Call of Duty: Black Ops II

 Xbox 360
User Score
5.5

Mixed or average reviews- based on 2684 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1,148 out of 2684
  2. Mixed: 497 out of 2684
  3. Negative: 1,039 out of 2684
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  1. 808Gamer
    Nov 13, 2012
    4
    I'm sorry all you paid $50+k a year magazine and online critics, Activision seems to have their hand too deep in your pockets for this to justify your 9 scores that I've been reading all over the interwebs. Unfortunately my review comes after already being jaded from MW3 and that sell-out of a title as well. Treyarch TRIES to be different here by what....uhhhh making it a MODERN firstI'm sorry all you paid $50+k a year magazine and online critics, Activision seems to have their hand too deep in your pockets for this to justify your 9 scores that I've been reading all over the interwebs. Unfortunately my review comes after already being jaded from MW3 and that sell-out of a title as well. Treyarch TRIES to be different here by what....uhhhh making it a MODERN first person shooter?? Oy vey, so lets get to it; the story is a tack-on and feels like the same-ol story spun in a different time and setting. Sound familiar? It will be. Zombies are back, and actually has some fresh feel to it, but its all from the same engine and "feels" the same. The usual Multiplayer suspects are back and nothing really ground breaking has really caught my attention. Activision is yet again trying the "lets milk this cow" till its dry strategy and sadly millions of people are going to buy it anyway. Going to Gamestop to resell it and going back to my Halo 4.… Expand
  2. Goffery
    Nov 18, 2012
    4
    I really wanted to like this game. I kept thinking "Ok this game will change it up, its not gonna be just another cheap copy of the last game", but now I can see that was a fool to think that. They made it look so much prettier in the previews up until the games release, and I'm ashamed to say I fell for it. I mainly play for the multiplayer so that's what I'll focus on here. It's the sameI really wanted to like this game. I kept thinking "Ok this game will change it up, its not gonna be just another cheap copy of the last game", but now I can see that was a fool to think that. They made it look so much prettier in the previews up until the games release, and I'm ashamed to say I fell for it. I mainly play for the multiplayer so that's what I'll focus on here. It's the same crap, sure there a few new cool killstreaks and stuff but that's not enough to set this game apart from other Call of Duty games. I play on the PS3 and the PS3 version is plagued with problems. First I was not able to connect to any matches. Then I could connect to matches but my customized classes were not there for some reason. Then the stupid thing freezes on me. It's so ridiculous that these problems still exist and the morons that make the game try and act all sympathetic to the gamers by promising to work non-stop to correct the issues. Anyway, I have not given up on it 100%, but if these issues with connecting and disappearing custom classes don't get fixed very soon, I'm done with COD forever.… Expand
  3. Moe_Fugga
    Nov 16, 2012
    4
    I will start of with a disclaimer saying that I am not a COD fanboy nor am I a COD hater. I bought an XBOX 360 exclusively for COD 4 5 Years ago. I have played every one since and enjoyed all of them (at least for a little while) up until Modern Warfare 3. I am giving this game a 4 out of 10 and will explain in depth why (unlike other fanboys and haters on here giving ignorant reviews).I will start of with a disclaimer saying that I am not a COD fanboy nor am I a COD hater. I bought an XBOX 360 exclusively for COD 4 5 Years ago. I have played every one since and enjoyed all of them (at least for a little while) up until Modern Warfare 3. I am giving this game a 4 out of 10 and will explain in depth why (unlike other fanboys and haters on here giving ignorant reviews). If you are on the fence about this game and whether or not to buy it then read this. I'll start off with the good. This game introduced the Pick 10 System which works well. It opens up a bounty of options for everyones unique play style. If you want 6 perks and a pistol then go for it. If you want a shotgun, rifle, and grenades go for it. There is a limit to what you can do, but the limit is set high. At 60 frames per second this game looks excellent. Graphics are cartoonish in a way, but it is consistent with the other COD gas compared to Battlefield 3. The guns look great, the soldiers look great, and it is just an excellent looking game. Along with the graphics is the sound mix. The guns sound like guns and the explosions sound like explosions. The sound is what really pulls you into the game. Other than the variety in load outs, graphics, and sound this game has big problems. First is the campers. Now I know every FPS has campers, but this game brings it to the next level. The maps are cluttered and filled with windows, corners, and barrels to hide behind. I have never been so frustrated with campers in any other COD game, or any other FPS game for that matter. And the fact that Ghost is not unlocked until level 55 just adds to that problem. You cannot hide from the overused UAVs. Next is the lag. In every other COD I could run and gun and beast. I have found in Black Ops 2 that when I run up on somebody and get the drop on them they can turn around and kill me. EVEN after they have been hit 2-3 times already. And if I meet up with somebody rounding a corner and I clearly get the first shot off, I die. In the kill cam I don't even fire a shot. It is very aggravating. I researched it and turned the "search preference" to "best" and I still have the problem. So, what ever is causing this needs to be fixed before I play again. The last this is the aim assist. Every console FPS has aim assist due to the inherent non-precise aiming that comes with joysticks. I have not had a problem with this until now. As I am trying to track a moving opponent or shoot a stationary opponent My reticle drifts off target to the right about 80% of the time. I tried to turn aim-assist off, but that is a pain in the ass. With these problems outweighing the good stuff I gave this game a 4 out of 10. Until these problems are fixed I am going to stick with MOH: Warfighter. Unlike the critics on this site I love the multiplayer.… Expand
  4. Virtro
    Apr 29, 2013
    4
    Black Ops 2 is just another copy/paste/edit game. You search for a terrorist, surprise? Not so much. The gunplay is once again the same as it always has been. Just point and shoot and nothing interesting to mix in between. The multiplayer is just as tedious considering its nothing but more hard work for no rewards besides guns and stuff.

    Lets face it, its a bandwagon that is milking the    Black Ops 2 is just another copy/paste/edit game. You search for a terrorist, surprise? Not so much. The gunplay is once again the same as it always has been. Just point and shoot and nothing interesting to mix in between. The multiplayer is just as tedious considering its nothing but more hard work for no rewards besides guns and stuff.

    Lets face it, its a bandwagon that is milking the gamers dry of good money they could be spending on a brighter game. Call of duty isn't worth it anymore people, so why not play something more fresh?    … Expand
  5. Mattyice
    Nov 24, 2012
    4
    Okay. That's all that needs to be said about this game. This game was a big improvement from Black Ops 1, but still lacks the needs of a great shooter. The graphics are okay, gameplay is solid, same game modes, mediocre campaign, and a worse zombies mode. Mediocre underperforming game again by Treyarch, but not bad at all.
  6. BeAwesomeOne
    Apr 26, 2013
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Gosh, I hate this game. Never mind the fact that this is same game as the other games and have same multiplayer like other games from this franchise (only with different HUD), my biggest problem is that this game shouldn't be a sequel! I mean sure, you play as Mason half of the game but the other half is a futuristic FPS. WHAT THIS HAS TO DO WITH FIRST BLACK OPS?! To be fair, future part of this game has some pretty good features such as camouflage, sticky gloves, that let you climb a rock mountain and sky diving section. Sadly this happen only one or two time in this game. Anyway I don't understand a point of playing both Mason's campaign and future campaign, if Black Ops 2 only contains a Mason's campaign then that's will be fine. Only resemblance in future in BO2 is Woods... that's it!

    In other words this game will be better if they focus mostly about Mason storyline rather than on future soldiers one. If Activision wants to make a futuristic FPS in Call Of Duty, that's fine. But please don't put Black Ops name on it. Called it, I don't know, Futuristic War or something.    … Expand
  7. MuDShoT
    Nov 14, 2012
    4
    Looks the same, feels the same, and it just simply is the same. Don't get me wrong, that game isn't that bad. But every single call of duty game shouldn't be the same. The game is living of its name, not its gameplay. For the people saying don't buy it if you don't want to play the same thing.. WTF? That's the kind of **** that promotes video game companies to ram their manhood into you.Looks the same, feels the same, and it just simply is the same. Don't get me wrong, that game isn't that bad. But every single call of duty game shouldn't be the same. The game is living of its name, not its gameplay. For the people saying don't buy it if you don't want to play the same thing.. WTF? That's the kind of **** that promotes video game companies to ram their manhood into you. The longer you say, "Hey, if you don't want to play the same CoD, don't buy it" the longer they decide to F off because they know people are going to keep buying their game. It's seriously disrespectful to the people who buy these games in hopes of having at least a slightly different experience. This game feels like MW3.. It was supposed to feel like black ops, but with more innovation.. They disappointed. Do yourselves a favor, get halo 4 and don't look back. Not that halo 4 was better by a long shot, but 343 did a much better job than Activision... Way to ruin another one Activision!… Expand
  8. LethalThreat
    Dec 29, 2012
    4
    I use to be a fan of Call of Duty games, but now they have just gone down hill. I beat Call of Duty: Black Ops II within four hours, this was probably the shortest Call of Duty game, or any game that I have ever played. I also couldn't even follow the story line, it was all over the place and confusing. I didn't bother with multiplayer, I figure it'd be the same as any other CoDI use to be a fan of Call of Duty games, but now they have just gone down hill. I beat Call of Duty: Black Ops II within four hours, this was probably the shortest Call of Duty game, or any game that I have ever played. I also couldn't even follow the story line, it was all over the place and confusing. I didn't bother with multiplayer, I figure it'd be the same as any other CoD multiplayer. Don't bother listening to the journalists, this game is not intense, nor the best. If you're looking for a good Call of Duty game, go back to the first ones, that's all I can say.… Expand
  9. Shmowzow
    Nov 15, 2012
    4
    I don't want to give this game a four, but words cannot describe how depressed it made me feel. I guess the campaign was alright, but it's time for a change, CoD. Especially when it comes to multiplayer, something Halo 4 actually managed to pull off.
  10. Tacobadgers
    Nov 15, 2012
    4
    Call of Duty... what can be said? they have stretched the FPS Genre to its limits first they burned out the WWII era now the modern and slightly beyond era have gone down in boring flames.
  11. ShadeeBR
    Nov 13, 2012
    4
    The game is good, nothing more. They changed the perks, the KillStriks but the game still the same. Didn't bring anything awesome to the franchise. I think one of the thing that has been holding the franchise is de strong name Call of Duty. It's time to change.
  12. Ghostwolf
    Nov 13, 2012
    4
    I rented this game with a hope that It would breath some life back in to COD. Nope, same old rehashed crap, I am soooo glad I didn't buy It. The audio Is just horrible( and I though MW3 was bad). The graphics havn't changed from MW2. The campaign was not half bad, but not half good either. Multiplayer is the same multiplayer since MW2 with one or two new features that really don't changeI rented this game with a hope that It would breath some life back in to COD. Nope, same old rehashed crap, I am soooo glad I didn't buy It. The audio Is just horrible( and I though MW3 was bad). The graphics havn't changed from MW2. The campaign was not half bad, but not half good either. Multiplayer is the same multiplayer since MW2 with one or two new features that really don't change much. About the only real improvments seem to be that multiplayer seems quite a bit less buggy the MW3 and zombie mode Is far better then before but those 2 things alone are not nearly worth the $60. I will not buy another COD game untill I truly seem some changes. perhaps those changes may come in the next console generation, but I hold no hope of seeing any real change till then.… Expand
  13. Omalley99
    Nov 14, 2012
    4
    There are two ways to review a game such as Call of Duty, which is what I feel leads to the polarising effect thats often seen within the reviews. One way is to review the game solely on its own merits, its story, graphics, gameplay, controls and taking no other part of the franchise into consideration. In this regard, Black Ops 2, like so many other Cod games, delivers with slickThere are two ways to review a game such as Call of Duty, which is what I feel leads to the polarising effect thats often seen within the reviews. One way is to review the game solely on its own merits, its story, graphics, gameplay, controls and taking no other part of the franchise into consideration. In this regard, Black Ops 2, like so many other Cod games, delivers with slick controls, fast paced addictive multiplayer, class customization and all the other hallmarks of a quality product. The campaign is still more of an add on, with the majority of the focus being placed upon multiplayer, and still retains the tradiontional linea, "clear a room move on" style of level design, interspersed with set pieces and vehicle sections. New steps have been taken with the addition of multiple endings based upon your choices, however this feature fails to actually add anything to the experience, at most just dragging you into a second playthrough if your curious about the different consequences of your actions. Top down RTS style side missions have also been added, yet the implementation here is poor, hampered by the AI being used by the soldiers and almost forcing you to take direct control over your forces if you want to progress, thankfully though these are options and can be avoided if you find them not to your tastes. The game therefore seems like a decent product, a polished, professional piece of AAA game design, but there is of course one other thing to consider.

    The second way to review the game, and the one that overall I will be taking, is to look at it as part of the franchise as a whole. This sadly is where the game falls down. All of the points I've made thus far are valid, but the problem comes when you compare it to the other Call of Duty games, and realise that this is the exact same formulae that they perfected years ago. Set pieces, chases and other action sequences where you are basically forced to watch, your control reduced to panning the camera or what are essentially quick time events, still take you out of the action and reduce you to more of a bystander than an active participant. Missions are still linear, you clear a room of bad guys, move to the next one, rinse and repeat. The multiplayer may be fast paced and hectic, but its also once again the exact same format that has been served up for the last few years now, a few new game types are not the kind of innovation that should be expected when you reach this stage of a franchise. The maps are cramped, designed for solo players in mind and reinforcing the general veiw that this is in no way a team game. The new score streak system differs very little from the previous kill streaks, in some cases being even more unbalanced. One also has to question the logic behind rewarding the leading players with even more powerful and deadly weapons and abilites and further increasing their lead instead of providing these benefits to the losing team to enable them to close the gap and keep the game close, competitive and exciting. Its all designed around the unrealistic one man army approach taken in these games, which is what cultivates the negative attitudes of many of its online players, and whilst their behaviour is no fault of the games, activision, infinity ward and treyarch have never taken any great pains to make the online a more enjoyable, balanced or even fair place for its more reasonable players.

    Call of Duty is guaranteed to sell, regardless of the changes they make, so you have to ask why the developers dont try something new, it feels more as if they churn out these almost identical clones out of either laziness or an actual inability to create something new. The changes, as seen here with the RTS segments, are poorly implemented and they make never have enough of an impact to drastically change the core experience, always altering the periferal, inconsequential things rather than risk any potential backlash for changing the game. After all who wants to be the guy that killed "the best selling franchise in gaming history"? The thing is, you cant kill it, year after year people will buy it, so take the chance, innovate, change it up. If people preffered the old version, they can play that game, if they want a new experience, give it to them. Black Ops 2 works as a game, its a great example of one, but it fails as part of a franchise, because yet again it brings very little to the table that the previous games have not already covered. If you want a good, solid, slick modern FPS, go play Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare or your preference from the heap of sequels it has. Just dont think this is going to be anything you havent seen before.    … Expand
  14. ctruluck1324
    Nov 14, 2012
    4
    I was excited to pick this game up after reading some reviews by critics. They made it sound like a lot had changed in this new cod game. After spending 60 dollars and playing the game, i realize these critics must have been paid to write all those good reviews. The games campaign is still the same on rails garbage that holds your hand through the entire game. Still has stupid enemy's thatI was excited to pick this game up after reading some reviews by critics. They made it sound like a lot had changed in this new cod game. After spending 60 dollars and playing the game, i realize these critics must have been paid to write all those good reviews. The games campaign is still the same on rails garbage that holds your hand through the entire game. Still has stupid enemy's that just run out in the open are just stand in one place and shoot. Its just a boring tin can shooter like all the other cod games. I know most people buy this for multiplayer, but I still would like to play a good fps campaign. The multiplayer is the same, so you will either love it or hate it.… Expand
  15. beatflux
    Nov 14, 2012
    4
    The dirty little secret of the Call of Duty series is that the original creators left Infinity Ward to start Respawn Entertainment, and with them they took the intelligence and innovative spirit of the series. What was left were the bones of a great series left to be recast by two back to back developers who would futilely attempt to revamp the series again and again. The last greatThe dirty little secret of the Call of Duty series is that the original creators left Infinity Ward to start Respawn Entertainment, and with them they took the intelligence and innovative spirit of the series. What was left were the bones of a great series left to be recast by two back to back developers who would futilely attempt to revamp the series again and again. The last great Call of Duty was Modern Warfare 2, and since them fans have been slowly exposed to a dying series that will eventually be a parody of itself. The core of Black Ops 2 multiplayer is broken because it doesn't not deal with fundamental aspects of fun and gameplay. The maps are chicken scratch attempts at creating an adrenaline fueled rat maze with no sense of intelligent direction. The spawns are absolutely horrid: spawn can often be a throw of the dice to see whether you manage to live or die. Finally, the lag in this game is still at a lower level than the MW1 and MW2 variations, the lag still puts you into that situations where you thought you had the jump on a guy, but the killcam reveals that you didn't even pull up your gun. Without addressing these core issues, the series is slowly withering away its hardcore fans, and eventually the rest of the community will start to catch on. Treyarch is a shady mom and pop used car sales lot who will praise the paint, but refuse to fix the engine.

    If the gun classes were balanced, the online gameplay fixed, and the maps completely redesigned with strong team deathmatch gameplay I would be inclined to give this game at least an 8 or a 9.    … Expand
  16. iTRYPOD
    Nov 14, 2012
    4
    Boring! MP is complete garbage,zombies is the same and the campaign is meh at best. I have been a huge fan of the series but now i'm done! The fun factor doesn't exist in this game.
  17. Scardij
    Nov 16, 2012
    4
    The whole point of Call of Duty is the online. That's pretty much why it's bought anymore. The only problem is that Treyarch can't overcome the fact that Call of Duty online is always poorly done. I've been playing Call of Duty games online since COD2. Black Ops 2's online is terrible. It just is. They implement lag compensation that punishes good connections and rewards bad. TheThe whole point of Call of Duty is the online. That's pretty much why it's bought anymore. The only problem is that Treyarch can't overcome the fact that Call of Duty online is always poorly done. I've been playing Call of Duty games online since COD2. Black Ops 2's online is terrible. It just is. They implement lag compensation that punishes good connections and rewards bad. The submachine guns, like in every CoD, are obscenely overpowered to the point the other types are useless. They put in a new tactical grenade called the shock charge. For some reason, they felt the need to make it combine every feature of every grenade: can't move, does some damage, blinds you, and can be set in a spot to be triggered by passer-by. Probably the biggest problem is the map design. Every map leans towards the people who play Call of Duty by sitting in one spot where you're almost unkillable. Windows, random sandbags, boxes, upper floor buildings, etc. are all spots where only the tip of your head is able to be seen, while you can see everything, and they are literally at every corner. All-in-all, the online is dumbed down some more to appeal to the people who are no good at games in general.… Expand
  18. ReFfErReD
    Nov 17, 2012
    4
    Black ops 2 has lost its touch! black ops 1 multiplayer was all about, tactics, less crowded maps, proper gameplay, fun and its fair... Black ops 2 copies what modern warfare is! which isn't the trade mark of black ops! black ops 2 mutiplayer has no balance, all weapons are super powered even hand guns, I always loved black ops 1 I never played Modern Warfare Multiplayer coz its tooBlack ops 2 has lost its touch! black ops 1 multiplayer was all about, tactics, less crowded maps, proper gameplay, fun and its fair... Black ops 2 copies what modern warfare is! which isn't the trade mark of black ops! black ops 2 mutiplayer has no balance, all weapons are super powered even hand guns, I always loved black ops 1 I never played Modern Warfare Multiplayer coz its too crowded and poor gameplay, no tactics just shoot and kill and sadly to say so is black ops 2!… Expand
  19. DrDangles
    Nov 18, 2012
    4
    Hello, Firstly I would like to express my disappointment with the release of Black Ops 2. I have owned and played every Call of Duty title since the very first. I have bought every DLC and every game. I know and (used to love) the entire series. Black Ops 2 has reverted back to previous editions of the series. I dont understand how you can go back on adaptations of the mechanics that madeHello, Firstly I would like to express my disappointment with the release of Black Ops 2. I have owned and played every Call of Duty title since the very first. I have bought every DLC and every game. I know and (used to love) the entire series. Black Ops 2 has reverted back to previous editions of the series. I dont understand how you can go back on adaptations of the mechanics that made things better. My biggest complaint is about the Hardcore game play. Where is ricochet? Why are we back to team kills? Why are there only 4 game modes for Hardcore? Most if not all the game modes have been around in Hardcore at one time or another. The layout of almost every screen, starting from after the start up screen, looks overly complex and doesnt flow. The equipment load out screen and system needs revising. What I dont get, and what really makes this game a disappointment is that you have all of these problems worked out in previous game releases. But you choose to ignore them and we are now playing the waiting game for you guys to fix them. It really is a let down. I was looking forward to this game. I even bought the elite edition. I feel like I was robbed. And its not about the money, hell, id pay again if you guys fixed the game!… Expand
  20. NlNJAKIWI
    Dec 3, 2012
    4
    When I heard that Treyarch was making another Black Ops I was unbelievably excited. The first Black Ops in my Opinion was the best Call of Duty to date, today I feel the same way. Ever since Call of Duty hit its peak with Black Ops the series has taken a turn for the worse and is declining at an alarming rate. I felt that when MW3 came out, Activision had begun creating the casket to layWhen I heard that Treyarch was making another Black Ops I was unbelievably excited. The first Black Ops in my Opinion was the best Call of Duty to date, today I feel the same way. Ever since Call of Duty hit its peak with Black Ops the series has taken a turn for the worse and is declining at an alarming rate. I felt that when MW3 came out, Activision had begun creating the casket to lay this game to rest (I was not fond of the copy-paste job Infinity Ward did and called that … Expand
  21. Magikmike39
    Dec 17, 2012
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This review is based on the multiplayer aspects of this game. The servers are horrendous. You will be migrating hosts much more frequently than any other COD game. The lag compensation is a joke. When two opposing players are fighting for a kill, you swear that you shot first and hit him 3 to 5 times. When you see the killcam, you only get one or two hits and the other guy gets off two or three shots on you and kills you instead. The maps are either too big, or way too small. Nuketown 2025 is a waste of development. It's the exact same layout as BO1. The spawning is ridiculous. Enemies spawn behind you so many times, or they spawn you in an enemies sights.

    The variety of weapons are pathetic. The gun stats in BO2 are awful. I'm an assault rifle guy, and I could barely tell any difference at all using the fully automatic assault rifles other than firing rate and accuracy. What kills me is that the last assault rifle you unlock has only average gun stats. When I work my tail off to level up, I should be rewarded with a gun that kicks butt, not a gun that has middle to below average stats. Pistols and SMGs are overpowered. Light machine guns are terrible, and take an eternity to reload. Shotguns have ridiculous range for some reason. Sniper rifles should be banned from any future COD games. Grenades/Semtex work well, but Crossbows are still as annoying as ever. I don't like the fact that you can't remove arrows or Semtex you get stuck with if you realize it just in time. You're able to throw back grenades other people send at you, so why aren't you able to do this? When it tells you "Stuck", it might as well say "Bye Bye". Finally, the tomahawk and knife melee. If you include weapons that cause instant death in a video game, the death better make sense! The tomahawk shouldn't be an instant kill if it just hits you, especially if it's been thrown from over 50 feet away. I'm not a game designer, but even I know how obnoxious that is. If it hits you in the head, I can understand. The knife melee, a simple knife swipe to a player shouldn't mean instant death. Maybe give him a few seconds after getting swiped to stay alive before dying. Also, when I do the knife melee on someone directly in front of me, it almost always misses. On killcams, the knife melee sometimes looks like it's missing the target, but hits anyway, which is complete BS.

    On to the Scorestreaks. Some of them are upgraded versions of what we already know. But, they got rid of the best part of BO1. I'm talking about if you didn't use your Killstreak reward before restarting a new Killstreak, it stacked up. I loved when I had 3 RC-XDs and used them all within a couple minutes. In this game, if you don't use your Scorestreak rewards and start a new one, you lose the rewards you previously had. Some Scorestreaks are extremely cheap, When a Lightning Strike Scorestreak is activated, you get no time at all to get to cover because the command lets you know almost right after the bombs drop. When a Napalm Strike killstreak is activated in BO1, you get a command and around 3 seconds to get to cover before it hits. In BO2, you're pretty much screwed when Lightning Strike is activated. Also, when Lightning Strike or Hellstorm Missiles are activated, sometimes even if you are indoors, it still kills you. Treyarch, you didn't program destructive environments in this game, so this shouldn't happen. The UAV has been severely nerfed, it's only up for barely 10 seconds, and is almost always destroyed by the opposition within about 5 seconds. The absolute worst Scorestreak is the attack dogs. Why is it when a dog jumps you it's instant death? Give the player a fighting chance when it jumps you to shake it off or knife melee it, but don't make it instant death. There are better options for Scorestreaks other than dogs. You know how in the loading screens, it says, "A well timed knife strike will kill an incoming attack dog"? With the knife melee almost useless now, it's nearly impossible.

    The Perks, along with the Custom Class system have been changed for the worse. They have introduced Wild Cards which you can use to double up on Perks 1, 2, and 3, add another attachment to your primary weapon, etc. This would have been great, but there's just one problem, you can only have 10 items in a class, and the Wild Cards count towards your 10 items. What kind of sense does that make? The Wild Card isn't an actual item you carry! Also, you can only carry one type of lethal/tactical equipment, which is a downgrade from all the other games before this. You were able to carry grenades and claymores/bouncing betties before, why change now? The only good thing they did is that the Ghost Perk can make you invisible from UAV only when you're moving now. Stop releasing these games every year, Activision. Spend more than a year of development on it to iron out the problems to make this an experience to remember, and not one to throw out the window.    … Expand
  22. Gixxer
    Dec 29, 2012
    4
    Where to start on this one? The campaign of this game is fun with different endings depending on your choices but regardless of that it doesn't have a story that tempts you into playing the campaign for more than an hour at a time. And after you finish the campaign you'll have no desire to play it again.
    If you play games purely singleplayer then there are far superior games on the    Where to start on this one? The campaign of this game is fun with different endings depending on your choices but regardless of that it doesn't have a story that tempts you into playing the campaign for more than an hour at a time. And after you finish the campaign you'll have no desire to play it again.
    If you play games purely singleplayer then there are far superior games on the market.
    Zombie mode is disappointing, there isn't much variation between the maps or combat situations and it gets boring to fight off the same horde of exactly the same zombies for longer than 15 minutes.
    Multiplayer however is where this game disappoints the most.
    The maps are the worst i've encountered in any Call of Duty game, with head glitching and camping spots galore. On top of that there's not much room in the maps for flanking the enemy without getting taken out by headglitchers armed with shock charges and bouncing betty's. And since the killstreaks are now more difficult to get, people camp even more trying to get a stealth chopper in the air.
    The spawn system is horribly random, too often you will find yourself scratching your head wondering why you spawned right in front of your enemy or why you spawned at the enemies flag in the domination game mode.
    The lag compensation system however is where this game truly falls flat on it's face, this was also a problem in MW3 from time to time but it was more rare than in Black Ops 2. Way too often will you shoot a guy full of bullets only to have him turn on you and kill you almost instantly. Every Call of Duty game on console had lag compensation but in this game it's completely screwed. Activision makes hundreds of millions of dollars annually with this franchise, you'd think it wouldn't be a big effort to host dedicated servers for this game..
    The gun balance in the game also lacks, well balance.. The SMG's are the way to go, they easily overpower most if not every other weapon in the game at almost all ranges.
    And yes, it still has the Quake 4 graphics engine with some modifications..
    Combine all this and you have a very lackluster game. I can't believe Treyarch developed a game for two years only to come up with this over hyped disappointment of a video game.
    Not only that, this game does not feel like Black Ops at all, it feels like a modded Modern Warfare game. Black Ops 1 was a superior title, not only in gameplay but also when it comes to originality and general atmosphere of the game, you put up with it's flaws because it was fun to play.
    This game however, is not. Why critics give this game such a high score is beyond me, because Black Ops 2 runs the franchise further into the ground instead of giving it a breath of fresh air. Steer clear of this one people, you will lament wasting your money on this.    … Expand
  23. Piecefighter
    Dec 31, 2012
    4
    This game is so lame and tired, the graphics are dated, it's just not fun any more! Maps are so small, spawns are terrible, sound effects are muddy. Now get to work making a game for the next platform! HINT: Maps need to be larger with more vertical variety (terrain or buildings), spawns need to be more varied and spread out, graphics need to have more texture and make maps withThis game is so lame and tired, the graphics are dated, it's just not fun any more! Maps are so small, spawns are terrible, sound effects are muddy. Now get to work making a game for the next platform! HINT: Maps need to be larger with more vertical variety (terrain or buildings), spawns need to be more varied and spread out, graphics need to have more texture and make maps with interesting settings that combine all aspects of terrain and construction, kick sound in when you go into a factory, etc., have things moving, hell put innocent people in that takes points off your team when you kill em, just do something better than this!… Expand
  24. Versonic
    Jan 3, 2013
    4
    Call of duty: Black ops 2 takes the action to the future. however it still feels like i'm playing a game in the past.
    Firstly the campaign is like always, just there so they can make the game. they really don't put any effort into the game. all they are looking to get out is the multiplayer and the zombies. So multiplayer is as always, the same spray and pray. however they do add a point    Call of duty: Black ops 2 takes the action to the future. however it still feels like i'm playing a game in the past.
    Firstly the campaign is like always, just there so they can make the game. they really don't put any effort into the game. all they are looking to get out is the multiplayer and the zombies. So multiplayer is as always, the same spray and pray. however they do add a point system instead of a kill streak which makes it more objective run this time, this is not good though because you find yourself being bombed every couple of minutes. Zombies was ruined in every way possible. they took the the simple fun and turned it into a mess of building turbines and being downed in one hit due to the poor knifing system, its ridiculous.

    Would i play this or any other cod? yes. any other game? no    … Expand
  25. chishket33
    Jan 6, 2013
    4
    The single player on this game is absolutely top notch, as are all of the other CoD's campaigns are. But the multiplayer on this particular game, is one of the worst multiplayer experiences i have ever been in. Its crummy, boring and it ALWAYS feels as though you are dying first even after shooting first, and after trading it in 2 weeks after i purchased it, i am NOT regretting getting ridThe single player on this game is absolutely top notch, as are all of the other CoD's campaigns are. But the multiplayer on this particular game, is one of the worst multiplayer experiences i have ever been in. Its crummy, boring and it ALWAYS feels as though you are dying first even after shooting first, and after trading it in 2 weeks after i purchased it, i am NOT regretting getting rid of it, as it is the worst CoD in the whole of the series.… Expand
  26. liabProductions
    Jan 14, 2013
    4
    A fun game at times but the multiplayer is nothing new and gets boring after a day or two. The campaign is a bit entertaining but the only time you get to use new gadgets is normally once and is to just get to the next objective. If you're lucky you'll get 20 seconds with your new gadget. Anyway, bad campaign and a bad multiplayer. The Zombies mode is alright but soon gets boring seeing asA fun game at times but the multiplayer is nothing new and gets boring after a day or two. The campaign is a bit entertaining but the only time you get to use new gadgets is normally once and is to just get to the next objective. If you're lucky you'll get 20 seconds with your new gadget. Anyway, bad campaign and a bad multiplayer. The Zombies mode is alright but soon gets boring seeing as there is basically only one map.… Expand
  27. Sgtkeebler
    Feb 5, 2013
    4
    this game kind sucks now. dont get me wrong I will still play it. Whenever I want to play a spray and kill type game. BO2 has become so reptitive, its starting to get boring. The single player missions were so short because Tryarch was just concentrated on the multiplayer. There is really nothing to it just be the first person to pull the trigger and you got yourself a kill. I still likethis game kind sucks now. dont get me wrong I will still play it. Whenever I want to play a spray and kill type game. BO2 has become so reptitive, its starting to get boring. The single player missions were so short because Tryarch was just concentrated on the multiplayer. There is really nothing to it just be the first person to pull the trigger and you got yourself a kill. I still like playing it, but its time for a new way to play the game if that makes sense.… Expand
  28. Caged_Sephiroth
    Feb 17, 2013
    4
    Basically the same as every other Call of Duty game, but half of it is set in the future. Too samey for me to give anything more than a 5. But I have to knock a point off for the fact it has been dumbed down to the point where anyone with half a brain can finish Veteran mode. Enjoyable for a few hours, but it's nothing you haven't played before. Developers are milking fans for all they're worth.
  29. AdderTude
    Dec 17, 2013
    4
    If there is any word I would sum up this game with it would be "over-hyped." Every single CoDfish that drools over this game are either stupid or zealous fanboys. The game itself is merely a cut-and-paste version of Black Ops and, for the most part, the entire Modern Warfare series.

    First off, there's the campaign. Somehow I finally managed to work up the courage to play the damn    If there is any word I would sum up this game with it would be "over-hyped." Every single CoDfish that drools over this game are either stupid or zealous fanboys. The game itself is merely a cut-and-paste version of Black Ops and, for the most part, the entire Modern Warfare series.

    First off, there's the campaign. Somehow I finally managed to work up the courage to play the damn game, since I played World At War a couple months back. I usually play games for their story and in my honest opinion, the story for this game is absolute garbage. The plot twists were horribly predictable and, despite the very few choices you actually get to make in the game, it feels like many of the crap you get put through is just scripted to happen. The plot is some B-movie story that any idiot writer in Hollow-wood could come up with. The story is so convoluted that it ends up being laughable at how poorly it was written.

    The mechanics are downright awful. Like most CoD games I've played, oftentimes the enemies will hit you cheaply. I mean, you're supposed to be a damn SEAL, whose fighting reflexes are supposed to be good. Instead every melee shot requires a brief "cooldown" before you can swing again. Meanwhile, the enemy you're fighting against swings again and again in no time at all (for every one swing you get, the enemy throws *at least* two, usually resulting in a very cheap death). And don't get me started on the same stupid thing that Treyarch just loves to put in that every serious gamer absolutely despises: infinite spawners. This means that enemies will just keep coming endlessly until you're able to actually push through the area (running very low on ammo in the process), and when you pass the area, the enemies just suddenly stop. Infinite spawners are just a cheap way to keep the player "entertained" while doing more cut-and-paste AI bulls*** in the next area. At one point, I even found that a simple jump across a space to an open balcony seemed simple enough if I sprinted the gap. However, I somehow fell short every damn time until I did a regular jump across, which somehow did the trick (I mean REALLY?!?! I couldn't make the jump with a faster sprint-jump?!?! I raged so hard at this obviously-scripted point).

    Multiplayer. Hate it. Cut-and-paste Modern Warfare. No skill using weapons that are already stabilized for you. That's all I have to say.

    All in all, Black Ops II is a game that was overly hyped with almost no difference between Modern Warfare and Black Ops. I won't be surprised if Ghosts turns out to be more of the same cut-and-paste drivel that Treyarch calls a "much-improved sequel." Just quit lying to us and admit that your modern-era CoD games are all pretty much the same game wearing different skins. Verdict: skip it unless you're an easily-fooled, diehard CoDfish.    … Expand
  30. TheRanter
    Feb 23, 2013
    4
    I give this game a 4. The reasons are simple. The Campaign mode seems great, although I will admit I haven't gotten all the way through it yet. The main reason for my giving this game a 4 is Multiplayer. It's horrible. The hit detection sucks, I can not tell you how many times I've shot someone only to not have it count. Another reason is the damage system seems wholly inconsistent to me.I give this game a 4. The reasons are simple. The Campaign mode seems great, although I will admit I haven't gotten all the way through it yet. The main reason for my giving this game a 4 is Multiplayer. It's horrible. The hit detection sucks, I can not tell you how many times I've shot someone only to not have it count. Another reason is the damage system seems wholly inconsistent to me. For example: sometimes I can kill a person with 3 shots from a pistol, other times I empty the whole clip only to end up being killed by them whilst reloading. Keep in mind I'm getting hit indicators the whole time. Another reason is I have had many, many people just walk straight past my claymore mines without taking any damage (I watch the killcam). It's just not done well. I'd recommend the Original Doom over this game.… Expand
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Awards & Rankings

31
#31 Best Xbox 360 Game of 2012
3
#3 Most Discussed Xbox 360 Game of 2012
10
#10 Most Shared Xbox 360 Game of 2012

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
83

Generally favorable reviews - based on 73 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 67 out of 73
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 73
  3. Negative: 0 out of 73
  1. Xbox World Australia
    Jan 22, 2013
    80
    This is not to say it's a bad game, it's just not different enough from previous Call of Duty titles. The story isn't memorable, the maps and weapons aren't any different to what we've previously experienced, the gameplay is near identical to previous games, and when it's not identical it falls flat and fails to impress.
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  2. X-ONE Magazine UK
    Jan 19, 2013
    80
    It's fun, and an indication that Treyarch is willing to explore ideas that Infinity Ward has thus far ignored. [Issue#93, p.74]
  3. DailyGame
    Jan 7, 2013
    95
    If the original Black Ops was Treyarch's coming-out party, then Black Ops 2 is the studio's affirmation that their COD expertise was no flash in the pan. If you're one of the 16 people who hasn't played this gem yet, go buy it now. Conversely, if you're among those who bought the game but hasn't ventured into the single-player campaign (yes, it happens), there's a great narrative and divergent gameplay awaiting your experimentation, so check it out.
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