Call of Duty: Black Ops - Cold War for Windows

A direct sequel game

Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War is a premium 2020 installment in the Call of Duty franchise. It explores various points of the Cold War and works in concert with Warzone. It comes with a multiplayer and co-op zombies mode, along with its single-player campaign. 

Black Ops Cold War takes players back to 1981, at the peak of the US and Soviet Union tensions. The player is tasked to hunt down the Soviet spy Perseus—a figure that the real CIA believes to have successfully infiltrated the US government during the Cold War. 

Play your way across the history

To help you in your mission, characters associated with Black Ops games will also return. Some of the characters include 

• Alex Woods
• Frank Mason
• Jason Hudson

All of the above-mentioned characters first appeared in the first Black Ops in 2010. Not only that, but the game also drops famous names in history, including President Ronald Reagan. The former US President will assign players at least one mission that will have a direct effect on the game’s story. 

However, what sets Black Ops Cold War apart from the other title of the popular action shooter game is that players can create their own character. They can select a psychological profile and military background, in addition to providing their character’s first and last name. Likewise, they can choose their gender—male, female, or classified for non-binary players—with the latter option to help you cultivate an aura of espionage. 

Turning away from the sci-fi direction

Black Ops Cold War is the direct sequel to the 2010 Black Ops game. It ignored certain previous installments and continue the story of the original title. Timeline wise, the game takes place between Black Ops and the Black Ops II flashbacks. The game also gets rid of the science fiction elements that the series is known for. There are no mechs, no android, and no armored power-ups that you can take advantage of when you fight. 

The combat in the game is grounded and gritty, providing players with a real-life war game experience. If you are not a fan of the sci-fi game direction that the Call of Duty franchise has been in for several years, this game will be a reprieve. Furthermore, it offers multiple endings—giving players oodles of choices—and optional objectives in the missions. However—while this title feels like the most customizable installment from the franchise—some players may not be too happy with its skill-based matchmaking (SBMM). 

The SBMM seemed to be way too harsh that some players will struggle to keep up with the pace of the play. The way matchmaking works in the game is that it pools players of similar skill levels in the casual player. More than making it harder to win matches, this matchmaking tactic made it difficult for players to feel their progression as they are always pitted against opponents of the same caliber. 

The frightfully fun Season Six

Launched on October 7, 2021, Black Ops Cold War’s Season Six lets players immerse themselves in Adler’s broken memories in Deprogram as well as engage in high-octane gunfights in Amerika and Gluboko—all of which are the game’s newest map additions. The season also introduced the following in Zombies:

• Forsaken - A round-based map located in Zakarpatska Oblast.
• Chrysalax - A wonder weapon that can be used as an axe (Chrysalax Savager) or energy gun (Chrysalax Storm).
• PhD Slider -  A perk that lets players slide into the zombies to kill them with a powerful explosion.
• ARC-XD -  A scorestreak that draws in zombies, releasing shockwaves and killing them in the process.
• Hand Cannon - A scorestreak that deals tremendous damage.

New guns and melee weapons were released as well. These include:

• .410 Ironhide - A deadly lever-action shotgun.
• Grav - An assault rifle with high fire rate.
• LAPA - A submachine gun that inflicts good damage.
• Battle Axe - A lethal two-handed weapon.
• Hammer and Sickle - A dual melee weapon that takes a nod to the Soviet Union.

Given the release date of Season Six, it’s no surprise that the game would scare the living daylights of players in Halloween-themed game modes such as Prop Hunt Halloween, Scream Deathmatch, and many more. Of course, the season also marked the release of new operators, namely Mason, Fuze, Ghostface, among others—as well as bundles like the Tracer Pack: Zombie Zapper Mastercraft. Season Six ended on December 7, 2021.

Hardcore boots-on-the-ground war game

Fans of the original Black Ops game are in for a treat with Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War. Not only did the game brought back the story of the fan-favorite COD title, but it also brought back the gritty and boots-on-the-ground gameplay of war games. There is a scope for some further fine-tuning when it comes to the matchmaking algorithms, but, overall, it is an exciting title for the well-loved series.