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CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS XBOX 360 REVIEW |
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Call of
Duty: Black Ops is the third unnumbered entry in
the CoD series, and the third developed by
Treyarch. It also happens to be the best in the
series, besting Infinity Ward’s attempts at both
singleplayer and multiplayer. Treyarch takes CoD
to the next level by shifting the focus in
storytelling from war to covert operations. Set
during the Cold War and Vietnam War, the plot
revolves around Alex Mason, held captive in an
interrogation room. The story in Black Ops is
advanced by Mason’s flashbacks, and takes us all
over East Asia. Players of previous CoDs will
also find a few surprises in store here. At
first glance, the campaign in Black Ops plays
out just like its predecessors: full of non-stop
shooting and intense action. Treyarch breaks
this repetitive (but mostly fun) cycle by
sprinkling quite a few twists and introducing
new mechanics, along with the intense scripted
sequences that CoD is known for.
The pacing is nothing but fantastic, dotted
throughout are suspenseful scenes or
calmer-than-usual moments of exploration.
Zombies makes a welcome return, although only
two maps are included on the disc (one is
unlocked by default). The gameplay in Zombies is
nearly identical to the over-the-top World at
War downloadable content, featuring weapon
upgrades and auto-revives. An aspect that’s been
toned down, however, is multiplayer. This is not
to say it’s disappointing or any worse than
previous titles; in fact, this is the best
multiplayer the series has ever seen. Players of
Modern Warfare 2 know about the issues present
in the multiplayer of the game: chopper gunners
are too effective, spawn system is awkward,
boosters cheat their way to ridiculous XP
margin, etc. Treyarch has knocked out many of
these MW2 imbalances by introducing new gameplay
mechanics instead of relying on tweaks. |
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PRODUCT
OVERALL RATING: 9.5 OUT OF 10 |
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One of the
latest step ups for the console versions include
a Halo-like split-screen for online play. On the
PC side of things, you can expect to be
reacquainted with the "server browser". Items
are no longer earned from leveling up; they are now made available for purchase by leveling
up, and are bought by in-game cash accrued from
playing online. All perks are available for
purchase from the beginning of the game, and the
interaction between equipment and perks has been
completely balanced. Multiplayer is much more
fun to play as a result. Instead of working
endlessly to get that grenade launcher kill to
unlock the Masterkey attachment, players can
just purchase it outright, making the game much
more accessible from the very start. Content is
no longer exclusive to the players who have the
most amount of time on their hands. Another
contributor to the overall fun factor are the
new challenge types, Contracts. Contracts are
missions or challenges players can buy, and upon
completion returns a large sum of cash.
Wager Matches are another addition revolving
around the in-game economy: they’re matches with
bizarre rules, where other players’ money is on
the line. These new features add a new level of
play to the game, and make it that much more
fun. Graphically, Black Ops stands out in many
regards. The 360 version of the game is
beautiful, and is visually superior to the PS3
version, utilizing a much prettier version of
their HDR shaders and bests the PS3 version with
what looks like higher resolution textures.
Moreover, the framerate takes an occasional hit
on the PS3, as well as several annoying visual
bugs happening. (I’m a victim of Black Ops
locking up my PS3, actually.) In the sound
department, the audio portion is superb, but
lacks oomph when it needs it, specifically in
important cutscenes, where tinny sound effects
ruin what would have been otherwise be epic
moments. There are also audio-related bugs, such
as certain guns not playing their native tunes
when fired (a problem that doesn’t disappear for
an entire campaign level). Despite this
technicalities, Black Ops is the best Call of
Duty to date, hands down! Treyarch reminds us of
their expertise in balanced multiplayer and
well-crafted and paced singleplayer. On any
platform it’s played, Black Ops is a great game. |
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