Retailers lavish praise on ‘risky’ direction for Call of Duty: Black Ops II

UK video game retailers believe publisher Activision deserves much praise for trying something new with Call of Duty: Black Ops II.

Black Ops II was announced earlier this month, revealing a near-future setting, more zombies, branching story and the totally new Strike Force strategy mode.

“I sense that there’s a real commitment from Activision and Treyarch to raise the bar once again for the Call of Duty franchise, and the setting and weapon details that have been released are the first big step in driving the series further,” HMV’s head of technology and games Ewan Pinder told MCV

“The return of zombies is also a great announcement and one I think fans of the series will welcome.”

Play.com games buyer Keith Sharpe added: “It’s testament to Activision that they continue to push the boundaries and once again offer gamers a refreshing new take on the genre. I think it’s great to see that in the current economic climate, publishers are prepared to keep taking risks and not sell the consumer short by taking the safer option.”

Asda’s head of games Andrew Thompson chipped in with: “Activision has to be commended for trying to offer gamers more content for their money, and I am especially excited about the non-linear gameplay.”

“Asda went live with online pre-orders for Black Ops II at 3am on the day of announcement, and for the first time ever, we announced this on Twitter. We feel that social media will play a big part in sharing all the news on this year’s big releases.”

And The Hut Group’s business development head Sarah Jasper believes Black Ops II could appeal to an even bigger audience. “The new direction seems like a logical step, and depending on how this is implemented the non-linear gameplay should make it even more accessible to the wider gaming market.”

Black Ops II launches November 13.