This is a revision in progress. We will update it with our thoughts as we play more Call of Duty: Black Ops 4.
Call of Duty is changing.
The newest game in the series, Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 – or Blops 4, for short – gets rid of the single-player campaign based on the narrative in favor of modern mode Multiplayer battle called "Blackout", where 88 players are eliminated from each other to become the last player standing.
Add Battle Royale feels like a natural progression for the franchise, since its enormous popularity is always due to the multiplayer. Still, it's a big change. Real battle in, the campaign is out, which means that Call of Duty is now an exclusively multiplayer experience (not counting the tutoring levels, of course).
That may leave super fans wondering if Black Ops 4 still feels like Call of Duty . After spending some time playing the main competitive modes of the series, including Hardpoint, Control and Domination, we can confirm that even so the fans of the game have returned year after year. Black Ops 4 shows a renewed commitment to the team-based game, imbued by Overwatch classes of hero characters, and some other new bells and whistles. However, the core, the quickdraw loop of stroke and shot remains in the center of the heart of the game. Even in Blackout, the weapon game is not sacrificed, providing an experience that feels like a perfect marriage between Call of Duty and PlayerUnknown & # 39; s Battlegrounds .
Duplicating tactics
Most retouching to Black Ops 4 feels like a natural evolution of some of the latter Call of Duty games, particularly Black Ops 3 and World War II . The system of "specialists" based on the class of Black Ops 3 returns, only this time the 10 specialists not only have a specific set of skills, but also a name and a face. Each one has a unique pair of special abilities geared towards playing a role in the team. Torque, an expert in red sports lamb defense, has a "barricade" shield that creates a cover on the fly, as well as a razor wire that damages enemies and slows them down. When you join other players and use the skills of the specialists together, you can create distinctive strategies to clean a building or keep your team alive.
The most interesting addition is an emphasis on characters and support skills, rather than pure offense and coverage-based options. Firebreak, which uses what looks like an armored suit of hazardous materials, can set up a device that damages anyone who enters its gaseous radioactive radio, preventing players from remaining in sniper nests or capture zones. There is even a healer, Crash, who can repair other characters or "improve" their health. There is no role that tilts so strongly in a non-combat direction that you can succeed without a good goal and quick reflexes, however, the classes push players to be more creative and think tactically. What is the point? The developers said the same on stage during the revealing event Black Ops 4 .
You still need to see them before they see you.
Of course, that's assuming you decide to use them. The Black Ops 4 games retain their same basic form. Each of the three levels we played presented the classic design of a map, called labyrinth Call of Duty . No special ability is so powerful that it can prevent a fast player that pulls the trigger quickly from turning in a corner and making you jump in the head before you have time to think.
In fact, Black Ops 4 takes new steps to make sure that being quick in the draw is always rewarded. Unlike the previous games, now you can fire your weapon even as you throw grenades, keep covered or perform other mechanics that would normally suspend your ability to fire for a second or two. This makes it less likely that they will catch you without being able to defend themselves, but you still need to see them before they see you.
What else is new?
From there, adjustments and changes become more technical. For the second year in a row, the healing has changed drastically, in relation to Call of Duty at least. Instead of regenerating health when out of combat, each player can heal every 10 seconds (more or less) with a health package. As with the new kinds of specialists, forcing players to think about when and why they heal seems to encourage a little more awareness of the situation. This change is welcome, as it contributes to a more cerebral experience rather than coinciding with the muscle memory that Call of Duty often converts into.
Black Ops 4 see the return of the system "pick 10" of the series, which allows you to configure your weapons, grenades and other equipment as you wish. Each weapon has a unique range of accessories. Attachments are standard fee: perforating bullets, fast recharge chargers, suppressors that reduce the amount of noise your weapon makes, but that does not make them any less important. When combined with character classes, there is an incentive to think about how your weapon affects the strategy you (and your team) will use to achieve your goal. It is also a serious pornography that, if you like that kind of thing, you will salivate. There's a lot to customize here.
Everything you love (or hate) is still intact.
However, none of these changes is so immense that it alters the fundamental DNA of . of Duty . Everything you love (or hate) is still intact. Tactics permeated by specialist classes and more nuanced nuances will only affect players who choose to participate with them.
For players who do not, and after playing Call of Duty online with random players for years, we imagine that most will not – The multiplayer of Black Ops 4 is a business as always. It is fast, frantic and relentless.
Stay tuned while we continue testing the different multiplayer modes. Treyarch included a ton of content in this year's game, and we can not wait to dive deeper into it.