well, if you ask me the game looks alright, and certainly runs nice on most computers. If it had high end graphics + 50 swarming zombies it would lag like a ***** on even 'high end computers'.
That, and they're not using the css engine entirely. They are using the updated source engine that was used in orange box. Yes it's old, but that's not to say it looks dated. Matter of opinion I guess.
Valve is gonna make an epic engine for half life 3 (that is if they ever make it)
One can only hope...
Oh and personally, my fave game of 2008 would have to be GTA4 PC (Gonna be released December 2/3). Second would have to be left 4 dead, or far cry 2 (yes I personally loved far cry 2).
I'm yet to play COD WAW, but the beta was cool