Black Ops 6
Thanks to Xbox Game Pass, I am playing a Call of Duty campaign for the first time in several years, given that I don’t have to buy it and I don’t play zombies or multiplayer. But sure, I’ll check out the 4-6 hour campaign, why not.
Well, first of all, it’s not 4-6 hours, it’s much longer. Second, Black Ops 6 has what I can call the most unhinged Call of Duty campaign I’ve played, and I mean that as a compliment. I’m not even done, but this has made a lasting impression on me already. Spoilers follow.
While it starts off pretty standard, Black Ops 6 starts going places when it opens up into a fully open world level in the Iraqi desert, where you’re tasked with taking off three missile sites, but there are scattered POIs all around, from SAMs to supply caches to VIP targets, all of which reward cash or killstreaks to use in a final push on Saddam’s palace. It very much makes me wish that someone would greenlight a Far Cry-style Call of Duty game using its much tighter gunplay and better loops, and it feels like the campaign team would very much like to do that as well. This entire campaign is fundamentally about format exploration.
Things quickly get out of hand.
A later mission has you and your team invading a biological weapon research lab while your character appears to be under hallucinogenic effects of the spreading drug. What follows is a wild departure from a normal formula that is part Zombies, part Prey and mostly Control, I would say. Certainly unlike anything I’ve seen in Call of Duty.
Call of Duty
There are a number of memorable parts in here, but an area that’s designed with creepy mannequins acting as Doctor Who “Weeping Angels” is out of this world in terms of its design. It’s set up so mannequins rush toward you every time you look away from them, and when you turn back, they freeze in a sprinting, clawing pose as they try to reach you. Look away too long or don’t cull enough of them when frozen, and they will swarm you. The effect is both creepy and kind of amazing from a technical perspective. I know Mario was doing this with Boo thirty years ago, but the effect in modern day is wild.
As I said, I’m not even done yet and this is one of the most memorable Call of Duty campaigns I’ve played. And hearing it’s 10-12 hours rather than the usual 4-6, that means it could even be worth a non-Game Pass purchase even if you’re not into the multiplayer. I’m certainly glad I’ve given it a shot, and I can’t wait to see where this goes from here.
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Pick up my sci-fi novels the Herokiller series and The Earthborn Trilogy.