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Activision executive downplays the loss of campaign mode in ‘Black Ops 4’

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Official Call of Duty®: Black Ops 4 — Multiplayer Reveal Trailer

Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 introduces several new elements to the long-running shooter series, including a battle royale mode, but it’s also the first main entry to not include a traditional campaign. It has some players thinking twice about purchasing it in October, but according to Call of Duty executive vice president and general manager Robert Kostich, Activision isn’t worried.

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Speaking to GameSpot, Kostich acknowledged fans’ concern over the publisher, and developer Treyarch, choosing not to include a campaign in Black Ops 4, but stressed that it doesn’t mean narrative is a thing of the past in the series.

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“Look, it’s not a dedicated campaign like it was in the past. We’re telling stories differently this year,” he said. “We think our community is going to love this game from end to end, because the has so much to offer. I think what our community is going to love at the end of the day comes down to the gameplay and the fun you have with it.”

Pre-announcement reports on Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 said the game initially had a single-player component, but it was cut as development progressed and it became clear that it wouldn’t be finished by launch day. However, according to Treyarch co-head Dan Bunting, a traditional campaign was actually never in the works at all.

“We always started from the place of, we’re going to make something different with this game that was going to be inspired by how our community was interacting with Black Ops III and the games over the years,” Bunting told Eurogamer.

The Black Ops III campaign was already set up a little bit differently than past games, allowing players to complete the missions in any order, if they wished. It still had a linear narrative, however.

The solo missions included in Black Ops 4 will act as introductions to the specialist characters you’ll play as in the multiplayer mode. They’re set between the events of Black Ops II and Black Ops III, allowing the game to make use of the previous games’ weapons and abilities.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 is out for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC on October 12.

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Gabe Gurwin
Gabe Gurwin
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Gabe Gurwin has been playing games since 1997, beginning with the N64 and the Super Nintendo. He began his journalism career…
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