As we covered before, we all know that the 2020 Call of Duty iteration is a continuation of the Black Ops series. We aren’t sure where the colon is supposed to sit just yet, but thanks to a bag of Doritos we know Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War is coming soon. The weird thing about that though, is that it’s mid-August and we still haven’t had anything official beyond Treyarch confirming it and Raven are collaborating on whatever’s next. Usually Call of Duty games are revealed much earlier in the year. That said, it seems like Activision is trying something different.
What we Know so Far About Call of Duty Black Ops Cold War
Not long after the Doritos incident, evidence began to surface that Activision was using its standalone, free to play Battle Royale game, Warzone, to host an ARG of sorts for Black Ops Cold War. Warzone had already contained a number of secret, unlockable bunkers that provided rewards upon unlocking. But eventually, a bunker showed up that couldn’t just be opened with a card key.
If you want to check out what has been revealed so far, you need to head over to the Pawn Takes Pawn website. There are a few subpages within Pawn Takes Pawn, which you can see on the little sticky note attached to the landing page’s TV. More importantly, the EMC2 page is a signifier of sorts for the community’s progress as they crack each step of the case. The checklist shows six bars, and we’re on number four as of August 17, 2020. So we can expect an update today sometime after this piece goes live, followed by what could be the full reveal by wednesday at the earliest.
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If you want to see all the clues for yourself, you’ll have to watch the VHS tapes on the shelf, which have been updated over the course of the ARG. If you watch the tapes you’ll receive coordinates for Warzone’s map, as well as a code to enter into whatever security device you find in that location. Clues have been found featuring various Cold War-era imagery, and nods to Black Ops including a RC-XD model kit.
Other than the ARG clues leading to a probable game reveal, I think it’s fair to say all the clues provided so far give us a general time table for this game’s setting. Obviously, it’s set during the Cold War, but that was kind of a long ordeal to say the least. The first Black Ops was set during the early to late 1960s, leading into the Vietnam War. Meanwhile, Black Ops II was set in the late 1980s, and the story got a little ahistorical (again to say the least). Depending on how connected to that timeline the new game will be, we’re looking at the period between the late 60s to the mid-70s.
This time period was a crucial point in global history, especially in the United States. After all, we’re talking the entirety of Richard Nixon’s time in the White House, which includes the bulk of the Vietnam War, along with what we call the détente. This short-lived attempt at cooling tensions seemed to signify an end to the Cold War, only for things to heat back up just before Ronald Regan became President in 1980. It’s doubtful the next Call of Duty game will include the Moscow Olympics boycott in its story, but you never know with this series!
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Are you following along with the Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War ARG as it develops? Do you think the colon should go after “Call of Duty,” or after “Black Ops?” Are you excited to see Richard Nixon’s mug in video game form yet again (please say no)? Let us know what you’re thinking over at the Prima games Facebook and Twitter channels!
