To preface this, let me start off: I’ve always been a huge fan of the Call of Duty franchise. The beginning of my game experience with the Wii U – Call of Duty: Ghosts was the first ever FPS game I had played. My obsession with the series carried over to my Xbox console with Black Ops III and Modern Warfare. When I got my Steam Deck, the first thing I did was get WWIII and the original Call of Duty. My lifelong love for the game has been translated through several consoles, updates, and upheavals in my life.
But the newest Black Ops game? It easily tops the list with any of the other games from the series so far. The day it came out, I was lucky enough to get a response from Activision’s PR Company containing a copy of the game (and no, I won’t tell you that I squealed like a little girl getting a sparkling pony – that definitely didn’t happen). With the return of round-based Zombies, brand-new maps, and forgotten-yet-familiar faces, it’s no wonder that the game has managed to push Activision into over 500 million copies of the game franchise being sold worldwide on a range of different platforms.
Since this particular game has had the largest launch of Call of Duty history, let’s start with a little bit of background information. Deviating from their usual pattern, Activision sat on this game for roughly 4 years, choosing to focus on quality over speed in order to bring the best possible player experience. Set in the early 1990’s, Black Ops 6 takes place right after the end of the Cold War. It spans multiple areas, including Southern Europe, the tundra landscapes of Russia, and many more, all while bringing back faces like Russ Adler and Frank Woods. It features 16 brand new maps, 12 brand-new weapons, and brand-new Perk and Prestige systems.
As the game loads in, you’re greeted by an absolute banger – the brand-new menu soundtrack. The addition of the elements from minor keys into the major folds of the song adds a thrilling element of suspense and mystique, and the unresolved chords that continually play throughout the entire theme lead to a sense of build-up that invokes a strong desire to play the game through to completion. The shifting of the light across the face of the silhouette leads to a natural progression between the shifts between characters, and the semi-glitching hints at the fact that something is not quite as it seems.
The start of the first mission is a beautiful blend between character introduction and background information, naturally ending with the suddenness of the Call of Duty logo being slammed onto the screen. The logo fades away into the beginning of a mission report being given, and as the officer in charge (Livingston) asks for the briefing from the beginning, the sound of Marshall’s report gets overlayed into a flashback of the events in question.
The scene progresses into the player being in the back of an SUV, with the mission title “Bishop Takes Rook” flashing across the bottom corner of the screen. As the title fades away, the player is dropped directly into an action scene, relying on quick reactions and quicker instincts to survive the harsh situation. Throughout the game, players will navigate through diverse and meticulously crafted environments, from the bustling streets of Southern Europe to the frozen tundras of Russia. Each mission is designed to challenge your tactical skills and adaptability, with objectives that range from stealth infiltrations to all-out assaults. The campaign’s pacing is truly masterful, with seamless transitions between intense action sequences and quieter, more contemplative moments that deepen the storyline.
But the campaign is just one part of what makes Black Ops 6 shine. The Zombies mode, a staple of the franchise, is back and better than ever. As a purveyor of zombie games (Resident Evil: 2 Revelations being a personal favorite), I feel like the Call of Duty franchise has done zombies a good service, especially with the Black Ops chronicles. This game is no different. The Zombies expansion of BO6 moved back to round-based (and away from MWIII’s open-world layout), which is definitely a welcome change – to me, round based gives me that nostalgic sense of planning and adaptation, and more specifically the ability to get better and better every game due to pattern recognition.
In addition, Zombies introduced some new features to the series. For me, the most interesting of these is the ability to save solo games. As a gamer who’s more of a “game when I can” type player, rather than dedicating multiple hour-long chunks of time, the option to save my progress is huge. While it definitely does mean I’m less likely to learn the patterns (as I won’t be restarting every. single. time.), in my book, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Also, the addition of new NPCs and PCs (non-playable and playable characters) – new enemies (such as Vermin, Ghoulish Horrors, and Parasites) alongside new characters (Grigori Weaver, Kravchenko, and Stoney “Raptor One” Maddox spring to mind) makes for a familiar yet brand-new experience.
For overall gameplay, the game runs fantastically well. The shooting aspects of the game are clean and natural movements, and the TTK (time-to-kill) for the weapons is truly amazing. The revamping of the prestige system means that the replayability is almost endless, and the weapon camos make the game that much more fun. The addition of 16 new maps within the campaign setting is very interesting and allows the player to adapt their style of play accordingly, while the Safehouse offers up an expanded campaign manager that doubles-up as the alternative for the usual room-styled mission center seen in Black Ops 3.
Control-wise, the game is adaptable to any style of gamer. The default settings: the D-Pad (inventory, switching firing mode, in-game emotes, etc), the L/R joystick (movement and camera), ABXY (armor switching, item/in-game interactions, etc), and obviously the back triggers for aiming and shooting. The settings are relatively easy to follow and move between, being differentiated clearly between controller, gameplay, graphics, and more. It’s a very natural layout, which is ultimately intuitive and lends itself to easier game handling for new players.
My personal thoughts on the game so far: the framerate is well-defined, and yet doesn’t sacrifice the speed and smoothness of the game for the level of detail. Unlike other games, where there is a clear tradeoff between the detail and the naturalness of the gameplay, Black Ops 6 provides a much-needed lifelike experience. The soundtrack? I am absolutely obsessed with it. The minor accidentals included in the score, the teasingly slow buildup, the climax of the piece that carries through the game and mirrors the mental rush of the campaign’s climax – the combination of everything simply ties together beautifully, and fits within the constraints of the game itself. Not too much, not too little, but a perfect Goldilocks of a soundtrack. The settings are detailed enough as to give any player the most customizable gameplay, while not being so exhaustively comprehensive as that the player essentially handcrafts the game themself.
Overall, Black Ops 6 is a fantastic addition to the Call of Duty franchise, blending classic elements with innovative features. Set in the post-Cold War era, the campaign offers immersive storytelling and character development across varied locations. The return to round-based Zombies mode, with new maps, weapons, and enemies, provides a nostalgic yet fresh experience. Quality-of-life improvements like saving solo games enhance accessibility without sacrificing challenge. The intuitive controls and dynamic soundtrack further elevate gameplay, ensuring both seasoned players and newcomers enjoy a seamless, engaging experience. This game sets a new standard, making it a must-play in the series.
