Call of Duty: Black Ops Trailer

Microsoft opened up their press conference with a bang, showing off an action-packed sequence from “Call of Duty: Black Ops.”  After a brief sequence, the new trailer featured an on-rails helicopter sequence – a.k.a. the kind where all you have to do is blow stuff up.  While it’s not a mind-blowing to function that’s going to totally redefine any aspect of gaming, lets just stop and give a hand to Treyarch for a minute because, from what I can see, blowing stuff up looks AWESOME.

Obviously, most gamers are more than familiar with on-rails sequences, so what makes Black Ops stand apart? The visuals.  You may not be able to smell napalm when you play “Black Ops” in the morning, but I think you’ll love the way it looks.  The Jungles have tree tops that look like they’re actually comprised of many individual trees instead of an expansive head of broccoli:  And while, yes, that may seem like an odd and trivial statement when discussing an action-packed trailer, noticing small things like trees is indicative of a very high attention to detail that should not be taken for granted.

Visuals aren’t enough for you?  How about a more fluid and cinematic gaming experience?  Between sneaking through tunnels, capturing the chopper and actually flying it, there was rarely a moment where the player wasn’t working to actively immerse the player in the experience.  Your squad-mates are constantly interacting with you; giving orders, pointing out enemies or incoming missiles.  Even though the helicopter sequence was on rails, it still felt like there was a lot less hand-holding than in previous COD games – not because the game isn’t constantly telling you what to do, but because those orders/hints/objectives are being given to you through your team, not a message that flashes on-screen.

Clearly Treyarch realizes that they have big shoes to fill as the number one COD developer - it looks like they’re stepping up to the plate, putting plenty of time into making sure that every second of the game is a special experience.  Personally speaking, I wouldn’t expect anything less from the follow-up to the high-grossing game of time.

O, and Dom Mattrick is still a tool.

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Mike Epstein