The last Call of Duty game I fully invested my time and energy into was Modern Warfare 2. Not the one from 2022 — I couldn’t have had any less interest in that game at the time. The original from 2009 where many a teenage night was spent playing MW2 on my Xbox 360 until the break of dawn. Now, I hate to say it, but Black Ops 6 has me feeling like a teenager all over again.
I’m Sorry, ‘Black Ops 6’… I Was Unaware of Your Game
Newer Call of Duty games never drew me in, and I had stayed away from them for quite some time. I would still find myself occasionally jumping into a split-screen game if someone had it on their console at home, but otherwise? You wouldn’t catch me spending a dime on the latest CoD title. That all changed when I bought Modern Warfare III last year after being talked into it by some buddies.
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Oh, boy, was that one a stinker. Sure, the multiplayer was fun, but for $70? It was abysmal. The campaign was DMZ. The Zombies mode was DMZ. Everything was DMZ, and it felt like a cash grab. I maybe had about 10 hours in it, and then I went on to bigger and better things. With Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 landing on Game Pass, however, I wanted to see what the hype was about. I’m sorry, Call of Duty, for ever doubting you.
I don’t know if it’s the omni-movement, or maybe it’s because I’m not getting sniped by Nicki Minaj, but this one feels good. Like, really good. Hits feel punchy, movement feels fantastic, maps are great so far, and Zombies is a blast to dive into.
I hate to say it, but I think I’m getting sucked back into the Call of Duty wormhole.
How Long Does the Honeymoon Phase Last, Though?
To be completely fair, there’s a good chance that once the game starts becoming more of the same as it was before, I’ll be dipping back out. I enjoy running around with soldiers, not with Gundams and other bizarre operators. That’s what I play Fortnite for. Maybe it’s because it feels like this version actually has an identity once again and it isn’t trend-chasing like MW3 was.
It’s hard to say when it will start losing me, but I’m thinking as soon as I’m hunted down by Lil Uzi Vert or something, it’ll be time for me to dip once again. As I said, we already have games like Fortnite that are willing to go as wild as possible for new updates. It just feels genuinely nice to have a game that feels like something I played back during the ‘golden era’ of my youth.
As it stands right now, though? Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 goes incredibly hard. The Zombies mode is the best take we’ve gotten on the classic Left 4 Dead style in quite some time. Frankly, the whole package is just a blast to play. I just hope it sticks to what it does best to keep players in the game this time around.