--Nikolai Belinski, Call of Duty: Black Ops Zombies
Since the introduction of Nazi Zombies in 2008's Call of Duty: World at War, zombie mode has been one of the most popular parts of the Call of Duty franchise. It is hardly surprising that Black Ops' zombie mode was eventually ported to smartphones. The hardware limitations of the smartphone platform are evident in Black Ops Zombies on the Android, especially when it comes to controls, but much of the game is executed well nonetheless. The original mobile game in the franchise, Call of Duty: Zombies (which contained maps from World at War), was never released for the Android, but Black Ops Zombies might help hold Android players over until the release of Call of Duty Mobile later this year!
Production Values
The graphics are definitely no longer at the pinnacle of smartphone visuals, and the fact that they are outdated at this point will only become more obvious with the release of new smartphone ports. Nevertheless, they effectively scale the environments of four maps from the console version of Black Ops to the much smaller screens of smartphones (or tablets). Even though the locations are not as visually impressive as they are on consoles, the map details and layouts are generally faithful to those of the initial designs.
From the weapon noises to the cries of the zombies, the sound is excellent, and it has aged far better than the graphics have. Black Ops Zombies also has secret songs in some of its maps, a holdover from their initial release on consoles. Yes, Elena Seigman's fitting song 115 is still featured as an easter egg in the Kino Der Toten map, just as it is in the original Black Ops version of the map and in its Black Ops III remaster--and a convenient glitch allows players to listen to it (and the other easter egg songs) repeatedly in one game by saving, quitting, and returning to the file!
Not all of the glitches are as favorable, though. Random freezes that stall or crash the app occur from time to time. Furthermore, the touch controls are sometimes unresponsive or difficult to use. For instance, to reload your current firearm, you have to tap the weapon icon in the upper right corner, but moving the virtual joystick that controls character movement too far makes you run, which cancels the reloading process. It is rather easy to move the joystick too far, though, and thus you sometimes have to simply stand still in order to reload without using all ammunition in a given magazine.
Gameplay
Black Ops Zombies involves the same basic gameplay elements of every Zombies outing. One must repel waves of increasingly durable zombies (though the maximum number of zombies in a wave is smaller than it is in the console games) while managing a dwindling supply of ammo, buying perks as needed, and obtaining superior weapons. Some maps require that one restore electrical power to the area before using perk machines (or traps), so exploration is a necessity for newcomers.
Players can choose from any of the four main characters from the console version of zombie mode in Black Ops, three difficulty levels, and four maps before they start killing the undead and amassing points. Kino Der Toten ("Theater of the Dead"), Ascension, Call of the Dead, and Dead Ops Arcade all return from the first Black Ops game, complete with their secrets, perks, and at least many of their weapons!
Dead Ops Arcade, in contrast to the first-person gameplay of the other maps, is played from an overhead perspective, with zombies dropping power ups and bonuses more frequently. You can acquire temporary weapons like flamethrowers and grenade launchers that provide exception firepower, yet disappear after several moments. Four coin parts must be found on various menu screens to access Dead Ops to begin with, but the hunt is very simple.
Story
There is an expansive, overarching story that spans the various Zombies maps in multiple Call of Duty games, but it is very difficult to glean details about it without already knowing how to perform key easter eggs in specific maps. Due to the highly secretive nature of the lore easter eggs, I will not spoil any plot points.
Intellectual Content
The game has no major thematic elements pertaining to anything deep, but no one can legitimately claim that Black Ops Zombies, like other versions of zombie mode, does not require strategy or skill beyond a certain point. While that point might arrive at different waves for various players, one cannot simply play without some sort of plan that is malleable enough to adapt to the increasing difficulty and still survive without a great deal of luck. Beyond this, there are secrets in each map that can be discovered by attentive exploration.
Conclusion
Black Ops Zombies might not be the best rendition of Call of Duty's massively popular zombie mode, but it is an admirable port of console Zombies maps to the Android (and IOS). Its current form is, nevertheless, not as complete as it could have been--at least one more map would have greatly augmented the value of the game. At the very least, though, its flaws do not prevent it from delivering another way to kill zombies in the increasingly elaborate Call of Duty zombie mode mythos.
Since the upcoming Call of Duty: Modern Warfare is confirmed to not have any type of zombie mode, fans of the mode will have to keep playing older content to slay Samantha's zombies, and smartphone owners might find that Black Ops Zombies helps them bide their time until another console game with the mode is announced. There is still one DLC Zombies map that has yet to be released for Black Ops 4, though--expect a review when it is finally out!
Content:
1. Violence: While the blood does not look very realistic, spurts of blood follow some shots. The heads of zombies can be blown off of their torsos, just as their legs can be torn off by grenades and monkey bombs.
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