Call of Duty: Black Ops Message Board

Activision, by proxy, has bought BlackOps2.com. Fusible did the detective work on this, which posits Activision bought up Black Ops domains last year -- up to Black Ops 6 -- through brand protection company MarkMonitor. Black Ops 2 domains were missing from the previous list, but it appears that's being rectified.

Now, none of this guarantees that Black Ops 2 is on the way as this year's Call of Duty, but it does mean that MarkMonitor is under orders to protect the brand for the future.

Call of Duty: Black Ops had a record-breaking debut of $650 million in sales during its first week at retail in 2010, which it held for one year until Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 crushed that with $775 million.

You're not going to believe what the most popular games on Xbox Live were in 2011. OK, maybe you'll believe it. According to Microsoft's count of worldwide unique users for the year, Call of Duty: Black Ops topped the list of retail titles, followed by Modern Warfares 3 and 2, Halo Reach, and Battlefield 3.

On the Arcade side, the top seller was Pinball FX 2, followed by Full House Poker, Castle Crashers (which came out in 2008), Fruit Ninja Kinect, and From Dust. Beyond Good & Evil HD hit #20 on the list, which seems good, but too close for comfort, for those of us hoping it would be a strong indicator of interest in the sequel.

You can find full top twenty lists for retail, arcade, and XBLIG, along with Games for Windows Live and Windows Phone (Surprise! Angry Birds!) at Major Nelson's blog.

Gary Oldman is a respected actor with decades of awards and critically acclaimed roles on his resume -- but we don't care about all that. Oldman was the voice of Viktor Reznov in Call of Duty: Black Ops, and he told Conan O'Brien all about that magical, extremely loud experience.

#callofduty Treyarch's 2011 Christmas card is also a neat little Call of Duty: Black Ops ornament, all ready to be hung in a tree. More »

Google published its annual "Zeitgeist" report of the most popular searches and topics in 2011 this past week and for the first time ever, a game was included in the top ten fastest rising search terms of the year. Yes, as you've probably already guessed, it was "Gem Keeper." Wait, no, it was "Battlefield 3." EA's big shooter stirred up some interest, apparently, landing it right in between "Casey Anthony" and the "iPhone 5" in biggest gains in search popularity of the year.

When it comes to video games in North America, however, there's another title on top of the heap: "Black Ops" was the most searched-for term in the category, with "Call of Duty" coming soon after that. "Battlefield 3" didn't even make the list in the category numbers, so its overall search volume was actually lower than the Activision series. Don't count "Halo Reach" or "Super Mario" out either -- they show up at the third and fourth spots on the list in the gaming category.

And Google even shows us what 2011 searchers are most interested to play next year: "Diablo 3" and "Mass Effect 3" sit at the bottom of the list already for the most searched-for terms in gaming.

The most recent Xbox Live activity list (for the week of October 31, the first covering a full week of Battlefield 3 availability) sees EA's successful new shooter move up to second place on the list. Based on unique users Battlefield 3 is more popular than Modern Warfare 2 on Xbox Live, although more people are still playing 2010's Call of Duty: Black Ops online than DICE's latest...

The latest Xbox Live activity list—the first covering a full week of Battlefield 3 availability—shows that more people are still playing 2010's Call of Duty: Black Ops online. BF3 is second, then Modern Warfare 2</em, then Gears of War 3. More »

Call of Duty: Black Ops has sold 20 million map packs to date. Activision Publishing CEO Eric Hirshberg noted the latest figure during yesterday's conference call, where the publisher announced strong revenues for the quarter.

"For the first nine months of the year, Black Ops has remained the number one title in the U.S. and Europe, generating more revenue than any new major console release," Hirshberg stated. "The revenues generated from map packs alone would make it the third largest console title of the year."

Black Ops received four map packs after launch, which Hirshberg said, "Further demonstrates that there is continued consumer interest in the content even 11 months after the launch, making playing Call of Duty truly a year-round activity for millions of our fans."

Activision announced 18 million Black Ops map packs were sold back in September, before the final sales push of the Rezurrection pack completed.

#callofduty The population of the planet just hit 7 billion people. The total number of hours played online in Call of Duty: Black Ops, released one year ago, just exceeded 2.8 billion, according to Activison. More »

PC Patch 1.16 notes
- Addressed possible IWD mismatch error between players who own the Rezurrection map pack and players who do not own that map pack.
- Favorites tab in the server browser now supports up to 256 favorite servers.

#fineart Yup. And don't look so surprised. There's more to the Call of Duty series than military hardware, moustaches and door hinges. More »

Patch 1.15

- Addressed various Zombie Moon map exploits and glitches
- The They are going THROUGH! achievement now properly unlocks in Steam when player kills more than five zombies with the Gersh device
- The Zombie Moon Leaderboard scores will not be overwritten with the newest stats if the stats are lower compared to the previous ones
- "Mule Kick perk machine is now available on all Zombie maps
- Mods: Increased menu asset limit

When some kid killed Mark Bradford during a Call of Duty online session - and then taunted him - the guy lost it. The 46-year-old man tracked down his opponent, a 13-year-old boy, and proceeded to choke him. Bradford, 46, appeared in court in Plymouth, England this week, charged with assaulting...

We read in horror today the story of Mark Bradford, a 46-year-old, jobless father of three from Plymouth, Devon (UK). After being killed and then taunted by a 13-year-old opponent in Call of Duty: Black Ops, Bradford tracked down his teenage opponent and preceded to mercilessly choke him. The attack was luckily thwarted by the teen's mother and Bradford later admitted to one count of assault.

It's a grim story, and simply inexcusable. A grown man attacking a child like this turns our stomachs and should turn the stomach of any responsible, caring human. This is the end of our post on the matter, and it in no way continues after the break.

You know, zombies have to take a lot of heat from the living. I mean, is it their fault that they are doomed to roam the earth, lurching from brain to brain in a murderous rampage? They’re doing the best they can with the hand they’ve been dealt.

That’s why I’m asking you, the PS3 community, to welcome some zombies into your home this weekend. The Rezurrection DLC pack comes out today for Call of Duty: Black Ops, and it contains five maps that many will approach as a thrilling first-person horror experience – or maybe, just maybe, it could be a very special chance to connect with the dearly departed.

Four of the maps are a joyous reunion anyway; they’re upgraded and remastered versions of levels first seen in Call of Duty: World at War. There’s Nacht der Untoten, which some see as a desperate standoff in a dilapidated building, but could just be the perfect place for zombie peace talks. In Verruckt, how do you know the asylum isn’t just a nice, padded place for a zombie nap? Shi No Numa takes place in a swamp – a relaxing vacation spot for you to get to know your new friends. And Der Reise is a huge factory – basically, you’re inviting yourself into the zombies’ home. Be a polite guest by not blasting their faces off with a shotgun, huh?

The fifth map is all-new – a trip to the Moon, where you will be forced to interact with your zombie friends in a whole new way. Zero gravity looks like fun, plus you get to play with new toys like the Wave Gun and the Quantum Entanglement Device. Don’t you think your putrefying pals would like to have a turn, too?

My point is, this new batch of content represents a fantastic opportunity for greater understanding. The zombies are making the effort to be your friend – that’s why they’re stumbling directly toward you. They come bearing gifts! Who do you think suggested that Rezurrection include a free Zombies soundtrack and a Moon theme on PS3? And who said “Hey, if you already have the first four maps from the Hardened or Prestige Editions of Black Ops, you can download Moon, the soundtrack, and the theme for free?” That’s right. And think about how you’ve been repaying them for that kindness – with headshots. Splattery, splattery headshots!

Trying to eat your brain is just a zombie’s way of seeking knowledge, direct from the source. Tonight, grab the Rezurrection DLC pack and learn more about zombies — and give the zombies a chance to learn more about you. I think you’ll find that the screeching, lumbering undead are just like you and me; it’s what’s inside that counts. And since they’re zombies, you can easily see their insides.

First the scientists working in the Call of Duty: Black Ops: Rezurrection labs disgusted us with their blood lust. Now, they've gone so far with their undead re-deadening that they've actually turned us pro-zombie. Join us in our cause and avoid the DLC at all costs when it arrives on Sept. 22.

Activision is rolling out the beta version of the Call of Duty Elite service on the PlayStation 3, allowing selected Black Ops players try out video sharing, stat tracking, custom groups, and competitive events. Sign up now! More »

#callofduty Dismemberment? We know you can handle that. Zombie vomit? I'll admit to some queasiness watching that in action. More »

Activision's great war epic Call of Duty has definitely taken the collective productivity of the planet down a notch for the past eight years. Played by millions, for millions of hours, and put under a microscope by pro-players and analyzed nearly to the point of insanity. But what do we get out of all of this? You guessed it! Hundreds of clips that we narrowed down to six hilarious moments...

Patch 1.14

• New contracts
  
• Fixed UI in colored clan tags menu
  
• Added mouse scroll in the recent games menu
  
• Added the option to have Radar always on in private match
  
• Colored score bars in lower-left HUD no longer overlap the numbers
  
• Addressed various MP exploits
  
• Addressed various Zombies exploits
  
• Addressed Online Zombie Lobby crash
  
• Added support for upcoming Rezurrection Map Pack.
  

The fourth and final add-on for Call of Duty: Black Ops, Rezurrection, hits the PS3 and PC September 22, kicking off a double XP weekend. Rezurrection's all-zombie maps include Moon, Nacht der Untoten, Verruckt, Shi No Numa, and Der Riese. More »

PS3 and PC gamers have shamefully allowed the undead to bounce across the surface of our lunar satellite for far too long -- next Thursday, their extraterrestrial galavanting must come to an end. Activision has announced that the Call of Duty: Black Ops Rezurrection DLC pack, which adds five Zombie maps to the game (including the entirely ridiculous Moon stage), will arrive on PC and PS3 Thursday, September 22.

You'll be able to grab the pack and its constituent Zombie-slaying grounds for $14.99. Activision's also distributing double experience during the immediately following weekend, September 23 - 25, on the off chance that you haven't Prestiged like, a billion times by now.

The Zombie Panel at last week's XP Weekend let out some previously unknown information about the development of the mega-popular Call of Duty Zombie mode. We decided to flex our photoshop muscles. Enjoy! You can follow Brian Miggels on Twitter....

Treyarch's Phil Tasker, Alex Conserva, Dan Bunting, and "Lvl 1 N00b" David Vonderhaar (in costume, with a cardboard nameplate above his head and a full-sized Trollface mask) took the stage at Call of Duty XP this weekend to do a behind-the-scenes talk on Call of Duty: Black Ops' multiplayer game, showing off some work-in-progress and unreleased maps, and answering players' questions about the game. Their well-scripted talk was interesting, though perhaps because most of the show is about the next game in the Call of Duty series, they didn't end up going too in-depth on production secrets.

They did, however, explain a little bit about the way multiplayer maps were created for the game. Initially, the developers just sit down with pen and paper to design the map and the flow, and then the map goes through a series of playtesting stages, starting out with temporary art and textures, and then moving on to more tweaks and details as time goes on. The "Summit" map was shown off throughout this process -- it started off as just two buildings on a rooftop, with an open path between them, but over time, the developers tried to open the map up a little more, and really show off to players that they were on a high mountaintop.

During a look back at Treyarch's development of Call of Duty's multiplayer, an interesting note popped up about a killstreak that never made it into World at War...

Treyarch put a lot of time and effort into the development of Call of Duty: Black Ops. Not all of the effort sees its way into the shipped game. In fact, almost 50% of multiplayer maps that head into development never see completion...

Whether you want it or not, Modern Warfare 3 is coming--and it's going to be huge this year. Again.

Activision has discussed a subscription service around Call of Duty for years, but it's finally coming together this year with Call of Duty Elite. The initial response wasn't great, to say the least. People, perhaps rightfully, feared Activision would lock formerly free content behind a paywall.

Activision kept saying that wouldn't happen. This weekend at Call of Duty XP, a massive fan event held in Los Angeles, the publisher seemed to to have mostly made good on that promise.

Call of Duty Elite will set you back $49.99 a year, $10 less than a (new) Xbox Live Gold subscription. Purchasing all of the DLC for Call of Duty: Black Ops--four map packs at $15 each--would have cost you $60. In that sense, Activision's offering players a cheaper deal, they just need to pay up front. This is being called the "premium membership."

The free version of Call of Duty Elite features stat tracking ala Bungie.net, integration with Facebook, clan support and applications for your mobile devices.

The company said the DLC "season" for Modern Warfare 3 will be nine months long, with monthly DLC made available for premium members. Additionally, premium members gain access to daily competitions for both in-game and real-world prizes, a round-the-clock competition calendar, up to 24 minutes of recordable HD video and access to Call of Duty TV.

Call of Duty TV will feature original video content related to--you guessed it--Call of Duty. Ridley Scott Associates (yes, that Ridley Scott) is working on Friday Night Fights, where rivals fight it out, while actors Will Arnett and Jason Bateman collaborate for a program called n00b Tube. There's another one slated, Cocked Hammers, that we don't have any details about yet.

I don't usually end stories with a question, but are you going to signing up?

#callofduty Whenever a multiplayer game's map packs are revealed- and Call of Duty is often the worst offender in this regard - people on the internet wail and gnash their teeth. And rightly so, in many respects, since you're rarely getting much value for your dollar. More »

Activision has announced sales of 18 million map packs for Call of Duty: Black Ops...

Guillermo del Toro is revered by gamers and genre film fans, having successfully brought cult comic book antihero Hellboy to the big screen and video game consoles. The Oscar-winning Pan's Labyrinth director is busy filming Legendary Entertainment's monster movie Pacific Rim, but he took time to produce the new horror film, Don't Be Afraid of the Dark a project that's very close to his heart...