Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and Warzone Season 4 impressions — A quieter bang

It was always going to be tough to follow up Season 3. When you get so much, with incredible weapons, arguably the best Zombies map so far in Shattered Veil, and of course, Verdansk, it’s hard to one-up yourself. This is true for Season 4, which has a few nice updates, but between a rough beginning with issues and the content being a bit too spread out, this hasn’t been Black Ops 6’s greatest moment.

On the topic of issues, this season started with a lot of bugs. Not only were there random problems, like game performance or editing loadouts, but you couldn’t even boot into a lobby at one point. There are other persistent issues as well, like a bug that has multiplayer lobbies getting the same two maps in the voting pool over and over. I literally went three whole hours with friends watching Skyline and Fugitive pop up every time we queued. These are some of the most annoying problems we’ve encountered in Black Ops 6, and it’s a shame. We did see the team apologize on the COD Pod about all of it yesterday, but here’s hoping this doesn’t happen when Reloaded rolls around.

With that addressed, let’s talk about multiplayer maps. Season 4 launched with three new maps, along with two coming at the mid-season. I usually don’t bring up Reloaded at all, but arguably the best map of the bunch – a remake of Fringe – got held back for the mid-season. Given Ranked Play will peter off with the CDL season coming to a close, it sucks to see possible choices for Ranked come in well after they’d be the most useful, especially when it’s a remake.

Fugitive is a mid-sized map that is surprisingly fun to play, especially in Search and Destroy. This prison map features vantage points that make sense, with a lot of power positions that have good counter spots – like the guard tower that faces a nasty catwalk window. Just because there are good positions to iron up doesn’t mean flanks are off, with a bunch of great routes throughout if you learn your timings. Fugitive feels fair and rewarding, allowing for smart plays to win rounds based on your knowledge of the map and early setups.

Shutdown is also mid-sized, but certainly with a more open and large feel compared to Fugitive. There are a lot of lanes you can get caught sprinting down if you aren’t careful, with spots where an assault rifle will gun you as you round a corner. The middle of the map is the most hazardous area, a large power plant with a turbine in the middle of it. That turbine kind of sucks, because you can hop on it and lay down for a cheap kill. It’s also P1 on Hardpoint, which is a contest-fest that no one likes. As a map, it’s decent, but there are negatives to its design. You’ll be able to run any gun on it, but you’ll want to be careful if you’re a submachine gun player who likes to run.

Bitz is the final piece to the puzzle, another small Strike map. I think what surprises me the most is how it’s another great Face Off map, joining last season’s Nomad as maps I wish were designed a bit larger because of how well they flow. This three lane setup: a seaside cliff with a road through the middle and a looping lane beneath, makes for a fun time. There are a lot of good positions, and necessary quick reactions given the size. If you want to level up a gun, you won’t get much better in the fun factor than Blitz.

Although last season’s arsenal was outstanding, the quality in this season took a dip. The LC10 submachine gun and FFAR 1 assault rifle headline this class, and while both hold their own, neither are meta-breaking in the way I’d like to see. Starting with the LC10, this was one of my favorite weapons in Black Ops Cold War. It was a laser, and one that could kill almost instantly. With the Black Ops 6 version, it’s lost a bit of its punch. 

The rate of fire is what I remember, not as fast as the Kompakt 92 but faster than the KSV, and it’s still accurate. Maybe I’m remembering incorrectly, but it’s not at all the best close-range gun. I’m constantly being outgunned with it in a close-quarters fight. If I sit at a power position, I can gun someone down at medium to long range, but its struggles in close proximity make it sit in A-tier rather than S-tier. That said, it’s a phenomenal choice in Warzone, where fights are generally further away.

I wasn’t a fan of the FFAR 1 in Black Ops Cold War, but I did like the BP50 in Modern Warfare III, which was another bullpup assault rifle that came somewhat close. I’ve made a few different versions of the gun as the best attachments have been discovered, and the final call on what to use just doesn’t work. It has a great rate of fire, but feels like a pea-shooter as far as damage goes. With a bit of initial recoil you have to master, it isn’t worth the effort to learn to control it when you have beamers like the Ames 85 or Kilo 141 available.

This makes the translation to Warzone interesting. While the meta has shifted from the CR-56 Amax and C9 after a few nerfs, it’s still an AR and SMG world. Even so, the meta feels good. Both the Krig-6 and LC10 are fantastic choices as the best weapons, each having a different feel to them compared to their contemporaries. The change is good.

Another good change? The Overlook. This imposing tower staring out at Verdansk is an epic POI. It can be a hot drop that ends badly, but the amount of loot, the exploratory nature of the building, and many spots to stare over the map make this an awesome addition. I’m intrigued as to how it changes once the construction ceases.

Also fantastic is Raven bringing back the ziplines. Too many tall buildings lead to a lot of circles ending with people sitting on roofs sniping, and while sniping is fun, it was overpowered. The ziplines feel fair, just enough of them to make camping out up top perilous, while not damaging the ability to take a few shots from a building. I’m glad to see this adjustment come through and it is well-balanced.

Clash is the new mode entering this season of Warzone, and it’s not something I’ll play much of. This mode begins with a preset circle and 52 players vs. 52 more players. With it also being a Resurgence mode and allowing you to bring a loadout in, this is more or less just Ground War from multiplayer with extra objectives, thanks to the contracts lying around. It’s neat, but quickly gets boring.

For the first time since launch, there’s no new Zombies map to enjoy. As much as that might sting, I think it’s for the better. The mode needs time to breathe, and with so many great maps, it’s good to see a different kind of investment. Grief is a PvPvE mode, and while you aren’t necessarily shooting the opposing players, you are trying to do things that will affect them negatively to, in turn, win the match.

Let’s just say Grief is a great name. Maybe it’s due to my accessing it so much later in the game, but my team got run through in the matches we played. Each map has a walled-off section you start in, which makes it more of an arena mode. You’ll have a few wall buys for armor, sometimes a pack-a-punch, and the mystery box. This close quarters mode makes it so matches won’t take too terribly long, with the loser being the one that bites the dust the fastest.

Defeating the other team involves killing them, but by making their lives miserable. To do this, you complete zone objectives to win nerfs that apply to your foes – like a gun roulette where the enemy team’s weapons switch between random guns for a minute or ammo drains for a short period. Getting your team to coordinate to win zones by getting kills from them takes a village, meaning if you don’t have four, it’s going to be a tough night. Similarly, if a team has a better idea of the way the map works, they can melee or shoot you to slow you down which can result in getting downed quickly if you get stuck between a few zombies. It’s a really cool concept, but if you don’t know what you’re doing, you’ll get slammed.

In the cosmetic section of Call of Duty, the battle pass yet again is just fine, with a big huh. What the heck is the team doing with the Brutus and Grey BlackCell skins (shown above)? They’re off-putting instead of funny; a real miss in this offering. Stitch is a neat operator to have back, and some of the weapon blueprints are dope, but overall, this isn’t their best. I have loved the tie-in bundle available for purchase of Ballerina from the John Wick franchise. Here’s hoping we eventually see John himself in a bundle or battle pass.

As much as I hate to even think it, this season feels like a bit of a last hurrah. Season 3 was a blowout; this seems more like the aftermath. There are a few things I like, but I’m concerned about the longevity of Black Ops 6, especially given we’ll be playing it for at least four more months. Can Treyarch, Raven, and company give us another big season? The jury is out on that, but I’m not sure much is left in the tank with Black Ops 7 ramping up after Season 4 comes to a close.