As massively popular as the Call of Duty series is, it also catches it's fair share of flak. It's no surprise since most popular things always have a small contingent of haters. CoD has become a verb that's used to describe the dumbing down of first-person shooters. The idea of level progression, kill streaks, and arcadey recoil is a symptom of mass-market design, an appeal to the lowest common denominator, and a concerted effort to lower the barrier of entry to all players young and old. But that's a story for another day, because today, we're talking about Black Ops.If you've played a Modern Warfare, you already know what you're getting into. The template hasn't changed much, other than making things bigger, badder, and more incomprehensible but that's part of the game's charm. The single-player campaign is once again a linear, straightforward, heavily-scripted shooting gallery with moments of spectacle sprinkled in to spice up a mundane and mechanically-repetitive experience.
Enemy AI consists of enemies standing behind cover and shooting at you. If you throw a grenade, they run away. Grenade spam has been considerably lessened from the enemy's side, which at least reduces the amount of cheap deaths you may receive. The level design is basically modeled after a funnel, forcing you to go down linear paths and proceed with a stop and pop style of gameplay. There's no Halo-like ingenuity to the combat system where you can take cover, flank, and otherwise employ real-world battle tactics. It's all rather rote and routine.
The Call of Duty series is always known for its spectacular sequences, and this is Black Ops' one saving grace. The sheer amount of crazy shit that happens on the screen is second to none in the gaming world. An assassination attempt on Fidel Castro, a daring escape from the gulags, and shooting your way out of a Vietnamese POW camp are just some of the wild scenarios you get to play through. It's a roller coaster ride packed to the brim with thrills and slow motion moments of pure carnage.
Black Ops has a decent story that I would say is a combination of Fight Club and the Manchurian Candidate. It's more grounded than its predecessors but doesn't leave too much of a lasting impression.
The multiplayer is vintage Call of Duty multiplayer. It rewards lone-wolf play in virtually all of its modes. The damage model reduces encounters to "whoever sees the other guy first wins." Killstreaks and boosters tack on a nonsensical layer of skill-buffers to lower the gap between plebeians and aristocrats. The zombie mode makes a return with new gamey additions to flesh out the experience.
So which segment of the population do I belong to? Consider me a hater. I actually enjoy CoD's SP campaigns but they're only good for one run. The multiplayer is a wash since the damage model doesn't give me any chance to employ crazy last-ditch tactics like I could in other games such as Battlefield: Bad Company 2. With killstreaks encouraging camping tactics, CoD is just not my cup of tea.
If you're a fan of CoD, you're a fan of CoD. My review won't do anything to change your mind, so have fun and shoot away!
