Call of Duty: Black Ops – Review

The next installment of the Call of Duty is finally here after a long wait. Does Black Ops fill the boots of the other call of duty games, or does it fall flat on its face? There are some minor issues in the game, but that’s not to say that you won’t be blown away by it. In the Black Ops campaign you start as Alex Mason, a soldier who is being interrogated for information on numbers that are being broadcast that have something to do with a terror plot on the world.

The story is quite hard to follow at the start and you may not know what is going on. But near the middle and defiantly by the end you will understand what you have been doing this whole time. The campaign layout is relatively the same to the other Call of Duty game like modern warfare 2 where you shoot up the bad guys and complete objectives. However I found the campaign to be a lot more intuitive and fun.

The enemy’s intelligence has also improved. For example, in World at War the enemy would just stand in front of you and wait to be shot. But now if they are hit in the leg or see you coming the will run for the nearest cover. The campaign also lets you drive some vehicles like helicopters, motorbikes and boats which give the game a lot more interactivity instead of just hoping in the back seat and shooting a gun. You will also meet some friendly faces from previous call of duties. Overall I think Treyarch have built a well-rounded campaign with lots to do and unique characters.

Black Ops MultiPlayer

The part most people will be interested in, is the multiplayer. This is where I think Treyarch have really pulled it off. Creating the same addictive experience will some great new features.

The biggest update to the multiplayer has to be the introduction of CoD points. Instead of just unlocking weapons, perks and camouflage at certain levels, players have to buy them with these points which are earned by leveling up, completing contracts or winning in wager matches. Customization has also been something that has been on Treyarchs mind. Players can chose what their gun camo looks like, what their character looks like or even what their dot sight (reticle) looks like. Players can also customize their emblem allowing every player to be unique.

Wager matches are also a new feature in the game. The main element in these games is the CoD points. Before playing each player has to ‘buy in’ with CoD points. If you are in the top 3 player at the end you are ‘in the money’, if you aren’t in the top 3 you are ‘out of the money’. There are about 5 unique wager match game modes. But in my opinion the best ones are ‘One in the Chamber’ which focuses on accuracy and ‘Gun Game’ which focuses on your ability to utilize every weapon in the game. I have had some experience of extreme lag in wager matches and some disconnection problems which are quite a nuisance and spoil it for me sometimes.

With all this action going on in multi-player, you will certainly want people to see how awesome you are, right? Well Treyarch have done just that. Theater mode lets you playback entire games, from 3rd person and 1st person. It even lets you see other peoples load outs. I got a great kill on one in the chamber just before writing this. Here it is:

However, the stability of the online servers has been questioned since the release, there have been reports of people randomly disconnecting, huge lag spikes. When I leveled up to level 5 and went to create a class and made my character, but when I went on the next day I was level 3 and was unable to access create a class.

Zombies have also made their way back into Black Ops with 3 great new maps, new improved gore, lots of new weapons and even 3D. I have not yet to play in 3D but I have heard that it makes the frame rate drop quite a bit.

Black Ops certainly lives up to the addictive, quality game-play that the Call of Duty series is famous for. The campaign is of the best I’ve ever seen. And the multiplayer is just as amazing as the last if not more amazing. My only issue with the game is the buggy wager matches, which I’m sure, will be fixed. In all honesty, Black Ops is truly a gaming masterpiece and defiantly worth buying. It certainly fills the boots of its predecessor.