Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 revealed, coming in October

Call of Duty: Black Ops6 will be released on October 25, Activision and developers Treyarch and Raven Software confirmed on Sunday during Microsoft’s Xbox Game Showcase and Call of Duty Direct. This year’s Call of Duty promises to deliver “the most breathtaking and spectacular Black Ops action yet,” says Activision, with an ever-expanding scope that includes a globetrotting campaign, robust multiplayer offering and the return of round-based Zombies gameplay will include.

As previously announced, BlackOps6 is set in the aftermath of the Cold War era in the early 1990s. The game’s campaign will be an “epic spy thriller,” Activision said in a press release, combining stealth-based gameplay with blockbuster action in locations in Russia, the Middle East, Southern Europe and the United States. Black Ops series mainstays Frank Woods and Russell Adler are joined in the story by newcomers including Troy Marshall and Jane Harrow.

In the first screenshots released for BlackOps6we get a taste of some of that action and a look at the franchise’s new characters. We also see Adler jump a sick motorcycle off a police car in what appears to be besieged Washington DC.

Here’s what else we know about this year’s Call of Duty:

Black Ops 6 Multiplayer

Activision promises a new, refined motion model called Omnimovement, which will allow players to “realistically and seamlessly move like a real action hero.” Omnimovement allows players to sprint, slide and dive in any direction, and new Prone Prone positioning allows them to turn while lying on their stomach. BlackOps6 also includes other new movement options, including the ability to “cut corners,” “where when you turn a corner or go through a doorway, your weapon will dynamically rotate in the direction you turn that corner.”

Image: Treyarch, Raven Software/Activision

Treyarch promises 16 new cards when BlackOps6 is launching, including 12 core 6v6 maps and four Strike maps that can be played as 2v2 or 6v6. BlackOps6 will also see the return of Classic Prestige, with “always something to evolve towards.”

BlackOps6 also includes HUD presets, which allow players to move the minimap and remove HUD elements for a minimalist interface.

Black Ops 6 zombies

Image: Treyarch, Raven Software/Activision

Call of Duty: Black Ops6 will see the return of the round-based Zombies mode, where players battle increasingly difficult waves of undead enemies. Treyarch promises two new maps at launch featuring Liberty Falls and Terminus, and all the associated secrets that Zombies players have come to expect over the past 15 years.

Black Ops 6 platforms and Game Pass release

Call of Duty: Black Ops6 will be available on October 25 on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows PC (via Battle.net, Microsoft Store and Steam), Xbox One and Xbox Series

Game Pass subscribers get access to BlackOps6 day one. On Xbox, subscribers get access to the Digital Cross-Gen Bundle (for Xbox One and Series X), while PC Game Pass subscribers get access to the standard edition of the game. Game Pass subscribers also get the Woods Operator Pack and pre-order benefits with early access to the open beta.