It’s time to lock and load people, Call of Duty is back with Black Ops 2, breaking new ground and showing there is still plenty of life in the franchise.
Black Ops 2, developed by Treyarch and published by Activision, is a new and refreshing
departure for the first person shooter with a story that is worth following.
Rather than reaching for the skip cut scene button I found myself becoming engrossed in the story of revenge and loyalty, especially the bad guy Raul Menedez who is not your usual villain.
Heis quite a tragic figure and you learn of his reasons for turning against the world as the game progresses.
The game is divided up into two different time zones where you play as a variety of
characters, mainly Alex Mason.
The cut scenes revolve around Alex`s partner Frank Woods retelling the story of Alex`s missions to his son David.
During the game you ride horses with the mujahedeen in Afghanistan, take on the might of the Russian army in the 1980s and fight in the jungles of Nicaragua. This is all mixed up with missions set in 2025.
The gameplay is more or less the usual Call of Duty First person shooting, yet Treyarch has introduced different modes from driving to flying including a sequence with some
pretty cool jet packs.
I found the tactical elements a bit of a drag but that was a mere drop in the ocean really as all the other elements of the game work well as you don`t know what’s coming next.
There are some pretty spectacular sequences with masses of action taking place, with no time to stand around thinking about what to do next - it’s in your face all out warfare and of it extremely brutal and quite shocking.
The campaign lasts for about 10 hours and it is a rollercoaster of a ride with twists and turns especially with the introduction of decision making at certain points.
There’s also the return of zombie mode, only this time with its own campaign with an eight player co-op available.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 is really about the multiplayer on line experience and Treyarch
hasn’t let the side down with some nice changes.
You can now pick and mix your weapons to suit yourself and with plenty of unlockable upgrades it’s all good, with 14 maps (15 if you pre ordered) and there are plenty of missions to keep you and your friends busy on line.
Summary
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 is a great example of how you can take a fresh look at a well-established
franchise and inject some new life into it.
I could go on about all the different modes and score streaks available in multiplayer or the wide variety of weapons, even the well written yet slightly rambling storyline.
However, the best thing to do is go out and buy it as this is one of the best FPS you’ll find.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2
Developers: Treyarch
Publishers: Activision
Xbox360®
Playstation 3®
PC
WiiU
Genre: First Person Shooter
Release date: 6th November 2012
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