Call of Duty games have fully embraced the live service model despite being annual releases. With maps now released for free, the multiplayer portion of the recent games focuses on seasonal events, content updates, battlepasses, and a never ending offering of skins and premium cosmetics to purchase.
It didn’t always used to be like this, but back in the day you had to buy the additional maps and each release meant segmenting more and more people away from the base game. I’m not here to tell you whether Call of Duty was better back then, but I believe our rose-tinted spectacles tend to over simply what we are nostalgic for. But if nostalgia is what you’re after, the Black Ops 6 zombies and multiplayer offerings might scratch that itch for you.
Zombies mode is back to the classic round-based, spend money to buy doors type experience while still offering persistent unlocks between it and the competitive multiplayer. With two maps and unique character stories to experience, along with zombie specific unlocks, there is more than enough for you to sink your (probably not undead) teeth into.
I’ve never been a big Zombies guy. It’s just not the type of co-operative experience I’m looking for, I actually play very little co-op games in general. But my time with Zombies left me wishing I cared more about the mode and co-op gaming in general because what I played was enjoyable. The action is fun and fluid even when you layer on all the weird puzzles that Zombies is known for. I found the mode particularly helpful with testing out new gun loadouts and leveling up my gear.
Zombies lets you save your run mid-match during specific rounds which helps make it easier to take a break when playing solo. It’s a feature I never found particularly useful as I was kind of in the zone when the save option popped up but it’s nice to have for those that may need to end their gaming session at any moment. Overall, Zombies is more fun than I expected it to be and something I could see myself playing down the road. Even more than the regular competitive multiplayer.
After the campaign, my second favourite mode in Call of Duty games is usually the competitive multiplayer. I’ve never been a big Warzone guy but on a good year competitive COD can offer some great gaming moments. Overall I think Black Ops 6 offers an OK competitive mode, but knowing how much the game will be updated over time I can’t tell if my gripes with the game are intentional or something meant to be ironed out later.
I’ll get this out of the way and say that like with the campaign the Omnimovement system is not nearly as vital or as useful of a mechanic as it may have seemed during the initial reveal or during the preview cycle. In multiplayer you simply can’t run and jump in a flashy way without risking yourself getting shot and eliminated. Sliding is perhaps the most useful inclusion of Omnimovement, but that mechanic more or less feels like an improvement of the slide in past games.
The last couple of Modern Warfare games have emphasised a need to use tactical sprint in combination with weapon mounting to weave in and out of cover points in order to minimise exposure. Call of Duty is far from a cover-based shooter but weapon mounting has become quite common use and Black Ops 6 uses a similar system. Ultimately you may use Omnimovement to crouch or lay prone in various positions for a better vantage point but it has its limits. I found the diving just didn’t feel effective during high speed games of cat and mouse when you want to maintain speed without opening yourself up to too much gunfire. Maybe it’s the old habits from playing Modern Warfare III, but at least Omnimovement is slightly more useful in multiplayer compared to the campaign.
While on the topic of movement, or more specifically placement, I will say that some of the smaller maps in the game, specifically Warhead, Subsonic, and Babylon can feature some really awful spawn points. I can recall multiple instances where I was shot and killed only to respawn incredibly close to the line of fire from the same person that just killed me. In a world where many Call of Duty players love Nuketown and Shipment the inclusion of smaller maps isn’t surprising, but Call of Duty has had better designed small maps and spawn systems in the past. The game features 13 maps (14 with the now inclusion of ever so tired Nuketown) and with 4 of those maps being complete duds it’s hard to get excited about some of the potential modes and matches.
Black Ops 6’s back to basics approach to multiplayer also extends to its progression system. You’re still leveling up your character for more unlocks like perks, weapons, and scorestreaks, and you’re still leveling up your weapons for more camo skins and attachments. Black Ops 6 also allows you to save multiple versions of a gun separate from your custom loadout, which makes switching weapons without needing to switch your whole loadout much easier. This system could prove to be even more useful as more weapons and attachments are added to the game. Right now it isn’t a game changer for me as I don’t feel like there are too many weapons or attachments I feel like swapping out on the regular.
The system for unlocking new sights and attachments seems significantly more streamlined than in Modern Warfare III where you are sometimes required to complete additional challenges and use a variety of weapons just to unlock a specific attachment to a specific gun. If you’re a fan of the XM4 you can blast away until you have all the scopes and magazine attachments you want. Weapon specific challenges still exist that offer plenty of XP bonuses but at least you won’t have to worry about being locked out of potential attachments.
One of the big returns to form is the Prestige system. Prestige is no longer tied to seasons meaning you can grind away your player level to your heart’s content without worrying about FOMO. Upon hitting level 55 you have the ability to Prestige. The big bold new idea for prestige this year is more or less the old way of doing things. When you Prestige your unlocks reset and you start the climb to level 55 again.
There are 10 Prestige levels and then a final Prestige master level that is an additional 100 levels. While you will need to unlock a lot of your gear with every Prestige, the system does offer plenty of unique unlocks along the way. If you’re a serious Black Ops player focused on bragging rights, the Prestige system should keep you busy for a good while.
On paper, Black Ops 6 offers a compelling if familiar suite of multiplayer action, but in practice I just haven’t had as much fun as past games. The smaller maps are a real let down and I wish pulling off big Omnimovement inspired kills was a more effective way to compete. And while the back to basics approach will be welcoming for some, including myself, Black Ops 6’s progression system does require more repetition compared to last year’s Modern Warfare III. Casual players, or people jumping in because of Gamepass may stick with the multiplayer, but I still think the best mode this year is the campaign. I’ll be curious to see how Black Ops 6’s evolves over time, but for now I think the most compelling mode is Campaign, followed by Zombies, and then Multiplayer last.
You can also read the Call of Duty Black Ops 6 Campaign Review here.
