Here’s everything we know about Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, from gameplay details to the best deals. 

When is the Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 release date?

Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 is now available to play around the world on PS4, Xbox One and PC following a 12 October 2018 release.

Who is making Call of Duty: Black Ops 4?

This year’s Call of Duty title has been developed by Treyarch, one of the three studios that share responsibility for the production of the series. Treyarch’s pedigree for Call of Duty games has been well tested, starting out with Call of Duty 2: Big Red One to Call of Duty 3, and the wildly popular Call of Duty: World at War. Since then, they’ve taken the helm of the Black Ops series which has helped push the brand to new heights.

What platforms is Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 available on?

Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 has arrived on Xbox One, PS4 and PC. Sadly, Treyarch has confirmed that Black Ops 4 won’t make an appearance on the Nintendo Switch – a real shame in our opinion. See our roundup of the best Black Ops 4 deals here.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 gameplay news

The gameplay in the next Call of Duty game probably won’t come as much of a shock. While there have been attempts at innovation over the years with wall running and jetpacks to help spice up the action, it still centres around the good old run and gun FPS gameplay that CoD is known for. Black Ops has always been a little more story intensive than the regular COD games, focusing more on the events and developments of characters themselves, rather than their place in a much wider conflict., though that isn’t the case this year. Why? Treyarch has taken the decision to not include a single-player campaign, and has instead replaced it with a Battle Royale Mode to compliment the online multiplayer and zombies mode. 

Battle Royale Mode

With the runaway success of Player Unknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG), which was taken and refined upon by Epic Games with their Fortnite Battle Royale, it’s not a surprise to find out that Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 will also feature a Battle Royale mode. Though rumours were swirling from March 2018, the game mode wasn’t officially confirmed until the Call of Duty Black Ops 4 reveal event in May 2018.  Activision has confirmed that the mode will be called Blackout, and promised that it’ll take place on the largest map in Call of Duty history. And long-time fans of the series will be able to play as characters from a plethora of previous Call of Duty titles.  “In Blackout, Black Ops comes to life in one massive battle royale experience, combining Black Ops signature combat and the biggest map in Call of Duty history.” Activision explains. “It’s a collision course bringing together the worlds of Black Ops in an all-out survival and elimination experience featuring weapons; equipment; land, sea, and air vehicles; RC-XDs; traps; and even Zombies in an experience that is uniquely Black Ops.” You can find out more in the Blackout introduction trailer below:

A more recent trailer provides our best look at gameplay yet, including brand new mechanics and, wait, are they zombies?

Zombies

Though the inclusion of a zombies mode in the upcoming CoD title was assumed by many gamers, it wasn’t confirmed by Treyarch Studios until the reveal event in May 2018. It’s largely zombies-as-usual when it comes to what to expect from the zombies mode; you and up to three other players will fight off waves of increasingly-dangerous zombies. The biggest change comes from the locations; you’ll be fighting zombies in three different locations, including on board the Titanic. What? It certainly has a spookier vibe to it than in previous years, as is shown in the below cinematic trailer. 

Online multiplayer

Of course, along with the dedicated Battle Royale and Zombie modes, you’ll find the traditional Call of Duty online multiplayer. Like previous titles, the online multiplayer will feature heavily customisable weaponry with superfast action, though Activision has noted that it’s a “boots on the ground” game, meaning that crazy jump boosts, wall running and other sci-fi abilities have been removed.   Take a look at a full match on one of the new maps, Arsenal, which made its debut at Gamescom 2018.

Lewis Painter is a Senior Staff Writer at Tech Advisor. Our resident Apple expert, Lewis covers everything from iPhone to AirPods, plus a range of smartphones, tablets, laptops and gaming hardware. You’ll also find him on the Tech Advisor YouTube channel.