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Rumor: Nuketown returns in Black Ops 2 'limited release'
The employees at your local brick-and-mortar apparently jumped the gun and revealed an exclusive map for Call of Duty: Black Ops 2. IGN posted an image of a poster supposedly from GameStop; another image from GAME shows the same pre-order bonus. Nuketown 2025 is apparently a remodeled version of the popular Black Ops map, Nuketown.Each image suggests there will be a "limited edition pack" of Black Ops 2, which we assume is akin to the first pressing limited edition runs we've seen for games like Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit and Twisted Metal. We've inquired with Activision and will update accordingly.
Activision sweeps up China-related Call of Duty domains
Activision has treated itself to 17 domain names, all related to Call of Duty and China; in Black Ops 2, set to drop in November, part of the storyline spans a future cold war between the United States and China. It may be that these domains are related to that facet, as the registrations include blackopschina.com, bochina.com and callofdutychina.com, Fusible reports.The other domains span from modernwarfarechina.com to heisexingdong.com, and include a few other Chinese phrases. This could be Activision protecting its brand, or it could even have something to do with Activision's online, free-to-play Call of Duty title in China. Activision secured the names, as it generally does, through brand-protection service MarkMonitor.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 will have dedicated PC servers
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 will feature ranked dedicated PC servers, according to Treyarch's tech director.In a brief tweet (even for tweeting standards), Cesar Stastny of Treyarch wrote: "Confirmed: Ranked Dedicated Servers for #BlackOps2."The Call of Duty series has gone back and forth on the server issue, seemingly dependent on what developer in Activision's arsenal was in charge of the project. Infinity Ward's Modern Warfare 2 was MIA on support, Black Ops by Treyarch brought it, then Modern Warfare 3 got waffly. Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 will engage retail on several platforms November 13.
No Call of Duty XP event planned for 2012
The Call of Duty franchise won't get its own dedicated expo in 2012, Activision confirmed to Joystiq. Last year's Call of Duty XP event was used to celebrate the franchise's huge fan base, while also setting the stage for Activision to reveal the Call of Duty Elite service.Rather than hold the event, an Activision representative said that the company's plan is to put more of an emphasis on Cologne, Germany's Gamescom event this August. Activision didn't rule out the possibility of Call of Duty XP returning in the future.Last year's event was the public, hands-on debut of Modern Warfare 3 from Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer Games. Proceeds from tickets sold to the event went to Activision's Call of Duty Endowment charity.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 will continue DLC exclusivity on Xbox
Sure, we expected as much since Microsoft has Call of Duty DLC locked until 2012, but Microsoft still saw the need to announce a continued partnership with Activision for Call of Duty DLC anyway, those rebels. During the Microsoft E3 press conference, Don Mattrick revealed that Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 would continue the trend of offering DLC first on Xbox 360.
Lamia says Black Ops 2 visuals a priority, downplays age of engine
At this point, a portion of the current conversation surrounding Black Ops 2 is in regards to the engine powering it, version 3.0 of the Infinity Ward (IW) engine – IW 3.0 powered Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, Call of Duty: World at War and the original Black Ops. If you're worried the visuals in Black Ops 2 won't be up to snuff, Treyarch head Mark Lamia assures us all the engine has seen numerous tweaks, downplaying its age in a recent audio interview summed up over on One of Swords.Lamia said "a pretty significant amount of work" in Black Ops 2 is going into the graphics and the lighting. "I think what people are asking for is for us to push. They want us to make a better-looking game; they want things. I don't think those are things people can't ask for. We asked ourselves that very same question - we wanted to advance the graphics. I think the questions are valid. The answer may not need to be an entirely new engine, but you might need to do an entire overhaul of your entire lighting system. The trick is, we're not willing to do that if we can't keep it running at 60 frames per second - but we did that this time."Lamia gave an analogy akin to remodeling a home – not with a rocket launcher, but rather he talked about sectioning off parts of the metaphorical house for more local improvements. "There's a lot of good still in that foundation that you wouldn't get rid of, and we don't. We look to advance in the areas that support our game design. Engines, each time they get touched, they change. The creators alter them; they don't modify what they don't need to, and then they alter what they need to. You can't make a competitive product if you're not upgrading that engine along the way."
Avengers, Assemble! And Provide Commentary on Games!
You're reading Reaction Time, a weekly column that claims to examine recent events, games and trends in the industry, but is really just looking for an excuse to use the word "zeitgeist." It debuts on Fridays in Engadget's digital magazine, Distro. The world of popular culture was left awestruck last week after colliding with The Avengers, an extravagant, unavoidable glitter ball of an asteroid. The simultaneous sequel to five popular movies, The Avengers accrues a crew of incredible superheroes, including one that already claimed "incredible" as a capitalized adjective in his name.You've got the irradiated scientist who grows out of his pants and into a green behemoth, a demigod who wields mythical hammers and perfect strands of L'Oréal hair with equal aplomb, a pouting assassin, a smart-ass billionaire encased in weaponized toasters, a guy with a bow, and Captain America, the patriotic straight arrow who might as well sit in the quiver of that other guy. The best part of the film is seeing how they all get along.They do eventually, of course, because it's an entertaining arc and because together they have to navigate a spectacular gauntlet of alien invasion, non-depletable cosmic power sources and lots of other things that cost a fortune to render and/or blow up. There's an inescapable wave of critical condescension toward the audience whenever they sign up for unrealistic, "dumb" thrills en masse, but the reality is that certain movies – just like games – can't exist unless they spend their money in the right places. The Avengers, which essentially sneaks in a witty geek comedy when nobody's looking, has dollars whizzing by on the screen every second. Also, every dollar is on fire.
New Black Ops 2 art teases Zombies mode
Black Ops 2 brings back Treyarch's personal twist on Call of Duty, namely Zombies. The official Twitter account issued this image, teasing a shotgun-toting female. It's not the first time a woman had to get her hands dirty, though we think this one took the phrase a bit too literally.
Amazon: Black Ops 2 day one pre-orders higher than Black Ops, Modern Warfare 3
Amazon's pre-order numbers indicate Activsion's Call of Duty gravy train is still going full steam. Earlier today, Amazon UK told MCV that Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 pre-orders were three times higher than its predecessor, Black Ops, two years ago. We wanted to know if that anticipation crossed the pond."Pre-orders from day one of Black Ops 2 were more than ten times the amount of pre-orders for the first Black Ops on its first day of availability," Amazon US told Joystiq this afternoon, but that's not all the buzz."Black Ops 2 even out pre-ordered the first day of availability for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 by more than 30 percent. Modern Warfare 3 currently holds the record for the most pre-ordered game of all time and was amongst the top 20 pre-orders ever on Amazon.com, including books and movies."Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 went on to gross over $775 million globally in five days, flying past Call of Duty: Black Ops' $650 million record and the $550 million record before it, set by Modern Warfare 2.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 video tells of our terrifying future
In which Activision does its damnedest to make sure you never sleep soundly again.
Pre-order Black Ops 2 at GameStop, receive poster, Prestige token, future goodies
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 has officially existed for barely over a day, and as the internet hype machine slowly begins to whirl up to speed, so too does the uproarious clamor from our nation's retailers, hell-bent on claiming custody over your Call of Duty consumer commitment.Predictably, Gamestop is the first out of the gate with enticements to earn your dollars, with pre-order bonuses that come in waves – four to be precise – the first of which is active now. Securing your future purchase of Black Ops 2 during the first wave will net you an "exclusive, limited edition two-sided poster," as well as a Prestige token for Modern Warfare 3 and all of the subsequent pre-order bonuses offered during waves two, three and four.
Breaking down the Black Ops 2 reveal trailer
Now that Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 is officially out there, we can examine the game's reveal trailer and offer some further insight beyond the bombast.We've compiled a handful of screen grabs from the trailer after the break, with notes about the game's locale, features, and more. For even more, make sure to read our detailed campaign preview and details on the game's new, story-altering 'Strike Force' missions.
Controlling the battlefield in Black Ops 2 'Strike Force' missions
Choice in a video game is not a rare occurrence, unless that game happens to be Call of Duty. During the campaign in Black Ops 2, players will have the ability to select from a handful of 'Strike Force' missions anchored to hotspots throughout the globe. When one mission is selected, the others become unavailable, replaced later with fresh 'Strike Force' missions.But these single-player missions set in the near-future aren't simply random missions without a story wrapper. Instead, they offer players an opportunity to play Call of Duty with an element of rarely seen choice.
Black Ops 2 spans decades, offers branching missions and choice
Garnering legions of fans tends to wedge a franchise right between those that crave more of the same content, and those that loathe its existence. Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 is in the same spot, but developer Treyarch is looking to create some wiggle room between the two camps in its next contribution to Activision's billion dollar franchise.At Treyarch's office in Los Angeles, company boss Mark Lamia steps into a darkened theater filled with journalists. He's chipper, excited to finally talk about the game his team has been slaving over for more than a year. Despite a tightly constructed marketing schedule, the secret of Black Ops 2 was hard to contain; its existence began to leak in January."Let me introduce you to the worst kept secret in the game industry," Lamia says as he walks in front of a giant screen embellished with the sleek Black Ops 2 logo. The walls around the screen are lined with concept art, some of it modeled after surveillance photos from in-orbit satellites, but all with a futuristic tint to them. "Saying that," Lamia continues, "we think what Black Ops 2 is about is one of the best kept secrets in the industry."%Gallery-154450%
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 revealed with first trailer
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2, this year's installment in the best-selling series, is finally kicking off its official reveal and pre-launch hype campaign.The first trailer for Black Ops 2 reveals Sgt. Frank Woods, alive and well after Black Ops, well into his old age in the year 2025. "Besides the fact that I'm still alive, none of this surprises me," the retired soldier groans. It seems Treyarch's Call of Duty universe is jumping ahead to our near future for its next installment.Much more information (some that may actually surprise you) is coming later tonight in a lengthy preview and interview on the upcoming game. The future may be black, as the game's tagline suggests, but it isn't that far away.Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 launches on the PC, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3 on November 13, 2012.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2: What we know thus far
This morning's Acti acci-reveal of Call of Duty: Black Ops 2, ahead of tonight's big scheduled announcement, is just one more instance in a long line of Black Ops 2-related leaks. But today's leak is a biggie, revealing not just the game's title and launch date, but also new information on the game's setting. "Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 propels players into a near future, 21st Century Cold War, where technology and weapons have converged to create a new generation of warfare," the site reads, outing Blops 2's new future setting.The site also unveiled the game's box art, which depicts a pensive gentleman holding a handgun and a hunting knife. Beyond that, a tipster this morning sent over four screens of the game itself that were apparently snagged from the site's backend (the images section of the site has been stripped of any images for now). As the screen above indicates, drones seem to play some role in Blops 2. And those were teased less than a week ago by ... uh ... this crazy YouTube video.There's also a debut trailer, albeit one that Acti still has set to private, which we're guessing will roll tonight during the NBA playoffs. What we can tell from the still thumbnail is that you'll either be watching someone else pilot a heli through Los Angeles, or taking the reins yourself (it's unclear from the image). Either way, we're totally psyched at the idea of destroying the site of E3 from a helicopter. Retribution, finally!The site's pre-order page only lists options for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC, seemingly eschewing the variety of other platforms that previous Call of Duty games launched on. It is, of course, possible that Acti is holding other platform announcements for the future, which we'll just chalk up as synergy with the game's near-future setting.%Gallery-154417%
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 revealed on official UK site, launches November 13
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2, before its official reveal tonight, has been exposed by some early switch-flipping on the game's UK site. The official trailer can't be accessed, but the site does note a November 13, 2012 launch date.The information is in line with previous leaks, which feature the same iconography and the November launch.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2, Nov. 13 release revealed by pre-order card
Not that it should be too shocking by now, but it looks like Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 is all but official at this point. A dutiful fan snapped a picture of a Target pre-order card for the game, reports IGN. In addition to confirming the next entry of Activision's mammoth franchise, the card also lists a November 13 release date, which certainly jives with the series' typical launch timing. It also lines up with the a Spanish retail listing spotted last month, which had the title slated for a November 12 launch.The official, official reveal of the next Call of Duty game, whatever it is, is set to go down on Tuesday, May 1 during the NBA playoffs.
New Call of Duty set for world reveal during NBA playoffs on May 1
Like Madden and Punxsutawney Phil, the annual reveal of a new Call of Duty game isn't what we'd call surprising. It is, however, quite a thrilling notion to many millions of people the world over, which is why we're here to tell you that, yes, another Call of Duty game is getting ready for its big reveal. According to a new countdown timer on Call of Duty's official website, said game will be revealed during the NBA playoffs on May 1 via TNT (apparently the station's "Drama, period" slogan also applies to sports playoffs).Given the nature of the Call of Duty series, it's very likely that 2012 will see the launch of the next Treyarch-developed CoD title (2011's Modern Warfare 3 was a collaborative effort lead by Infinity Ward). And what might Treyarch be working on? Many (many) indications point to a sequel to 2010's immensely successful Black Ops, but we'll see for sure on May 1.
Spanish retailer lists Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 for November
We don't even officially know that there is a Black Ops 2 yet (though of course there is), but we're already seeing information about when it's allegedly coming out. OK, yes, it's November. No, we didn't need outside help to figure that out. But Spanish retailer Fnac took it one step further than obvious guesses, as it's actually advertising Black Ops 2 with a November release date.The store isn't going so far as to take reservations -- instead having people sign up to be alerted when they can -- but it is still advertising a product that doesn't officially exist. To us, that's at least circumstantial evidence that Black Ops 2 does exist.
