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Call of Duty: Black Ops 2

Black Ops 2: The Essentials

With the first trailer, screens, and info drops hammering the net, it's easy to get lost in the barrage of details for the newest Call of Duty. Here we outline everything you need to know about Treyarch's return to warfare.

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The Essentials

1. The game's a direct sequel to the original Black Ops, and features characters from the original - namely Alex Mason, and Frank Woods.

2. It's set across different time periods: the mid-80s and near-future 2025.

3. Gameplay in the two different time periods is split between Alex and his son David, with an elderly Frank Woods in 2025 serving as narrative device for flashbacks.

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4. The main villain is one Raul Menendez, and his role somehow ties into China and America's war over rare earth minerals.

5. 2025's battlefield will echo the likes of Ghost Recon with unmanned drones and devices entering the fray - and it's control over these machines of war that drives the story's main conflict.

6. There'll be a multi-branching storyline, with mission decisions altering the course of your campaign.

7. Zombie mode is back, with twice as many Undead as before.

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8. New to the series are Strike Force Missions: a sub-mission type that's a mix of RTS and front line battles.

8. It's still on the Infinity Ward Engine.

Screenshot Gallery

Call of Duty: Black Ops 2
2025: destroyed cityscapes, aerial drones, but still feeling only one step ahead of reality.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2Call of Duty: Black Ops 2
The game splits across multiple time frames - you'll be riding horses in Afghanistan of the past in one mission, tackling (or controlling) mech-tanks in the near-future.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2
The engine's firing off some impressive surroundings: LA never gets a break when it comes to war set-pieces.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2Call of Duty: Black Ops 2
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2Call of Duty: Black Ops 2
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2Call of Duty: Black Ops 2

Read on for Daniel Guanio's studio report as Gamereactor visits Treyarch's offices to see how Black Ops is merging fiction with reality once more.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 2

Once again I turn up at the doors to Treyarch's headquarters in sunny Santa Monica. But it's with slightly different expectations than last time.

The studio's last entry into the franchise, Call of Duty: Black Ops, ended up becoming the best-selling game ever and cemented the California-based company's place on the world map.

It may have fiddled with Activision's series in the form of Call of Duty 3, World at War, Big Red One and Modern Warfare 3, but it's in black Ops that Treyarch made the series its own. Unlike previous war operas, the spin of a fictional reality with roots in the Cuban Missile Crisis bred something enticing, and the narratological grip is something, perhaps unsurprisingly, the studio has maintained for Black Ops 2, which operates as a direct sequel to its predecessor.

Though initially we're thrown a complete curve ball when studio head Mark Lamia relaxedly strolls into the conference room, introduces his colleagues and politely asks: "Have any of you heard of Rare Earth Minerals?"

Some in the crowd nod yes. Some no. Lamia smiles, and explains. Rare Earth Minerals are a group of minerals used in the production of virtually all the technology we use in everyday life: smart phones, toasters, computers, speakers. Military equipment is especially dependent on these minerals, and couldn't develop without these major mineral components.

If you're matching the assembled throng's puzzlement at both subject and information, it has (until now) not been very relevant. The fact is that China is sitting on 95% of the world's Rare Earth Minerals - and a comprehensive billion dollar industry with exports across the world.

U.S. President Barack Obama recently said that measures would be taken if China continued with restrictions and the terms of exports - and voila, we begin to understand what the conflict in Black Ops 2 will be about.

Treyarch goes on to elaborate on all the research that forms the basis for the story, and repeatedly hammered the importance of "plausible authenticity", a term that is the basis for the developers to craft both plot and game design.

In Black Ops 2 that issue reaches its head in 2025, and the game's central villain, Raul Menendez, has exploited future warfare's biggest weakness: hacking.

In a future were the battlefield is heavily dictated by autonomous robots and drones, control becomes the alpha and omega. Despite the new tech-heavy battlefield, woven into Lamia's presentation was an emphasis on humanity, and how the game's script focuses specifically on the humanity of the "perfect" arch-villain, in the same league as Heath Ledger's Joker in The Dark Knight. That's not the only connection to Batman - Black Ops 2's script is written by Davis S.Goyer, the screenwriter for Batman Begins.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 2

With that, we look at how the future unfolds in Black Ops 2. A gameplay sequence shows Los Angeles - which you can spot in the Reveal trailer - under attack, and you're in the thick of it. Weaponry has advanced, as we see a sniper rifle whose scope can see and shoot through walls, and a flexible wrist-locked control panel display that allows the player to order battle drones to attack or retreat.

The ensuing battle and flow of crossfire leaves no doubt that this is Call of Duty, but it's clear the settings and characters have been given a graphical overhaul. The level of detail is such that it's unlikely anybody would be unhappy with the work Treyarch has put in.

While it's too early to discuss multiplayer in detail, Lamia does drop in the words "Zombie Mode", "twice as many zombies" and "twice as many players". On those tantalising hints he lifts the veil on the new addition to the Black Ops package: Strike Force.

It's pesudo-RTS with Battlefield-style character hot-swaps. Viewed from an overview perspective, you take control of one portion of the battlefield, providing drones and other units with commands to engage. By choosing a soldier type (one with explosives, one with a rifle, a mech, a support, etc.) from this perspective, the player can take over and play the role of that class in first-person. By switching between the individual roles and overall control of the battlefield, the different objectives are met - such as planting four bombs or holding a particular position.

Both gameplay demonstration from Los Angeles and the sneak peek at Strike Force show winning potential. The hectic feeling of being in the midst of a world war at its most crucial stages, to be part of those major turning points, is still intact. But now even more "Black Ops-styled", as Treyarch coin it.

What many may have overlooked when it came to Black Ops was the story and style. It was the biggest change in the series since Call of Duty 4, and its because of this that I leave with such a strong impression on what Treyarch's setting out to deliver here.

It's not necessarily caused by news that the player can influence the war's outcome through optional choices at crucial points that will create multi-branched campaigns.

It's rather the conflict itself; something that's been on the back burner with other war titles. Priceless minerals. Singapore, China, Yemen, Los Angeles. A visionary sociopath / arch-villain. Year 2025, warfare that's changed drastically from today, yet is not out of step with today's society. Conspiracy theories. An alternative view of the Cold War.

All these factors form the basis of two thoughts: Black Ops 2 will be a worthy sequel - and possibly the best Call of Duty yet.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 will be released November 13th on PC, PS3 and Xbox 360.

Pre-Orders

Amazon and GAME are both taking pre-orders for the title across all three formats, with a couple of quid knocked off the expected RRP.
Click here to see the deals.

The Official Site

While we'll be keeping you updated with the latest news as the year goes on, Call of Duty's official website is worth bookmarking for future.

The Worldwide Reveal Trailer

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Call of Duty: Black Ops 2Score

Call of Duty: Black Ops 2

REVIEW. Written by Mathias Holmberg

"It's made up of some of the most boring missions in the history of the franchise...at times this feels like a pastiche - a parody."



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