Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War initially struggled with a lack of content upon the initial release of the game. However, the first seasonal update released in December with a huge amount of new content for fans of multiplayer, zombies, and Warzone.
Since then, the game has been brought consistent updates with new maps, modes, weapons, cosmetics, and even a new zombies map with Firebase Z. Call of Duty is on an all time-high recently, and that isn't showing any signs of slowing down as the next season of content is set to release in next week on February 25.
The Season Two update is set to include content for both Multiplayer and Zombies, with new content additionally coming to the standalone free-to-play Warzone Battle Royale game. After a long wait, Activision has released the first details on the update including a gameplay trailer, revealing one of the biggest updates of all-time.
BLACK OPS COLD WAR SEASON 2 REVEALS GAMEPLAY TRAILER
An official gameplay trailer for the new season of Black Ops Cold War has shown off looks at new multiplayer maps, playable operators, and an all-new Zombies mode entitled "Outbreak." Additionally, a brief tease is shown of a boat arriving in Verdanask, teasing new updates to Warzone.
Following the release of the trailer, Call of Duty has published a blog post offering further details of the new content releasing next week. The post included a roadmap image showcasing which content will be dropping with the release and releasing during the season over the coming months.
The season marks the next chapter in the Black Ops Cold War post-launch storyline which will take Frank Woods and his team on the hunt for Russel Adler who was kidnaped by Stitch and the Perseus group at the conclusion of last season. Adler's whereabouts remain unknown, but the hunt to rescue him has taken the team to the Golden Triangle of Laos.
As happens with every new season, player levels will be reset with next Thursday's update, allowing players to level up all the way to prestige 11 in the new universal ranking system used across the recent Call of Duty titles. Leveling up will earn players new rewards and the ability to unlock cosmetic icons from past installments in the series.
The current battle pass will be coming to an end next Thursday, with a new one being released for purchase; this means players only have one more week to reach tier 100 and earn the rewards of season one.
Players will be treated to four new playable operators within the season — released across the store and battle pass — including Zombies favorite Samantha Maxis, new antagonist Naga, along with a couple of new friends in Rivas and Wolf.
As Call of Duty is a shooter game, the part fans are sure to be excited about is the new weapons, of which there are six. The FARA 83 assault rifle and the LC10 SMG will both be released on the launch of the season, likely through the new battle pass.
Meanwhile, throughout the coming months, players will be treated to the E-Tool and Machete melee weapons, with the R1 Shadowhunter crossbow, and the ZRG 20mm sniper rifle also coming during the season.
A Death Machine minigun scorestreak will also be added next Thursday, the weapon will be available in multiplayer and as a new support weapon across the "Zombies" modes.
The infamous multiplayer mode is set to see four brand-new maps this season, with only one coming with the release being the Laos cartel base of Apocalypse. The next few months will see Golova come to the game's multi-team mode, Mansion releasing in 2v2 Gunfight and 3v3 Face Off, and a smaller daytime version of Miami coming for standard 6v6 modes.
A classic fan-favorite mode will finally be coming to Black Ops Cold War next week in "Gun Game" as players compete in a free-for-all to progress to the end of a pre-set selection of 20 weapons and win the game. Last up for multiplayer, during season players will see two more modes including the classic Hardpoint mode making its way to multi-team, and a Stockpile mode for 6v6 combining elements of Hardpoint and Kill Confirmed.
"Zombies" fans will be excited to hear the mode will see a huge number of new content updates with the launch of season two including new abilities, weapons, and a brand-new mode with "Outbreak."
"Outbreak" is will take players to the heart of the Russian Ural Mountains in what is described as “an entirely new, large-scale Zombies experience unlike any other!” The mode will team players up with a squad of up to three players as they attempt to “complete the deadly experiments that few have survived.” The blog post offered further details on the mode, however, more will be released in the coming days:
“Continuing the Dark Aether story, Outbreak takes place across massive play spaces throughout the Ural Mountains, packed with new enemies, team objectives, player rewards, and intel to discover on foot, in vehicles, or by jump pads. Whether its hunting down elite enemies using a satellite tracker, escorting a Rover that detects dimensional portals, or holding out against zombies in a confined Dark Aether zone, agents of Requiem will need to complete these investigations before they can Exfil… or risk entering a Dark Aether portal to a new region for even more rewards.”
The "Outbreak" mode will bring with it new vehicles to navigate the huge open spaces including a four-seater Sedan, and a small truck for off-road travel.
Across all the traditional maps and the new "Outbreak" mode, Shatter Blast will be added to the line-up of four ammo mod abilities on the pack-a-punch machine. The new ammo mod will make all bullets deal explosive damage, with a chance to explode and deal additional damage. Much like all the other items of Black Ops Cold War zombies, the ammo mod will be upgradable using Aetherium crystals for additional abilities.
But that's not all, as a new Field Upgrade will also be released for players known as Frenzied Guard. The new ability will force all zombies to only target the player using it while the user is invincible to damage (except for their armor), allowing players a chance to save their teammates who are nearing death. Upgrading Frenzied guard will be extremely helpful for improving this ability by increasing its duration and slowing down zombies.
The Aetherium crystals upgrades will be seeing great improvements with the launch of the season as new types are added to allow players to unlock fourth and fifth tiers of upgrades. Further details will be offered on these changes closer to the season.
Lastly, the standalone Warzone battle royale game will be updated to include all the weapons and cosmetics of season two, along with a fresh new loot pool to be found at random across the map.
The popular free-to-play spin-off will be seeing new map changes including the arrival of a cargo tanker boat off the coast of the map, and several other new locations around the map.
Additionally, two new modes are coming during the season including "Exfiltration," and a new faster-paced version of the Rebirth Island Resurgence mode with next week's launch.
The post teased that “something major is beginning to rumble deep underground” in Verdansk, so players should prepare for some kind of event in the coming weeks or months.
A NEXT LEVEL UPDATE FOR CALL OF DUTY
Everything about this update is breaking new ground for the Call of Duty franchise. Season two of Black Ops Cold War seems sure to satisfy fans of all modes as it brings insane amounts of content across the board, including an innovative new mode for zombies.
Fans of the classic "Zombies" survival mode are used to experiencing the undead horror on small-scale maps released every few months, but "Outbreak" seems ready to shake up that formula. The concept of an open-world zombies experience with objectives to complete across the map is intriguing, to say the least.
So far, the latest iteration features the lowest number of maps so far since 2008's World at War , however, it appears the grand-scale of this mode is set to make up for that. Additionally, the promise of new abilities and upgrades promises plenty to do which will keep players engaged for the months to come.
Meanwhile, in multiplayer the team will be adding more weapons, maps, and modes than have been seen in the franchise for a long time. Call of Duty' s multiplayer has often been criticized for its repetitive nature, something the franchise has been improving on in recent years with more consistent updates.
Warzone Battle Royale has placed the franchise in an intriguing position over the last year as the standalone title interlinks with the current title of each year. The Verdansk map has existed in the game for the last year and this season appears to bring some of the first substantial map updates in months with a promise of new locations.
Whatever part of Call of Duty you may be a fan of, season two is sure to have something for you when it releases next Thursday across Black Ops Cold War and Warzone.
The update will be released for pre-download on February 23 between 9pm and 11pm PT for Black Ops Cold War. Meanwhile, the Warzone update will roll out a day later on February 24 in the same time period.