The best Call of Duty in the last three years, maybe even better than Modern Warfare 2019!.
Yes, the team will hate me, but I've always been unbiased towards the Black Ops sequels.
Okay, the game has been critically well received, but it has a user score of 2.3 at this moment, but I will just say one thing:
I consider this sequel a masterpiece, in fact, if you loved Cold War, you will adore this sequel. I know it came out almost 2 months ago, but I invested 90 hours to give you an honest review and cover all three essential aspects: Campaign, Multiplayer, and Zombie mode.
Campaign
There will be people who may not agree with me, there will be people who will hate me, but this is the best executed COD campaign.
The campaign in Black Ops 6 sets new standards for the series, and perhaps for the FPS campaign genre as a whole. Each mission brings something unique and different, stepping out of the "pure shooting" framework that often prevails in this genre. Although it may not be clear in the first mission, the second one showcases the true quality of this story.
The diversity of missions is what makes the campaign truly special. Classic linear action-packed paths alternate with missions that introduce open-world elements, all balanced so that you never feel monotony.
For example, one mission set in an urban environment forces you to infiltrate a secret complex using stealth and gadgets, but you can complete the mission in 3 ways, and later it totally twists a few times. The first part must be full stealth, use your imagination, and it reminds you of the mission in the KGB headquarters in Cold War. Later, you can choose whether to go guns blazing or stealth.
I tried all the options and it's top-notch!
There is also experimentation with verticality and the environment. In one mission, you climb high buildings while fighting enemies in helicopters, while in another you use underground tunnels to avoid enemy patrols. You often switch characters, and at one point you play in a casino, and shortly after you switch to a character in the sewers who is simultaneously carrying out a mission.
The best example of innovation is the open-world mission that comes in the middle of the game. Although a risky move for the series, it works perfectly and is truly open world, not the bullshit that Modern Warfare 3 (hereinafter referred to as MW3) tried to sell us.
You can explore the area, search for hidden resources, and decide in what order you want to complete the objectives.
The introduction of new equipment significantly contributes to the freshness of gameplay. The "homing knife" stands out, a knife that automatically tracks its target after being thrown. It's incredibly unrealistic, but it's awesome. I loved it.
Additionally, the ability to upgrade equipment and characters through the safehouse system adds a layer of strategy and personalization, allowing Case (the main character you play as) to become a brutal killing machine.
Especially in that one mission in the middle of the game that is one of the best ever.
One of the brightest aspects of the campaign is the characters. The Black Ops characters have always been top-notch, so you can expect the return of legends like Woods, giving the game that feeling of being at home, but something that will disappoint you is the return of Adler, which confirms the end of the last installment.
Rest in peace, Bell.
The new characters are also impressively written. Each of them – whether it's Sev, the geeky pacifist German Felix, the impulsive Marshall, or Harrow – brings something different to the team dynamic.
We have dialogues between missions, Woods is extra grumpy because this is chronologically after Black Ops 2 and quite a bit after the Cold War, so don't expect Mason.
Woods once again dominates the screen, and his character finally gets the depth he deserves. His struggles with trauma and physical limitations after Panama are emotionally powerful, especially in the scenes in the safehouse where he tries to carry a TV, refuses help, and then reveals his frustrations related to his disability.
Another plus is the mention of David Mason, which confirms that he is canon!
Adler is still the "cool CIA operative" with enough charisma and those badass one-liners. I won't spoil the new characters, except for the main character.
The main problem of the campaign is its inconsistency. An example of this is Case, the voiceless protagonist, whose background is hinted at in that mission in the middle of the game, but none of it gets resolution.
I don't know, by the end of the story, I felt like nothing was said, even though up to that point the story had been brilliant.
At least they didn't shoot Soap in the head and end the campaign.
Similarly, the return to Vorkuta, the legendary location from Black Ops 1, feels like a missed opportunity. The game relies on nostalgia but doesn't provide new information or build on the story related to Dragovich and Steiner's experiments. Vorkuta is just a "cool location," without deeper meaning. They could have replaced it with any other Russian facility and nothing would have changed.
Unlike earlier titles, the campaign lasts an impressive 9 hours, which is even 3 times longer than MW3!!!
I hope I've emphasized the sarcasm enough. I'm saying this assuming you explore all the hidden content, participate in dialogues in the safehouse, and solve puzzles. Compared to the disasters of MW3 and Vanguard, this is a complex and incredibly long campaign.
Multiplayer
Well, multiplayer is a bit of a mess, but luckily just a bit! People are bothered by the maps, some of them are actually brilliant to me, while others are a chaotic mess like Shipment.
The biggest problem lies in the fact that many aspects of the game feel like they were made halfway, without deeper consideration of how they will fit into the overall experience.
First, the maps are a mix of brilliant and absolutely irritating design. You have a few locations that offer diverse combat options, like some snowy base whose name I forgot, but it's cool, where the combination of narrow corridors and open spaces brings dynamic matches.
However, the rest of the maps, especially those relying on chaos in the style of Shipment, too often end up being frustrating. Battles boil down to continuous dying and respawning in the same firefight, which can be fun for a few rounds, but feels tiresome in the long run.
Especially since you often die from invisible bullets or spawn dead.
The new movement mechanic, Omnimovement, was supposed to bring freshness to the gameplay, but it doesn't really change much.
Although the ability to move in all directions and dive sounds interesting when you hear about it, in practice it often feels like an unnecessary addition because what living being realistically moves like that. Most players still stick to classic sprinting and sliding because it's more effective, especially since now you can slide-sprint faster than Usain Bolt.
One of the biggest problems is hit registration, or TTK.
Inconsistent hit registration can ruin any match – there's nothing more frustrating than a situation where you're sure you hit the opponent, but the game just decides otherwise. TTK is also confusing; sometimes you can take down an enemy in a split second, while other times you empty an entire magazine and nothing happens. This not only disrupts game balance, but it's not enough to just git gud, you also need to have some luck.
The arsenal of weapons is another painful point. Although the customization is simplified compared to previous installments, the weapon selection feels incredibly monotonous. I've never been less excited to have a VSS Val, which is one of my favorite weapons ever.
Most rifles feel almost identical, which removes the motivation to experiment and test different play styles. And a good portion doesn't have their real names, which is a bit depressing.
There are also problems with technical performance. Lag spikes and connection interruptions occur occasionally, and the servers seem unprepared for the load. I thought it was a problem with my internet, but other games were running fine.
In modes like Extraction, where the intensity of the game demands stability, this becomes even more irritating. Treyarch has definitely done this before with Call of Duty, so it's hard to understand why such basic issues still arise.
Multiplayer is the worst part of the game, but to be honest, I'm having a brutal amount of fun, and I have to praise that I've never played better on a joystick than here; that part is incredibly fluid.
Zombies
Top, top, top.
I'm glad I don't have to criticize this part of the game.
Have you ever wondered how we got to this?
Not in the sense of "how did the universe come to be," but specifically "how did a simple co-op survival mode from a game that showcased quotes about the horrors of war when you die become this?"
Sixteen years ago, Nazi Zombies in World at War were a dark and creepy experiment. Today, the zombies in Black Ops 6 are more Dead Rising, but with seriously fun mechanics, great maps, and hilarious weapons.
I don't mean this negatively; it's simply brilliant!
The zombie mode even brings surprises! In Black Ops 6, it introduces two completely new maps: Terminus and Liberty Falls. Terminus is a former prison complex turned bio-research station. It has a claustrophobic design that forces you to constantly move through narrow hallways while defending generators and opening new paths.
On the other hand, Liberty Falls is a quaint American town in West Virginia, perfect for fans of more open maps. Traveling on ziplines from roof to roof while being chased by zombies is something I would love to try in real life, but since I'm overweight, I'd probably be one slow zombie.
Both maps have rich stories that tie into Black Ops Cold War. If you've forgotten what happened in the last four years, don't worry – the game is clearly not meant to catch you up on the details. I always check on YouTube because honestly, I've been lost for a while.
The biggest change in Black Ops 6 zombies is the introduction of Omnimovement.
Yep, we got zombiemovement too.
Now you can sprint, slide, and dive in all directions, even perform moves like sprinting backward while mowing down hordes of zombies. The only downside is that it doesn't have much use in later rounds.
Absurd weapons are the pinnacle of fun. Wonder Weapons that literally create wormholes that suck in zombies, and the classic Pack-a-Punch that gives every weapon a completely new dimension.
Even the puzzles you solve for those weapons are incredibly fun, but I really don't want to spoil anything.
The zombie mode brings back round-based gameplay.
Each map has its main objective – the so-called Main Quest – and a bunch of smaller Easter Eggs.
You can solve puzzles like finding bowling balls in Liberty Falls and organizing zombie bowling, or shoot at a hidden object on top of the church to trigger a rain of resources along with the song It’s Raining Men. These little things are brilliant, funny, and provide endless fun for the game.
However, the main quests are lengthy. Completing one map can take up to three hours, which means you need a well-coordinated team, a few free hours, and a lot of patience. Dying near the end can be brutally demoralizing – not because you lost, but because you know how long it will take to go through everything again.
I play with a random team and regret it every day, but it's fun!
Of course, not everything can be perfect. There are a few annoying bugs, like the inability to interact with key objects, or issues with weapons not working as they should.
As for the dialogue during battles, characters often talk too much, and the humor is often off. Listening to someone "boil with rage" is cringe, but thankfully it can be turned off.
Final Impression
Black Ops 6 may not be a perfect game – the multiplayer has its issues, and the campaign sometimes feels unfinished – but that doesn't diminish the fact that this is one of the best Call of Duty titles in recent years. The zombie mode shines, the campaign sets new standards, and the multiplayer, although annoying, still offers hours of fun. If you love the Black Ops series, this is the game for you. If you love Call of Duty, it's time to play a good one again.
