Major spoilers ahead for BO6 Zombies’ Reckoning map.
Okay, so here we are at the end of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6. Season 5 drops this Zombies thing on us, and Reckoning’s supposed to be the big finale. Mostly lands on its feet, I guess? Some cool bits of lore – you know, the announcer’s backstory and whatever – and Grey’s reaction about Samantha? Kinda hits home if you cared about that. Map feels fresh, which is awesome because stale map layouts are the worst. But hey, plenty to poke at too. Panos’ story? Felt like it got wrapped up faster than a burrito, and the Gorgofex Wonder Weapon… well, let’s just say I was expecting to feel a bit more invincible holding it. Anyway, yeah, the story does its thing with different endings, but the payoff? Depends on the day you ask someone about it.
You get two ways this can end up: SAM or Richtofen gives the bad guys a serious one-two. If you go the SAM route, you’re taking down some mech-sporting Richtofen. Dude can’t save his fam, and SAM gets this human makeover while keeping her power vibes. Flipside, Richtofen’s tale is kinda sweet. Beats the rogue AI and gets back with his spouse and kid. But honestly, that’s not where fans start splitting hairs. Nope, it’s more about what happens after those endings. You see these familiar figures stepping into the light, inviting the new crew to “party.” Cliffhanger for Black Ops 7, maybe? Meh. It didn’t really crank up my hype levels, and I’m one of those who was all in when Origins had their shocking scenes.
The Aether storyline? Man, what a ride that was. It was like being part of a secret club in my teenage days, decoding messages, huddled forums – just a load of theories flying around. That feeling when it all added up without an official map till Black Ops 3? Nostalgia, right in the feels. Then Black Ops 4 shows up and wraps everything up – not exactly how I’d hoped, though. I mean, where’s Dr. Monty for one last showdown? Forget about some epic Great War map, or even seeing the old gang in action one final time. Then boom, let’s retcon that neat ending with a sequel. Yay? Honestly, more like a sigh from me.
Why Black Ops 4’s Ending Being Retconned is Such a Shame
Primis and Ultimis – they got more than they bargained for. Sure, Black Ops 4 dropped animated storytelling, but Tag Der Toten hit hard nonetheless. Richtofen trying to game the system in Black Ops 3? Turns out, Dempsey, Takeo, Nikolai – their stories weren’t gonna have fairytale endings outside that endless cycle. Cutting off Primis and Ultimis was the only way to nix the zombocalypse. Nikolai? The guy doing the tough stuff with integrity.
And dude, the closure… It’s not just what happened; it’s how. Little campfire chats building the tension, Samantha finishing Nikolai’s task. Yeah, Sam and Eddie stepping into a new universe, imagining those ideal lives of our favorite gang. Tore me up a bit, I ain’t gonna lie. It was like, we’ll never hang out with these characters again after all the wild quests together. They leave you reflecting deeply. Now? Just feels like pulling a Jenga block from the bottom, doesn’t it?
Nostalgia’s, like, COD’s thing. Old maps – Shipment, Nuketown – never go out of fashion. Throwback weapons, Prestige ranks – all whispers of history. Bringing back the OG team without a clear why… just seems like a real misstep, right? I remember Nikolai in Tag Der Toten doing the big MacGuffin, making his story feel grand. Felt like an ending, incomplete maybe, tragic even, but it stuck. Now backtrack? Explaining themselves now feels like it’s part of Treyarch’s job description. This should be interesting.
Takeo’s voice actor had a stroke in 2020, so he’s out of commission. Fans weren’t exactly thrilled when Samantha got a new voice, so buckles tightened for another swap here.
Black Ops 7 Zombies Playing the Greatest Hits Doesn’t Feel Necessary
BO6 was pretty big, right? So why’s Treyarch fiddling with the old gang? They could’ve totally dug deeper into the Chaos storyline – remember that cliffhanger in Ancient Evil? Bring in Scarlett and the crew, that’d shake things up a bit! I mean, if we’re pulling folks back from the depths, why not them too? Oh, and the Terminus team? They definitely have some untapped potential. Just give Carver a bit more screen time, would ya? But nope, back to the well-loved originals, I guess. Weaver and others will probably get sidelined to the microphone, guiding us around instead of stepping up for a big moment.
Fans are throwing around “Tempest” and “Medius” as potential names for this Zombie squad revival. Combining Primis and Ultimis into one? Sounds like trying to blend two whodunits mystery books where everyone might end up just in the same conclusion.
Some folks are pumped – they love the COD Zombies timeline circa these guys being the only stars. Hey, I get it; those four have a ton of charisma. As much as I love those memories, it’s time to let fresh dialogue drizzle through. Nostalgia’s good, but bringing back the casts again? Feels like when RDJ would come back to Marvel but as Doctor Doom. It’s not quite the same characters; everything still counts, but then you gotta ask yourself – Will yet another repeat ever make a difference? With this déjà vu loop of familiar faces, sometimes I feel we’re caught in the whirlwind, pulling us right back into the previous versions. No matter how hard Treyarch strives otherwise.
Dark Aether’s brave separate path was refreshing – spinning a yarn off the tether from the classics. Tom Henderson’s rumored real deal: BO7 throwing the OG squads back in, and confirmed storyline maps? Hope wrapped in more daring locations, because under more nostalgia-driven angles, story chasers might find the gameplay’s the only part left worth chasing.
