Black Ops Post-Multiplayer Reveal PC FAQ

[Sun Tzu]

Post-Multiplayer Reveal PC FAQ

pcdev already announced it earlier today, but the PC FAQ was just posted by Josh Olin on the CoD:HQ forum. Everything you need to know about Black Ops PC gaming!

Instead of creating our own article about it, it makes more sense to simply quote the excellent article posted » on the CoD:HQ forum by Community Manager Josh Olin:

After Call of Duty: World at War, we set out 3 goals for our next PC title:

1] PC gets every single game feature that the consoles get, but in a way that makes sense for PC.
2] PC gets even more features – the ones that PC gamers want like dedicated servers and more customization.
3] Keep it fun. Protect the integrity of the title through design and post-launch support.

Keep that in mind as you read through the decisions outlined below in our FAQ.

Call of Duty: Black Ops PC Multiplayer FAQ

Full feature support: Confirmed
Ranked Servers: earn XP and currency. Wager Servers: gamble your currency. Customizable Unranked Servers. Combat Training against practice dummies. Theater. Create-a-Class "2.0." Contracts. Emblem editor. Everything the consoles get. Implemented in a way that makes sense for PC (*cough* no lobbies *cough*).

PC Features: Confirmed
Dedicated Servers. New Server Browser. Dev console. /record. Customizable game modes, perks, killstreaks, classes, and higher player counts on unranked servers. Map rotation. RCon. Kick & Ban. MOTD. In-game custom Server Banners. And more.

Mod Tools: Confirmed
We will release mod tools sometime post-launch. We need to finish the game first. Then we will make sure any urgent issues are handled. Then we will begin work on tools. The extent of the mod tools package will not be known until this time.

Global Persistent Stats, Profiles: Confirmed
Your profile data is stored on servers for you and is accessible from anywhere on the internet. Stats, XP, COD Points, configs, etc.

Leaderboards: Confirmed
Yes, leaderboards - globally persistent leaderboards (i.e. NOT per-server based).

Steam Exclusive: Confirmed
Millions of Call of Duty fans are already on Steam. Their Friends are on Steam. Steam will provide the ease of auto-updating instead of manual patching. Auto-updating will also help keep the community playing together on the latest version. The Steam cloud will make your profile and configs available to you on any computer.

VAC: Confirmed
We are serious about protecting the integrity of this game from hackers and cheaters who would otherwise ruin the fun for the honest players. Used in conjunction with our own anti-exploit measures, Theater reviews, trusted servers, and supplemented by server admins with kick and ban powers we believe that Valve Anti-Cheat will be an effective solution for Call of Duty: Black Ops PC. We are committed to working closely and diligently with Valve to deal with new threats as they appear.

No "Public Server Files": Confirmed
Many of these game features are predicated on having a trusted host or server. Otherwise these features would be wide-open to easy exploits and rampant cheating. Also, anti-cheat solutions can be significantly more effective on games that rely on trusted servers. We chose against “public server files” in favor of providing full feature support and protecting the integrity of this title. This doesn't mean you won't have customization or admin capabilities with your servers - because you will. This simply means we've partnered with an exclusive server provider.

GameServers.com Exclusive: Confirmed
We have partnered with GameServers.com as the exclusive provider of dedicated servers for Call of Duty: Black Ops. Every dedicated server for this title will be running on top quality hardware and infrastructure with excellent bandwidth. There will be a ton of official servers at launch for everyone to play on for free. If you want to run your own server you will be able to rent one at a great price (which will never go higher than $0.99/slot). They are actively adding new server locations and staffing up to meet global demand. If you don’t see your location you can suggest it here: http://www.gameservers.com/blackops/

Max Players: Not Confirmed
We have not yet finalized the maximum number of players in ranked or unranked servers. More playtesting is required to determine how high these numbers can go. This happens as late as possible in the project otherwise the game is likely to change in ways that could invalidate the results.

Minimum System Requirements: Not Confirmed
The game is still in development, and the PC team is hard at work making further optimizations. We will announce the min specs in the near future.

-----

Hopefully that answers the majority of the outstanding questions not answered from our MP Reveal coverage. There are still some questions we do not have answers for at this time, so as always, we appreciate your patience. We will have all questions answered before November 9th.

Regards,
-JD, PC Dev, & the PC Team

 

 

 

[tsw 8.5]

thanksfor the update .keep them coming

[Sun Tzu]

G4TV, GameTrailers Videos & Playlists Info

We have two gameplay videos from G4TV and GameTrailers as well as some information regarding the multiplayer playlists.

But before we get on with the videos, let start with the playlist stuff! Playlists are the game modes that you join when matchmaking and Multiplayer designer Vahn has asked for your feedback on the Black Ops forums ».

Please note that the playlists and categories below are NOT confirmed to be in the final version of the game. More playlists can change either before the game is completed or through playlist updates after release. Therefore it does not mean that there will be a shortage of Hardcore playlists or any other playlist that you want to be in the game. It's the communities feedback that will help shape the playlists, before and after release. The playlists below are also just playlists and modes that are in the current build of Black Ops (not the retail version) and it may not necessary be the same come November.

Vahn is about to put in the final playlists for launch so he's asking for feedback from the community. But he doe say that "final" just means what playlists will ship in the game and that there's a big chance that playlist changes can and will happen after release.

A interesting note that we can take from his post so far is that playlists are categorized yet again. Modern Warfare 2 just had a long list of playlists whereas World at War had playlists within each category, such as "Core", "Hardcore" and "Map Pack". This gave them the ability to add playlists without having to remove one because there weren't enough space on the list.

The categories for Black Ops are "Core", "Hardcore", "Barebones" and something that they haven't talked about yet, "Prestige playlists".

There are also the Wager Match categories which involve the Buy-In limit and they're not negotiable at this time. The three Wager Match categories are "Ante Up" (allows parties, low buy-in), "Weekend Gambler" (no parties, medium buy-in) and "High Roller" (no parties, expensive buy-in).

Vahn is pretty confident that Team Deathmatch and Free For All will have their own specific playlist while Ground War (TDM and Domination) and Search and Destroy will likely also have their own.

He also reminds us that when thinking about the feedback, remember that you can "vote for any new, last played, or random map/game mode combo IN that playlist" so you and the rest of the lobby players already have "a big chip in this game".

He also mentions that he's not too keen on having one game mode per playlist because it splits players up over dozens and dozens of playlist which also means a lack of variety, a playlist also does not equal a game mode. He prefers playlists that contain a verity of different and related game modes, such as Ground War and Team Tactical.

In a separate post » in the same topic he continues to talk in more detail about each specific category and playlist.

The current CORE category on the latest development build includes:

• Team Deathmatch (12 players)
• Merc Team Deathmatch (No parties)
• Free for All (8 players, no really large maps)
• Domination (12 players)
• Ground War (18 players, TDM and DOM, no super small maps)
• Search & Destroy
• Capture the Flag (12 players)
• Headquarters (12 players)
• Demolition (12 players)
• Sabotage (12 players)

He believes that the above Core playlist is a bit too long and he doesn't like the fact that there is no Team Tactical due to his love for playlists with mixed game modes.

The current HARDCORE category on the latest development build includes:

• Team Deathmatch (12 players)
• Search & Destroy (12 player)
• Free for All (8 player)

Vahn is aware that people want more Hardcore playlists and he's assures us that it will happen eventually but he's focused on getting Core correct first.

The current BAREBONES category on the latest development build includes:

• Bones TDM (12 players, Team Deathmatch, everything disabled. No Perks, Kilsltreaks, Attachments, or Contracts)
• Classic TDM (12 players, killstreaks at 3, 5 and 7 levels like MW1 did)

Yet again he is aware that people want more game modes in the Barebones playlists but that will happen eventually. Before expanding on Barebones he wants to see if it works as well as they hope on and after launch.

The PRESTIGE category isn't implemented yet but it will include playlists that only Prestige users can access. These playlists are meant to tell you that the players you come across will be the best and most dedicated players. It may be similar to the Veteran playlist in World at War in which you could only play against players who have achieved a certain rank and higher.

The Wager Matches are completely separate from the normal ranked matches. When switching lobbies over to Wager Matches you will see different categories and playlists.

The ANTE UP (Free-for-all based, 6 players, low buy-in, parties allowed) category includes:

• One in the Chamber
• Sticks and Stones
• Gun Game
• Sharpshooter

The WEEKEND GAMBLER (Free-for-all based, 6 players, medium buy-in, no parties allowed) category includes:

• One in the Chamber
• Sticks and Stones
• Gun Game
• Sharpshooter

The HIGH ROLLER (Free-for-all based, 6 players, super high buy-in, no parties allowed) category includes:

• Pro Gambler (all 4 of the above modes, you are gambling now so ... it's gamble)

He has also confirmed that the popular "War" game mode from World at War and Call of Duty 3 will not return. This is because it was designed for super large maps with vehicles and that's not something that they aimed for with Black Ops. There also won't be a 3rd person mode because it's a first person shooter.

Remember that the above is not a confirmation of what the game will ship with. There's still over a month of development left and anything can change before the game is completed or after launch.

So have you thought of any feedback? The main feedback that Vahn is aiming for what modes must have their own playlist and what can be combined. Post your feedback on the CoDHQ forums ».

Now lets get to the videos! You can watch the G4TV » video which shows gameplay from each map and you can also watch GameTrailers' » Team Deathmatch montage

 

 

A side note player counts I would say is for the 360 and PS3 since servers we can get more players on. But I would say the player count for waggering and gambling is correct.