#BlackOps2 | Midnight Launch Event (@BestBuy) | "Carrier" Domination Gameplay

Black Ops | My Son Mikey's First Black Ops Commentary | "Gun Game" on Grid

From MP1st – New Black Ops 2 Multiplayer Details – Game Modes, Challenges, Player Card, Theater and Prestige

Call of Duty is seeing some major improvements and additions in Black Ops 2′s multiplayer – more that you might of initially expected.
We’ve already learned about some of the initial Black Ops 2 multiplayer features back in September, including Pick 10, scorestreaks and wildcards etc., but after having recently visited the Treyarch Studios down in Santa Monica LA, MP1st was fortunate enough to preview a slew of brand new multiplayer features and content that have yet to be revealed.
Though unable to attend the event in person, game design director David Vonderhaar put together an informative presentation detailing some the exciting new multiplayer goodness making its way to Black Ops 2 this November 13.

Game Modes

Multi-Team

At launch, three modes will be playable with up to three different teams within the regular assortment of playlists. These three teams can be made up of three to four players. Treyarch calls these “3×3′s” and “3X4′s.” Multi-team game modes include:

• Team Deathmatch
• Kill Confirmed
• Hardpoint

Party Games

Party Games essentially replaces Wager Matches from the original Black Ops. However, players will now be able to earn XP and rank up in the regular progression. Game types include:

• Gun Game
• Sticks and Stones (Yes, the crossbow and ballistic knife are returning.)
• One in the Chamber
• Sharpshooter

Combat Training

Combat Training is now integrated into the main game and will include three different modes at launch.

• Bootcamp – In Bootcamp, players can rank up from level 1 to level 10 while gaining full experience. This playlist is solely made up of the Team Deathmatch game mode and pits one team of humans and bots against another team of human and bots. This eases the level of expectation placed on someone who may be new to the game.
• Objective – Here, players can rank past level 10, but will not earn the full amount of XP. Once again, two teams made up of both humans and bots are pitted against each other in various objective-based game modes.
• Bot Stom – No XP is earned in Bot Storm. Quite simply, a team of humans is pitted agains a team of bots – great for practice, map knowledge, and nailing down the basics of Call of Duty.

Customization

All game modes are customizable in Black Ops 2. Bots can be added to almost all game modes if a team needs filling out, for example. Players will also have the power to restrict content like certain attachments, perks and equipment. Interestingly, players will also be able to redesign the Pick 10 system to either a Pick 3 to Pick 17 system and anything in between. This can make for some extremely skill-based matches when weapons, perks and equipment are limited to only three slots. A slew of competitive settings and options have also been thrown in, including how FFA, TDM and CTS are scored, the ability to turn off 3rd person spectating, the ability to disable the announcer and a whole lot more.

Challenges

Challenges reward players for almost anything and everything – ranging from simple tasks to more difficult feats. Completing challenges is ‘the’ way to unlock cosmetic content for your character which can be shared throughout all aspects of the multiplayer. These challenges, numbering in the thousands, also reward players with XP in order to level up even faster.
Every weapon in the game, including atypical weapons like launchers, knives and assault shields all have challenges for camoflage patterns. Once these base camos are unlocked for a weapon, a whole new set of challenges are unlocked to complete for special camos, including some interesting hidden ones.
These challenges also extend to optic reticles. There are a total of eight unique reticles for each optic that are all unique to that optic which can all help your aim and precision. Just for the lol’s, Treyarch has also thrown in a number of comical shapes, including a mustache, aka “The Steve,” as well as the “EOTech Zombie Stopper.”
In-game, these rewards show up as a neatly presented icon in the top center of the screen when earned and are reviewable in the after-action report.

Player Cards

Every Player Card in Black Ops 2 is made up of these elements: a background, a clan tag, a player’s matchmaking level and a player’s current League Play rank.
In the emblem editor, players will have up to 32 layers to work with. Objects can be flipped, moved, rotated, scaled and copied and pasted from one layer to another. The choice of colors has been improved and RGB color mixing can also be tweaked. The emblem editor now also supports transparency.
Should you choose not to create your own emblem, default emblems will also be provided. For those willing to get creative, more complex shapes will become available upon completing specific challenges. When it comes to backgrounds, over 150 are selectable, not all of which are simple rectangular shapes.

Theater

The theater mode in Black Ops 2 is back and has seen some major improvements while keeping all the same tools, including the dolly cam, from previous Call of Duty’s. The new Social Features allow players to bookmark gameplays so that they can be revisited, meaning it’s now much easier to go back and search for your favorite moments after a plentiful night of games. The Meta Data has been expanded to include score, captures and defends while the robust Community Filter can help sort videos to a player’s preference. Up and down-voting is now also included for both films and screenshots.
An extremely powerful new feature, the Highlight Reel, allows players to create a film with the simple touch of a button. Simply load a game in the theater, select ‘Hightlight Reel,’ and “bam,” the game instantly creates your very own montage of your most excellent moments. Settings can be customized, however, to expand or simplify the contents of your film. Further editing can be done once completed as well.
As previously mentioned, players can also CoDCast previously recorded games in order to either get some practice in, or create some nifty commentaries. Parties can now head into theater mode and watch videos together while having the ability to watch any player from a first-person perspective.
Treyarch has also doubled the amount of clips or segments that can be put together in one video – up to 20 in total. Additionally, clips can now be merged into each other, creating one big clip. The brand new Attach to Object feature, a brilliant addition, will let players produce some really fancy shots. By entering free-roam, objects that are selectable will turn green. When selected, the camera will simply follow that object as it moves throughout the gameplay. Objects can range from various scorestreaks all the way down to the rocket that is launched out of an RPG. This means you can now follow said rocket in slow-mo as it plows into your enemies face.

Prestige

What everyone’s been waiting for.
Treyarch is handling prestige very differently in Black Ops 2. Once again, assumptions are being challenged. No longer is Prestige a “restart” as it was in previous Call of Duty titles. This time around, weapon experience and earned attachments are are carried over, as are all challenges.
Black Ops 2 is meant to be played all the way to prestige 10. Upon prestige-ing, tokens are rewarded to the player which can then be used to unlock what ever item you want forever, including items that you have yet to reach the required level for. On top of these tokens, an additional reward can be selected. These rewards include:

• New create a class slot – Up to 5 extra slots.
• Stats Reset – This is a complete wipe of all stats and unlocks. This is essentially like buying the game new.
• Refund – This gives back all unlock tokens a player has spent so far that prestige level. This basically allows players to re-roll or re-spec their character.

Only at prestige 10 is absolutely everything unlocked for the player. It seems Treyarch really wants players to see it through to the end in Black Ops 2 in order to achieve 100% of the benefits.
Ambitious, indeed, is Call of Duty: Black Ops 2′s multiplayer, but that’s not even the half of it. There’s still Zombies. Treyarch is holding nothing back this year and is sure to prove that Call of Duty’s still got the magic. Stay tuned for more undead info, as well as our very own thoughts and impressions of the multiplayer gameplay.
Any of these new features in particular have you interested? Let us know in the comments below!

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MW3: Possible Campaign Extension DLC & Bigger MP Maps Coming

From Charlieintel.com:

Infinity Ward’s Robert Bowling was interviewed by the Official UK Xbox Magazine in this months newest issue and was talking about what they are doing currently for the MW3 Content Season.
“The goal with these content drops is to do things we’ve never done before, really expand our horizons and our opportunities of what we consider DLC, because traditionally we’ve just done multiplayer maps,” Bowling commented in an interview you’ll read in issue 83, on shelves very shortly. He continued, “So that’s what we are looking at, how we can take different perspectives on different [campaign] missions, give more context to a mission by showing you pretext before it or after it. We’re exploring everything. I can’t give you a specific schedule on it, but that’s the logic behind it.”
Robert also commented on how MW3 maps were smaller and stated, “Since people have been enjoying putting hundreds of hours into the smaller maps, now as we’re moving forward we are looking towards expanding that out, giving you bigger, more sniper-friendly maps with longer sightlines, so that’s what the content drops are going to be focused on – doing something you’re not already doing in Modern Warfare 3.”
In regards to the original map offerings he said, “I think it has been successful in focusing what we wanted – very intense, fast-paced firefights, always keeping you in the fight – but we are looking to expand it, because you always want variety, you always want something different to what you’ve been experiencing.”
SOURCE: Official Xbox Magazine UK

Modern Warfare 3 to Add 400 New Ranks & 5 New Prestige Levels **Breaking News***

From Callofdutycommunity.com: 

It seems we were partially right when we wrote about Modern Warfare 3 increasing the maximum Prestige level from 10 to possibly 20.
Robert Bowling announced that 400 new ranks and 5 new Prestige levels were added to Modern Warfare 3. Right now only PC players are able to rank up past Prestige level 10, but it won’t be long before this will be available to everyone.

Added 400 new ranks of 5 new Prestige levels in Modern Warfare 3 on PC in latest patch. Expect the same on consoles soon for everyone! #MW3

This is the first time (starting with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare) the developers increased the maximum Prestige level and I wouldn’t be lying if I said nobody saw this one coming. Especially the people who already hit the 10th Prestige level and reset their stats.

5 New Prestige Levels, 10 New Prestige Emblems?

Now that we know 5 Prestige levels are added on top of the existing 10, I ask myself: What are the other 5 Prestige Emblems for? If you look at the image below, you’ll see there are 10 new Prestige Emblems, but according to Robert Bowling only 5 new Prestige levels will be added.

MW3: Calll of Duty ELiTE Clan Ops in Final Testing

From Charlieintel:

Beachhead Studios has finally given us an update to the much anticipated EliTE “Clan Ops” for Modern Warfare 3. Screenshots should be coming any day now along with an official launch date. We’ll let you guys know when we hear more:

“Clan Operations are in final testing and once it’s been verified by our QA team, we’ll be able to provide a specific date. In the meantime, we’ll be sharing screenshots in the coming days to give you a sense of what the experience is like so you can hit the ground running with your Clan when we launch.”

SOURCE: Beachhead Via Official Call of Duty Forums

Modern Warfare 3 Patch 1.08 Going Live on PS3 Very Soon

From Call of Duty Community:

The patch that went live for Xbox 360 users on January 24th, will be going on live for PS3 users at “2AM” (somebody needs to tell Mr. Bowling about time zones). The delay was caused by exclusive updates for PS3 users. Robert Bowling announced:

The latest #MW3 title update for @Playstation goes live at 2AM. Includes improved voice chat quality, theater fixes, weapon rebalances.

When Robert refers to the “weapon rebalances”,  he means the Striker nerf and the buff for all the other shotguns and the 50% fire rate reduction for all Akimbo weapons.

To see this patch and all the previous patches on 1 page, you can visit our dedicated forum thread: Modern Warfare 3 Patch Notes

MW3: DLC Release Schedule from Activision with new video from Robert Bowling

From Activision:

SANTA MONICA, Calif., Jan. 10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Modern Warfare® 3 blazes into 2012 with the debut of all-new multiplayer maps Liberation and Piazza, the front line of the Modern Warfare® 3 Content Season for Call of Duty® Elite, nine consecutive months of epic downloadable content that commences January 24th  for Xbox Live users. Activision Publishing, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Activision Blizzard, Inc.'s (Nasdaq: ATVI), revealed today that the content will  be available first for Call of Duty® Elite's premium members on Xbox LIVE, followed by additional platforms at a later time. From January through September, Call of Duty Elite premium members on Xbox LIVE will receive regular updates of all new content totaling at least 20 content drops.

The Modern Warfare 3 Content Season for Call of Duty Elite will include a broader variety than ever, with brand new multiplayer maps, Special Ops Missions, new game modes and more.  While Call of Duty Elite premium subscribers get the new content first, as promised, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 fans who want to buy the content a la carte as they have in the past, will be able to purchase the content via Modern Warfare 3 Content Collections.
"The mammoth launch of Modern Warfare 3 and the breakout success of Call of Duty Elite were just the beginning.  Call of Duty Elite provides an ‛always-on' connection to our fanbase, and the MW3 Content Season is the ultimate way to demonstrate our ongoing commitment to the Call of Duty community and provide tremendous value to Call of Duty Elite premium members," said Eric Hirshberg, CEO of Activision Publishing. "With the Call of Duty®: MW3 Content Season for Call of Duty Elite we are delivering on our promise of more new content, more often, and with more variety than ever. With three studios collaborating on the first season, the breadth and depth of material on tap is truly extraordinary. It's rare you can successfully execute both quantity and quality, but thanks to the expertise of our developers, the reach of Call of Duty Elite and the passion of our fans, we intend to deliver."
All content drops for Call of Duty Elite premium members will occur once a month, starting in January for Xbox Live users and will continue through the year, ending in September.  During the first three months of 2012, Activision will release five different content drops on three occasions in January, February and March, first on Xbox Live, followed by additional platforms at a later time.
The first two Content Drops will be multiplayer maps—also playable in Modern Warfare 3 Survival Mode—that throw combatants into a war-torn Central Park and an Italian seaside village.  Liberation is a vast, militarized landscape, ripe for long-range sniper and LMG fire, with mounted turrets on either end that lend power to anyone brave enough to expose themselves in exchange for deadly firepower.  Piazza is the idyllic Italian getaway that is anything but, where tight corners and branching pathways pose great risk at every turn. Close-range combat dominates in Piazza, where attacks from behind, above and below are an ever-constant threat.
The third Content Drop will be available for download in mid-February and two additional Content Drops will go live in March, as premium Call of Duty Elite members will receive new content once a month through September. Also in March, the first Modern Warfare 3 Content Collection will be available for purchase by the entire Call of Duty: MW3 player community on Xbox Live.
To celebrate the launch of each new content drop, Call of Duty Elite will run specialized events for real-world prizes throughout the nine-month Season. Additional details about the Modern Warfare 3 Content Season for Call of Duty Elite and Collection series will be announced throughout the year.
The Modern Warfare 3 Content Season is co-developed by Infinity Ward, Sledgehammer Games and Raven Software.

Respawn Entertainment’s First Game Reveal Next Month?

from charlieintel.com:

This could be a fan made website as we’ve seen in the past or this could be the real deal. If real, then on February 20th we may be getting some kind of reveal to Respawn Entertainment’s first game as a new studio after the Infinity Ward split-up.
Looking at the Whois for the website we found out some info about who the site is hosted by and where. The server it’s running from is based in “Scottsdale, Arizona” and was created on: 16-Nov-2011 and is hosted by GoDaddy.com
So is this a site made by a marketing firm since Respawn Entertainment is based in Sherman Oaks, California? Respawn have been teasing their unknown game with blurred images and even some images from inside a mocap studio which could mean they are ready for a small reveal now and a big one at E3 this June.
To check out the website just click HERE. As more info comes out about this site or if it turns out to be fake follow us to stay up to date on everything.

-SOURCE: preparetorespawn Via @rekyle85

Bell Helicopters Sues EA Over Battlefield 3

 

From charlieintel.com:

What does this mean for Call of Duty? Lots, seeing as how Bell’s V-22 Ospreys and AH-1Z Vipers are featured in MW3, not to mention the ramifications if video games are not allowed to include the likeness of military equipment.
Electronic Arts and Bell Helicopter parent company Textron have been negotiating over Battlefield 3 use of three Bell helicopters, which Textron says is without permission. In the documents EA says that talks between the two have broken down, and the company expects a lawsuit.
EA has asked a federal judge to rule that EA’s use of the military equipment is protected by the First Amendment and fair usage.
This is one time we’ll be rooting for EA..


SOURCE: Gameinformer

MW3 ***Update*** on: First DLC is coming to Xbox 360 ELITE Premium Members on January 24th, 2012!

From charlieintel.com: 

*Park is the only map CONFIRMED so far! (pictured above)
(leaked maps- “Overwatch” “Italy” “Moringwood”)
According to PC files Italy will be called “Coast” ; MorningWood will be called “BlackBox”

[Show as slideshow]

Price: Free for ELITE Premium Members; Non-ELITE Members: TBA
Order in which it will be released after Xbox ELITE Members:
PS3 ELITE Members: No confirmed date yet. *RUMOR: Feb 1st
Xbox 360 Non Elite Members: No confirmed date yet. *RUMOR: Feb 7th
PS3 Non-Elite Members: No confirmed date yet. *RUMOR: March 7th
PC Players: No confirmed date yet. *RUMOR: March 7th

*Last Update: January 1st at 9:09 pm EST

---

Robert Bowling (Infinity Ward creative strategist) has just revealed in a all new Call of Duty Elite video that Modern Warfare 3 will be getting more types of DLC than previous series entries, and confirmed that IW, Sledgehammer and Raven are all working on updates for the game. “The way we’re doing downloadable content this year is unlike we’ve never done before,” he said. “Not only in how you can get it – in content drops or choose for the collection – but also the type of content you’re getting. We’re doing more than just maps. We’re going to do Spec Ops missions and a variety of things that players have never seen before.
“That’s the great thing about having three developers that are contributing to the season of content. You have Infinity Ward, Sledgehammer and Raven all pitching in. The full season of content for Modern Warfare 3 kicks off for Elite subscribers on January 24 on Xbox Live.”
In regards to when it might come out for PS3 and PC, an Activision spokesperson said “Today we informed the Call of Duty Elite Premium community that the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Elite Content Season will officially kick off on January 24 for Xbox users. We’ll have more details about the entire 2012 MW3 Content Season in early January, so stay tuned for updates.

DW24/7 introduces the “MW3 Class Creator”

From charlieintel blog:

Our friends over at Digital Warfare 24/7 have just announced the completion of their custom “class creator” for Modern Warfare 3. As you can see, a lot of time and effort was put into the project.
The web-app was built to provide an easy way to share your favorite MW3 class loadouts. The generated image is small enough for use as a signature on forum message boards, plus it’s also the perfect size to share via Twitter or include in a gameplay video.
So stop reading and check out the class creator HERE. Special thanks goes out to @theZeffirelli, great job!

-SOURCE: Digital Warfare 24/7

MW3 world record video, sums up what’s wrong with Call of Duty

By: Jamie Pert | January 2, 2012 

From Product Reviews:

Last week we told you all about a video clip where someone managed to get Modern Warfare 3′s M.O.A.B killstreak reward in just 62 seconds, well now we have another video to show you which obliterates this time, however we are not impressed as the spawn trapping techniques used which pretty much sums up exactly why many opted for BF3 over MW3 this year.

We have embedded a video at the bottom of this post which has been viewed over 130,000 times and has many dislikes, this is because the tactics used are extremely ‘cheap’, despite being executed perfectly. Basically whilst playing Domination on the Mission map an entire team traps their enemy’s at the ‘A’ zone, here one player literally sits behind a fence and constantly picks off enemys as they spawn, this allows him to set some unconfirmed World records such as most M.O.A.B killstreak rewards for a single player (3), most kills in a round for one player (144), most M.O.A.B killstreak rewards for a team (7) and fastest M.O.A.B ever (roughly 48 seconds).

The post game stats shown below highlight just how effective and rediculous spawn trapping can be in MW3 – what annoys us the most is the fact that the uploader seems proud of the video! As you can see one of the enemies gets 0 kills and 77 deaths no-matter how bad a player is, this should not be possible.

This is a great example of how CoD multiplayer can suck at times, obviously this is perhaps the most dramatic example of such tactics being used, but it just goes to show that some aspects of the game really need to be looked at – it remind us of the 511-9 video which resulted in a Black Ops player getting a ban back in March, surely Infinity Ward can do something to resolve such spawn trapping tactics…

So what solutions are there? Well first of all it is only really the Domination game mode which allows such an exploit as it is easy to capture two zones and then leave one zone for the enemy to keep as they will constantly spawn near it. Perhaps the game could detect when spawn trapping is taking place (based on kill times and zones held) and then start spawning people in more random areas on the map, this would have a huge effect on the spawn trap as camping spawn trappers could be taken out easily, or perhaps a different zone could be captured which would also change the pattern of the game.

We would love to hear your opinion on the video embedded below, watch it, get annoyed and then share your opinionated views on the matter in the comments section.

Should Infinity Ward be doing more to stop such tactics being used? Should this gamer be banned? Let us know what you think….

Merry Christmas Call of Duty Players: 2 Hours Double XP and a Prestige Token for Your Stocking

From charlieintel.com:

Call of Duty Developers have just announced that Elite PREMIUM subcribers are will be getting an early Christmas present today in the form of 2 Hours Double Xp and 1 Prestige Token!!! This is truely unexpected and a great holiday gesture by the folks at Infinity Ward, Sledgehammer, and Raven. Merry Christmas Guys and thanks for all your hardwork the last 2 years, now stop working and go drink some eggnog!

MW3: New map Revealed by Robert Bowling "Park" Coming Jan. 24th, 2012

From Robert Bowling's twitter account:

Exclusive sneak peek at 'Park' - some of the first #MW3 DLC hitting Jan 24th for Elite subscribers! More info in Jan!

MW3: First DLC Coming January 24th For XBOX COD Elite Members Only

From DW24/7:

The first piece of downloadable content for Modern Warfare 3 finally has a date...
The game has been out for a month and a half and as expected the attention has started to focus on what will be offered post-release as DLC (downloadable content).
First of all, let's recap what we know so far about Modern Warfare 3's downloadable content. There will be 20 lots which will dispatch monthly during a 9-month period. Premium members of Call of Duty Elite will get DLC earlier than everyone else and they will still be released first on Xbox 360 before Playstation 3 and PC users get their hands on them. New maps will be playable in both Multiplayer and Spec Ops Survival, and maps won't be the only offerings. If you're a Call of Duty Elite Premium member then not only will you be the first to try the DLC out, but you'll receive it automatically and for free.
Today some new details have arrived, included a release date for the first DLC. In an interview on Call of Duty Elite TV's Roll Call show, host Jay Frechette visited Infinity Ward for a sneak peek at the upcoming DLC and grabbed an exclusive interview with creative strategist Robert 'fourzerotwo' Bowling.
In the interview Bowling announced that the first DLC will be released on Tuesday, 24th January 2012 for Xbox 360 Call of Duty Elite Premium members. What will be included isn't yet known, but he did say that for the whole DLC cycle they are doing things they've "never done before" instead of just maps, before using Spec Ops missions as an example. Bowling highlighted the three teams of Infinity Ward, Sledgehammer Games and Raven Software working together as proof of allowing them to do new ways of how the DLC drops or the content that is included.

MW3: New Multiplayer Playlist Coming today--->Dec. 16th

From charlieintel.com:

Robert Bowling has just announced that tomorrow, December 16th, they’re updating the playlists on Modern Warfare 3 to introduce some new game modes as well as change up some existing ones.
Accourding to FourZeroTwo, the biggest change you’lll notice is the addition of Community Playlists. They’ll be adding popular private match modes to the public playlists, so you can start ranking up on them! The first playlist changes for Modern Warfare 3 multiplayer are listed below:

DROP ZONE
Get to the drop zone to earn points, the first team to 7500 points wins the round, but thats not all. As long as the Drop Zone is occupied, a care package will drop every 15 seconds, which ever team has the most members in the drop zone at that point “owns” the care package, but anyone can steal it. This is the only way to earn air support in this mode, all other pointstreaks are disabled. You’ll earn 20 points per team member, for every second they’re in the drop zone plus 20 XP individually for your time spent in the zone. Kills are worth 50 XP in this mode.
Custom Settings: Javelin and Pointstreaks (besides those obtained through in-game care packages) are disabled.
Hardcore HQ Ricochet
We’ll be adding Hardcore Headquarters to the Hardcore Team Tactical playlist.
Hardcore Ricochet
We’ll be converting all Hardcore modes to Ricochet variant as a response to team killing. This means, any friendly fire, is applied to the attacker, rather than the victim. So choose your shots wisely and any attempt to team kill will simply kill yourself.

-UPDATE: FourZeroTwo just tweeted “players will also notice a title update tomorrow morning when they connect. This will address Host Disadvantage – Lag Compensation.”

-SOURCE: Official CoD Forum

MW3: User-Created Modes To Be Added To Multiplayer Public Playlists

From charlieintel.com:

During the acceptance speech for X-Play’s award ceromony, Robert Bowling revealed that player-created game modes will soon be added to MW3′s multiplayer.
“Since we have such advanced private match options, we’ve been noticing a lot of user-created game modes, that in the coming weeks, we’re going to be adding to the public playlists in multiplayer,” Bowling said. “We’re going to be adding some in for the holiday, brand new modes that the users created, that we adapted, made more polished, and are putting into the game.”
-SOURCE: G4TV theFEED