(Image courtesy of IGN.) “Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 debuted to positive opinions.”
James Guiry
Connector Staff
Call of Duty Black Ops 6, 20th installment of the Call of Duty games and the 6th game in the Black Ops series, has finally been released and it has been garnering good reviews from IGN, Google, GameSpot, and more. The game features multiplayer, zombies, warzone, and campaign modes.
The campaign takes place in an alternate reality. In 1991, in the middle of Operation Desert Storm, CIA operatives are tasked with extracting the Iraqi Minister of Defense, Saeed Alawi. Alawi informs the operatives that there is a paramilitary group after him. Alawi is killed and the CIA operatives responsible for the extraction are suspended. The operatives decide to investigate the group on their own. More trouble ensues leading to a captivating storyline. Forbes said “the cutscenes are masterfully crafted.” The campaign adds real historical figures such as Bill Clinton and Saddam Hussein adding a layer of realism to the fictionalized story. Overall, the campaign has been well received.
The multiplayer is a pretty standard Call of Duty multiplayer mode. There are nine game modes to choose from including Team Deathmatch, Hardpoint, Search and Destroy, and more, with “hardcore” versions of some of these modes. There are also featured game modes that include a special type of gameplay, like Infected and Gunfight, or modes which feature a single map such as Nuketown 24/7. This is the first Call of Duty game to add “omni-movement,” or the ability to sprint in every direction. This gives players the ability to do more with diving, sliding, and crawling. It adds a 360-degree range of motion in the prone position. This leads to the movements looking more realistic, which is a focus of this game. The movement has really stepped up from past Call of Duty games.
Unlike the last two installments in the Call of Duty franchise, this game includes the beloved zombies game mode. This game mode has players team up with one to three other people or fight alone against waves of zombies. The zombies get harder and harder to defeat as the rounds go on, and the game doesn’t end until all four players are down at once or choose to extract. This game also adds “elite” zombies which are harder to kill and show up at random times throughout higher rounds. The standard perks are included plus a few new ones. They added the ability to split doors and play half and half with a teammate, a satisfying change which makes progression a lot less frustrating.
The game is visually appealing; however, it is not very different from previous entries when everything is said and done. Activision is clearly focused on the microtransactions with the “Vault Edition Upgrade.” It is a lot like other Call of Duty games in the past, and fans feel as if after the many years of Call of Duty games, Activision could stand to innovate a little more. Ultimately, Black Ops 6 is a satisfying entry to a storied FPS series. It is available for $69.99 on all platforms, or free with Xbox Game Pass.
Grade: B-
