Black Ops 6 is finally out, allowing players to enjoy a new iteration of the Zombies mode that Treyarch is known and loved for. Even though Vanguard and Modern Warfare 3 presented their version, under the supervision of Treyarch, this is the first Zombies mode entirely developed by the said studio since the release of Black Ops Cold War.

If you want to know if their magic is present in this new installment or if this iteration of Zombies is the one you’re looking for, I’ve collected my thoughts into this compact review.

The mechanics

We’ll start by talking about the game’s mechanics. Round-based gameplay returns with Black Ops 6, with both launch maps featuring the traditional format.

Although Vanguard implemented this format, Modern Warfare 3 Zombies moved away from it and had an open-world Zombies mode. This marks the return of the round goodness since 2021.

You can see right away that the game isn’t coming from a blank canvas, but building on what was learned with Black Ops Cold War’s Zombies mode.

The game’s cutscenes are smoother, boss fights are back and more dynamic than what we saw in Cold War maps, and new quality of life additions improve the overall experience.

A feature of QoL is the voting system when playing cooperatively. When a player wants to trigger a certain event, such as the start of a boss fight or when triggering the Rampage Inducer to increase the difficulty of zombies.

Another feature we would like to highlight, and probably one that many users are very happy with, is the option to save single player games. This is the first game in franchise history that allows players to save their matches and resume them later.

This feature alone greatly increases the value of the game and allows players who do not have many free consecutive hours to reach higher spins. Savings are not available in cooperatives, which is a shame, but you can’t have everything, right?

The cooperative experience not only has the save function, but also the ability to pause matches. This is also a disappointment considering pausing was a thing in Black Ops Cold War, both for single-player and co-op matches.

In other words, even though the single-player experience has been improved in this area, the cooperative side remains the same. We don’t know the reason why all of this isn’t included in co-op or if Treyarch can still implement these features during the post-launch cycle.

The game also brings back all the mechanics from Warzone, like armor plates, floor loot, scorelines, and more. Just as has happened since the Cold War, I don’t think this takes away from the arcade experience that is Zombies.

Zombies still feels like an arcade mode and all these mechanics just add more ways to survive and interact, without making the game feel like the open world mode we saw in MW3. However, maps also play an important role in this regard.

I would also like to point out the Wonder Weapon pool at launch as it is enough for a good start. The Ray Gun is here but we also have a brand new weapon, the Beamsmasher, and the return of the Jet Gun, under a different name.

The Beamsmasher is completely different from what we’ve seen before, filling the need for something new. On the other hand, it’s a relief to see the Jet Gun finally useful.

For those who don’t know, the Jet Gun was available in the Tranzit map of Black Ops 2. The gun was crucial to the Easter egg, however, it would overheat very quickly and was practically useless for surviving against zombies. So it’s great to see that Treyarch has finally bought back this old piece of junk.

Gobblegums, one of my favorites from Black Ops 3, are another welcome return. The simplicity and charm of the original Gobblegums is there, and we expect the number of Gobblegums to increase in future seasons to add more gameplay dynamism.

Cards

Black Ops 6 launched with two maps, Terminus and Liberty Falls. The latter was heavily criticized after its reveal on COD Next 2024, with many claiming that it doesn’t look like Zombies.

While it’s true that the map’s color palette isn’t as crazy as that seen in Revelations, Shadows of Evil, or Der Eisendrache, that’s not a negative aspect.

The map looks like zombies considering it’s an abandoned city plagued by the undead. The outbreak occurred not too long ago in history, so it would make sense that the entire place doesn’t appear to be inside the Dark Aether…yet .

However, we see Aether storms, destroyed buildings, zombie traps, Aether portals, an area inside the Dark Aether (the church) and many other things that give the map a unique look and not a warzone map adjusted for zombies. The map has a similar feel to Die Maschine, the first Zombies map in Black Ops Cold War.

On the other hand, we have Terminus. With its nighttime setting and the fact that it takes place in an abandoned facility on an island, this one will probably be the favorite of those who love classic maps like Shi No Numa, Ascension, or even Zetsubou No Shima.

Liberty Falls is also supposed to be a research center, but Terminus is where the real experiments take place, as you’ll find out during the main Easter egg quest.

It would be difficult for me to choose one card over the other since both have their own gimmicks. Perhaps recency bias comes into play since it’s only been two weeks since the game’s launch, but I’d choose Terminus simply because I find its quest for Easter eggs more entertaining.

The maps are filled with little secrets and Easter eggs everywhere, so discovering the main quest isn’t the only thing players can look forward to.

The story of Dark Aether continues

I can’t forget the story, which is one of the essential parts of Treyarch’s Zombies mode. However, I will avoid mentioning spoilers for the Easter Egg cutscenes in case you still don’t have the game or want to experience the story for yourself once you play it.

Having two maps at launch greatly benefits the story because the events of both maps take place at the same time. The story picks up almost five years after the end of Black Ops Cold War, where we saw Samantha sacrifice herself to save everyone from the Forsaken.

Now, the former Requiem crew, Dr. Peck and Maya uncover the horrific experiments being conducted on Terminus Island, while a group of soldiers investigate the zombie outbreak in Liberty Falls.

The story on both maps is easy to understand but it bears the Treyarch signature, with a bunch of mysteries to uncover, characters who don’t appear as they seem and what happened in the past is more important than ever.

I think the Zombies story is one of the most interesting parts of every Treyarch title, however, newcomers might have a hard time getting into it. This part of the story has always been aimed more at dedicated fans, but Treyarch opened the doors to new players in Black Ops Cold War by starting from scratch after Black Ops 4’s finale.

As revealed in the final cutscenes, a new arch was set in motion after the events of these two maps. This story will likely expand during Black Ops 6’s post-launch cycle with the release of new maps.

The story traps you immediately, especially since the audience is aware of certain facts that the protagonist doesn’t know and we’ve already seen some interesting twists and turns.

If you are someone who closely follows the Zombies story and this new Dark Aether storyline, you will not be disappointed with the events set in motion. And if you’re a newbie to this world, the story has the potential to pique your interest and make you go down the rabbit hole of researching what happened before.

Final Thoughts

Overall, it’s a good start to Black Ops 6 Zombies, delivering two maps at launch, an interesting continuation of Dark Aether’s storyline, improving on what’s been built from Cold War and staying true to what makes of Zombies a great experience.

There are some negatives, such as the lack of key features that could improve the user experience, but that doesn’t take away from the fact that this mode offers positive results.

Final score: 8 out of 10.

The game was tested on PC using code provided by CDKeys. Get your copy here!

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