Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 is a multiplayer first-person shooter video game. Unlike previous titles in the Call of Duty series, Black Ops 4 is the first entry to not feature a traditional single-player campaign, and contains only Multiplayer, Zombies and a new battle royale mode called Blackout.[3][4][5]
Multiplayer
Black Ops 4's multiplayer features the return of Specialists, unique soldier characters with special abilities and traits. At launch, the game features a total of ten Specialists, six of which (Ruin, Prophet, Battery, Seraph, Nomad, Firebreak) are returning characters from Black Ops III, while the other four (Recon, Ajax, Torque, Crash) are new additions. Unlike Black Ops III, the game allows only two unique Specialist per team, in order to emphasize the role of each character. Following launch, more Specialists are added to the roster, with unique weaponry and equipment.
Multiplayer has also been reworked with various changes for more tactical and teamwork gameplay. Automatic health regeneration is removed in favor of a manual healing system (with each player having a health bar), weapons are now given predictive recoil patterns, and a mixed ballistics system, using both hitscan and projectile damage, is employed as opposed to just hitscan. Weapon customization is also emphasized, allowing for deeper personalization of players' arsenals; attachments are also given tiers, with tier-2 upgrades providing even bigger improvements to the weapons. Certain weapons also offer Operator Mods, which significantly change how a weapon works, while costing a significant portion of the 10 customization slots per class.
In addition, the game includes Specialist Headquarters, a solo mode featuring skill-based tutorials that unlock backstories on various Specialists in the game. The missions are set within the same narrative world of the Black Ops campaigns, between the events of Black Ops II and Black Ops III.[6]
Zombies
Zombies returns as the cooperative multiplayer mode for Black Ops 4. The game mode features a wider range of customization, allowing for more personalized play styles. Mechanics of the game can be customized via "Custom Mutations", which include over 100 variables, such as overall difficulty, zombie speed, health, damage, and more. Time-limited events known as "Callings" are also promised to be included in the game for long-term engagement. Similar to the Nazi Zombies mode in Call of Duty: WWII, custom loadouts are included to allow players to select different starting weapons, equipment and special upgradable weapons, as well as perk selection to be available in each match. A new game type, Rush, is introduced into Zombies, where the players build up points and multipliers and compete against one another for the highest point possible until death. Black Ops 4 features a new form of consumable items called Elixirs, which grant temporary buffs to the players upon activation; and Talismans, special modifiers that are applied at the start of each match. Elixirs are provided in five types: Classic, Common, Rare, Legendary and Epic; the first is unlocked permanently via player progression, while the latter four are consumable and only craftable using the in-game currency. Talismans are also consumable, and can only be acquired in the same method.
Black Ops 4 is also the first game to feature two distinctive, separate storylines for Zombies. At launch, the game features three on-disc maps: "Voyage of Despair", which takes place on the RMS Titanic;[7] "IX", which takes place in an Ancient Rome arena;[8] and "Blood of the Dead", a soft-remake of the Black Ops II map "Mob of the Dead", taking place once more in Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary.[9] The former two maps form the new "Chaos" storyline, and star a new cast of characters: Scarlett, Shaw, Diego and Bruno; while "Blood of the Dead" returns to the original "Aether" storyline established in the previous Black Ops games, and stars the four original characters (Dempsey, Nikolai, Takeo, Richtofen; also known collectively as Primis).[10] A fourth map, titled "Classified", is included in the special editions of the game and the "Black Ops Pass" at launch, and is a remake of the Black Ops map "Five", featuring the original incarnation of Primis (known as Ultimis) as the playable characters. The map "Dead of the Night" features a celebrity cast, in maintaining tradition of previous Black Ops games containing one Zombies map with playable characters portrayed by celebrities.