Our Call of Duty: Black Ops review is in the pipeline: we’re still gunning our way through the campaign and multiplayer before bringing you our full verdict on it. In the meantime though, we thought we’d see how the latest game in the hit series fared against the big game critics on the web. Read on for our Call of Duty: Black Ops review roundup.
Most big games blogs have awarded Call of Duty: Black Ops around the same score as Modern Warfare 2 achieved last year – and that more of the same ethic in the game is both a blessing and a curse.
IGN Call of Duty: Black Ops review score: 8.5/10
IGN was pleased with the control systems for Call of Duty: Black Ops – after all, if it’s not broke, don’t fix it – but found that the globe trotting, mind melting carnage came so fast that the game struggled “to focus on anything for long enough for any sense of coherence to emerge from the mire of screeching plot twists and the imminent threat of Soviet chemical warfare…It’s only when the game dares to stray outside of its own engrained habits that Black Ops fleetingly threatens to live up to its lofty billing.”
It did however heap praise on the new multiplayer options, particularly one new feature that makes venturing online much less daunting for new recruits to the series. “One of the best ideas of all, though, is the new Combat Training mode, which allows the uninitiated to indulge in a crash course before they take their skills out on to the often intimidating lair of real-world online battles. Only true masochists enjoys being cannon fodder for the elite, and Combat Training not only lets you get familiar with the lie of the land at a difficulty of your choice, but allows players to rank up independently of online play.” In other words, one of the most accessible titles in the series so far for first timers.
Kotaku Call of Duty: Black Ops review score: N/A
Kotaku’s Brian Crecente was impressed by the new multiplayer options in Call of Duty: Black Ops, particularly the ability to wager points you’ve earned on matches. But most praise was lavished on the immersive single player campaign.
“What it does best, through both narrative and gameplay, is tell a story. As the game progressed I found myself anticipating the cut-scenes as much as I did the tightly crafted levels…This is what video games should be, a confusion of interaction and story-telling, of graphics and camera movement, of play and parable.”
Joystiq Call of Duty: Black Ops review score: 4/5
Joystiq was much less interested in the high octane single player story, calling it “as uneven as it is thuggish”, but instead loved the straight multiplayer modes: “Headquarters, Domination, and all of the other Modern Warfare modes are implemented well and just as addictive and rewarding as ever.”
But the eagerly awaited zombie mode received thumbs down from the reviewer, who found that it felt “spliced in”. That’s hardly unexpected given that the rest of the game aims at some level of authenticity, but he writes that “the offerings were surprisingly limited” in this mode, and its separate place on the main menu only added to the feeling that it had been tacked on purely for the sake of zombies.
Giant Bomb
Call of Duty: Black Ops review score: 4/5
While other sites relished at least the multiplayer mode in Call of Duty: Black Ops, Giant Bomb is clearly growing weary of Activision’s franchise, and its review stresses that the same style of combat becomes a bit tiresome. It’s a case of “same game, new maps” in multiplayer. “Do you want to play more Call of Duty? I’m guessing the answer is yes, and by all means, Black Ops is worth playing…(it) should be enough to satisfy most fans of the franchise.”
Eurogamer
Call of Duty: Black Ops review score: 8/10
Like any seasoned Call of Duty vet, Eurogamer’s Tom Bramwell knows the drill by now. “The point is that you have to shoot a large number of people in the face to advance along a linear path while all hell breaks loose around you, and in this regard Black Ops is as good as expected…But while the campaign is little more than a very nicely decorated corridor, there are lots of fun things to do inside it.”
But Bramwell forgives the straight line missions of Call of Duty: Black Ops’ single player mode in light of its excellent multiplayer: “Black Ops’ great revelation, though, is Wager Matches, where you gamble COD Points in a series of free-for-all modes…the range of unlockable perks, killstreaks and modifications is staggering.”
Roundup
If there’s a common thread in these reviews, it’s that the single player campaign is enjoyable, if not groundbreaking. But the comprehensive nature of Call of Duty: Black Ops’ multiplayer modes – while excellent – could leave a legacy that future titles in the series struggle to overcome, if we’re going to be fed more of the same again next year. We’ll have our own Call of Duty: Black Ops review up for you soon, so you can find out for sure then.
UPDATE: Our own in depth Call of Duty: Black Ops review is live. See what we made of it!
