Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 is set to release later this year, featuring Treyarch's renowned Zombies mode. The developer has unveiled fresh gameplay and a plethora of new details for the upcoming round-based Zombies mode. This post outlines the most significant announcements for Black Ops 6 Zombies, including the new save and join features, Wonder Weapons, Gobblegums, and Easter-egg details.
Treyarch has announced that Black Ops 6 Zombies will debut with two brand-new round-based Zombies maps: Terminus and Liberty Falls. Both maps will share interconnected storylines occurring simultaneously. Terminus is a nighttime map set on a secluded prison island, continuing the Dark Aether storyline from Black Ops Cold War's Zombies. This map includes the return of characters like Weaver, Carver, Strauss, Dr. Elizabeth Grey, and the pilot known as Raptor One. More story details and the cinematic trailer for Terminus can be found here.
Liberty Falls is set in a West Virginian town infested with Zombies. On October 17, Activision published a comprehensive blog post detailing all the essential information about Terminus and Liberty Falls--check it out here.
Black Ops 6 Zombies offers the choice to play in either first-person or third-person perspectives, with an in-game toggle to switch between views mid-match. Treyarch notes that third-person will provide a unique view of Black Ops 6's omni-movement.
Players can now join their friends' ongoing Zombies matches, provided there is space in the party. This also allows for rejoining a match if a disconnection occurs. Customizable HUD presets are available, including a 'Legacy' setting that removes the minimap and positions elements similarly to Black Ops 3.
Zombies mode introduces the new Save and Quit feature for solo players, allowing them to save a match and resume later. Everyone will have one save slot for this feature. Secrets and Easter eggs are integral to Zombies mode, and Terminus is confirmed to have a traditional Easter-egg quest for players to solve. Several side quests can be uncovered, encouraging players to explore the island and discover hidden secrets.
Treyarch describes Terminus as 'one of the largest round-based Zombies maps ever created,' offering tactical rafts for exploring the prison area, ocean, and smaller islands. Black Ops 6 will include traditional and guided versions of the Easter-egg quest. Initially, the game will launch without a guided approach for the main story Easter egg, enabling the community to collaborate in solving the quest. Later in the season, an optional guided version of the main quest will be available, capping rounds to specific stages of quest progression.
This method of starting with traditional quests and later guided options will apply to seasonal round-based maps introduced post-launch. Players can expect classic features in Black Ops 6 Zombies, such as Pack-a-Punch, the Mystery Box, Wonder Weapons, Wall Buys, Power-Ups, and perk machines. The Wonder weapon for Terminus is the BeamSmasher, described as a light machine gun-sized weapon with a single barrel emitting a super-charged, highly damaging Aetheric beam with two firing modes.
At launch, Terminus will include the following classic perks with base effects: Melee Macchiato, a new perk replacing the weapon gun butt with a deadly punch that sends enemies flying. Field upgrades and augments return from Black Ops Cold War. Field upgrades are elemental abilities that can be equipped, with Aether Shroud, Frenzied Guard, Healing Aura, and Energy Mine all returning. Dark Flare is a new field upgrade, described as a massive energy beam dealing lethal shadow damage and penetrating everything in its path. Augments are upgradable tiers that players can unlock to enhance their perks, ammo mods, and field upgrades.
Both Essence and salvage currencies return from Black Ops Cold War Zombies. Essence is used to open doors and purchase items such as perks, weapons, and Pack-a-Punch upgrades. Salvage currency, scavenged from fallen enemies, is used to upgrade weapons to a higher rarity and craft lethal, tactical, and support equipment.
Players can choose to exfil from the map safely or play until they die in a more traditional manner. Customized loadouts return, allowing players to start matches with weapon builds of their choice. Zombies-specific challenges and camos will also be available. Players can craft support items from Black Ops Cold War, including the self-revive, RC car killstreak, and sentry turret. The game introduces the new Mutant Injection support item, transforming players into the Mangler special enemy type.
GobbleGums return from Black Ops 3. These single-use items offer brief, limited-time abilities. Players can create a loadout for up to three GobbleGums per match, with additional GobbleGums earned in-game. GobbleGums come in various rarities: Rare, Epic, Legendary, Ultra, and Whimsical, with higher rarities generally offering more powerful effects, except for Whimsical gums, which provide unique visual effects.
GobbleGums cannot be dropped or shared but can be swapped at any time during a match via the in-game menu. Unused GobbleGums are retained between matches, ensuring players won't lose them if they disconnect.
Notable returning gums include: The Call of Duty: Next event will feature live gameplay and news for multiplayer. Several Black Ops 6 leaks have surfaced ahead of the event, including a potential new Warzone map filled with water and a new game mechanic allowing players to use their enemies as meat shields.
The developers have enhanced the Zombies HUD with several updates for Black Ops 6. Here is a summary of the improvements and changes, as detailed by Activision: Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 releases on October 25 for Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and PC.
