In September, Activision and Treyarch gaveCall of Dutyfans their first crack atCall of Duty: Black Ops Cold War’s multiplayer through arecord-breaking PS4 alpha test. Feedback from the alpha has been applied to theCall of Duty: Black Ops Cold Warbeta that was live for PS4 gamers this past weekend, showcasing a number of different maps, modes, weapons, and more.
TheCall of Duty: Black Ops Cold Warbeta test shows that the game has come a long way since the alpha, delivering a much tighter and well-rounded online multiplayer experience. And while there are things that may be worrying to some fans, theBlack Ops Cold Warmultiplayer beta should leave most who play it feeling optimistic about this year’sCall of Duty.
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Combined Arms
The star ofCall of Duty: Black Ops Cold War’s multiplayer is undoubtedly the Combined Arms game mode.Combined Arms, for the uninitiated, features large-scale matches for 16-24 players that take place on big maps. During theBlack Ops Cold Warbeta weekend, fans were able to test the Domination and Assault variants of Combined Arms, both of which revolve around capturing objectives.
Call of Dutyhas flirted with these kinds of large-scale battles in past games. The most recent attempt wasCall of Duty: Modern Warfare’s Ground War mode, which was met with a mixed response from fans and largely overshadowed by the standard multiplayer, Gunfight, andWarzonebattle royale. However, Combined Arms is a significant step in the right direction, playing like a faster-paced take onBattlefield.
Black Ops Cold War’s Combined Arms is more consistently engaging than Ground War for a couple of reasons. For one, the maps seem to be slightly smaller than Ground War’s maps, or at least designed in a way that players are constantly being funneled to each other, and therefore almost always engaging in firefights. Secondly, the spawn system is much improved, doing away with the frustration of spawning in and dying constantly that was prevalent in Ground War.
Vehicles inCall of Duty:Black Ops Cold Warare also a blast to use, with each map having its own unique vehicles for players to utilize, like jet-skis and snowmobiles. They offer a twist on the standardCall of Dutymultiplayer experience that helps it feel at least a little different than what’s come before.
VIP Escort and Other Modes
Of course, the typical, small-scaleCall of Dutymultiplayer was also well-represented in theBlack Ops Cold Warbeta. Players could check out modes like Domination, Kill Confirmed, and Team Deathmatch on a selection ofBlack Ops Cold War’s launch maps. WhileBlack Ops Cold War’s multiplayer adds health barsand the general aesthetic is somewhat different, it boils down to being generally the sameCall of Dutymultiplayer that fans have been playing for years.
Besides the usual suspects, theCall of Duty:Black Ops Cold Warbeta also gave fans the opportunity to try the brand new VIP Escort mode. In this mode, one random player is selected to be the VIP, while their teammates have to escort them to an exfiltration helicopter. The opposing team’s goal is to kill the VIP at any cost.
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VIP Escortmakes some tweaks to the usualCall of Dutymultiplayer by making it so players are downed before they’re killed and by having them work with limited lives. The mode requires more strategy and communication than is typical of aCall of Dutygame mode, and unless one is playing with a full team, it’s easy to see how it could become frustrating. Still, it’s hard to fault Treyarch for trying something different. That being said, anyone hoping for VIP Escort to be the new game mode revelation that Gunfight was forModern Warfarewill likely be disappointed.
Maps
In total,Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold Wargave players six maps to try during the beta test. For regular multiplayer matches,Black Ops Cold Warplayers could check out the Cartel, Miami, Moscow, and Satellite maps, whereas Combined Arms used Armada, Crossroads, and Cartel.
While many fans have reacted negatively toCall of Duty: Black Ops Cold War’s Miami map, nothing was on the level of Piccadilly. As far as Standout maps, Satellite was by far the most impressive, having players battle it out in a sweeping desert landscape that’s perfect for snipers. The Moscow map is also quite fun, and lends itself particularly well to the Domination match type. Overall, it seems as thoughBlack Ops Cold Waris launching with a stronger map selection thanModern Warfare.
SBMM
Worst-case scenario, it seems that theBlack Ops Cold Warmultiplayer will be on par with pastCall of Dutygames, but it may actually exceed them. Combined Arms is a lot of fun and is just different enough to feel fresh without straying too far from what makesCall of Dutymultiplayer entertaining in the first place. The maps are impressive, both visually and in terms of their layout, as they all are designed in a way that players will never have much downtime.
There are some concerns aboutBlack Ops Cold War’s multiplayer, however. Chief among these isCall of Duty: Black Ops Cold War’s use of SBMM, or skill-based matchmaking, which has already led to outcry from the community. Treyarch has indicated that it can adjust the wayBlack Ops Cold War’s SBMM is incorporated, and it will be interesting to see if things change between now and launch, or even between now and next weekend’s beta.
ThenextCall of Duty: Black Ops Cold Warbeta testwill start October 15 for those on PC and Xbox One that have pre-ordered, as well as PS4 players. Then from October 17 to October 19, theBlack Ops Cold Warbeta will be completely open to all players. It may very well be the last chance fans have to try the game before launch, so anyone interested should be sure to participate.
Tons of Potential
At launch,Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold Warwill have even more to offer players than just its multiplayer component. The game includes a full-fledged campaign developed by Raven Software and the return of thefan-favorite Zombies mode. So while it remains to be seen if all of this content lives up to expectations, there’s no denying thatBlack Ops Cold Waris going to give players plenty of bang for their buck.
And the game should only improve beyond launch.Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold Warwill have a Battle Pass and seasonal content, similar toModern Warfare, which will include new maps, modes, playable characters, weapons, and much more. It’s likely fans will see the return of classicBlack Opsseries maps as part of the post-launch support -Nuketown was already teased- so there should be plenty to look forward to for months to come.
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold Warlaunches November 13 for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
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