Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 Review

Review Overview

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Rating

Earlier this week, Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 was released world-wide for Xbox 360, PS3, and the Wii U. In attempts to make Call of Duty seem new and fresh again, Treyarch made some gutsy changes to what we’ve known for the past few years. The series has been harshly criticized for being the same game every year, and not keeping up with other shooters like Battlefield 3. The gaming community wanted a drastic overhaul in Call of Duty, and that’s what Treyarch did in their latest game, Black Ops 2. Let’s take an in-depth look at this game, as it is packed with content.

Let’s start with the campaign. Call of Duty campaigns have never been the series’ strongpoint, the campaigns in the last three games have had a mediocre story, and repetitive gameplay. In this latest COD game, Treyarch made sure this was the most interactive, most captivating campaign ever. The story is great, even though it’s a tad bit cliche, it grabs you emotionally, something it’s predecessors failed to do. Treyarch made the story very unique by making a different experience for each player depending on the decisions they make in game. Not everyone will get the same campaign experience. Although the story is easily one of the best yet, it still feels like the same old thing. I personally haven’t finished the campaign, however it seems like Treyarch relied on the story to carry it. There’s little things in this game’s campaign that left me puzzled. For example, in one mission your character was to ride on the side of a car while shooting a gun. The character was holding on to the car with one hand, however when I was reloading, the character was reloading with both hands. Although this may not seem like a big deal, you may notice occurrences such as these that are unrealistic and somewhat puzzling. All-in-all, the campaign is decent, however it heavily relies on the story to carry it through, while gameplay left a bit to be desired. The campaign’s story is great, but there’s no guarantees that you’ll want to finish it.

Alright, let’s jump in to multiplayer. Multiplayer is what make or breaks any FPS. Black Ops 2 is the most re-designed COD game we’ve ever seen. The first thing you’ll notice when playing multiplayer is that the game runs much smoother than the previous games. Everything is crisp, and looks sleek. The game’s sound is no exception, everything from bullets, to explosions sounds almost real. Once you get past how the game looks and sounds, you’ll focus on the gameplay. Public matches are fast-paced and hectic. This can either be a really good thing or a really bad thing depending on the player. There’s is so many things in this game that can kill you, and at times it’s hard to keep up with. The best way I can explain Black Ops 2 multiplayer is this; The game appears to be designed for the skilled player. If you’re really good at COD, you’ll do well and really enjoy this game. If you’re a below average player, you’ll be scratching your head, and extremely frustrated. The new pick 10 system for creating classes gives player ultimate control over how they want to play, which is something that’s definitely refreshing. But as I said, multiplayer is extremely fast paced, and hectic. You’ll either love multiplayer or hate it.

Zombies has always been what Treyarch games are known for. Every since the days of World at War, Zombies mode has been that tongue and cheek game type you play with friends to have a fun time. In Black Ops 2, Zombies are no exception. The main addition to Zombies is Tranzit, allowing the players to travel on a bus to different locations in the zombie world. It plays great, and is a ton of fun. I can’t wait to see what Zombie maps will be released in upcoming DLC drops.

Ok, Black Ops 2 won’t be the game of the year, and it probably won’t go down as the best COD game. However for $60, you’re getting a campaign with a pretty good story, somewhat addictive multiplayer, and Zombies. There’s no guarantees that you’ll like this game, but it’s definitely a solid pick up.

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Luis Alamilla

Luis Alamilla is a Nintendo gamer at heart. His first game system was the Nintendo 64 that his parents bought him back in 1999 that he continues to play now. His favorite game series is the Kingdom Hearts series. He loves Super Smash Brothers (as it was his first game as well) and loves to throw down some brawl matches here and there.