It’s another year, and another Call of Duty is in our hands. This time around, instead of a studio alternating between yearly releases, Treyarch has once again taken the reins to pump out Call of Duty: Black Ops 7.
With the seventh entry in the sub-franchise, how much fatigue has set in? Especially since we’re getting two Black Ops titles back to back? This something we dive into, which is a shame since the multiplayer — the biggest draw of any Call of Duty game — is better than BO6 in every way. Having said that, the campaign and the hyped up “endgame” stuff don’t really move the needle for the franchise, though there’s really only one sore spot, believe it or not.
Curious about Black Ops 7’s shortcomings and where it excels? Read on.
Campaign: Not So Black Ops
Despite writing for a multiplayer-centric website and being a big fan of online gaming, one of my biggest buying points for Call of Duty has been the campaign. With every Call of Duty release, the very first thing I play is the campaign over the multiplayer, which is actually one of the reasons why I skipped Black Ops 4 because it didn’t come with one. Now, don’t get me wrong, the campaigns aren’t always great, or even good in every entry, but I have always found them to be entertaining enough to keep me at least hooked and wanting to see them through. The original Modern Warfare, and Black Ops 1 and 2 are amongst my favorites in the franchise, and despite some of the criticisms that Black Ops 3 and Cold War got, I did find myself liking those more than most.
So when online chatter began surfacing at launch about just how bad the campaign was for Black Ops 7, I zoned it out because of past experiences, and this year being the year many think it’s “cool” to hate Call of Duty, with both unwarranted and warranted criticisms. It’s easy to get caught up in the bandwagon of things and be overly pessimistic without really looking at something. But damn, having beaten the campaign and its endgame boss, and I have to say, this truly is the worst Call of Duty campaign thus far. I think I’d rather play with the AI fish in Call of Duty: Ghosts over touching this campaign ever again.
Now, to be clear, I don’t necessarily think all the set pieces that everyone is meming about (the boss fights and such) are exactly bad per se. They’re definitely bad in the context of things, given this is a Black Ops campaign, so you come in expecting we’ll be doing some cool spy stuff with a story revolving around massive conspiracies that blend real-world history with fiction. The stories are big what-if scenarios, yet they always remain grounded to a degree, not to mention the cast of characters, which become instantly iconic the moment they take to the screen.
Let’s not forget some of the most memorable missions, which are usually tied to the big reveal. This is where the Black Ops series has always gone “off the rails” with things, introducing the idea of zombies into the real world with an actual explanation: it’s all a hallucination rather than real. But these moments are treated as just moments in the games. Something that is meant to stand out as being the thing you remember the most. Think of the sniper mission in the original Modern Warfare, the number revelation in Black Ops, and some of the big setpieces in other past Call of Duty games. These stay with you because of how iconic and how different they are in the campaigns of these games compared to the rest of the other moments.
I’m all for taking risks, and I applaud the studios for trying to shake up the campaign formula Call of Duty games have been following. However, the risk here would have been better applied elsewhere. At its core, Black Ops 7’s campaign is more of what you would imagine out of a standalone Zombie campaign. I’d argue that it may have even started as such, but because the studio realized they had to ship a whole campaign with Black Ops 7, it ended up being retuned as a continuation (from Black Ops 2) of the Black Ops franchise.
Narratively speaking, it’s a mess. The characters, if you can even call them that, have practically the same personalities as each other with no development whatsoever throughout the short four-hour campaign. The story is possibly the hardest to follow in the franchise, constantly jumping to different points, some of which are meant as call-backs to past Black Ops games. You never really understand what’s actually going on, and by the time the credits roll, you’re left feeling like you’ve just watched a highlight reel of ideas rather than a cohesive narrative. Moments happen, explosions go off, bosses roar, and characters shout dramatic lines, but none of it connects in a way that gives you a reason to care. There’s no tension building, no mystery unraveling, no emotional anchor to ground the chaos. Instead, it feels like the campaign is sprinting from one disconnected scenario to the next, hoping that sheer volume and spectacle will distract from how hollow the experience truly is. In a series known for its gripping twists, memorable casts, and tightly woven conspiracies, Black Ops 7’s campaign feels like a rough draft, one that never stopped long enough to figure out what story it was trying to tell. With how confusing it ends up being, you’d find it hard to even invest in its story, which, for me, just ended up feeling like a chore to play through.
The campaign supports up to four players in co-op. In fact, it’s designed as a cooperative game, given that there are no difficulty presets and the combat flows like it’s a horde mode, from say, you know, Zombies. I should mention that it’s also always online, and that you can’t pause the game. I would purposely die so I could get that 30-second timer to run out and do something quick. There are no checkpoints, meaning if you end up disconnecting (which we did as we killed the final boss), you have to replay the entire mission all over again.
As a Black Ops campaign, it isn’t very good. Now, out of context, if this were an attempt at making a standalone zombie campaign, I would be more generous about it. Gutting everything that referenced Black Ops’ story and reangling it all as a Zombie one would have probably worked out much better, given the core loop. You’re literally fending off against hordes of what are essentially zombies, with boss fights that are very zombie-experience-like. It’s clear that the studios were aiming to build an experience like that, which, honestly, I don’t think is all that bad. There’s fun that can be had if you play it from that perspective, but because the game presents itself as a Black Ops story, well, it’s hard to get into that mood, especially for people who aren’t interested in Zombies at all. So seeing these giant human-bosses and other things end up taking most of the experience, because while the Black Ops franchise has always had weird and trippy moments baked into its DNA, they were never the central focus of the campaign. Black Ops 7 flips that, building its entire story around an acid trip (not the fun one), leaving fans with a story that only resembles the series by name, but never its identity.
It sucks that the campaign is what it is because it has ultimately weighed down the overall experience (zombies, multiplayer, etc.) and, quite literally, from a marketing standpoint, has done irreversible damage. It’s hard to talk online about the game without people bringing up the campaign, casting a shadow over what I do believe the studio did get right, which is its biggest selling point, the multiplayer.
Multiplayer: Time to Kill
If you’ve come here expecting the multiplayer of Black Ops 7 to be some franchise-defining game, well, you’ve come to the wrong place. I have said this plenty of times whenever I review a sequel that plays it “safe,” and that’s that not every title needs to be a groundbreaking achievement that pushes the franchise to new heights.
Call of Duty is as big as it is today because they’ve done things right, so why try to reinvent itself? I would argue that the franchise tried to do that with Modern Warfare II (reboot), and we all know how that turned out for the multiplayer. It was disliked so much that when the sequel (Modern Warfare III) came out the following year, it ended up reversing practically every major change. Think about that: a Call of Duty studio (Infinity Ward) tried to shake up the franchise, took a risk, and went a different direction, only to have a different studio pull a 180 the following year to get it back on “track.” So this expectation that Black Ops 7 had to bring defining changes and innovation to me was already ridiculous, considering that whenever the franchise has tried to do so in the past, the fanbase has tended to react negatively.
But there is some good news with this year’s iteration. It seems that the Call of Duty Studios are finally listening to player complaints. Now, that may have been brought out because the franchise faced real competition this year in the form of a new Battlefield game. Who can really say? Yeah, I think we all know the real answer there, but it just goes to show that competition is good, and for Call of Duty, that has brought some long-awaited changes.
But first, let’s talk about the core multiplayer experience. As someone who has been feeling that franchise fatigue, I will say that Black Ops 7 has surprised me with how well it plays. The omnimovement has perhaps seen the biggest changes, or rather, expansion, which now includes directional inputs from all directions for slides, dives, jumps, etc. Previously, it kept things pretty restrictive in Black Ops 6, which felt clunky. There’s still some clunkiness here, especially with wall jumping, but I do find it’s been dialed in with this release, offering smooth movement and responsiveness that Black Ops 6 lacked a bit of.
In fact, overall, Black Ops 7 feels like a much more refined version of Black Ops 6 when it comes to the core gameplay. The gunplay, to me, feels a lot tighter and more responsive. That may be due to the much lower aim-assist on controllers that this year’s iteration has, which makes it feel like you’re more in control of where you point and shoot. The weapon handling feels much better to me, too, striking a balance between an arcade shooter and something that packs a bit more weight.
The maps are much better this year than last year. I don’t think there was a single map in Black Ops 6 that I even enjoyed, except maybe Stakeout and a few other smaller maps. That is, of course, my own opinion, but I’m finding the maps in Black Ops 7 to be much better, not just in design and layouts, but also in things such as visibility and color use. There are, of course, maps I prefer over others, and some that I downright hate, and some that I love, but even the ones I do hate, I’m finding the pacing to at least be enjoyable. I can’t tell you how many times I quit because I got a map I despised in Black Ops 6. I’m doing that a lot less here, and even find myself playing through those maps I’m not too big a fan of.
Don’t get me wrong, some of them could use better and clearer lanes, like Toshin, which, to me, flows really odd compared to some of the other maps. But overall? These maps are pretty fun, and I find myself being okay with whatever direction a lobby votes in as the next map.
As for the modes, you can expect a return to all the big traditional modes, with some new ones thrown in there, like Overload. Personally, I’m not a fan of Overload. It’s essentially capture the flag, which is a mode I’m not too big on already, but it’s there. I like to stick to the classics such as TDM, domination, and search and destroy, which all play great.
Now, the big changes this year are how the lobby and matchmaking systems work. For lobbies, they won’t disband when a match ends. I love this change because, whether I’m doing well or just plain terrible, I like the idea that I can get another chance at facing off against a group of players as long as they stick around. We may not talk to each other, but there’s a psychological aspect to it that just makes me think, ‘I’ll get you in the next game.’ I think that plays even more with the rival system, where the game marks your rival in-match if they’ve killed you enough times. I like the idea of getting another chance to prove I’m better than that player, even though I’m likely to lose to them.
With matchmaking, Treyarch has introduced open playlists alongside standard matchmaking. If you’ve been a fan of the last few Call of Duty games, where the game matches you constantly with sweats, well, the standard matchmaking remains there for you to keep using. However, if you’re like me and have grown tired of SBMM (skill-based matchmaking) suddenly kicking in and putting you in games where it feels like you’re going against CDL pros, well, the good news is that the Open playlist “fixes” this. Skill is a very minor factor in matchmaking in this playlist, and from my experience, match pools feel more varied than everyone being at the same skill level. You’ll have some bad players and some good players pooled together into lobbies under this playlist.
I have found that matches have a much better flow. Where I could join 10 games in a row, where it’s nothing but one team steamrolling the other, here, even if I do end up losing, I’m finding the experience to be a whole lot more fun. I can go negative in my kill-death ratio, or I can see myself dominating in other games, but regardless, win or lose, positive or negative, the matches feel so much better. In all the hours I’ve put in, I don’t think I’ve ever felt like I wanted to rage quit once. Ever since Call of Duty started going heavy on SBMM in the last few iterations, I found myself ending every play session in frustration and never wanting to touch the game again. It’s a miracle that Activision even allowed this to happen, given how long it’s been a hot topic in the community, one they’ve tried to ignore.
For me, the matchmaking definitely feels more like the classic Call of Duty experience. I really hope that the rest of the Call of Duty games, both going forward and in the past (via update), decide to add this open playlist option. I know not everyone will feel the difference between the playlists. I don’t know what that says about my skill level, but generally, I’ve been hitting the top of the scoreboard in past Call of Duty games with a positive K/D ratio. Now, it’s not super crazy high like I’ve seen some players, but I do like to consider myself above the “average” player.
Either way, I’m happy about this change, and I’m sure most in the community are, as it’s the change we’ve all been demanding for years now.
It wouldn’t be a Treyarch Call of Duty without a zombie mode. I’m going to keep this part light because I’m not much of a major zombie player. I’ve always enjoyed the mode for what it is, but I usually get bored with it after about 10 minutes. Don’t get me wrong, zombies are fun, and it’s very fun here in Black Ops 7. It’s just not my area of expertise, nor is it a mode I’ve had a big attachment to.
I do think the map is pretty well designed, with some great visuals and atmosphere. It definitely captures what zombie mode should be, so I’m sure most will enjoy the map for all it has to offer. At the moment, it’s just one map, so if you’re wondering if Black Ops 7 is worth it for zombies alone, I would maybe wait until the second map is out, and feel out the community from there.
A Fun Experience Overshadowed by Fatigue
Ultimately, I think Black Ops 7 is a solid entry in the Call of Duty franchise, minus the campaign mode. I know, I know, some out there are probably already thinking, “but it’s the same game as it is every year.” Look, I have played every Call of Duty outside of Black Ops 4. I know exactly what you mean when you say that. I’m not denying that the franchise has become stagnant, with each iteration offering no major leap over the previous one. I would say many are experiencing franchise fatigue at this point, given that Call of Duty is a yearly release, like an annual sports game.
I don’t necessarily think every new iteration needs to be some series-defining one. I’m perfectly fine with the idea that a game sequel builds on what was established before, refining it and making it even better, which Black Ops 7 is. It’s a much better game than Black Ops 6 is in almost every way, and it’s the first Call of Duty in years where the studio has finally begun listening to the fanbase. Granted, its competitor, Battlefield 6, might have imposed that, but regardless, the changes it has brought out have been major ones and good for the franchise.
However, even these significant and much-welcomed improvements can only mask the exhaustion for so long. At this point, the fatigue is so pervasive that many loyal players—myself included—simply don’t feel the need to buy in every single year. That “refined and better” than the last entry is no longer enough to address the intense burnout caused by the yearly release model. I feel it may be time for Activision to finally skip a year (or more) and return when they have something truly groundbreaking to offer.
Black Ops 7 isn’t a bad game when you look at the core multiplayer modes. I think it’s one of the best releases in recent years, but because of the pace at which these games are being released, it’s becoming hard to digest and appreciate them for what they truly are before the next one drops. It’s a flawed business model that is finally hitting the player base, and I think it’s time for the franchise to take a breather so it can give fans a real reason to get excited.
- A refined experience that is every bit better than Black Ops 6 when it comes to the multiplayer modes
- Campaign Endgame is a fun addition
- Gameplay is tight and responsive, a refinement of Black Ops 6 in every way, and for the better
- Open playlist where skill-based matchmaking is a minimal factor
- Maps are generally well designed, both visually and in layout.
Verdict
7.5/10
Although the campaign is a disappointing mess, Call of Duty Black Ops 7 is overall, a solid Call of Duty experience, that builds upon, and refines its previous installment. From a multiplayer point of view, it is, in everyway, a better game than Black Ops 6. While the yearly release cycle continues to breed franchise fatigue, Black Ops 7 proves that when the focus is placed squarely on polished fundamentals and community-driven changes, the multiplayer can still be a best-in-class shooter.
- Campaign Mode - One of the worst campaigns in Call of Duty history. A major letdown, that brings the entire experience down.
- That $70 price tag is still a tough sell, as while it has plenty of new content and improvements, it's hard not feeling like this is DLC to Black Ops 6
Call of Duty Black Ops 7 review code was provided by the publisher. You can read MP1st’s review and scoring policy right here.
