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[thunker 9000]

I played my first match yesterday and recorded it for your viewing pleasure.

Call Of Duty Black Ops - My First Game Made a few mistakes like calling in my Spy Plane while radar jammed *fail* but other than that I did quite well. Mortar strike is pretty sweet. This was captured with an in-line capture card at 720p.

Check it!

Also got this long range ballistic knife kill Last night and tried out the video rendering from in-game. The quality is not very impressive. Kind of a bummer actually ): Long Range Ballistic knife Kill

 

[jonnybryce]

I've finally got my playercard how I want it.

Annoying that I can't get the glasses to tilt, but oh well. I want to get him beer to hold but that'll run me 1500 and I can't spend that kind of COD points right now!

 

[NullPointer]

I get complaining about stuff in BO, but to act like these are NEW problems, and seem completely oblivious that they were in MW2, then state that MW2 is a better game is way off base to me.

Maybe I just did a bad job of explaining myself. The lag compensation/killcam problems aren't new, but after all these sequels I think its high time we saw some of them actually, ya know, fixed. Or at the very least improved. Especially for a series that sells so damn well.

Broken killcams, and shots not registering have been in all of the games since CoD4, let's get that straight, but it's up to Treyarch to fix the problem in their game, and for the people in the thread to stop acting like they aren't in MW2 just because BO is the new kid on the block from the "B Team."

BO is the new kid on the block from the B Team. It shows across the board. I'll give them proper kudos for making some very smart and necessary multiplayer design changes though. I also appreciate the addition of bots and how they're named. ;P

 

[GillianSeed79]

I forgot to mention I only got killed once by a sniper as well, and the guy was actually scoping, amazing concept! Seriously don't understand how anyone could think this game is worse than MW2.

I don't think anyone is actually complaining about that stuff. When Black Ops actually works it works great. From what I gather the two main gripes are performance issues and complaints about graphics.

I personally think the graphics look fine. What I'm more concerned about is the performance issues. I'm willing to give Treyarch the benefit of the doubt since the game just came out and their servers are probably getting raped right now. Two million users online at one time is a lot. That said, I will be very let down if the performance issues don't stabalize in a week or two.

Edit: The Killcam lag has always been in CoD games, but I honestly haven't seen lag as bad as some of the questionable hit registering.

 

[bee]

any magic fix out there for framerate issues on the PC yet? never bought MW2 but a friend has it and plays it fine in 3D vision with 60fps, i have black ops and the performance is shocking, it performs about half aswell as metro 2033 does for comparison :O

have i just got to wait cos it seems there's something majorly wrong with it when people with gtx 260's get better performance than me on a gtx 480, tried a few cfg tweaks and no joy, tried latest 1.38 nvidia cd and latest inf modded 262.99 drivers and its still woeful

yeah baby, 15fps with max settings but no aa :O

 

[BrLvgThrChmstry]

This guy http://www.youtube.com/user/WhiteBoy7thst does videos daily for Black Ops (PS3), you can see how the framerate is there. It doesn't look bad to me. All versions suffer from lag not just PS3, and graphically my eyes can't really tell the difference between the console versions. All I know is PC version trumps all.

To be fair, I find watching these videos does not give you a clear representation of the game, it doesn't account for multiple user experiences; even playing the game online at a given time can alter Performance. The problem is clearly there, whether you want to peg those you argue this as pixel counters, etc. (I've only recently discovered digital foundry...), then that's cool. I guess it's safe to assume its up to the consumer to make this decision, does a lack in technical performance contribute to a detrimental experience? ...are you willing to pay for an inarguably, yet neglectable fact that this version is inferior?

Like someone stated earlier, most of the CoD audience will not notice. I think the PS3 owners who are accustom to sometimes poor experiences with 3rd party games will largely ignore whatever issues BO have...simply because its fun. But I like to know that my product works. That's it not "gimped" or show little to no attention to detail. Does that mean something is wrong with me? that I expect too much as a consumer? After playing mostly first party titles on my PS3, I've become accustom to games with mostly stellar performance and visually superior to most third party games currently available on my platform of choice.

...With that all said, there is a great game underneath all the mess. From the gun mechanics to the pacing, Black Ops is a vast improvement over the previous Cod title. I'm getting plenty of enjoy out of it. If you're ok with what treyarch is presenting... then go for the PS3 version. Even better if you have the opportunity to buy it at a discount.

 

[PaNaMa]

Some quick thoughts thus far on my multiplayer experience:

1) Partys blowing up - no matter what we try, no matter who hosts, we get about 10 "The Party is No Longer Actives" for every 1 time we successfully get into a match. We all DMZd our xbox's just to make sure it wasn't people's routers and whatever. Same thing, no matter who hosts. Generally, is more problematic with party having greater than 3 people/

2) Blurry textures not just at the start of a map, but even as you move around, respawn etc. You pretty much need to be standing in an area for 5-6 seconds before an objects textures still sharpen up (many cases)

3) No footsteps. Getting knifed out by dudes with M60s, sneaking up on me with Tactical Mask or something. People without ninja move as silently as people with ninja. I can hear my own footsteps when I run, but not other people's around me. I don't hear anyone's gear rattling. Nothing. I have ninja pro unlocked, I have 7.1 surround, I have the in game audio set to theatre/loud... I hear footsteps in other MW games.

4) Spawn system is a bit steamy. People spawn in bunches behind you. Not so bad once you learn to expect it.

5) Sniping is a bit *too* nerfed. Quickscoping is basically gone (yay) but so too is normal sniping. People are not diggin the zoom bounce. My solution? Take out the bounce, but increase the aim down sight time of the sniper rifle.

6) A little too hard to kill people on normal. Full or near full clips required it seems, more often than before
7) Remote control cars getting tiresome
8) If you catch someone close quarters coming around a corner and have 3 bullets into them, YOU are at a disadvantage. His knife will trump your bullets every time. IMO if you are taking bullets, you shouldn't be able to reach into your pocket and pull out a knife, much as when you are taking bullets your are unable to properly aim and fire your gun.
Positives
1) Noob tubers less prevalent
2) Point blank Quick Scoping is gone (days of sniper rifle trumping SMGs at 25 yards are gone)
3) Kill streak rewards less rampant. Airspace less crowded
4) Less frustrating game play, over all.
5) Taking out the deathstreaks, and the silly perks like commando and other schlockery has really improved the enjoyment level for me. (flash gorden running around at the speed of light, pommol pistol stabbing people is gone)

 

[iNvid02]

went flawless in my fav game mode
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cCqNh3dZhBc

 

[jlevel13]

Just a quick OT question: what's the deal with the nuke bashing in MW2? I get the other complaints, but the nuke is so hard to get (unless I missed some exlpoits) that if you got it, bravo. No biggie to me. The match is basically over at that point anyway.

Nukes never got on my nerves, but I think what bugged people was the way nuke hunters were sometimes playing the game - going for their own personal nuke collection and kill streaks rather than playing as a team and trying to win & complete objectives. It seemed to lead to an excess of camping, which sometimes led to boring/predictable matches.

 

[Net_Wrecker]

Maybe I just did a bad job of explaining myself. The lag compensation/killcam problems aren't new, but after all these sequels I think its high time we saw some of them actually, ya know, fixed. Or at the very least improved. Especially for a series that sells so damn well.

I wasn't throwing all of that on YOU btw, I just meant this thread in general. Yeah these problems need to be fixed, but everyone needs to acknowledge that they were also in the last 3 games, 2 of which were NOT Treyarch developed.

BO is the new kid on the block from the B Team. It shows across the board. I'll give them proper kudos for making some very smart and necessary multiplayer design changes though. I also appreciate the addition of bots and how they're named. ;P

I haven't even started campaign, but I don't consider them the "B Team." The balance changes they've made that the people have asked for, and even ones no body really knew they wanted like not allowing people to Warlord Grenade Launchers are stuff the so called "A Team" should've fixed in THEIR game.

 

[practice02]

I've finally got my playercard how I want it.



Annoying that I can't get the glasses to tilt, but oh well. I want to get him beer to hold but that'll run me 1500 and I can't spend that kind of COD points right now!

I'm pretty jelly

 

[Dina]

hey Dina, whats your specs?

C2D 7400
4gig ram
5850

1920x1080, everything on low, shadows/bullets off and tried some various config tweaks. I hardly notice any difference.

And it runs like shit, I hardly get into a firefight where I have more then 30fps throughout. Usually I shoot, I get hit, the screen stutters and I die. Lately I get these weird stutters whenever a grenade explodes near me as well, it even makes the sound sound choppy and like my pc is getting an error. Sometimes it spikes to 60fps and it stays there. When I am standing still looking in the distance it's usually around 60fps.

Thing is, with 70.000 PC players and 2.000.000 Xbox 360 players, it's easy to see where their loyalties lie. Also hugely disappointing that Treyarch have yet to comment on this. Twitter is silent on the issue, but JD2020 does point out that he broke the top 25 in the zombie shootout. Great news, pal. Treyarch forums have also been in 'maintenance' since the launch. Yeah, right. Guess their forums weren't stress tested either? Speaks volumes on how this pc release was treated. I'm not expecting any patch to solve this in the next two weeks, since the error/bug is so widespread.

And if I sound disgruntled, it's because I am. I got a few nights off this week but playing for more then 30 minutes causes such massive headaches I'd rather do something else. Underneath all the performance issues it's a good multiplayer game, I can see that much. That something as this, which could have been discovered with proper testing, prevents that is a darn shame.

 

[backflip10019]

So what control schemes are you guys using? I used to use tactical to drop shot in MW2, but now that when you're running and hold crouch you dive, I'm considering changing back to default. Wish there was a way to turn off dive. Really hasn't helped me once.

 

[Net_Wrecker]

So what control schemes are you guys using? I used to use tactical to drop shot in MW2, but now that when you're running and hold crouch you dive, I'm considering changing back to default. Wish there was a way to turn off dive. Really hasn't helped me once.

I like default because I never used drop shots anyway.

BTW, diving through windows to beast on someone is euphoric.

 

[thunker 9000]

So what control schemes are you guys using? I used to use tactical to drop shot in MW2, but now that when you're running and hold crouch you dive, I'm considering changing back to default. Wish there was a way to turn off dive. Really hasn't helped me once.

From what I understand, it's not there to help you. Its there to make dropshotting more difficult.

 

[BrLvgThrChmstry]

Question: Does 'aim assist' affect online controls? or just offline/SP? it'd be cool if I can't switch over in MP..

 

[NullPointer]

I wasn't throwing all of that on YOU btw, I just meant this thread in general. Yeah these problems need to be fixed, but everyone needs to acknowledge that they were also in the last 3 games, 2 of which were NOT Treyarch developed.

Ahh OK. Fair enough. Lets just blame Activision then. ;P

These games need quality beta testing instead of this release day beta shit that we always end up with. I'm never going to get another COD related game on day 1 again, that's for sure.

 

[MattyH]

anyone been able to upload stuff to youtube from theatre

 

[jonnybryce]

I'm pretty jelly

lol thanks. Should he hold a sword, gun or beer? Too many options.

 

[practice02]

Question: Does 'aim assist' affect online controls? or just offline/SP? it'd be cool if I can't switch over in MP..

I've had instance where it tracks someone behind walls so yes to answer your question it affects online as well

lol thanks. Should he hold a sword, gun or beer? Too many options.

He looks so classy with the crown to keep it classy it should hold a sword.

 

[thunker 9000]

anyone been able to upload stuff to youtube from theatre

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=etD3uzyyThU I uploaded this clip with the in game uploader on the 360 version of the game. The quality is kind of a bummer.

 

[TimeLike]

You know how when playing on the Xbox, if the host quits, the game will migrate the host to a different player. But if the host dashboards, the game says Connection to host lost and everything you did for that game is lost. That sucks.

Does this function the same way on PS3? If a Sony player does the equivalent of dashboarding, does the host migrate or is it game over?

 

[backflip10019]

From what I understand, it's not there to help you. Its there to make dropshotting more difficult.

Really? Lame. I mean it hasn't hampered it too badly. Dropshotting is still easy to do, you just need to make sure that you're not running when you do it.

 

[MattyH]

well im just trying to upload a small clip i made earlier but its been stuck at uploading rendered clip for ten mins

 

[DryvBy]

That's the thing, the Nuke ISN'T hard enough to get, especially because of the rape machine Chopper Gunners, and AC 130. The match is basically over at that point because the killstreaks have been doing all the work.

Ahh, ok well that makes sense. I really haven't played in so long, and I've never experienced a nuke go off so I just figured they're rare. My brother said he got one using that stupid teleport trick (one person hides in a shadow, friend ends up dying by friend using teleport thing over and over again). When I heard that, I quit playing. What's the point of having padded stats?

 

[BrLvgThrChmstry]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=etD3uzyy I uploaded this clip with the in game uploader. Its kind of a bummer.

The URL contained a malformed video ID.

Yeah. Needs fixin'?

 

[HooCares]

Anyone know if Flak Jacket protects you from an RC car when you're at full health?

 

[thunker 9000]

Yeah. Needs fixin'?

Fixed. ):

 

[practice02]

Ahh, ok well that makes sense. I really haven't played in so long, and I've never experienced a nuke go off so I just figured they're rare. My brother said he got one using that stupid teleport trick (one person hides in a shadow, friend ends up dying by friend using teleport thing over and over again). When I heard that, I quit playing. What's the point of having padded stats?

25 kills is hard as fuck to get also kill streak rewards never count to another killstreak reward.

 

[jlevel13]

Also hugely disappointing that Treyarch have yet to comment on this.

There was at least one (twitter) post yesterday that they were looking into it... there's a link to it somehwere earlier in this thread.

Edit - link http://twitter.com/ATVI_Amber/status/2147952122404865#

 

[ruxtpin]

Post credits video of is awesome... :lol Right before they let you play.

 

[jetjevons]

Anyone else playing the game in 3D? Is there a definitive platform? I tried it on my 50 inch Vierra last night and it looked amazing. The depth of field on iron sights is brilliant. One of the best looking, most immersive 3D games yet IMO.

 

[Geoff9920]

So what control schemes are you guys using? I used to use tactical to drop shot in MW2, but now that when you're running and hold crouch you dive, I'm considering changing back to default. Wish there was a way to turn off dive. Really hasn't helped me once.

I think you only dive when you're sprinting. Personally, I haven't had much of an issue, and I use tactical for the same reason.

 

[Teknoman]

About Treyarch not commenting on the PC issues:

Wasnt there a post not too long ago that said they were aware of the issues, and currently investigating the problems/working on fixes? Or was that for something else?

EDIT: yeah, beaten.

 

[strikeselect]

Why doesn't rendering work on the 360 version?

 

[Corky]

snip.

Oh I see, ouch 70k vs 2000k players , hopefully they'll patch it asap. I've given it a fair couple of tries but I can't stomach a full mp-game.

 

[steadfast]

From the CoD wiki on the SR-71
http://callofduty.wikia.com/wiki/SR-71

The SR-71 Blackbird is a very useless killstreak that should definitely not be on this game. It is super stupid and is noobish and useless.

I disagree, but I thought this entry was entertaining.

 

[friskykillface]

what the fuck :lol

it took me about 5 shots straight in the chest to kill a guy but when i shot him once in the leg, he dies instantly.

also vice versa, guy shot me once in the leg i died and it took him 4-5 shots in my chest/sides to kill me.


leg shot the new headshot

 

[KJTB]

I'm enjoying the MP more than mw2... I'm already obsessed. I hate the chopper gunner so much, I don't know how the fuck that crap got into black ops :-/

Played all day yesterday and kinda blew off studying for a test that I have today. Studying the morning of ftw!

 

[BuddhaRockstar]

About Treyarch not commenting on the PC issues:

Wasnt there a post not too long ago that said they were aware of the issues, and currently investigating the problems/working on fixes? Or was that for something else?

EDIT: yeah, beaten.

http://kotaku.com/5686079/black-ops-on-pc-suffering-from-mysterious-lag

Hello-

I've generally been the sort that says if I don't have any information it's best to not say anything, but that can get translated incorrectly as being disinterested.

When people are upset, they want answers. When someone from Treyarch replies, but doesn't have answers I have found it just makes them more upset.

This is the truth. As I have said, I'm not totally sure what is going on yet. I am not in the office. I am travelling for work. I can only gleam bits and pieces from various email aliases I am on (and I am not on every alias as it's too much email especially for mobile device when traveling).

I know that Customer Support has been collecting information and trying to sort out the legit reports from the many people who don't meet the system requirements by collecting dxdiags and the like.

I know that the PC server browser was crushing the back-end. At first, queries were restricted and some caching was added to offset the high-load. This should be much better now, if not fixed outright.

I've asked for more information but don't have it yet. Probably because they are all super busy trying to work everything out.

Unfortunately, I am going to have to step on a plane this afternoon and will be out of service for no less than 15 hours. No doubt JD_2020 or the board admins will keep you informed as well as they can and are instructed.

David 'Vahn' Vonderhaar

So basically they have no idea what's going on and no ETA on a fix. I refuse to believe this wasn't a known issue before it went gold. Did they only play it on one rig?

 

[bobs...onGaf]

Is there a guide to theatre mode anywhere?

I want to save some screenshots and render some videos, but I wont be capped at X amount a month will I? Where do they show up online once I render them?

 

[Friend]

I've put in a good 3 hours into the multiplayer yesterday and I'm not impressed. Don't get me wrong, I reeaally want to like the game but goddamn this game broken in so many ways.

The matchmaking is all over the place. Me and my friend literally tried for 15 minutes yesterday trying to get into a wager match to no avail. The matchmaking in the other gametypes is not much better.

Lag is definitely an issue. I was able to get a game winning kill by stabbing a guy who was completely off screen. The net code has always been a weakness in the series but I see no improvement over MW2.

The graphics are definitely a step below. The game manages to look worse than previous installments while having a consistently shittier framerate.

The sound, the fucking sound is horrible. Frag grenades sound more akin to explosive diarrhea than actual explosives. Every gun sounds like it has a silencer over it.

I'd say my biggest complaint though are the maps. They feel like hap hazard mix of tunnels and intermittent buildings. There are no hotspots and as a result, there is no ebb and flow to the combat.

My initial rating so far: 6/10

 

[kiun]

Played a bit of MP last night and this morning. Didn't enjoy them because it was laggy most of the time.

 

[cameltoe]

Man, I can't hear anybody coming from behind. Footsteps are barely audible.

I hated this in WaW as well... I was hoping Ninja Pro would correct this but it doesnt seem to do anything that I can tell..

 

[Xater]

Man for some people worrying how difficult pro perks are to get it's pretty easy. I already have Ghost, Warlord and as soon as I have the money Ninja.

 

[HooCares]

Some quick thoughts thus far on my multiplayer experience:

1) Partys blowing up - no matter what we try, no matter who hosts, we get about 10 "The Party is No Longer Actives" for every 1 time we successfully get into a match. We all DMZd our xbox's just to make sure it wasn't people's routers and whatever. Same thing, no matter who hosts. Generally, is more problematic with party having greater than 3 people/

2) Blurry textures not just at the start of a map, but even as you move around, respawn etc. You pretty much need to be standing in an area for 5-6 seconds before an objects textures still sharpen up (many cases)

3) No footsteps. Getting knifed out by dudes with M60s, sneaking up on me with Tactical Mask or something. People without ninja move as silently as people with ninja. I can hear my own footsteps when I run, but not other people's around me. I don't hear anyone's gear rattling. Nothing. I have ninja pro unlocked, I have 7.1 surround, I have the in game audio set to theatre/loud... I hear footsteps in other MW games.

4) Spawn system is a bit steamy. People spawn in bunches behind you. Not so bad once you learn to expect it.

5) Sniping is a bit *too* nerfed. Quickscoping is basically gone (yay) but so too is normal sniping. People are not diggin the zoom bounce. My solution? Take out the bounce, but increase the aim down sight time of the sniper rifle.

6) A little too hard to kill people on normal. Full or near full clips required it seems, more often than before
7) Remote control cars getting tiresome
8) If you catch someone close quarters coming around a corner and have 3 bullets into them, YOU are at a disadvantage. His knife will trump your bullets every time. IMO if you are taking bullets, you shouldn't be able to reach into your pocket and pull out a knife, much as when you are taking bullets your are unable to properly aim and fire your gun.
Positives
1) Noob tubers less prevalent
2) Point blank Quick Scoping is gone (days of sniper rifle trumping SMGs at 25 yards are gone)
3) Kill streak rewards less rampant. Airspace less crowded
4) Less frustrating game play, over all.
5) Taking out the deathstreaks, and the silly perks like commando and other schlockery has really improved the enjoyment level for me. (flash gorden running around at the speed of light, pommol pistol stabbing people is gone)

Agree with everything you said. Really like the game but a few things are off - Ninja is worthless ATM. The only thing it helps is making your own footsteps silent so you can hear better when YOU run - but what's the point? No one else make sounds. I was Ninja knifed a few times from behind only to see the person is using some other perk. Really annoying as I was an awesome soundwhore with SRP in MW2. At this point I've been using Second Chance, which is awesome solely for the revive potential.

Miss my TAR-21 - about to unlock the Gilal - Need to find a gun close to the Scar/TAR from MW2 - loved those guns.

 

[jonnybryce]

edit: I think it was just lag confusing me with the knife, nvrmnd.

 

[GDJustin]

There's definitely something funky about Block Ops' figures for online users:

http://www.industrygamers.com/news/call-of-duty-black-ops-has-how-many-concurrent-players/

In-game I've seen it go as high as 3M on 360, but:

1) The record for concurrent users across ALL of XBL was 2M. The whole service.

2) Treyarch themselves reported 1M users.

If Black ups was shattering records by a margin of 2X, as the in-game figure suggests, Activision would be shouting about it.

There's no doubt that Black Ops in a huge hit, but that in-game figure has no basis in reality. I wonder if it's just bugged, or if it's counting users on all platforms, or counting users over a 24 hours period, or what?

 

[SYNTAX182]

I've put in a good 3 hours into the multiplayer yesterday and I'm not impressed. Don't get me wrong, I reeaally want to like the game but goddamn this game broken in so many ways.

The matchmaking is all over the place. Me and my friend literally tried for 15 minutes yesterday trying to get into a wager match to no avail. The matchmaking in the other gametypes is not much better.

Lag is definitely an issue. I was able to get a game winning kill by stabbing a guy who was completely off screen. The net code has always been a weakness in the series but I see no improvement over MW2.

The graphics are definitely a step below. The game manages to look worse than previous installments while having a consistently shittier framerate.

The sound, the fucking sound is horrible. Frag grenades sound more akin to explosive diarrhea than actual explosives. Every gun sounds like it has a silencer over it.

I'd say my biggest complaint though are the maps. They feel like hap hazard mix of tunnels and intermittent buildings. There are no hotspots and as a result, there is no ebb and flow to the combat.

My initial rating so far: 6/10

Yeah, pretty much how I feel about this game right now. The sound effects are not good. The choppers sound like old type writers and so do the footsteps. It looks like they tried to cut corners in every way possible with the sound.

The fire effects look really out of place too.

But most importantly, the gameplay is really messed up. The hit detection is really bad. The guns feel like toys.

 

[W1SSY]

I got the galil yesterday and have been loving it. So far it is easily my favorite gun. I have been putting up decent numbers but every time I play Launch I go negative for some reason. Really enjoying Black Ops except parties are a hassle to keep together for some reason. hopefully they fix it so I don't have to go back and forth in to games to make sure I have my party.