Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Zombies is a welcome return to form

Call of Duty: World at War was my first Call of Duty game, so I still remember the surprise when a friend showed me its secret zombie mode. I played so much Zombies across World at War and Black Ops that I actually got a bit burnt out by it. Most Call of Duty games since World at War have featured some sort of zombie mode, with some making a radical departure from the original formula. On the other hand, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6’s Zombies mode feels familiar, but that’s not a bad thing.

At today’s Call of Duty Next event, Treyarch showed off what the Zombies experience in Black Ops 6 will look like in more detail. Beforehand, I went go hands-on with a solo game of Zombies at an event in Washington, D.C.

After playing a couple of games, I found it to be a great mix of old and new. It has all the visual flourishes and loadout friendliness I’d expect from a new Call of Duty game. That’s certainly a far cry from the humble, hidden horror mode tucked away in World at War. Still, its round-based nature is a welcome return and the feeling of getting more powerful and stressed with each passing round means Zombies has not lost its luster since 2008.

The walking dead

During a briefing prior to my playtime with Black Ops 6, Treyarch was adamant about the fact that it’s “all-in on round-based zombies” this year. The setup is familiar. You’ll start with slow and weak zombies in round one, but by the time you reach round eight or 10, more come at you and they’re tougher to take on. While the zombies get more powerful, so do you.

The currency I gained from killing zombies could not only be used to open up new areas of the map, but to unlock access to new weapons and abilities. It’s an intricate tug-of-war that jumps between making me feel very overpowered with upgrades and temporary power-ups and woefully underpowered with each passing round. Even with all the flourishes around Black Ops 6’s take on zombies, I can appreciate that this core is still there.

It’s what made the