What do we think of the Royal Battle Mode of Black Ops 4 up to now?

The second beta version of Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 is in progress, that is, if you have pre-ordered or watched the livestream of Ninja-And we spent a good part of the day playing Blackout battle mode in test mode. No surprise: it's a bit like the other royal battle modes you may have played. But it has its own CoD (fishy) flavor, it works well, and if the price of $ 60 does not prove to be too much of a barrier when the Blops 4 come out, it could well feed on PUBG players. Here's how Tyler, James and Chris felt about their first day of royal fighting.

The map, the movement and the gadgets

Tyler: I like that Blackout starts faster than PUBG, if only because it differentiates it. You lose a bit of that tension in the air, where you're just hanging and watching everyone drift to the ground, but I get up quickly, grabbing an assault rifle, driving an ATV, and then crashing a helicopter in two minutes . to start at least makes a fun match failed. This has not always been my experience, but it is usually more lively.

James: I spent the first five minutes hiding in a shed and the next two minutes hiding in a bathroom. Fourth place with some victories. It's certainly faster when it comes to movement and shooting, but it slows down to the PUBG pace between circles. That said, it works like a dream and it's a bit of a relief to control an agile character compared to more intentional and realistic PUBG bodies.

Chris: The movement is nice and the map is fun. It's a really nice experience (which seems more fluid solo than in teams), which is so nice after the last group of Early Access BR games I played. I got used to the games that splash before they are ready, but I already have the impression of being sober and polite and ready for the players. Thank God. There is no doubt that improvements are needed, but that seems like a good start.

Tyler: I love his color. It is strange to drag oversized rifles around the beautiful beach, with all the wild flowers blooming. Some good details too: in a public restroom on this beach, I noticed a roll of toilet paper waving in the breeze. I did not know that I needed the physics of toilet paper. So, that makes a difference between PUBG and Fortnite in regards to appearance – it's more cheery than PUBG, but still a lot darker than Fortnite. It is also somewhere in between when it comes to stupidity. There are gadgets!

James: I've found the grapple a few times, but I'm still trying to find the best use cases. It turns out that it is not the best tool of the grand open. I've seen some streamers use it around named sites to sneak up to the second or third floor of a building, or to descend without suffering any fall damage. It is a neat tool to close the distance or reset a fight, something that all the games of the Royal Battle need.

Chris: I like the little RC car! I do not know how useful it is, but it is a fun way to annoy and distract other players. I was stuck in a house while someone was shooting at me, so I sent him out on the streets to speed up. I could not spot the guy but at least my little car fired shots, so I made him lose some balls.

Stimulation and the circle

Tyler: What do you think needs to be improved in the immediate future? For me, the lobby where everyone pulls on, without doing damage, does not seem new after PUBG. If you like, breed 80 ATVs and give us ramps, or something like that. I realize it's a very minor complaint, but you probably have better thoughts – I've spent most of my tricks either driving recklessly and dying, or hiding myself in a room. bath (then to die).

Chris: The lobby is weird at the moment because the solo matches are filling up so quickly that I'm in the lobby only seconds before the start of the match, so the lobby is a useless exercise. It's more fun as a team but yes, more ramps please. Let me run people too.

I also wonder if the zombies around the air drops are a little useless? Are they necessary? I camped a drop and nobody even bothered to make a descent. I have the impression that there are enough guns to find elsewhere, this makes the air drops a bit redundant and the zombies are a bit silly.

James: Circles must shrink much faster. Camping in a bathroom once you have a decent kit should not be as viable as it is, and waiting to see where the next circle lands is at odds with the usual fast pace of Call of Duty. The user interface of the inventory and management of weapon attachments are quite difficult to analyze.

Chris: He hangs after the first circle or two. I do not know if he needs less loot (there is so much loot) to allow players to move more, or if he needs faster circles, or more players, or just a smaller map. Or maybe I just have to accept that BR will always have these lulls. But in the solo matches that I've played (and that I've seen after death), there's really a break when there are about 15 players left and half of the island is always in the circle. Something has to speed up the middle of the game a little bit.

Team play

Tyler: In my best match alone, I landed on the coast and there were no other players in the immediate vicinity. I think I looted a few buildings and that I got a very good weapon. I can hardly distinguish them after a few matches. And then I dragged. I went swimming. I looked at the toilet paper that I mentioned. And then later someone snuck on me in the grass and shot me, because I had been wandering too far after being bored. If I stood in the bathroom watching the flap of toilet paper in the breeze, I'd probably have been in the top 10. So I still find it pretty boring solo, at least when I try to win I'm just driving an ATV, doing nothing. We managed to qualify as a group for a few rounds, and some games were frustrating, but the shot was not missed. Or be shot. We also have a helicopter.

Chris: In the squads, the card seems almost too small. I do not think we landed once without another squad landing near us, but I think everyone is aiming for the same areas to reach. I guess it's probably good: the fights start quickly and some teams are eliminated early. We were just typically those who were eliminated early. But then we were all crammed into a helicopter together, with the exception of James. Not really the best way to keep a low profile and we wiped our team. Except James, who was wiped off trying to undress us.

James: Let's take a moment to blame Steven here.

Chris: Steven was our pilot. He has to work on his landings.

What we hope for

James: I keep hoping that Treyarch injects a little more absurdity into Blackout over time. The inclusion of strange gadgets like the cymbal token that attracts zombies before exploding, a strange pulsating laser gun and gadgets that allow creative and wild moves suggest a more surprising and wacky battle game than the one that currently exists . I hope Treyarch is on a long term update plan that will introduce even more strange tools.

PUBG is always fun, but his dedication to realism means that you will not receive updates every week to completely change the meta, like the Fortnite snowglobes that teleport you to the sky or the sniper rifle that disintegrates. the walls. I think Blackout must be ready to go, change the variables drastically and often. Stay tuned is half the fun, and see the best players adapt week after week for a fascinating competition.

Chris: The gadgets are fun but they will not give it longevity, I think. When I watch big PUBG streamers, they do not backflip on motorbikes or blow people up with frying pans. They probably did it at some point, but now they are just trying to win. In the end, BR tests the skills of the players and this does not usually involve those who are the most scoffing and the most brilliant. I think crazy and silly things are good at attracting people at the beginning, but it boils down to a stable experience where skills are tested and the most skilled players are rewarded.

Tyler: I do not want to be mean, as I am with all the royal battle games (I have a chicken dinner, but that's barely enough to support a person).