The entire Black Ops series (which World at War is a part of, canonically speaking) has been accompanied by Zombies’ tale of shooting Nazi ghouls and telekinetically assembling barricades. Unfortunately, experiencing the whole thing in one go would mean a whole lot of swapping games and console generations, because video games. Once Zombies Chronicles hits PS4 on May 16 everyone can easily experience the undead joy. Well, everyone who didn’t sell their copy of Black Ops 3 to buy Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare (opens in new tab), anyway.

Treyarch will host a special stream event on Monday at 11 am PDT / 7 pm BST to share more details about Zombies Chronicles.

Join us on Monday at 11am/PDT for a deeper dive into #ZombiesChronicles! pic.twitter.com/kULKZvEkSTMay 4, 2017

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There’s no word of when the DLC will arrive on Xbox One, though PS4 typically gets a month of exclusivity. So Xbox players can probably expect Zombies Chronicles to arrive around the middle of June.

Want more undead horror? Read through our lists of the best zombie games you can play right now (opens in new tab) and the best zombie movies of all time (opens in new tab).

The post Black Ops 3: Zombies Chronicles DLC brings remastered versions of all the Zombies maps to current-gen appeared first on Game News.

If you prefer to shoot hordes of rotten-brained soldiers who don’t leave their mics on while listening to awful music, Awakening also packs in the first-all new Zombies co-op campaign chapter in years: Der Eisendrache (opens in new tab). Tank Dempsey and the rest of the gang are back to their old world-saving exploits, this time while laying siege to an occult research facility built in a freaky Austrian castle. Also there’s a dragon.

The Awakening will be available on its own for $15, though the $49.99 Black Ops 3 Season Pass is set to receive three more map packs throughout the year.

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The collectibles aren’t all the same this year either – each one is a unique item, so don’t expect a bunch of conveniently flashing laptops. Grab all the collectibles in any one level to earn the Walking Encyclopedia trophy or achievement. Swipe them all and you’ll be deemed a Curator and have another satisfying ping for your troubles.

Warning: This guide will contain spoilers, so if you want to avoid them you should play the campaign through normally before collecting each item.

Mission 1 – Black Ops

Collectible #1 – NRC Comms Earpiece

As soon you blast your way out of the air control room, head left down the stairs, crouch under the burning landing gear and turn right. You’ll see a flashing computer terminal with an NRC Comms Earpiece in front of it.

Collectible #2 – Dud RPG

After Hendricks stabs the guard and opens the gates, follow him through the compound to another door. Hendricks will take out the two guards sitting down and motion for you take control of the cameras. The Dud RPG you’re looking for is opposite the terminal, on the floor to the right of the big window.

Collectible #3 – Egyptian Army Cap

After your first proper gunfight in the service tunnel, follow Hendricks upstairs and breach the door to the right. Immediately to the left, you’ll find an Egyptian Army Cap in a pigeon hole (if you’re looking at the cap, the interrogation room will be to your right).

Collectible #4 – Replica Nano Drone

When you reach the hangar with the APC (the one trying to rip you to shreds, you can’t miss it), head inside and turn left – there’s a room adjacent to the stairs with a forklift truck inside. Head around the other side of it to find a Replica Nano Drone.

Collectible #5 – VTOL Panel

During the first section of the mission, and after your first encounter with the robot soldiers, head inside the garage. Once you’re in, run over to the other side of the room and you’ll see a VTOL Panel on a table to the right of another parked APC. Be quick though as you only have a short window before you’re attacked again.

Mission 2 – New World

Collectible #6 – Defective Robot Hand

After the destroying the generator, head through the same route you followed as a drone (through the big room with the girders and turn left into the refinery). You’ll see a wall of fire where you shot one of the hot metal containers. On the other side, in front of another spilled container, is a Defective Robot Hand.

Collectible #7 – Bomb Detonation Cap

During the third section of this mission, you’ll start off in a robot-filled train station. Take out the first few droids then head up the staircase to your left. It’ll lead to a dead end, but in front of an overturned bin you’ll see a Bomb Detonation Cap.

Collectible #8 – Model Maglev Train

When you reach a large, multi-storey room with a train carriage at the back you’ll have a big firefight with a bunch of robots and human enemies. When they’re all cleared, head down the stairs to the lower floor and cross to the far end of the room. At the back you’ll find a Model Maglev Train on some shelving.

Collectible #9 – Premium Liquor

During the train section, you’ll drop through a glass roof into a carriage. Once you regain control of your avatar, head into the next carriage where you’ll see a bar. Take out the robot with your Takedown ability, then hop over the bar to collect your well-earned Premium Liquor.

Collectible #10 – Train Pass

A couple of carriages into the train section, you’ll find yourself in a carriage with stairwells on either side. Deal with the robots that drop down then make your way to the upper floor. Head to the left and you’ll see a Train Pass on the empty window seat of the front two chairs.

Mission 3 – In Darkness

Collectible #11 – Broken Respirator

After the cutscene with exploding collar you’ll have a firefight with a bunch of normal enemies and one tough Warlord. Once they’re all toast, head towards the big rubble pile then enter the the doorway on your left, On the other side of the partition you’ll find a Broken Respirator waiting for you.

Collectible #12 – Urn with Incense Sticks

After anchoring your way through the water surge section, you’ll turn right and see a large apartment building across another flooded area. Move through the water (watching out for a couple more surges), then head around the right-hand side of the building. Hop the fence and you’ll see an Urn with Incense Sticks.

Collectible #13 – Child’s Toy

After leaping from the crashing tanker, you’ll find yourself at the entrance of a submerged subway. Head down into the water and follow the path around to the right. Now keep swinging straight on into the blue seaweed and you’ll find a Child’s Toy on a bench below you.

Collectible #14 – Warlord’s Helmet

Following the underwater sequence, you’ll assault a lounge bar with a bunch of robots outside (there’s a huge ‘51’ written on the wall as soon as you enter the building). Clear the room, then head to the far end of the ground floor. Go through the double doors and turn left. You’ll find a Warlord’s Helmet in a room with candles.

Collectible #15 – Fu Dog Figurine

After speaking with Kane, you’ll head towards the compound with Hendricks. Before heading inside, turn right and follow a red staircase to the top. Turn right, take a run-up and leap over the gap to the building on the other side. Head through the room and into the next – a Fu Dog Figurine waits for you on the dresser to your immediate left.

Collectible #16 – Therapy Session Recording

Once you meet back up with Kane in the blacksite, head up the stairs that head around to the right. When you reach the top, bear left and you’ll find a Therapy Session Recording on a table. Nab it to complete the collectibles for this mission.

Mission 4 – Provocation

Collectible #17 – Gangster Bling

As soon as the mission starts, you’ll see three buildings divided by two alleyways. Jump down to the ground and head right – the blue building on the far-right is the one you’re looking for. Head into the open garage and you’ll find some Gangster Bling on top of a red generator.

Collectible #18 – Supertree Souvenir

After picking up Collectible #17, head down the far-right alley. After dispatching a Warlord, move towards a neon sign with four characters in red. Head through a small gap to the left of this stand and you’ll see a Supertree Souvenir on a table.

Collectible #19 – Dud Slave Collar

After leaping over a short gap towards a building with a flashing neon sign on one side, take an immediate left and head into the doorway. Head up one flight of stairs and you’ll a Dud Slave Collar propped up on a table to your right.

Collectible #20 – Antique Vase

When you reach a pile of broken cargo containers, Kane will ask you if you want to go left or right. Go right, climb up into the orange container, turn left, then left again before crossing a small bridge with barriers on either side. At the end of this bridge you’ll see an Antique Vase sat on the lip of a blue container.

Collectible #21 – Mineral

As soon as Kane mentions the Wraith, and how you shouldn’t engage it, head up the stairs to the upper floor (it’ll have lots of a giant stone column covered in ivy in the middle). Just before the column, you’ll see a display cabinet with a light inside. Head to the other side of it to collect a Mineral.

Collectible #22 – Bullet Shell Necklack

After crossing the bridge leading to the burning Supertree, take the left path (the ‘exterior’ path). Head up the staircase – instead of taking the Z-Trak in front of you, take the one behind you and to your left. Once on the left-hand side of the map, move up the stairs and make your way across the bridge. On the other side, take the stairs to your left that lead to the lower floor. On top of a white container you’ll find a Bullet Shell Necklace.

Mission 5 – Hypocentre

Collectible #23 – 54i Data Pad

As soon as the mission starts, follow Hendricks as his runs down the green slope to the right. As you head down, you’ll notice a tent covered in tattered yellow cloth. Sneak inside and you’ll find a 54i Data Pad waiting inside.

Collectible #24 – Contamination Test Kit

After entering the Coalescence Centre reception (the one with all the big screens that come to life). Head left and following the corridor as it curves around. At the end you’ll find a Contamination Test Kit on a table.

Collectible #25 – Coalescence Marketing Material

After descending to the bottom of the giant circular shaft, head to the right (keeping to the edge of the chamber) until you reach an open door. Go in and you’ll see some Coalescence Marketing Material on a table.

Collectible #26 – Bio-containment Canister

After you and Hendricks locate the damaged the damaged recon droid, head through the doorway with the red-lite doors. Take an immediate left into an office and you’ll see a yellow Bio-containment Canister on the floor to the your left.

Collectible #27 – E-Ink White-board

As soon as the cutscene where you and Kendricks discuss being wary of Kane concludes, head to the right-hand side of the human test trials chamber. In an alcove, you’ll find a E-Ink White-board.

Collectible #28 – Prototype DNI-Implant

After the encounter with the zombie robots in the flooded laboratory, head to the other side, exit the water and enter the doorway. Take an immediate left and on the left-hand side of the room you’ll find a Prototype DNI-Implant on a shelf.

Mission 6 – Vengeance

Collectible #29 – Damaged Optical Camo Cloak

As soon as the mission begins, turn left and head down the alleyway. Turn left and you’ll see a Damaged Optical Camo Cloak lying near a lit doorway.

Collectible #30 – Bio-Luminescent Orchid

In the large compound with the pond in the middle, take out all the guards first (ignore the drones). When the coast is clear, head into the compound from the right-hand entrance (from the direction you begin this area). Keep to the left and move through four different sections of the compound. When you reach the fourth, turn right and you’ll see a Bio-Luminescent Orchid in the shadows.

Collectible #31 – HCXD Bomb Sniffer Robot

After your dust-up with snipers, the regular 54i soldiers and the AVC robot, head through the giant rectangular hole in the wall left by the giant ‘bot. Turn left and you’ll see a HCXD Bomb Sniffer Robot on the floor.

Collectible #32 – Dragon Necklace

After entering the burning facility, head up two flights of stairs, blasting robots as you go. At the top, head through the hole in the wall to your right. There’s another hole in a wall to your left. Destroy the robots inside and head to the right-hand side of the room. You’ll find a Dragon Necklace on a table next to an armchair.

Mission 7 – Rise & Fall

Collectible #33 – NRC Helmet

As soon as you finish your tour of Ramses Station with Khalil, head over to the table to your right, In front of a set of screens you’ll see an NRC Helmet just waiting to be added to your collection.

Collectible #34 – Broken Stained Glass

As soon as the NRC assault begins, head into the main room of the station (a VTOL with crash through the ceiling as you approach). Turn left and go up the escalators. At the top, turn right and you’ll see a large, red-tinged container. In between the container and the wall is a table – on that table is a piece of Broken Stained Glass.

Collectible #35 – NRC Propaganda Poster

After boarding a truck with Hendricks and Khalil you’ll soon find your way barred by a portable wall. Once you’re off the truck and back in control, go through the small door that opens to your left. Turn left immediately and you’ll see a NRC Propaganda Poster on the wall.

Collectible #36 – Officer’s Military Sword

On your way to Abdeen Palace you’ll move through a dimly lit building before emerging onto some brightly lit rooftops. Head to the right, mopping up any NRC soldiers as you go and head into through a hole in the wall to your right. Move down the darkened staircase and out into a room with circular rug, and greenish sofa. An Officer’s Military Sword will be on a dresser to the left.

Collectible #37 – Piece of Broken Statue

After fighting your way across a large courtyard, you’ll make your way into a burning building. You’ll soon soon come across a crashed VTOL. Turn right before the VTOL to find a Piece of Broken Statue on a table.

Collectible #38 – Etched Glass Bottle

After you emerge from the fallen VTOL, run to the right-hand side of the area, through a blasted open entrance and up a gold-lined staircase. At the top of the staircase, turn right, then left, then left again. In front of a large vase you’ll find an Etched Glass Bottle.

Mission 8 – Demon Within

Collectible #39 – Shell Casing

After falling into the battle of Bastogne, move to the right-hand side of the area you’re in. Follow the wall along until you reach a small wooden dugout. Inside the dugout you’ll find a Shell Casing ready for collection.

Collectible #40 – WWII US Field Radio

As you progress through the snowy battle, a pair of German armoured cars will drop into place as part of the environment. Behind the cars and to the left you’ll see a wooden platform with camouflage webbing over the top. Head onto the platform to find a WWII US Field Radio on a table.

Collectible #41 – Field Binoculars

After Sarah turns the map from day to night, you’ll face down a pack of direwolves. The wolves will keep coming so head to the left of the map and you’ll find a pair of Field Binoculars on a table.

Collectible #42 – Russian Field Compass

After the revelation regarding the ritualistic killings at the blacksite, you’ll be thrown back into the WWII battle. After leaving the house, fight your way over to the barn. Head through a hole in the wall on the left-hand side of the structure, head up the stairs and you’ll find a Russian Field Compass on a table in front of you.

Collectible #43 – Russian Hat

Once you’ve progressed to the next battle, you’ll see the battlefield in the distance has been pulled up Inception-style. Clear out a few German soldiers, then head left towards a small outhouse. Once inside you’ll find a Russian Hat (however, keep in mind it’s really dark inside so it’s easy to miss).

Collectible #44 – Wagner Gramophone Record

The final collectible for Demon Within is found near your first encounter with the Sherman tank. Run past the tank towards the half demolished house (the rubble now forms a nice ramp straight into the house. Turn left and you’ll see a Wagner Gramophone Record on the wall.

Mission 9 – Sand Castle

Collectible #45 – Postcard

After landing your VTOL for the first time, hop off your plane and head towards a multi-storey cabin directly ahead of you (it has the words ‘Pivot controls’ written on the outside). Go up one flight of stairs and enter the cabin. A Postcard can be found on the shelf to your immediate left.

Collectible #46 – Industrial Drillbit Parts

Land your VTOL a second time, leap off and move off the landing pad. Take a left and you’ll see some Industrial Drillbit Parts on the floor. Grab them to complete the collectibles for Sand Castle.

Mission 10 – Lotus Towers

Collectible #47 – Hamsa

As soon as Khalil takes you up to the upper levels of the Lotus Towers, head across to a shop with a yellow bar of lights across its top. Inside and on a wall to the left you’ll find a Hamsa.

Collectible #48 – Taylor’s Insignia

After moving through the vents, assault the control room with the orange screens. When all of the NRC guards have been taken care of, head towards the lockers on the left-hand side of the room. You’ll find Taylor’s Insignia inside one of the lockers.

Collectible #49 – Hookah

As soon as you seen an Egyptian soldier run over by a robot ball of serrated death, turn left and head up the blue-tinted stairs to the right.Turn left at the top and you’ll find a Hookah sat on the table at the end.

Collectible #50 – Wall Hung Carpet

After crossing the half-destroyed skybridge, climb up the rubble and you’ll see a blue sign on its side. Turn 180 degrees and head across the roof of the area you just crossed. Halfway across, underneath a rail you’ll find a Wall Hung Carpet.

Collectible #51 – Decorative Lantern

After moving up a collapsed tunnel, you’ll emerge onto another burning platform. Run past the shorted-out robot charging station, turn right and rum up the short ramp. Behind a partition to your immediate left you’ll find a Decorative Lantern on the floor.

Collectible #52 – Melted Robot Part

After leaving Hendricks behind to fend off the robots, head up to the roof to confront Taylor. Once the giant ship starts attacking you, take the right-hand exit out of the room you resume control in and head for the ruins in front of you. On the floor in front of a destroyed console you’ll find a Melted Robot Part.

Mission 11 – Life

Collectible #53 – Promo Poster

As soon as the mission begins, turn around and head over to the Zurich Coffee House across the road. On the wall beside a door you’ll find a Promo Poster just waiting to be grabbed and added to your collection.

Collectible #54 – Prototype Robot Part

After leaving the lift with Kane, follow the marker until you come to an office with a large glass display directly in front of you when you enter. Turn left and you’ll find a Prototype Robot Part on a desk with monitors on it.

Collectible #55 – Fulgurite

After entering the Egyptian desert-esque dreamscape you’ll come across one of the temporary walls, with a set of buildings behind it. Deal with the enemies that materialise through the door, then head to your left. You’ll see a stone block beside the left-hand building, climb it and use it to climb the two ledges above. At the top, go right around the wall then wall to the end. Climb up one last time and you’ll see a Fulgurite in front of you.

Collectible #56 – Raven Feather

The final collectible can be found after you begin the purge of Corvus. While the screen says ‘Purge’ and a counter slowly rises to 100%, move out the door and towards the big ‘Coalescence’ sign. There’s a desk there – move to the other side of it and you’ll see a rather fitting Raven Feather waiting for you.

Congratulations, you’ve found every collectible in Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 and unlocked the Curator trophy or achievement.

The post Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 collectibles guide appeared first on Game News.

Gearing up for next month’s release of Call of Duty: Black Ops 3? We know that time is of the essence, so we’ve recapped all the major events from the series over the next few pages. Whether you’re going in cold or if you just want a refresher, you’ll be caught up in no time.

The Black Ops series spans multiple generations, taking players from the jungles of Vietnam to a futuristic Los Angeles seized by military drones. What starts out as a straightforward assassination mission soon becomes much more complicated, as former friends reveal themselves as traitors, and betrayals on the battlefield yield shocking results. For now, though, let’s return to where the series started.

Operation 40

Call of Duty: Black Ops begins in 1968 with CIA operative Alex Mason strapped to an electric chair. His captors are convinced that he knows the location of a Russian numbers station, and Mason, suffering from visual and auditory hallucinations, recounts the events leading up to his capture.

Previously, Mason and his teammates Woods and Bowman tried to assassinate Cuban dictator Fidel Castro as part of America’s failed Bay of Pigs Invasion in 1961. Mason unknowingly ends up killing a body double instead, and he stays behind in Cuba while helping his squad escape. The real Castro captures Mason and hands him over to General Nikita Dragovich, who in turn hauls him off to the Vorkuta Gulag forced labor camp.

Uneasy Alliances

The next year Mason spends at Vorkuta isn’t especially pleasant, as you might imagine. During his imprisonment, Mason befriends fellow captive Viktor Reznov, who shares a common enemy with Dragovich. Dragovich, along with his comrade Lev Kravchenko, betrayed Reznov during a Russian operation in 1945, using the deadly nerve toxin “Nova-6” against his own squad before fleeing with the chemical weapon’s ex-Nazi creator, Friedrich Steiner. Reznov vows revenge, telling Mason “Dragovich, Steiner, Kravchenko … All must die.”

Reznov and Mason spearhead a prisoner uprising and both escape, though Reznov is presumed captured as Mason flees to the United States. Returning to military duty, Mason travels to the Pentagon and meets President John F. Kennedy, who sends Mason on a mission to sabotage Russia’s space program and kill Dragovich. During the briefing, Mason briefly hallucinates aiming his weapon at Kennedy’s head, but the vision ends before he can act on his urges. That’s probably nothing to be concerned about, right? Off to Kazakh!

Reznov’s Revenge

Mason, Woods, Bowman, and newcomer Weaver successfully destroy their target. Though Dragovich is thought to have perished in an explosion, Mason fails to confirm the kill, and believes that he’s still alive. Mason spends the next five years unsuccessfully hunting Dragovich, eventually leading him on a U.S. military mission to Vietnam, where a Russian defector promises information regarding Dragovich’s whereabouts. The defector, who turns out to be Reznov, leads Mason, Woods, and Bowman to Dragovich’s partner Kravchenko and a wayward shipment of Nova-6. The shipment is lost, and Mason’s squad is captured by the Viet Cong and Spetznaz soldiers. In the confusion that follows, Bowman is executed, and Woods and Kravchenko apparently die during an explosive struggle.

Elsewhere, Weaver and CIA agent Hudson track down the whereabouts of Nova-6’s creator Steiner. Mason and Reznov get word of this development, and two teams – Weaver and Hudson, and Mason and Reznov – separately converge on Steiner’s location on Rebirth Island. Mason gets there first, and Reznov kills Steiner before Weaver and Hudson can interrogate him for information regarding a planned attack on the United States. Mason is detained and placed in military custody. Players then experience the scene from Weaver and Hudson’s perspective. The pair see Mason execute Steiner while reciting Reznov’s dialog. Reznov himself is nowhere to be seen.

Manipulated

Mason’s current-day captors are revealed to be Weaver and Hudson, who are trying to make sense of his sabotage. They reveal that Steiner, on Dragovich’s orders, had psychologically programmed Mason to kill President Kennedy during his imprisonment in Vorkuta. Mason refused to be broken by the training, leaving his inner programming incomplete and unstable.

Mason’s fellow captive Reznov takes advantage of the situation, himself reprogramming Mason to assassinate his own enemies: Dragovich, Kravchenko, and Steiner. Reznov actually died during the prisoner uprising in Vorkuta, but his thirst for revenge lived on in Mason, who hallucinated Reznov’s presence in Vietnam and at Rebirth Island. Mason had been doing Reznov’s posthumous bidding all along, leading him to kill Steiner while suffering from the effects of brainwashing.

Sleeping Dogs

In the years after Mason went missing in action, the U.S. military learned that Dragovich planned to set off Nova-6 in locations across the United States through sleeper cells activated by Russian numbers stations. Crucially, Mason is believed to have been programmed with the ability to decode these broadcasts, though even after interrogation and repeated listenings to the point of auditory hallucination, he does not recall his training.

After Mason attempts an escape from his captors, Hudson tracks him down and successfully breaks his brainwashing. Mason recalls that the numbers station is broadcast from the Gulf of Mexico-bound Rusalka, the ship where Castro originally handed Mason over to Dragovich. Mason and Hudson head there immediately to take care of unfinished business before the sleeper cells can activate. In the game’s final mission, Mason, Hudson, and Weaver board the Rusalka and encounter Dragovich, who starts the sleeper cell broadcast. The team orders an airstrike while still aboard, and Mason hunts down Dragovich and kills him. The transmitter is destroyed, the numbers station broadcast terminates, and the sleeper cells remain dormant. Mason, Hudson, and Weaver escape, and jets fly overhead as a new dawn rises.

Called Back

After preventing a war between international superpowers, Alex Mason retires to a quiet life in Alaska with his seven-year-old son, David. In 1986, Alex is called back into duty by Hudson, who heads up a rescue mission of personal interest. It turns out that Mason and Hudson’s old partner, Frank Woods, survived his encounter with Kravchenko back in Vietnam, and had disappeared along with his squad during a since-disavowed CIA black ops mission in Angola. The mission sets off a chain of events that spans decades.

Woods explains that his squad had been held captive by Raul Menendez, a dangerous and unpredictable arms dealer with ties to the Soviets. Mason, Hudson, and Woods track Menendez to Afghanistan, where they discover Kravchenko instead. He reveals that he had placed moles within the CIA, and claims an alliance with Menendez. After Woods finishes off Kravchenko, the accompanying Mujahideen squad betrays Mason’s team, and leaves them for dead. The team is discovered in the middle of a desert, and Mason claims to see Reznov among his rescuers.

Deep-Seated Grudges

Mason, Woods, and Hudson afterward close in on Menendez’s headquarters in Nicaragua. During the raid, Woods inadvertently kills Menendez’s beloved sister and only remaining relative, Josefina. Menendez spends decades afterward planning his revenge against America and Woods in particular.

In 1989, Mason’s squad allies with real-world Panamaian dictator Manuel Noriega in an attempt to finish off Menendez. Noriega instead helps Menendez escape. Mason’s team separates and Woods, acting on orders from a kidnapped Hudson, executes a masked man that he thinks is Menendez. The man turns out to be Mason. Menendez appears at the scene, kills Hudson, and cripples Woods, warning him that his revenge is not yet complete.

Heart Day

We jump ahead to 2025. Alex Mason’s son, David, now a U.S. Navy SEAL with the code name “Section,” questions an elderly and wheelchair-bound Woods regarding the whereabouts of Raul Menendez. Menendez had visited Woods recently, and warned him that his final act of revenge was approaching.

Menendez, now heading up a global populist group named Cordis Die, hacks the Chinese Stock Exchange and pins the blame on the United States. Swayed by Menendez’s false but convincing evidence, the world’s nations turn against America as Cordis Die’s influence grows. China additionally locks down exports for rare earth elements that are critical in the production of U.S. military technology, weakening the nation’s defenses.

Infiltration

Section’s next mission to Myanmar reveals that Menendez is planning a second and infinitely more destructive digital attack using Celerium, an advanced computer chip capable of hacking and taking control of any computer system in the world. Following him to Yemen, Section captures Menendez and brings him aboard the USS Barack Obama (yup) for questioning.

A traitor in Section’s team allows Menendez to escape. Menendez hacks the computer system aboard the Obama (yup) using smuggled Celerium and gains control over the United States’ drone fleet. Menendez escapes and sends thousands of American drones to attack major cities across the globe.

Closure

After surviving a drone attack on Los Angeles and saving the life of the U.S. President, Section travels to Haiti to put an end to Menendez’s plans before he can use America’s military to attack other nations. Upon subduing Menendez in a final showdown, players can see one of several endings depending on whether a handful of major characters survived the events of the campaign.

In Black Ops 2’s best ending, Menendez is imprisoned, and the virus he used to control the U.S. military is stopped. If Woods wounded the masked Alex Mason in 1989 instead of killing him, Mason reunites with his son after Menendez’s capture.

Party Hard

That ending’s a little bit too conventional, though. We choose to accept Call of Duty: Black Ops 2’s post-credits sequence as series canon. Basically the Call of Duty equivalent of Silent Hill 2’s infamous “Dog Ending,” this scene recasts Woods and Menendez as members of the band Avenged Sevenfold. Asked if he’s ready to rock, Woods rises from his wheelchair and proclaims “I’m ready to roll!” before the pair takes the stage in front of a cheering crowd. No, really. This is a thing that actually happens, and it rules.

Given Black Ops 2’s ridiculous alt-ending and its futuristic tech that at one point transforms Section’s squad into a fleet of flying squirrels (again, not an exaggeration), we’re excited to see where Black Ops 3 takes the series. It’s set in 2065 and stars a new cast of characters, but we’re willing to bet that we probably haven’t seen the last of the Mason clan.

The post Call of Duty Black Ops: The story so far appeared first on Game News.

You’ll have multiple slots for tactical rigs, so you won’t always have to choose between parkour glory and, say, an automatic self-revive system. Of course, you won’t be able to bring them all into battle, which means you and your co-op squadmates will need to coordinate to cover each other’s weaknesses.

No matter what rigs you choose, you’ll have two augmented vision modes to keep you alert and aware: DNI Tactical Mode, which gives you extra battle data like enemy type, and indicators for grenades and whoever shot you most recently; and Enhanced Vision Mode, which sends out pulses that light up the environment and outline enemies. That should come in handy in Black Ops 3’s one-hit-kill Realistic mode (opens in new tab), or for finding fresh targets for your death-puke ability (opens in new tab). And don’t forget – PS3 and Xbox 360 won’t get the Black Ops 3 campaign (opens in new tab)

Seen something newsworthy? Tell us!

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It’s part of a series of videos below showing the multiplayer Specialist characters. First there’s Prophet and Battery, the latter having that grenade launcher called War Machine as a secondary weapon. There’s a timed fuse on the shots but a direct hit is also an insta-kill splat. I can almost hear the cries of ‘Bullshit!‘ across the headset as people get hit by that. Prophet’s teleporting Glitch ability to jump back to a position he occupied two seconds ago also looks like a prime trigger for obscenity-fuelled rage quiting.

Check it out for yourself here:

Will you pick Battery for her Kinetic Armor? Or will you use Prophet’s Glitch when the action gets too hot? #BO3Beta https://t.co/cm2RCkMhMYAugust 16, 2015

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We’ve also got a look at Seraph and Nomad, bringing with them the Annihilator hand cannon (one hit kills capable of taking down multiple enemies with one shot) and robo-nano-insect trap… things respectively. Bees. Killed by bees playing COD. I’m sure no one will be angry about that.

Seraph’s Annihilator packs a huge punch, while Nomad’s H.I.V.E. is a ruthless trap. Which will you use? #BO3Beta https://t.co/0gS5C26ek2August 16, 2015

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And finally there’s Outrider with a literally cheat-tastic X-ray Vision Pulse and Ruin with his area-of-effect, ground pounding Gravity Spikes.

Outrider: Sparrow // Vision Pulse Ruin: Gravity Spikes // Overdrive You have some choices to make for the #BO3Beta. https://t.co/4OBIl39v0BAugust 15, 2015

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I’m not saying that these aren’t great mechanics, or that the game doesn’t look fun (it seriously looks like the most fun it’s been in years) but given the average COD players tendency to absolutely lose their shit over every minutely perceived injustice, this looks like a loadout selection that could start actual wars.

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Watching the above trailer simply invigorates me, in a way no Call of Duty trailer ever has before. It’s all so delightfully different, from the 1940s metropolis setting lit up with neon signs, to the Cthulhu-like creatures that seem to be in cahoots with the typical zombie hordes. Even though I’m fatigued by gaming’s most done-to-death, endlessly reanimated enemy type (opens in new tab), the undead can still be made palatable when they’re dressed like gumshoes and gunned down to the tune of a jazzy number, complete with a faux-Frank Sinatra crooning about “snakeskin boots on a Saturday night”.

Shadows of Evil’s flair for the wonderfully weird goes so far beyond the things I typically associate with CoD, besides snappy FPS gunplay: predictable plots set in gritty worlds populated by uninteresting characters who are constantly yelling at me to get moving. That structure has paid monstrous dividends thus far, so there’s really no reason for Activision and Treyarch to veer away from the proven CoD experience of cinematic campaigns and gripping multiplayer. But the Lovecraftian elements in Shadows of Evil feel worlds apart from modern or advanced warfare, with a magical gumball machine that provides the mode’s trademark powerups (vending machines: not much of a thing in the ’40s), some poor sap getting liquefied and sucked into a dark altar, and a hulking, otherworldly beast sporting spiny tentacles and three heads full of piranha-like teeth.

And of course, you’ve got my man Jeff going Full Goldblum, with the bizarre inflection of lines like “Ah, it appears that the shield is quicker than the EYEEEEEEEEE!” and “If it imbues me with power, mmmthen CHEW I WILLLL!” (I had to rewatch that bit about eight times to understand what the heck he was saying, and I still get a kick out of it). In fact, the whole cast of Shadows of Evil has a history with geeky weirdness I can’t help but love. Heather Graham had a breakout role on Twin Peaks, Ron Perlman made for a stellar Hellboy, and Neal McDonough got to wear a ridiculous fake mustache as Dum Dum Dugan (opens in new tab) in Captain America and Agent Carter (though I’ll always think of him as M. Bison in the abysmal Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li). To see them as a flapper-chic burlesque dancer, down-and-out boxer, and foul-mouthed PI, respectively, is almost as enticing as the greatness of Goldblum. You’ve even got Robert Picardo – The Doctor from Star Trek: Voyager – playing some kind of supernatural broker. What’s not to love?

The last CoD game I bought was 2012’s Black Ops 2, which in Call of Duty years may as well be a century ago. I skipped the single-player entirely; even though I had heard it was more engrossing than ever, I simply wasn’t in the mood for another self-serious theater of near-future war. I had Ghosts pegged as a stinker from day one, and though I appreciated the verticality of Advanced Warfare’s exoskeleton suits, the jetboost-jumping gameplay never really clicked with me whenever I tried it out. But the Shadows of Evil announcement has my enraptured attention, despite my brain mostly glossing over Black Ops 3’s initial reveal and the intriguing addition of unique Specialist characters (opens in new tab) to the regular multiplayer matches.

As a series, Call of Duty has been an unstoppable juggernaut for the past decade. Being that it’s Activision’s prized cash cow, there isn’t much room to mix it up; the games have a colossal target audience to please, and anything that veers away from the established CoD formula runs the risk of disappointing returns. But Zombies offers a playful space off to the side – a chance for CoD’s developers to flex their creative muscles in ways the base game would never demand (or even allow). And it’s as though Treyarch has reached a tipping point, realizing that yeah, this billion-dollar franchise really is too big to fail – so why not have some fun with some truly off-the-wall ideas, backed by recognizable celebrities and a seemingly infinite marketing budget?

Things have come full circle. It was Treyarch that first created Nazi Zombies mode in Call of Duty: World at War, just as the franchise was about to get creatively stuck on itself trying to duplicate the mega-success of the first Modern Warfare. Bit by bit, Treyarch’s brand of Zombies has experimented and succeeded with some truly eccentric concepts, like the much-loved Monkey Bomb, or Richard Nixon dual-wielding shotguns while John F. Kennedy covers his six with a grenade launcher. On the whole, CoD hasn’t taken many chances in past years, maintaining its popularity by delivering something consistent and predictably entertaining. But now it’s gotten so huge that it can and will take risks by pouring money into peculiarities like Shadows of Evil. And that’s a brilliant, positive realization for a franchise like Call of Duty to make.

In my mind, this is the most out-there thing CoD has done yet – and that includes casting John Malkovich as a gun-savvy janitor in a mech suit and a Snoop Dogg voice pack (opens in new tab). The closest parallel I can think of – where a Western publisher tried something so completely off-brand with a tentpole franchise – is Far Cry 3’s standalone Blood Dragon expansion, with its ’80s synth, cyber commandos, and neon-pink fire breathers. Shadows of Evil looks so vibrant and strange that I have to support it with my money, because it’s the kind of video game experience I will always want to see more of. Jeff Goldblum’s inclusion is just the icing on the cake.

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Activision and Treyarch announced that The Giant (which picks up on the infamously convoluted Zombies story where Black Ops 2’s Origins left off) will be included in the Juggernog Edition (opens in new tab), the Hardened Edition, which is currently exclusive to GameStop in North America, and the Digital Deluxe Edition. That means you’ll have to pay at least $20 extra to follow the continued exploits of Dempsey, Nikolai, Richtofen, and Takeo.

Of course, The Giant may not stay exclusive for too long: Der Riese was initially available exclusively for owners of Black Ops’ Prestige and Hardened editions, and it was later released as part of the Rezurrection map pack. I wouldn’t be surprised if its remake does the same.

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Starting with the original Call of Duty, this is a game that’s been putting us in the boots of larger-than-life soldiers in some of the most intense combat moments you could imagine for a long time. Let’s reflect on some of the most memorable moments that have defined the series.

SPOILERS AHEAD, read at your own risk!

15. Menendez’s bloody rampage | Time and Fate | Call of Duty Black Ops II

Very rarely do you get to know the exact motivations behind a psychopathic villain, but in Call of Duty: Black Ops II, you get to witness Raul Menendez’s plight from his own eyes–bloodshot, rage-filled eyes. In a CIA raid to capture Menendez, his sister Josefina is taken from him, sending the antagonist into a murderous frenzy. With nothing but a shotgun, machete, and blind rage, you rampage through the nearby town, slaughtering every soldier that stands in your way. Bullets can’t hurt you, you shrug off grenades, and you attack your victims like a man possessed. What a rush.

14. Saving the ‘President’ | Atlas | Advanced Warfare

Mission 2 of Advanced Warfare is a bit of whirlwind. One minute you’re meeting your slain best friend’s father at a funeral, the next you’re rescuing the Commander-in-Chief from a hostage situation at Camp David. What’s going on? When your shiny new prosthetic arm malfunctions and a colleague shoots the POTUS in the head, it suddenly becomes clear – this overblown, oh-so-CoD mission is just a VR simulation. It’s a miniature twist, and a nice introduction to AW’s future-tech. Also, Kevin Spacey’s all over it, which is always fun.

13. The United States getting nuked from space | Ghost Stories | Call of Duty: Ghosts

To kick off the new setting for Call of Duty: Ghosts, Infinity Ward brought out the biggest guns they could get: a weaponized space station orbiting right above the United States. As the astronaut Baker, you and your partner witness the Federation hijack the station, gun down its crew, and launch nuclear missiles towards southern California. But what you have to do gets even more insane. As in, get-blown-out-into-space, shoot-any-bad-guys-you-see, then commit-suicide-to-save-the-world kind of insane.

12. Deciding the fate of Alex Mason | Suffer With Me | Call of Duty: Black Ops II

Black Ops II did something that no other Call of Duty campaign had done before: it let you make choices. But one of those choices might’ve passed without you even knowing it happened. The young Mason and Woods have tracked down the murderous extremist, Raul Menendez, who was betrayed by his allies. With a blinding cloth draped over his head, Menendez is displayed in front of Woods, who has a sniper rifle in hand, ready to gun the madman down. You’re given control. You take the shot. But as you inspect the body, you discover that you shot Alex Mason instead! Dun dun dun. Guess you should’ve shot him in the leg, a subtle choice which gives you a completely different ending.

11. Back to WWII | Demon Within | Black Ops 3

CoD fans have spent years campaigning for a return to the battlefields of the past – in cheeky fashion, Black Ops 3 gave them what they wanted. Entering the mind of the dying Sarah Hall (don’t ask), you’re thrust into 1944’s Siege of Bastogne, taking down Nazi threats with tech a century ahead of theirs. Quickly, things get weird(er), as the world starts folding in on itself, Inception-style, gravity begins to turn off, and zombies and direwolves start popping up. It’s all very meaningful, I’m sure.

10. Hijacked plane sequence | Turbulence | Modern Warfare 3

And there we were thinking Modern Warfares breathless airplane-based bonus mission Mile High Club was pretty special. But then MW3s Turbulence comes along and takes in-flight combat to the next level – protecting the Russian president from hijackers in the claustrophobic space of a jet is high-stakes stuff on its own. Then, the engines stall out and the dive sends you into a sequence of zero gravity shooting and a crash landing that rips the aircraft fuselage in two. True action film fare.

9. De-Nazifying the woods | The Forest | Call of Duty 3

A wonderfully paced, rising crescendo of a level. At first requiring a softly-softly snipey-snipey approach, with the relative peacefulness of the forest creating an edgy atmosphere, the player never quite knowing where the next Nazis going to spring from. Then it kicks things up a notch, with the battle intensifying as it moves between tight burrow-like trenches and wide-open spaces. Finally and a complete contrast to the cautious way the mission starts youre given a mortar to play with, allowing you to merrily blow apart any of Hitlers helmeted hobgoblins unfortunate enough to still be lurking in the forest.

8. The Airport Massacre | No Russian | Modern Warfare

“Best” is perhaps not quite the right word for this entry, but it’s undoubtedly one of the series’ most effective, affecting missions. No Russian places you in the shoes of an undercover agent in a terrorist cell. Quickly, you understand just what that asks of you. You enter an airport and are told to mow down everyone you see, regardless of who they are. It’s a video game mission that’s sparked protest, academic study and genuine soul-searching. There’s very little else like it in the medium.

7. Beach landing | The Battle of Pointe du Hoc | Call of Duty 2

Starts with a fellow soldier in the landing craft having a fear-induced puke. BLEEUURGH. This is quickly followed by the sound of bullets whizzing through the air. Then clouds of red mist as those bullets thud into flesh. Soldiers fall to the ground. Spray from a near-miss explosion obscures your view. Then the ramp is down and youre running on to the beach. MORTAR BOOM. Down you go. Cue semi-deafened shell-shocked horror of war moment as you survey the scene around you. When you regain your senses the metaphorical implications of the vertical cliff face ahead of you become apparent. Your role to this point is one of spectator, but its still a breathless couple of minutes.

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