Call of Duty: Black Ops First Strike DLC Review

A return to quality DLC packs – Shame about NO Single Player segment

by: aksobey

©2010 Kent Sobey

After eagerly awaiting the new map packs for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and being sorely disappointed both times I am please to say that this is not the case with the First Strike DLC for Black Ops.

The Map pack consists of 4 new multiplayer maps and 1 Zombie mode map. Not being a huge Zombie mode player I will get to that last and will list the other maps in order from my least favourite to my favourite.

Kowloon:

This map is set on the roof tops in Hong Kong and it looks great. The idea for this one is actually perfect for some people, I just don’t enjoy it as much because it lends itself to very close quarters combat and I tend to be a long shot type of player.

However, if you like confined spaces and lots of nooks and crannies then this map will be perfect for you. The zip line is also a nice addition to the map but I haven’t managed to use it and not die just yet so do be careful.

• Call Of Duty Black Ops – First Strike Dev Diary

Stadium:

In third place we have stadium. As the name suggests, it is a stadium (and its surroundings). Also a smaller map with lots of hiding places which suits the more close quarter’s player.

I tend to rack up a huge death toll on this map either simply because I am no good at Black Ops or because I am not used to it yet.

As a result of my last few Kill to Death ratio destroying games I have tried to avoid Stadium at all costs. That being said it is actually a good map but be prepared to lose a few lives (if you are anything like me).

Discovery:

Discovery is bigger than Kowloon and has much wider spaces and is a nice stage to get the old sniper rifle out on. Lot of bridges, natural and man made are scattered throughout the map, many of which are destructible which makes for very interesting combat.

Out of the four new maps I would definitely say that this is the best looking, sporting the northern lights in the back ground. Discovery is set in an abandoned space shuttle launching station in the snow (presumably somewhere near one of the poles because it looks pretty chilly).

Overall this is a great map but doesn’t quite match up to the last one for me.

• Call Of Duty Black Ops – First Strike Teaser

Berlin Wall:

Last, but certainly not least for the new multiplayer maps, we have ‘Berlin Wall’. This is a terrific map and lends itself perfectly to games of ‘Search and Destroy’ – in fact, it is perfect for any game type.

Not too big, not too small, but just right. There are certainly some interesting areas on this map. Most of the maps have some sort of mechanism for keeping in the bounds of the map by using mine fields or the like but in this map there is a mine field within the limits of the stage which is just great.

This certainly adds something which has not been in any of the maps before. If you are on the fence about buying the map pack, I would say it is worth it for this map alone!

• Black Ops First Strike Slide Show

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Zombies:

Lastly, we have the new Zombie map, Ascension. Like I said before, I have not played all that much of the Zombie modes but do enjoy the odd game now and again.

To me this map felt like more of the same – and I don’t mean than in a negative way at all, simply that I have not played it enough to judge it properly. It certainly is good fun to play and a lot of people seem to think that if the DLC included nothing but this map then it would be worth the money.

There is nothing quite like shooting a Zombie Monkey after all. You simply have to try it!

So there you have it – 4 new maps, 2 of which are not bad and the other 2 which are close to perfect and a Zombie map which has Monkeys in it!

You can’t lose with this DLC and I would recommend it to anyone who has not already bought it.

OXCGN’s Silver Award

“8/10

©2011 Kent Sobey

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• Black Ops First Strike Screenshot gallery

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