The gaming industry nowadays has its fair share of innovation. Between relaxing experiences, exciting Co-Op adventures, Triple AAA story driven games, and many more, there are multiple ways for one to enjoy video games as a hobby. However, in the competitive sphere, gaming has remained stagnant and similar. Video games with massive competitive followings have been pretty similar for quite some time now, as people will still watch various shooters, MOBAs, and fighting games. Among these games that have barely evolved in a competitive sense lies the famous, or perhaps infamous, “Call of Duty” series.
Some of my earliest gaming memories involved going to a friend’s or a relative’s house to play “Call of Duty: Black Ops Zombies”. Evear since then I have considered myself a fan of “Call of Duty”. From the classic games to loot boxes to battle royales to tactical sprints, I have played this series throughout most of my life. Nowadays, I consider “Call of Duty” my favorite series to love and hate. I don’t agree with a lot of the balancing issues and needless microtransactions, but you best believe I will be buying the game when it comes out.
“Call of Duty: Black Ops 6” is both familiar and “innovative”. The formula has barely changed since the release of “Modern Warfare (2019)”, with Infinity Ward, Treyarch, and Raven all trying to keep the mechanics of the series consistent. New cosmetics, maps, weapons, and slight changes to gameplay do little to hide the fact that these games are more like “full price DLC”. Alas, many people, including myself, buy these games every year, so I suppose the players are a part of the problem.
Before going into the content of “Black Ops 6”, there is a feature that certainly needs explaining. While the formula is mostly the same for Black Ops 6, there is something very interesting and fun about the game that I can’t believe the developers took this long to add: Omnimovement.
Now I want you to picture the classic first person shooter. You can move in every direction, but you can only sprint, slide, and do various other actions while moving forward, right? Well “Black Ops 6” shatters that formula with the omnimovement system. Players can sprint, dive, slide, in any direction they want, with the system even allowing players to aim and fire their weapons while diving. I’m not sure how in the hell these characters are moving so fast with all of that tactical gear on, but I really don’t care as long as I can do cool Max Payne stuff; besides, “Call of Duty” has never really been known for its realism. Overall, omnimovement brings a fresh feeling to the series’ movement and combat formula,
The multiplayer experience in “Call of Duty” is about the same from most games in the series, with new weapons and maps that allow players to take advantage of the omnimovement system. The Gulf War backdrop is interesting and provides a niche aesthetic that gives the game a slightly more modern feel. Still though, this game makes sure to remind you that it takes place over thirty years ago, containing various referencs to the nineties in all three modes. Cosmetics are both “grounded” and outrageous, with some outfits looking like normal soldiers and others skins that are literally a great white shark in a suit. I, personally, am all for creative expression and silly stuff in video games. Fortnite’s entire appeal was cosmetics, and that game has cemented itself in gaming history because of cosmetics and style, so I can’t blame other games for doing the same thing.
The campaign of Black Ops 6 is straightforward, with there being plenty of gunfights, espionage, and exploring. The story falls short with its player character, as little information and backstory is given, even at pivotal moments in the story. Other characters like Marshall and Sev steal the show more often than not. While the storytelling itself is not the greatest, most of the missions are fun and immersive; however, there are also missions that essentially take you out of reality for a moment and into a world of psychological horror and mystery; bioweapons, mind control, and other topics in these segments. Following the secret Pantheon Organization, these missions tap into the secretive tones and operations of the CIA during much of the 20th century and perhaps even today.
The worst part of the story is, as is often the case with recent games in the series, it all has to lead to “Warzone”, the series’ popular battle royale game mode. The occasional “Warzone” cutscene does nothing to improve the cliffhanger endings that have been in every recent “Call of Duty” campaign. Overall, however, the single player experience of Black Ops 6 is enjoyable enough to play through at least once.
As is often the case with “Call of Duty” games developed by Treyarch, zombies stands out as, in my opinion, the most enjoyable game mode. If you enjoyed the zombies mode in “Black Ops: Cold War”, then you will most likely enjoy this as well. The two current maps have lots of fun rewards and easter eggs to find.
“Call of Duty”: Black Ops 6 is the same old “Call of Duty” experience with a little bit of new charm. Thanks to the omnimovement system, players can do fun action hero stuff while fighting their way through new environments. If you are looking for a fun shooter to pass the time, I would say to pick this game up. However, if you expect that this is finally the time that the developers will make an innovative and unique product, then I recommend you sit this one out. Either way, games that are relatively basic by nature can still be fun, so don’t let anyone make fun of you for playing a game that’s popular, even if it is “bland.”
⅗ stars
