With the (excellent) Black Ops 6 beta live, bits and pieces of leaked information are making the rounds on Twitter. One thing that has caught the eye of many Zombies players is a potential “Classic Mode.” All we have is the name; we must make zero assumptions here. For all we know, this could have been toyed with and scrapped early in development. Until it’s officially confirmed, do not assume it’s coming to Black Ops 6 (and even then, wait until we get concrete information – Black Ops 4 Factions, anybody?). Classic Mode is an interesting concept, though, and there’s a chance it’s still being worked on, so I thought I’d cover what I’d like to see in a potential classic mode.
But before I dive in, I want to repeat: let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Even if a Classic Mode is planned, it could be as simple as the standard Black Ops 6 Zombies mode without the option of a loadout weapon at spawn. It doesn’t mean we’re getting a mode that is a complete overhaul of Black Ops 6 Zombies. I’m pitching my ideal version of the Mode, where Treyarch has unlimited time and resources to work on it (something that is, unfortunately, impossible).
My first one like my last one, it’s a classic, you don’t have one
I envision Classic Mode as a selectable mode—similar to Directed Mode—that launches after a new map is released. This way, both casual and hardcore Zombies players have a mode to look forward to when the update releases.
One of the things at the top of most long-term Zombies fans’ lists is likely the game forcing players to spawn with a pistol. The loadout debate has become routine since Black Ops 4 first broke the ice with a selectable pool of starting weapons. Throwing players back onto a map with only a pistol is the definitive classic Zombies experience.
A perk limit of four perks would also be a no-brainer. The perk limit removal has had benefits for the Mode, with all perks getting their time to shine, but the simple strategy of “four and no more” made players think on the fly back in the day.
Player health would need to be adjusted. Zombies traditionally hit players twice in quick succession before downing them until Black Ops 3 changed the system to a 3-hit down. Given the continuous improvements to enemy AI in each new iteration of Zombies, I’d say 3-hit down would be the way to go.
Armour is one of the most controversial features in modern Zombies. Given the scaling damage of Zombies, I believe it’s needed so you aren’t getting one hit on round 30. However, we can remove it for players and enemies in Classic Mode, as damage scaling will also be removed (in only a few paragraphs).
While Black Ops 3 diehards probably want to see the shield’s return, I’m not too bothered. Building it becomes a chore after a handful of games, and the various unique abilities peaked at the Dragon Shield. I’d leave the shield to rest in the past (but that’s just me!).
Black Ops 6 has a bestiary of special enemies. I’d like to see the number that appears in a specific game reduced slightly for Classic Mode. Not quite as bland as zombies and hellhounds, but not as eclectic as the gang of enemies we’ll see on Terminus at launch. Somewhere in the middle!
Given the perk limit and armour removal, I’d turn off the damage scaling of Zombies. I’m not sure many Cold War and Black Ops 6 Zombies detractors even know this system exists! Zombies hit hard in the later rounds, and with fewer perks and armour, it would make Classic Mode unbalanced if it were to remain.
I would revert Pack-a-Punch to the Black Ops 3 system and remove weapon rarity alongside the Arsenal machine. Pack-a-punching an already PAP’d gun would randomly assign the weapon with an ammo mod (essentialy BO3’s double-PAP).
Adjusting the Field Upgrade system is a bit trickier. The specialist system was introduced in Black Ops 3, and with it, players were given unique time-limited weapons that dealt massive damage. Black Ops 4 jumped the shark as specialist weapons became overpowered get-out-of-jail cards for players, resulting in Cold War dialling it back to Field Upgrades. These were less powerful abilities that were more utility-based.
I’ve tried to prevent adding anything to Classic Mode to keep it as realistic as possible, but I’m bending my rules here to find a compromise. Each player spawns with Mr Peeks in their field upgrade slot. Mr Peeks was a special field upgrade obtainable during a specific step in the second Outbreak Main Quest in Cold War Zombies. He sent out a blast of Aetherium to clear the path in front of players, which is in the middle ground between a field upgrade and a specialist weapon.
Now, to something slightly more controversial. Do Gobblegums make the cut? It depends on how “classic” the Classic Mode is. If we’re talking about a mode that emulates what made Black Ops 3 great, Gobblegums are likely fair game. A concession would be to have Gobblegums in Classic Mode but work as they did in Black Ops 3. Only one can be held per player, packs are locked per match, and the first spin at the machine is 500 points.
However, there’s a conundrum. Some Gobblegums have been created specifically for Black Ops 6 systems, such as Armour Up, which doubles armour strength. We’d need to see a “banned list” of Gums that wouldn’t impact Classic Mode. Going through each Gum case-by-case would likely extend development and testing, so I’ve decided that Gobblegums should be turned off in Classic Mode.
A lot of people want to see the original point system return. While it was highly satisfying watching the points rattle up in the old days of Zombies, the original system prioritised “points guns” like SMG and ARs but made it more difficult for shotgun players to earn points. If I’m honest, I still don’t think the perfect points system for Zombies has been found yet, but I’ll bring back the old system for Classic Mode. Don’t say I’m not good to you all!
Can’t repeat the past? Why, of course you can!
So, there’s my Classic Mode. It was a fun exercise to go back and think about which of the older systems should make the cut and how they could be implemented in Black Ops 6. If a Classic Mode does exist, hopefully, it will hit on some of the things I’ve mentioned. If anyone at Treyarch is reading this, think of it as a wishlist of sorts!
I’m a big proponent of many of the changes that Cold War and Black Ops 6 Zombies have made to the overall gameplay loop of Zombies, but not everyone feels that way—and some of the criticisms are valid. Having a Classic Mode that strips back some systems to create a more traditional form of Zombies would ensure almost everyone is happy with Black Ops 6 Zombies.
Challenges and rewards for completing quests in Classic Mode would also give players another reason to replay each map. There are already more than enough reasons to want to play one more round in Black Ops 6 (Gobblegum, augments, weapon mastery, seasonal challenges, master prestige, battlepass, intel, leaderboards, side easter eggs, speedruns), but what’s one more to add to the list?!
With its commitment to round-based Zombies this year, Treyarch must have some special things under wraps to keep players interested between the launches of each round-based map. I’m hopeful that Classic Mode is one of these surprises, but if it isn’t, maybe Treyarch could revisit the idea during Black Ops 6’s post-launch support. I’ve got my fingers crossed that this is the year Zombies receives more than one year of meaningful updates. A Classic Mode would ensure that Black Ops 6 Zombies can push forward while still looking backwards.