, so it is not a potentially good area to stay in. This is a great area for machine gunners as most people expect a sniper. Type 99, Browning .30 Cal, MG42 are the best weapons to use here. However, due to the lack of a roof, it's very easy to be killed if someone gets a grenade in there. Across the waterfall, there is an uphill trench-like structure. This place has the height advantage and has passageways to all the most important paces in the map. But at the same time, this area will spell hell for people defending it. There are five ways to get here also. Unless playing team deathmatch or hardcore/core team-based games, ignore this area. Note: this area is significantly easier to defend in the Wii version, but at the same time hard because there are a limit of four players on each team. Use any MG with a high rate or fire, or a sniper rifle.

Trivia

 * In spectator mode, in a bunker a very unsettling whisper can be heard. It appears to be the same whispering man when the player gets the Ray Gun on Little Resistance.
 * This map is modeled after "Blowtorch and Corkscrew" which is on Okinawa but if the player looks out at the ocean, he/she can see the same ships from Little Resistance which is on Peleliu Island, not Okinawa. Also, it appears to be midday with clear weather while in Blowtorch and Corkscrew is was in the evening during a rainstorm. It is possible that the ships seen off the coast of the map are there to provide artillery/rocket strikes to the Americans fighting on the cliff top. This would explain the destroyed bunker near the waterfall. Also, they could be part of the vast American invasion armada that was assembled for the invasion of Okinawa, and are currently offloading supplies onto the beach below.
 * It is possible to reach the tops of many tall rock formations throughout this map. This tactic is often exploited by snipers. However, it takes time to reach the top. In other words, one can occasionally find an enemy constantly jumping against a rock formation in an attempt to reach the top. This makes them easy targets.
 * There is significantly less foliage on the Wii version than on the other consoles, this is because the Wii cannot render the amount of polygons that the other consoles can.
 * The boats off of the coast of this map are identical to the ones in "Sub Pens", right down to their identification number, 78.
 * If the player is a Japanese Sniper, take advantage of all the plants, as he/she will be nearly impossible to see, granted a Ghillie Suit is being worn.
 * While in spectate mode if the player goes down to the beachhead and look around there are USN pouches in the water. There is also a barrel in the water. It will explode after two shots.
 * In spectator mode, if one goes into the water for a few seconds then comes back up, the screen will ripple as if the character was coming out of water.
 * Also in spectator mode, one can get a good sense in the size of this map. Go past the cliff, and onward passing the ships in the water. The end of the map will take the player out so far, looking back at the cliff is covered in fog and no longer visible.
 * Even though the setting takes place in Okinawa, the user plays as Marine Raiders. This is strange because they were disbanded in early 1944. This is probably because Treyarch did not want to make another faction with the same skins as Marine Raiders.
 * If using a Flamethrower, a player can incinerate the foliage throughout the map, but only in the Xbox, PS3 and PC versions, as the Wii cannot support this level of graphics.
 * The crashed Zero in the map looks as if it just landed there rather than crashing, much like the C130 from "Afghan".
 * Effects file of this level is mentioned in script of canceled Lagoon level, however, it is commented.
 * Near one of the bunkers, a wolf or a dog's howl can be heard.

Glitches

 * If the player gets on top of the rope on the edge of the cliff, one can see a puddle at the bottom. If the player jumps in the puddle, that player will not die and will sink into the map. The player can then walk around under the map and kill people, while they cannot kill them. (This glitch does not appear to work on the Xbox 360 version. Whether this is a matter of platform, or if the glitch has been fixed since release, is unknown.)
 * In the Wii version, players can phase through the windows in the western-most bunker (near the initial Japanese spawn point). This allows the player to hide in a deeper room of the bunker. There is a drawback to this; it is also the bunker in which the dogs spawn.
 * In the Wii version it is possible to slip beneath the map by jumping up and down on the crease of a large rock near the cliffside portion of the map. This glitch is very easy to do and often results in entire teams fighting underneath the map.
 * On the Wii version in the west part of the map, the player can get on top of a large rock and use this as a sniping spot, the drawback to being there is there is no cover and he/she is out in the open.