Call of Duty's Black Ops III is bigger and better than everNov 16(AZINS) Treyarch's third Call of Duty game is out and it's bigger and better than ever, coming from the developer of the two most-played games in Call of Duty history, Black Ops III brings to the table an enormous campaign, entertaining zombie modes and the multiplayer, the series has become famous for. Having been in development for three-years, this is the first game the development studio has created for next-gen hardware in the critically acclaimed Black Ops series.

Story
Black Ops 3 takes place in a future where bio-technology has completely transformed the traditional Black Ops soldier. Soldiers are now always connected to the intelligence grid and their fellow operatives during battle. Set in a reality where the world is more divided than ever, these biologoically enhanced Black Ops soldiers are able to fight faster, stronger, and smarter. The role each of these soldiers play is important as every soldier has to make difficult decisions and visit dark places in this engaging and gritty narrative.

This year's Call of Duty has put a lot of emphasis on a social gaming experience via a campaign that allows players to play cooperatively with up to four players online, using network infrastructure and social systems that players have gotten accustomed to in the Multiplayer and Zombies game modes.

Gameplay
The game combines the three unique game modes it is famous for: Campaign, Multiplayer and Zombies, with improvements in each. There are a lot of new things for returning fans of the series, the campaign for instance allows you to create a character for the first time in the series. This character is not limited to only one gender and represents both genders well with fully voiced cutscenes. The game also brings in Law & Order and True Blood star Christopher Meloni as the villain of the story giving it one of the best performances in a Call of Duty game.

The game does well in terms of explaining the different advanced tactics available in the game via a virtual reality training mission. After introducing you to these tactics or cyber upgrades as the game calls them, you are then introduced to the three skill trees that allow you to earn your abilities. You cannot however have all of these abilities at once until you reach level 20 on your campaign profile.

Designed for co-op and re-playability, players encounter all the epic cinematic gameplay moments Call of Duty is known for delivering as well as new open-area arena-style gameplay elements designed to allow players to approach the game with a different strategy each time they play. And now, every player is completely customizable: from weapons and loadouts, to abilities and outfits, all with full progression systems and a personalized armoury to show off accomplishments, providing a constantly-evolving campaign experience.

With Black Ops 3, Treyarch premieres a new momentum-based chained-movement system, allowing players to fluidly move through the environment using controlled thrust jumps, slides, and mantling abilities in a multitude of combinations, all while maintaining complete control over your weapon at all times.

Multiplayer
The maps in Call of Duty III are designed from the ground-up keeping in mind the new movement system so that players can use the new advanced tactics and movement in addition to their traditional manoeuvres. The multiplayer also brings in the new Specialist character system, which allows players to rank up and master each specific ability and weapon. With this addition, Traditional and Weapons XP progressions systems, Black Ops 3 multiplayer gives players three different ways to rank up.

Zombies
Treyarch has over the past few games built a name for itself because of its signature Zombies mode, a full-game experience with its own distinct storyline right out of the box. Black Ops 3 Zombies is the most immersive and ambitious Call of Duty Zombies to date, with a full XP-based progression system for players that adds depth and re-playability to the engaging gameplay Zombies fans have come to expect. Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 delivers the ultimate 3-games-in-1 experience.

Graphics
In terms of graphics, I got an average of 45-55 fps and occasionally touched 60fps in terms of the campaign, both the PS4 and Xbox One versions use dynamic resolution to keep performance up.

Conclusion
Black Ops 3 delivers on the solid multiplayer experience fans of the series are used to with some new additions to mix things up a bit. The game will feel recognisable to players of the franchise and the game is designed to do exactly that. It brings in new additions without changing what makes Call of Duty the series it is. It will be a little disappointing if you come in looking for something completely new but if you know and love Call of Duty, this is a definite play for you.