Metareview: Call of Duty Black Ops 2

Like a giant warhead hurtling towards a resigned bunny rabbit, Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 explodes into the holiday season today. In our review, Xav lauds the multiplayer for "offering plenty of in-game and inherent rewards," but criticizes the game's "lackluster story that fails the ambition shown by the branching campaign." With Black Ops 2 being a fairly big deal, it turns out there are others who also have opinions on Treyarch's shooter.

• IGN (93/100): "Combined with the host of subtle and overt improvements to the array of other systems, the additions to make it more appealing to Esports, and the more fleshed out Zombies mode, this is not just a fantastic Call of Duty game, but one of the best shooters of the last decade."

• G4 (90/100): "A ton of work has gone into this game from top to bottom, and it stands as a real testament to the developers who didn't want to just coattail this one into the books. Nearly every system and aspect of the game has been tweaked or overhauled, and it certainly shows in the final product."

• EGM (90/100): "The first Black Ops put Treyarch on par with Infinity Ward; with Black Ops 2, they surpass them. This is the most impressed I've been with Call of Duty since the first Modern Warfare; aside from some problems with the Strike Force missions, this is a shining moment for the franchise."

• Game Informer (85/100): "For shooter fans that don't require as deep of a dive, Black Ops 2's multiplayer may feel like more of the same. No significant new match types are present, and the Pick 10 system doesn't drastically change the gameplay experience. Most of the changes to the Call of Duty formula come in campaign mode, and they are executed with mixed results. Despite some frustrations, Black Ops 2 is yet another massive, polished, finely tuned entry in a series that shows no signs of slowing down."

• GameSpot (80/100): "The campaign hits the same satisfying rhythms, the multiplayer captures the same frenetic intensity, and the cooperative zombies mode delivers the same stale undead-massacring action. Caught between striving for the future and remaining rooted in the past, Black Ops 2 finds solid footing, providing another great ride on the Call of Duty rollercoaster."