Today, after the Xbox Showcase, Activision followed up with a deep dive into the next entry of Call of Duty with the Black Ops 6 Direct. A wealth of information was shared from an in-depth look at the campaign, multiplayer, and “zombies” modes, with plenty of new details about each. To kick things off, Mark Gordon, Studio Head of Treyarch, was joined by dev team members for a “behind the scenes” look inside their respective studios to share what they’ve been working on. Black Ops 6 will launch on October 25th, 2024, on the Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5, PS4, and PC. In preparation for deployment, here are all the details shared at the Call of Duty Black Ops 6 Direct.
Black Ops 6 campaign first look
Black Ops 6 picks up where Black Ops Cold War left off, set in the early ’90s, the game captures a time of upheaval in world politics. It offers a fictional twist on real-world historical conflicts in line with the Black Ops tradition. This time, the backdrop of the games is the fall of the Soviet Union and the Gulf War. Developer Treyarch worked closely with Raven Software to produce a single-player experience with a blockbuster action movie feel. The plot line follows a shadowy force that has infiltrated the highest levels of the American government. In Black Ops 6, you’re faced with confronting the organization that moulded you into a formidable operative.
The story sees Veteran Frank Woods return to help your character, Troy Marshall, a promising new recruit. Woods and Marshall are forced to go rogue when an operation goes wrong. In the Direct, Raven Software shared its focus on adding more mission variety and new experiences across the campaign. From storming a palace in the Middle East to pulling off a heist at a casino, there is more to see and do in Black Ops 6. Along with greater mission variety, there will also be opportunities to talk, manipulate and barter your way into areas of various missions.
Greater enemy variety and combat experiences
Like more modern entries in the series, there will be multiple ways to achieve your primary objective. These include combat-heavy options or more stealthy approaches. Players will have more agency in how they go about completing their missions. Environments also look to have a larger contrast in both look and feel. In the Direct, developers showed off a heist in an opulent casino in Southern Europe and a firefight in the harsh tundra of Northern Russia. Along with this, Raven revealed that Black Ops 6 will feature one of the largest campaign maps ever created in the series for a mission that takes place in the desert. After seeing all of this, it is apparent there is a much wider variety of environments to experience. The team hopes this will add greater replayability and overall longevity to the campaign.
New gear and gadgets
If you enjoy the strategy and tactical advantage of spy gadgets, Black Ops 6 has more than its fair share. Series favourites like the remote-controlled car a.k.a RC-XD will return to the field. We also saw the tranquilizer trap, adrenaline stim, homing knife, and disruptor in action during the Direct.
The Black Ops 6 Safe House
The campaign will also feature an expanded hub called “The Safe House.” This concept has been greatly expanded from Black Ops: Cold War, offering players their own ocean-cliffside manner as their base of operations. The Safe House even has a backstory: it was a former KGB black site that is chock-full of secrets. This offers players many opportunities between missions to explore and discover upgrades and pieces of lore from the past. The evidence board will make its return and is the centrepiece of the space. Here, you can accept missions, review clues from previous playthroughs and more.
Action-hero gameplay mechanics
Developers have also refined player movement across all modes, from campaign to multiplayer. You can now sprint in any direction and seamlessly chain combat maneuvers like slide, dive, and supine prone with a full 360-degree range of movement. Treyarch calls this new range of motion “Omnimovement,” looking to give players more tactical flexibility on the battlefield. They also introduced “intelligent movement,” drastically reducing the number of key or button presses needed while moving across the battlefield. These can be enabled or disabled in the sprint, mantle, and crouch assist player options. It’s encouraging to see Treyarch add new levels of accessibility to the Call of Duty franchise. Each of these settings will also allow for fine-tuning and are not pre-set, so you can tweak things to your preferences.
Multiplayer overview
Miles Leslie, Associate Creative Director at Treyarch, explained what to expect in the online modes for Black Ops 6. For the multiplayer experience, there will 3 core playstyles at launch: enforcers, recon and strategists. Enforcers are slayers who like to kill and stay on the move, recon is all about intel and counter-intel play, and strategists are support players who play the objective. The weapons, gear and gadgets are all designed to support each of these playstyles. Theatre mode will also return, letting you relive your best moments from multiple angles. In terms of maps, Black Ops 6 will launch with 16 all-new multiplayer maps. 12 core, 6v6 and 4 strike maps, which can played as 6v6 or 2v2. Classic three-lane maps return to keep the action flowing with environments inspired by the campaign.
Black Ops 6 Prestige progression
The fan-favourite Traditional Prestige system is making its return in Black Ops 6. Players who reach the maximum player level can enter prestige, start fresh with new gear, and go through the levelling journey again. Black Ops 6 will have 10 Prestiges, each with valuable rewards to earn and equip to show off your status. Once you’ve made it through Prestige 10, you’ll also be able to undertake the massive feat of Prestige Master with 1000 additional levels to climb through and classified rewards to uncover. The full prestige system will be available “day one” in Black Ops 6.
Round-based Zombies mode returns
Before closing out the direct, Treyarch shared a few details on the round-based Zombies mode for Black Ops 6. The mode returns the Dark Aether story line and incorporates all the new mechanical features announced. Things like omnidirectional movement and customizable HUD options will help enhance gameplay. They also confirmed two brand-new maps, Liberty Falls and Terminus, which will be available at launch. These maps are designed to offer a blend of powerful weapons, upgrades, and a variety of enemies, all while hiding secrets waiting to be uncovered.
The road to launch and pre-order info
More information about Black Ops 6 is around the corner at Call of Duty Next event on August 28th. Activision is teasing a deeper dive into multiplayer and potentially a new look at Warzone. For now, that’s a wrap on the Call of Duty Black Ops 6 Direct; keep it locked on Best Buy Blog for more information and pre-order details.
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