Black Ops 7 is an improvement over last year’s game. However…
Black Ops 7’s beta is finally here for us – well, for some of us. Since we’re in the early access period, to gain access, you’ll need to have pre-ordered the game. Also, if you’re an Xbox Game Pass subscriber, you can play the beta early. Yes, just like last year’s Black Ops 6, Black Ops 7 will be available on Game Pass.
Black Ops 7’s early access will run from October 2 to 5, and the open beta will run from October 5 to 8. That’ll give us a good week to play the beta and try it for ourselves to see if the game is worth getting. Additionally, in this beta, we were given four core multiplayer maps and seven modes, including Team Deathmatch, Domination, Kill Confirmed, and a couple of hardcore modes.
For all of you zombie fanatics, for a limited time only, you’ll get the Zombies’ survival mode, and it begins on October 3 on the Varndorn Farm map. Although I enjoy zombies, for this beta, my focus is on the multiplayer aspect. We’re getting a pretty sizable beta content for the next week. Happy days.
Black Ops 6 had numerous glaring issues that were difficult to overlook. Unfortunately, due to these issues, many players had decided to quit the game altogether. Call of Duty will have to win them back and soon. More now than ever, especially when another titan FPS game, Battlefield 6, is coming through just next week, and its beta has already won over a large portion of players. So, Call of Duty will need to take things up a notch and bring their A game.
Due to the underwhelming execution of Black Ops 6, I came into this beta with staggeringly low expectations. However, after a couple of days of playing the beta, I can honestly say I’m actually enjoying Black Ops 7’s multiplayer. Moreover, the game features several notable enhancements, including new weapons, score streaks, perks, and other gameplay mechanics, which make Black Ops 7 even more immersive than last year. We’ve gone from the 90s to 2035: meaning, the mayhem gets transported to the future.
As I’ve entered the beta, the first thing I immediately noticed is how much better the UI is. It’s a solid improvement that now brings zero frustration when navigating the menu. Additionally, when going through the operators, the character skins are highly relevant to the game’s theme. There’s not a ninja turtle, Beavis and Butt-Head, Seth Rogan skin, and more on sight. As of now, they’ve kept their promise of maintaining Call of Duty’s identity when it comes to skins. Hopefully, it stays like this. Well done, Treyarch.
Let’s begin by discussing one of the most significant and widely debated issues: the maps. In Black Ops 6, every multiplayer map was objectively poorly designed. Possibly, the worst-designed maps in the franchise ever. And the DLC maps were even worse. There’s also some speculation about these maps being AI-generated, which wouldn’t surprise me.
So many corners, so many buildings, and much more that would easily remove the flow of matches. However, with the number of maps Black Ops 6 has, there were only two maps I would want to play in. I’m not saying I liked them per se, but they were much more engaging than the others.
The majority of the maps were insufferable to a point where most of the time I’d play Nuketown 24/7 to steer clear of these maps. And if I were feeling like playing CoD now and then, and a map I don’t like the most is the one that’ll be next, I’d immediately back out of the lobby.
But in Black Ops 7. Although we get a few maps in the beta, the maps already feel much better to play in. They’re far better looking, better designed, more vibrant and colourful, and they maintain the right tempo of matches. It’s been so long since I wasn’t bothered about which map I’d get placed in, because I was more than happy to play in any of them. This is a huge step up, which will make multiplayer more enjoyable.
Black Ops 7’s gunplay feels like a hybrid of Black Ops 6 and 2023’s MWIII (more so MWIII than Black Ops 6, which is a good thing, because both MWIII and Black Ops 7 have excellent gunplay. Although we get a few weapons from each class, some of them are great to use. Although some are a little inconsistent, especially when aiming down sights.
For perks, it’s a little different but interesting. You have three combat specialty classes: Enforcer, Recon, and Strategist. You can also acquire three perks from the same combat class. Plus, doing so will unlock a core bonus. There’s also a new feature, Hybrid Combat Specialities, where you can combine and match perks from 2 different combat classes, and you’ll unlock a hybrid bonus.
I’m highly impressed with the scorestreaks. They’re all very balanced, and I love using them. Can’t find a single fault with any of them. The scorestreaks I like the most are RC-XD, a little remote-controlled explosive vehicle. A brand new scorestreak, The Skewer, an air-to-ground projectile for precise eliminations, and the other brand new scorestreak, D.A.W.G., that deploys a robotic dog that carries a turret and rocket pod.
Omnimovement has been a massive topic of discussion in the last few months regarding whether it’ll be in Black Ops 7. Not only will it be in the game, but the movement feels smoother because they’ve made a few changes to it. For example, you can still slide from side to side. There’s a new mechanic in the movement called the combat roll. This is usually executed after jumping from buildings, and it may be another method of evading enemy shots.
Now, instead of seeing it in first-person view, you have the option of the camera quickly switching to third person to see the character’s combat roll and then quickly switching back to first person. Need another way to avoid shots? Well, wall jumping has been added to the multiplayer. You’ll love it, trust me. As for tactical sprint, it’s still there, but you’ll have to acquire the Dexterity perk to be able to do this.
Another thing I was impressed with is the Time To Kill (TTK). Now, you don’t have to worry as much about those annoying hit markers when shooting at enemies. It’s much quicker to take them out. Additionally, this year, the characters have health bars that become visible when shot at, reminiscent of older Call of Duty games, such as 2020’s Black Ops Cold War.
Now, we shall not get too ahead of ourselves, because, yes, I am enjoying the beta. However, it’s still far from greatness, and some problems from last year’s game remain. The best place to start is arguably the singular reason why many dedicated Call of Duty players are leaving or have left, which is taking so much fun out of the game: the SBMM. It’s become rampant.
It’s been said that Call of Duty has intensified SBMM in Black Ops 6. And it’s clearly carried on to Black Ops 7. Making it significantly more difficult to have consistently good K/D ratios. A challenge is a healthy thing for players, but this is next level. There should be a balance in this, especially when playing casually.
Unless you’re training to be a pro player, core matches shouldn’t feel like entering a CDL tournament every match. I’m not saying to eliminate it entirely, but I’m almost certain that the SBMM would do so much justice if it were simmered down, even a little. It’s ironic how a system that’s designed to benefit players has such adverse effects.
The multiplayer is pretty laggy. I’ve noticed that this mainly occurs when shooting at enemies and eliminating them to the point where I’m sometimes confused about whether I’m experiencing internet lag or input lag. Perhaps, SBMM is contributing to this? To add, the spawns need so much work, especially on Hardpoint. More often than not, I’m seeing myself spawn where the enemies are. There seems to be no advanced stats in the gunsmith, and moreover, on Dexterity, I don’t like that this is a perk.
I didn’t feel comfortable realizing that I need this perk just to improve my movement, and without it, I am at a massive disadvantage. It feels like a crutch. I believe this should be a standard feature for everyone. Another thing worth mentioning that’s wrong is the audio. No matter how much louder everything else is and no matter how close I am to enemies, I cannot hear their footsteps and vice versa. And sometimes I hear certain noises that initially made me question my hardware.
To put it bluntly, Black Ops 7 leaves a lot to be desired, but it isn’t something I’d advise someone to avoid, as it has several great ingredients for players to enjoy throughout the year. It has a lot going for it. At the same time, despite all the problems mentioned, none of them come close to the negative impact that SBMM has on the experience, and it’s the one thing that may continue to fatigue and drive players away.
On the bright side, this is only the beta; they have over a month until their launch, so they can make adjustments and rectify some things. In general, Treyarch/Activision has done a good job with the changes, additions, and improvements for their upcoming instalment.
