Activision is going back to the well with Black Ops 7 this year—a deviation from the CoD release pattern that hasn't gone unnoticed or without concern—but Treyarch and Raven are zagging away from the Gulf War antics of last year's Blops 6. Instead, we're going back to the future (again).
While I quietly mourn the Infinity Ward game we're not getting this year, I look forward to seeing Call of Duty's latest interpretation of future warfare. Here's what we know about Blops 7 so far, including beta dates and confirmed gameplay improvements.
When is the Black Ops 7 release date?
Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 is coming out November 14 on PC, PS5/PS4, Xbox Series X/S, and Xbox One. Which wasn't really a surprise when it was announced during Gamescom's Opening Night Live, as COD has come out every Fall, without fail, for the last 20 years.
If you want to get your hands on it before then, then you'll have to take part in its public beta.
When is the Black Ops 7 beta?
Black Ops 7's early access beta starts October 2 for those who pre-order the game, or are subscribed to Game Pass PC, Ultimate, or Console. The rest of us can then join in on the fun come October 5 when the open beta launches. Then, we'll all have to retire our loadouts on October 8, when the beta comes to an end.
For those who are pre-ordering the game digitally to get early access, you don't need to worry about entering a beta code! You'll be able to just download the beta once early access starts.
Black Ops 7 trailers
Latest gameplay trailer
After its initially confusing reveal trailer (more on that below), this latest gameplay trailer is a lot more like the Call of Duty we're used to. It's got guns, explosions, and hunting down a super villain across the globe, all set to the soundtrack of Metallica's Master of Puppets. Locations shown off include Nicaragua, Los Angeles, Angola, Tokyo, Alaska, and COD's fictional french city-state, Avalon.
Reveal trailer
Thanks to all the robots and holograms on display, this three-minute reveal of Black Ops 7 briefly fooled most of the audience at Xbox's June showcase into thinking Microsoft was announcing an original new series, but alas, it was an obligatory Call of Duty reveal.
Black Ops 7 story and setting
"The year is 2035 and the world is on the brink of chaos, ravaged by violent conflict and psychological warfare following the events of the fan-favorite titles Black Ops 2 and Black Ops 6," reads the Black Ops 7 Steam page.
That's right, we're going back to the future (but maybe not the flavor of future you're asking for). As the description indicates, Blops 7 is picking up the ball with David Mason, son of Alex "The Numbers" Mason. David Mason last appeared in 2012's Black Ops 2, a game now old enough to pluck the nostalgic strings of the late Xbox 360 era.
It's unclear if this 2035 story will have any material ties to the '90s antics of Blops 6, but history tells us not to expect much in terms of connective tissue. Maybe Frank Woods will show up? Did he die in Blops 2? High school was a long time ago.
Black Ops 7 gameplay
Even though the full multiplayer and Zombie mode reveals are yet to come, there was a lot of information packed into the 17-minute Blops 7 Direct. To save your from all the PR talk, we've summarized all the key details from this Direct below:
- The campaign can be played in 4-player co-op
- At the end of the story, the 'Endgame' has you teaming up with 32 players in total to fight on a massive scale and test everything you've learned during the campaign
- Global Progression lets you earn XP and complete challenges to level-up your weapons during the campaign. You can then bring these weapons into multiplayer, Zombies, and Warzone modes
- Scorestreaks, Field Upgrades, and Equipment can be upgraded with the new Overclock system
- Omnimovement is back unchanged, but now you can wall jump, which Activision says lets you "evade or out-style your pursuers while increasing your traversal capabilities"
- Tactical sprint has been removed by default, but you can toggle it back on via a perk
- There will be 16 maps at launch, which are all 6v6. 13 maps are new, three "legendary" maps are making a return from Blops 2, and even more maps will be added post-launch
- Multiplayer map locations include a guild facility in Japan, the Alaskan wilderness, and the Australian outback. And specific map names mentioned in the Call of Duty Direct include: The Forge, Scar, Cortex, and Homestead
- Confirmed modes include Raid, and a new mode called Skirmish, which is large scale 20v20 experience where teams battle it out to complete objectives (wingsuits and grappling hooks in this mode confirmed)
- You can share and download weapon builds via build codes in gunsmith
- You will be able to level-up and prestige individual weapons
- Carry Forward... carries forward into Blops 7 in the form of Double XP tokens and GobbleGums, but after a U-turn over continuing complaints, it's now been confirmed that Black Ops 6 cosmetics won't carry forward into Black Ops 7 (Warzone remains unaffected)
- There will, of course, be live service seasons after launch, including weekly challenges
Black Ops 7 Zombies
It's a Blops game, so of course Zombies is making the cut. Never been my thing, but last year's version was my favorite in a while thanks to its sandboxy maps.
More details will be revealed later, but for now, all we really know is that Zombies will be round based, survival maps are making a comeback, and there are Dark Aether versions of the original crew. Spoooooky~
Wait, another Black Ops so soon?
By far the strangest aspect of Black Ops 7 is its timing. We just got Black Ops 6 last year, which makes this the second time in a row that Call of Duty has sequelized the previous year's game instead of following its usual pattern.
That pattern would typically dictate that it's Infinity Ward's turn to dazzle us with the next Modern Warfare, but instead we're getting another Blops helmed by Treyarch (which tends to focus on multiplayer and Zombies) and Raven Software (which has made the last few Blops campaigns).
There are obvious red flags here. The last time this happened was 2023's Modern Warfare 3, a sequel that reporting indicated was thrown together by Sledgehammer after Activision delayed Black Ops 6 a year. Because Activision wasn't about to skip an opportunity to release something for $70 in 2023, it pushed out a disjointed, shallow, and noticeably barren CoD that earned the series' worst reviews in history. Assuming it wasn't always the plan to double-dip on Blops in 2024 and 2025, we could be watching history repeat itself.
Black Ops 7? More like Call of Duty 22
No seriously. If we're only counting mainline games, Black Ops 7 is Call of Duty 22. Let that sink in, then expunge it from your aging body and let it wash over you.
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
