In the wake of the explosively popular Battlefield 6 Open Beta weekends that ran on Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, and PS5 throughout August, one aspect of its larger competitor FPS Call of Duty that's come under quite a bit of scrutiny is its penchant for goofy skins that feel incredibly out of place in a military-themed shooter.
With Battlefield 6 promising "gritty realism" for its cosmetics in contrast and many Call of Duty fans growing increasingly tired of wacky and anachronistic pop culture skins like Beavis and Butt-Head and American Dad crossover items, it's become clear that DICE's upcoming FPS has a serious chance to majorly steal the thunder of Call of Duty: Black Ops 7.
Now, in response to growing discontentment with Call of Duty's current aesthetic style, developers Treyarch and Raven Software have vowed to make Black Ops 7 "feel authentic to Call of Duty and its setting" — acknowledging all the recent feedback about Black Ops 6 cosmetics and how incongruous they appear.
The news came in August's Call of Duty Community Update blog post, where it was also announced that Black Ops 6 Operators, Operator Skins, and Weapons will not carry over into Black Ops 7 as a result of this tonal reset. Double XP tokens and GobbleGums will, however, as the developers still want longtime players to enjoy the progression boost they provide.
Note that the free-to-play battle royale Call of Duty: Warzone will not be effected by this, with Treyarch and Raven promising that Black Ops 6 content will remain usable in that game moving forward.
"We know there’s been a lot of conversation recently about the identity of Call of Duty," reads the post. "Some of you have said we’ve drifted from what made Call of Duty unique in the first place: immersive, intense, visceral and in many ways grounded. That feedback hits home, and we take it seriously. We hear you."
"Black Ops 7 needs to feel authentic to Call of Duty and its setting. That is why Black Ops 6 Operator and Weapon content will not carry forward to Black Ops 7," the Call of Duty team continued. "Double XP tokens and GobbleGums will still carry forward, because we recognize your time and progression are important."
Beyond this, the post also mentions that starting with Black Ops 7's November 14 release date, the in-house RICOCHET anti-cheat system used for all modern Call of Duty titles will require PC players to enable Secure Boot and TPM 2.0.
Ultimately, gaming is a business, and publishers and developers will go where the money is. Has there been a major shift away from goofy skins in the market, prompting Xbox, Treyarch, and Raven to harken back to Call of Duty's original style?
This is a requirement in place for Battlefield 6 and Electronic Arts' Javelin anti-cheat, too; the controversies of kernel-level anti-cheat programs aside, the good news is that enabling Secure Boot and using TPM 2.0 are both very easy to do.
Lastly, the developers note that significantly more information about Black Ops 7 will come through the pipeline in the coming weeks, with that news wave reaching its apex when it gets a full multiplayer reveal at the Call of Duty: NEXT event on September 30.
After that, the Black Ops 7 Early Access Beta will begin on October 2, with a full Open Beta kicking off on October 5. Access will run until October 8 — just two days before Battlefield 6 is scheduled to arrive on October 10.
An exciting change for Call of Duty — will it last?
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As someone who's become increasingly frustrated with the way silly over-the-top cosmetics have killed cohesive art styles in games for years now — thanks, Team Fortress 2, and your ridiculous collection of hats — I find it very exciting that Call of Duty is taking this step back for Black Ops 7.
At one point, the series was, at least artistically, a grounded-looking military shooter with impressive immersion, much like Battlefield is (Battlefield 2042 is the black sheep). It began to deviate heavily from that vision starting with 2018's Black Ops 4, though, so seven years later, I'm thrilled to see that Call of Duty is finally embracing its stylistic roots.
With that said, though, the cynical part of me can't help but wonder how long this returning artistic direction will last. Clearly, the development of increasingly outlandish cosmetics has made the studios behind Call of Duty quite a lot of money, or else it's not a direction they would have stuck with for so long.
The cynical part of me can't help but wonder how long this returning artistic direction will last.
Ultimately, gaming is a business, and publishers and developers will go where the money is. Has there been a major shift away from goofy skins in the market, prompting Xbox, Treyarch, and Raven to harken back to Call of Duty's original style? Or is this largely a statement for optics — a way to say "we're listening" while still offering a growing trickle of pop culture and crossover items, ultimately changing nothing?
Only time will tell, but I'm choosing to be cautiously optimistic. Ultimately, though? If we find ourselves looking at King of the Hill skin bundles in Black Ops 7 a year from now, I can't really say I'll be surprised. Hopefully, at least Battlefield will stick to its word.
Both Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 and Battlefield 6 are coming to Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, and PS5 for $70, with the former slated to release on November 14 and the latter coming out earlier on October 10. Black Ops 7, a first-party Microsoft game, will also be available on Xbox Game Pass.
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