A Personal Lesson in Pre-Judging Call of Duty

I’ll admit it—I’ve been one of those fans who jumped the gun before, torching Call of Duty titles like Vanguard and Cold War based on the beta, trailers and leaks, convinced they’d be flops. I rolled my eyes at Vanguard’s WWII setting, thinking it’d be a stale rehash, and scoffed at Cold War’s early footage for looking like a budget Black Ops knockoff. But here’s the twist: Vanguard ended up becoming my all-time favorite Call of Duty. Its tight gunplay, varied maps, ridiculously awesome story mode and surprisingly fun Der Anfang Zombies mode won me over once I actually bought the game and played it. Cold War, too, grew on me with its slick Zombies and punchy multiplayer after a few patches. The lesson? Judging a CoD game before its launch—let alone before the beta—is a gamble that often misses the mark. That’s why the Black Ops 7 hate train feels so familiar, and why I’m holding out for the real thing this time around.

The Reveal: What Black Ops 7 Is Bringing to the Table

The hype train for Black Ops 7 started with a cinematic teaser at the Xbox Games Showcase in June 2025, setting the stage in 2035 as a sequel to Black Ops 2. David Mason (voiced by Milo Ventimiglia) leads an elite counterterrorism unit against a shadowy cabal weaponizing fear, with Kiernan Shipka and Michael Rooker rounding out the cast. The full reveal at Gamescom on August 19 dropped a 17-minute “Direct” showcasing three pillars: a co-op campaign with branching paths and psychological horror, a multiplayer suite with 16 6v6 maps and two 20v20 battlefields (from futuristic Tokyo to Alaskan tundras), and round-based Zombies in the Dark Aether with Dead Ops Arcade 4. A key feature? Unified progression, letting players earn XP and weapon unlocks across all modes.

Gameplay leans on an evolved Omnimovement system from Black Ops 6—smoother slides, dives, and wall-jumps (but no jetpacks)—paired with near-future weapons like modular rifles, energy guns, and drone countermeasures. The campaign promises non-linear missions with squad-based tactics and hallucinatory twists. Multiplayer emphasizes fast-paced 6v6 objective modes and vehicle-heavy 20v20 chaos, while Zombies delivers survival waves with eight playable characters and wonder vehicles on the series’ biggest map yet. The time-to-kill (TTK) mirrors Black Ops 6’s balanced pace, avoiding instant deaths or bullet-sponge fights. Treyarch calls it a “spiritual successor to Black Ops 2,” aiming for tactical depth and immersive storytelling, with the full multiplayer reveal set for Call of Duty: NEXT on September 30.

Why Fans Are Calling It “Trash”

Despite the ambitious pitch, the reveal trailer tanked online, racking up dislikes at a 2-to-1 ratio (500,000 vs. 250,000 likes by mid-September) and sparking comments like “This made me pre-order Battlefield 6.” The gripes center on gameplay, not cosmetics, and stem from a mix of reveal footage, leaks, and franchise fatigue. Here’s the breakdown:

• Movement Woes: Omnimovement’s tweaks—smoother transitions, no default tactical sprint—are seen as “clunky” by critics like @TheTacticalBrit, who claim it slows pacing and rewards campers hiding behind head-glitches. Fans fear it’ll turn firefights into “stationary slogs” without the zippy flow of Modern Warfare 2019, especially in Warzone’s vast maps. Yet, Treyarch insists it’s about “player freedom,” with perks to customize sprint styles.
• Futuristic Disconnect: The 2035 setting, with energy rifles and drones, feels “unrealistic” to purists who want Black Ops’ gritty military roots. X posts call gunplay “dumbed-down laser beams” with overpowered aim assist, stripping away the series’ soul. Leaked map designs look “sterile,” lacking the evocative chaos of Black Ops 2’s Panama Canal.
• Campaign and Zombies Fatigue: The co-op campaign’s open-world segments draw comparisons to Modern Warfare 3’s “empty” missions, with “nameless soldiers” diluting narrative weight. Zombies, while sticking to round-based survival, feels like a “Black Ops 6 DLC” with recycled augments and no fresh mechanics, per creators like MrRoflWaffles. Bugs from Black Ops 6 (like invisible barriers) fuel fears of another unpolished launch.
• Rushed Development Vibes: Built alongside Black Ops 6, it’s labeled a “copy-paste” effort to meet Activision’s annual grind. Fans point to Modern Warfare III’s 2023 flop as proof the cycle breeds half-baked games. Battlefield 6’s grounded beta has players shouting “CoD’s done” on X, amplifying the exodus.

The SBMM vs. EOMM Controversy: Fact or Fan Theory?

A huge chunk of the “trash” talk hinges on matchmaking, specifically the debate over Skill-Based Matchmaking (SBMM) versus Engagement-Optimized Matchmaking (EOMM). SBMM is confirmed—Activision’s been upfront since 2024 that it prioritizes “Ping is King” (low latency) but uses skill metrics (K/D, win rate) to balance lobbies and protect newbies from pros. The result? High-skill players face relentless “sweaty” lobbies, which fans like those on Reddit blame for draining casual fun. For Black Ops 7, Treyarch teased a “loosened” SBMM approach on September 18, hinting at beta tweaks to ease the pressure.

EOMM, though, is the community’s boogeyman—and it’s backed by Activision’s own patents. Fans argue it manipulates lobbies to boost playtime and microtransactions—giving you easy wins to feel good, then crushing you with tryhards to nudge you toward buying blueprints. Patterns like “one win, three losses” fuel this, with a 2015 Activision patent (US20160005270A1) describing systems that arrange matches to drive microtransactions, like pairing juniors with experts to encourage purchases.

Another 2017 patent (US20190091581A1) optimizes matchmaking for retention and engagement based on user preferences and play characteristics. While these patents prove Activision explored EOMM-like systems, there’s no direct evidence they’re implemented in Call of Duty or Black Ops 7—Activision and a former Raven dev in March 2025 dismissed the claims, insisting it’s just SBMM reacting to performance spikes. The truth? SBMM’s real, and EOMM’s plausible given the patents, but without concrete proof of its use in-game, it remains a theory that hits hard when you’re stuck in a laggy lobby with a 0.5 K/D. It’s a lightning rod for frustration, especially when players already distrust the annual grind.

Fans Crave Tactical Realism Over Cartoonish Skins

A major sore point for Black Ops 7’s fanbase is the growing trend of cartoony, over-the-top cosmetic skins that clash with the series’ gritty military roots. Players are vocal on X and Reddit, demanding tactical, authentic military gear—think rugged camo, muted operator outfits, and gear inspired by real-world spec ops. They want to feel immersed in the visceral realism of war, not like they’re running around in a comic book. Veterans, especially, express frustration, with many saying they come home from service craving a game that lets them relive the intensity of combat, not mock it with glowing-eyed operators or neon-glowing body parts. Skins like Stan Smith from *American Dad* or Beavis and Butthead, which popped up in recent CoD titles, are killing the vibe for these players. “I want to feel like a soldier, not a Fortnite reject,” one X user vented, echoing a sentiment that Black Ops 7’s futuristic 2035 setting risks doubling down on arcade absurdity instead of delivering the grounded immersion fans—and vets—crave.

Why the Hate Might Be Overblown

Here’s the kicker: nobody’s played Black Ops 7 yet. The beta hasn’t launched, and all the rage is based on 30-second gameplay clips, leaked map stills, and recycled trauma from Black Ops 6’s buggy patches. The movement gripes? Speculation from a montage, not actual matches. Futuristic weapons? Aesthetic whining, not proof of broken balance. Campaign and Zombies critiques lean on comparisons to past flops, not hands-on evidence. Even SBMM/EOMM complaints are amplified by streamers who live in high-skill lobbies, not the casual experience most players get.

The game’s got legit promise: a campaign with squad-based freedom, multiplayer with diverse maps, and Zombies with shared progression could shine if polished. Some fans are hyped, with Reddit posts praising the “sandbox potential” and “amazing” variety. Treyarch’s listening, too, promising beta tweaks and addressing feedback on X. But franchise fatigue—years of bugs, monetization, and samey sequels—has fans primed to pounce, especially with Battlefield 6 stealing the “grounded” crown.

What's Missing—Procedural Generation for Maximum Replayability

One of the sharper critiques leveled at Black Ops 7 is its reliance on handcrafted maps without procedural generation or dynamically scaling enemy density, which fans say stifles long-term replayability in Zombies and Multiplayer. With just 16 core 6v6 maps at launch (plus two 20v20 battlefields), the game sticks to fixed layouts, meaning players will quickly memorize chokepoints, spawn traps, and optimal rotations—turning chaotic firefights into predictable slogs after a few dozen hours. Enemy spawns in Zombies follow scripted waves, lacking the adaptive horde scaling that could ramp up tension based on squad performance or player count. This absence feels like a step back from the series' potential for endless variety, especially when compared to games that embrace procedural chaos for overwhelming enemy swarms.

Take ED-0: Zombie Uprising for example, a rogue-like action game set in Edo-era Japan overrun by zombies, where players control characters like a samurai, sumo wrestler, or ninja to hack and slash through hordes. It features fully procedurally generated maps with random item placements and enemy spawns that expand in randomness and density as stages progress, ensuring every dungeon run feels fresh and unpredictable. Waves of zombies scale dynamically, turning early skirmishes into overwhelming sieges with Giants, and Master Ninjas that demand quick adaptation—much like the horde survival fans crave in Black Ops Zombies, but with progressive roguelike deck-building & replayability that keeps the chaos alive and encourages more match playing in order to progress.

Similarly, the game Disorder—a full 3D roguelike dungeon crawler—uses procedural generation to craft ever-shifting department store levels filled with trauma-tied horrors, where enemy density and layouts remix on each descent. Procedural enemy placements and item scarcity force players to rethink paths and tactics every time, creating a sense of endless discovery and escalating threat that contrasts sharply with Black Ops 7's static maps, highlighting how dynamic generation could prevent Zombies from feeling rote after one playthrough.

The Verdict: Wait for the Beta

Black Ops 7’s “trash” label is mostly noise—speculative rants fueled by brief footage and CoD’s baggage. The gameplay could deliver: fluid Omnimovement, varied maps, and interconnected modes sound like a love letter to Black Ops 2 fans if Treyarch nails the execution. SBMM’s seemingly a real issue (though I don't agree), but EOMM’s rumored to be lurking in the shadows (backed by patents), the beta will reveal the truth. For now, the hate’s more about the community’s love-hate relationship with CoD than hard evidence of a dud. When October 2 hits, play it yourself. Until then, the internet’s just yelling to yell.

Will I Preorder, Play, and Complain?

Will I be preordering Black Ops 7? If I want to dive into the beta on October 2, I probably will—getting hands-on is the only way to know what’s up. Will I bitch about the game? Oh, most definitely. After sinking hours into any Call of Duty, I’ve got plenty to say about what clicks and what grinds my gears—movement quirks, map flaws, or that one asshat that's spamming cheats the entire match. But griping doesn’t mean I think it’s trash. Unless I’m straight-up calling it garbage, and even then, if I’m still logging in for matches, is it really trash? A game can frustrate and still hook you deep. Black Ops 7’s fate hinges on that beta—until then, I’m ready to play, complain, and maybe find something worth loving.

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