Call of Duty: Black Ops Review!

Publisher: Activision
Developer: Treyarch
# of players: 1 player, 18 online
Platforms: PS3 360 Wii PC DS
Genre: Action, Shooter
Release Date: Nov 9, 2010
ESRB: M-Mature

Mean As Hell Rating
10/10

Was there ever any doubt?! Did you think for even one iota of a minute that COD: Black Ops would not delivery?! COD is a franchise that hits the mark with unparalleled accuracy with each new entry. This is a series that has set the bar pretty high; a sure tough act to follow. I mean ask yourself; what have you come to expect from COD games? The attention holding campaign is filled to the rim with exciting varied gameplay and sweats with high level intrigue and depth. The amazing multiplayer hypes some stimulating new details, and the new combat mode has finally paved the way for rookie gamers to enjoy the ambitious action without being bomb rushed by veteran gamers. This is without a doubt one of the best shooters this year!

Now sometimes I can be nostalgic so you'll have to forgive me... but I remember when Call of Duty first arrived on the scene back in 2003. The standard for first person WWII shooters was set. But it was quickly becoming bombarded like a bunker with more WWII shooters for everybody and their mother. Then someone wised up and decided that it was time for Call of Duty 4 to head into the modern day and a top selling star franchise was born. After that we had World at War; a solid game but almost seemed like an afterthought, most recall it for the Nazi zombies more than anything else. And then there was Modern Warfare 2, very controversial for sure, but mostly due to the "No Russian" level, afterwards for it's infamous glitches, cheaters galore and late patches. Then with most of Infinity Ward casting off, there was the question if any of us would ever see a Modern Warfare 3 and what was in store for the series as a whole.

That was the bad news. Black Ops is just as incredible and shows the elevation of Treyarch's chapter into this era. The game succeeds on two levels; pushing the the time period several years ahead into the time of Kennedy and the Cuban Missile Crisis while acknowledging that everyone wants to shoot each other in the present, I guess the multiplayer is nostalgic also. The single player campaign has you as an elite covert operative during the Cold War; you end up bouncing to hot spots like Cuba, Russia, and Vietnam.  Each time you're out in the field is a past memory, and each memory slowly but surely builds up while the interrogation cutscenes puts each piece of the fractured jigsaw puzzle into place. You've seen it before but the action is still very good and most of the characters are strong and the story has enough polish of intrigue to keep you going. With that being said, the single player is more comprehensive, duration aware, campaign then most have seen from the series in quite some time.

Now I must admit that I haven't had as much time as I wanted to really play the multiplayer as needed with the general online game population. I mean Black Ops never had a public beta right? But with all the improvements to the multiplayer it is really not a big deal. Forget about what you know from Modern Warfare 2, it is obsolete. It really has everything you need and is balanced for both hardcore and casual gamers alike. The really hardcore fans will come to grips that a lot of features from MW2 did not make it to Black Ops. The one man army perk, nuke kill streak, stopping power, and dual wielded shotguns are not in Black Ops, but who is really going to complain about it.

One of the things that is not present and will be missed (by me) is riot shield. Man I used to love killing people who used that thing... but it would seem that Treyarch is really trying to keep the game balanced this time around. Another thing that became obvious is that a lot of perks have been renamed and assigned to different loadouts and slots to hinder player abusing perks that work in unison too well. As an adjustment to newer players, most perks, special equipments and attachments are available to buy ASAP.Play multiplayer a few times and you'll have enough points to get anything you need. Guns are unlocked as level up just like always, but there is no more discouraging post prestige rounds. The pick up and play aspect of the game is more user friendly.

At it's core; this is still the superb Call of Duty action players have been enjoying for the past 7yr. There really is no wrong way to play it, and there are a ton of modes that can feed the hunger you didn't even know you had for this solid shooter. On top of having pre-existing modes like Domination, TDM, and Barebones, you can now give Wager Matches, Combat Training, and a very deep version of private matches. Wager Matches are pretty much exactly what they sound like, you can buy in for little to nothing or a large amount of money depending on how good you may or may not be. The top 3 players of each round share the pot. There are no more knives only private clan matches on the honor system. You can actually enforce your own game restrictions with other players over servers. One of my favorites (and probably everyone else) is the human vs. zombie theme. I think something like that is an another game... whatever.

I found Call of Duty: Black Ops to be an awesome game. The new modes and sweet mechanics are like icing on an already delicious cake. The competitive multiplayer and the compelling new campaign really help mold it as one the best shooters ever. There is so much more to the multiplayer let alone the single player that if you're trying to get all the trophies or achievements... lets just say your time will be well spent. Call of Duty: Black Ops went above and beyond the "Call of Duty" by delivering one of the most incredible new shooters you'll see this year. Enjoy; I am!