I do not play Call of Duty games.
Before anyone says I am another COD hater, I want to make it clear it has nothing to do with the games’ quality. I do not play multiplayer games, COD targets that audience, so our paths never cross. Putting Call of Duty: Black Ops III on PS Plus for free however changes things, if just a little.
(Since I have never played previous Black Ops games, I do not know if this is a standalone or part of a continuing arc. For that reason I will only vaguely discuss the story.)
Black Ops III takes place in 2065 during the Third Cold War. (Not sure if the writers know the definition of “cold war” as there seems to be plenty of fighting.) You play as part of a cybernetically enhanced Black Ops team as you engage in covert missions around the world.
If you are going to play a first person shooter, you are going to want smooth gunplay. Black Ops III excels at this with responsive controls and weapons that have weight. Many games are content to give guns that look different but Black Ops III provides guns that feel different.
The real fun in Black Ops III comes with the cybernetic abilities. The player is able to choose Cyber Cores from three skill trees. There is Control, which has a focus on targeting robotic enemies, Chaos, which has numerous offensive abilities, and Martial, which is great for melee and defense. The Cyber Cores are a great addition and can be the difference maker in a tough battle.
All the trees are useful, but I found Chaos to be the most fun. Along with causing robotic enemies to overload and explode, you can also send a swarm of nanobots at enemies. Many powers can attack large groups making life easier.
Black Ops III also gives the player more choice. COD has always been known as a corridor shooter. This installment is no different but it allows you the choice of which corridor you want to use. The maps are sprawling and while the level design encourages co-op play, they still can be tackled solo.
In addition, Black Ops III allows the player to create loadouts for the campaigns. I am not sure if this is a new addition to COD, but it was new to me. The tutorial levels assign a weapon, giving you the opportunity to discover the best tool for each situation. Once you get into the game you are able to customize loadouts and even change them at specific areas in the game. It is not much, but it does bring some strategy to the game.
The levels are one of the game’s major flaws. They are upwards of an hour long and there is not enough in the game to keep them from becoming tedious. The voice acting is fine across the board with one notable exception. Of all the characters in the game to sound either uninterested or like a high school drama student, why does it have to be me?
Call of Duty: Black Ops III is like sexual relations; there is fun to be had alone, but it is much more enjoyable with a partner(s). How good Black Ops III is can be answered with one question. Would I play another COD campaign? Answer: not even if it were free.
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