It seems that Treyarch and Activision have learned from their biggest mistakes with Black Ops 4. Because with Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, they are smoothing out the most annoying aspects of its predecessor for many.
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War finally unveiled: Many fans have been eagerly anticipating this. Recently, Activision introduced the new Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War. Everything we know so far can be found here: CoD: Black Ops Cold War officially unveiled – Everything you need to know
The latest installment of the popular Black Ops series does not continue the story of its predecessor but connects directly to the story of Part 1. And Black Ops Cold War does quite a few things differently than Black Ops 4 from 2018 – especially regarding some critical points.
What was the problem with the predecessor Black Ops 4? Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 and the associated Battle Royale mode Blackout was not a bad game. But it repeatedly drove the community up the wall.
The aggressive monetization system along with its microtransactions caused almost constant frustration, which notably only fully unfolded after the reviews for the game were out. A small red dot for $1, new weapons that only came from bundles or loot boxes, or new maps that were only available through the Black Ops Pass and not available individually, are just a few examples that led to a lot of frustration among numerous players.
And despite some harsh criticism, the loot box and microtransaction system was further expanded and brought Activision money. For many fans, the entire business model was aimed at extracting as much money as possible from players’ pockets. These were among the main reasons why Black Ops 4 was ultimately set aside by some players.
This is what Black Ops Cold War does better than Black Ops 4
Many of these aspects Black Ops Cold War does significantly better. Because now it adopts the current business model of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. Many consider this to be the right healthy middle ground.
In short: The system from Modern Warfare is well received by many and is considered fair by the broader community. Now it is continued with Black Ops Cold War. These are the most important changes compared to the predecessor from 2018:
No Season Pass, no loot boxes: Unlike its predecessors, there will be no paid Season or Black Ops Pass. Especially the Black Ops Pass was heavily criticized because it only allowed access to new maps and zombie experiences as a bundle. There were no individual map packs.
Also, loot boxes are out of the game. This addresses another major criticism point from Black Ops players. Because loot boxes repeatedly caused heated discussions – especially when they contained new weapons, or firearms that were no longer available in any other way.
Fair Battle Pass and free content for all: Additionally, like in Modern Warfare, all relevant post-launch content such as new MP maps, new modes, zombie experiences, or in-game events will be freely available to all players as part of seasons.
There will also be a Battle Pass in the style of Modern Warfare, meaning with a free and a paid premium track, where all gameplay-relevant items can be played for free. New base weapons are also likely to be freely available to everyone.
Warzone as a free Battle Royale: Blackout, the in-house Battle Royale in Black Ops 4, was popular with many players, but was by no means as accessible as Warzone. Because Blackout was tied to the main game. Whoever wanted to try it had to buy the main game.
This is now different. Warzone will officially continue with Black Ops Cold War and beyond, and is intended to serve as a constant between various CoD installments. Although Warzone is included for all buyers at no additional cost, Warzone also exists as a pure free-to-play version. One doesn’t have to buy a full-price CoD to enjoy the Battle Royale.
(Probably) less time exclusivity: In Black Ops 4, players on the PS4 could play all new content a week before PC and Xbox One. Although this has not been explicitly mentioned yet, with Black Ops Cold War this may also end for the Black Ops series.
With the Modern Warfare system, they emphasize that all players on all platforms can enjoy all content at the same time. There are essentially only a few exceptions, such as a time-exclusive survival mode for SpecOps or special cosmetic bundles for PS Plus members on the PS4. Such things are also imaginable for Cold War. However, the extreme time exclusivity from Black Ops 4 is unlikely to occur in this form for Sony consoles anymore.
What do you think about Black Ops continuing the path of Modern Warfare with Cold War? The right decision? Did you have no problem with the system of Black Ops 4 as well? By the way, there are already first leaks about the multiplayer of the new Call of Duty 2020: CoD Black Ops Cold War: Multiplayer leaked – New information on maps, modes, and specialists
