Need a helping hand when it comes to the latest Call of Duty entry? Our Black Ops 4 tips and tricks will help you get the upper edge on your opponent, whether they’re a multiplayer foe, a horde of the living undead in Zombies, or a teeny-tiny speck you can see from a mile away in Blackout. Before you do anything else, read through our Black Ops 4 tips guide for PS4, Xbox One, and PC before jumping in. It might just save your (virtual) life.
Black Ops 4 Tips and Tricks – Multiplayer
Bemused by the new maps and utterly perplexed by the mountains of perks and loadouts at your disposal? It doesn’t have to be that way. Let’s turn plays that make you want to turn your hair out into the opposing team declaring you heir to the CoD throne.
Play around with weapons
We know. You have a favorite weapon from previous Black Ops games, and you’re used to how they fire, how they work etc. But where’s the fun in that? You’ll be missing out on trying out different guns, different attachments, and having tonnes of fun along the way as you experience playing with shotguns, sniper rifles, and handguns that you wouldn’t ordinarily touch.
If that hasn’t piqued your interest, how about the fact that you can earn more experience by regularly switching up your loadouts? Yep, you’ll get those sweet XP points much faster if you decide to use different guns, throwable weapons, and outfits thanks to the amount of challenge XP that will soon stack up. If you end up sucking at new weapons, you can always switch back to your favorite later on. Give it a go though, as you never know which weapon you make take a liking to.
Pick specialists and classes with a specific focus
It’s a nightmare when you’re trying to play on online multiplayer maps, and you’re constantly getting killed. Whether it’s by other players finding your location using a UAV drone, getting sniped from a helicopter, having a Hellstorm missile dropped on your head, or any other nasty scorestreak item, it’s not pleasant when you’re trying to rack up your own kills.
To combat this, make sure the class you pick has a focus on taking out these airborne weapons. One of the default classes has an anti-air focus, which can be used when desperation sets in and you need to take out one of the above. This will help you to try and take out those pesky helicopters, gunships, and much more, and let you fight for another day to try and earn your own killstreak.
Get the upper hand in Objective modes
Black Ops 4 contains objective modes, much like its predecessors, which require you to capture specific areas on the map, hold them down to earn points, and prevent the enemy from taking them from you. You’ll want to pay special attention to the ability of the specialist you choose pre-game then, as each comes equipped with different abilities that may help to turn the tide of battle in your favor.
One such example is He Zhen-Zhen, who is more widely known as ‘Seraph’. Seraph’s specialist ability is Tac-Deploy. This ability allows teammates to re-deploy to surrounding areas after they are killed. The deployable beacon can be dropped by Seraph close to a capture point, and allow you to spawn straight away and either continue holding down the area you’re defending, or try and attack with more urgency if you’re attempting to wrest it from your foes.
Get the Dead Silence perk for no-respawn modes
No respawn modes are exactly what they describe – game types that only give you one life. Once you’re dead you cannot spawn into the game again, so you’ll want to ensure that you survive for as long as possible to help your teammates – or yourself – win matches.
One way to help you with this, in this particular game type, is to get the perk called ‘Dead Silence’. This perk allows its user to walk, spring, or jump much more quietly then they would normally sound in other game modes. It’s said to make your footsteps quieter by up to 60%, which can make all the difference as you sneak around the map looking for opponents to stealthily take out. Other players can still hear you creeping around, especially if they are wearing some high-end headphones to hear your footsteps. 60% less noise is better than nothing though, so it’s a must have when playing Black Ops 4 no-respawn modes.
Black Ops 4 Tips and Tricks – Blackout
This is the biggie. Presented as Black Ops’ answer to the battle royale craze, things have taken on a deliciously CoD twist in Blackout, which means there’s plenty to think about before you make your way into the 100-player mode.
Don’t leave the helicopter straight away
You know that phrase “fools rush in?” Times that by a billion for Black Ops 4 Blackout. The battle royale mode rarely takes any prisoners anyway, but you can limit an early death by letting the rest of your opposition drop out of the helicopters and (probably) end up on the kill feed before your boots have even hit the ground. It’ll also help you get the lay of the land, too, by letting you see where people are heading, before you and your teammates choose to make your move.
For maximum opportunity, I find waiting until there are roughly 35 people left to jump before making your grand entrance. Or should that be exit?
You shouldn’t be seen (or heard) in Blackout
Common logic would dictate that, if you don’t want to draw attention to yourself, you shouldn’t go around hollering and yelping at everybody you see. No one told Blackout players that. Across the opening weekend, players have routinely been making mad dashes for both vehicles (which have a ridiculously high audio reach) and named locations. Avoid both.
Your best bet for survival, especially in the chaotic early stages of a Blackout match, is to take the road not taken. Literally. Utilize hills and valleys, and only use roads and paths when you need to. Diving straight into big areas – the ones based on iconic Black Ops maps – is also a big no-no. It’s not only a hotspot for players, weapons are just as readily available in tiny houses and complexes further out.
Need to prioritize your inventory? Pick med kits
Unless you get obscenely lucky with backpacks, chances are you’ll be faced with more than one stick or twist scenario during a game of Blackout. While some choices are obvious, med kits are something you should keep above all else, weapons aside. Not are they stackable, just like their First Aid kit cousins, but they’re found in abundance throughout the map, unlike the more powerful Trauma Kit. They also recover a third of your health, too, so not too shabby, all told.
Black Ops 4 Tips and Tricks – Zombies
Brainsssss. Lots of brains. You’re gonna need them in Zombies, and fast. The multi-layered, complex maps this year require so much knowhow that you’ll quickly be overwhelmed by the shambling undead. But it doesn’t have to be your cross to bear.
Humans over AI… Every. Single. Time
Know what’s more terrifying than a maggot-infested, flesh-eating zombie rushing towards you? Your AI teammate standing there and doing absolutely nothing whilst you get ripped to shreds. Unlike the Left 4 Dead AI partners, who can be handy in a tight spot, the Black Ops 4 zombie AI bots leave a lot to be desired.
Whether it’s being afflicted with an inability to unlock new areas, hoarding points, or simply not doing its level best to help revive you when you’re downed, the AI are more trouble than they’re worth. Try teaming up with friends if you can help it. Even randomers online will be better than the sorry sack of code that’s been lined up for you here. It’s essentially impossible to complete levels with them, so definitely look elsewhere.
Take your time over unlocking new areas
I get it, I really do. You want to progress on a Zombies map and not be shoehorned into a narrow corridor or something as equally perilous. But opening up new areas on maps also means there are more and more spawn points for the living undead to scratch and claw their way through. If nothing else, ensure you’re hitting these one at a time; don’t go wandering off and spending points on the blue-hued doors willy-nilly just because a certain area looks pretty cool when seen from behind a plate of glass. That’s how you get killed.
Instead, make sure you’re suitably well-stocked before committing to moving on in the map. This is especially pertinent on Voyage of Despair as, for the most part, the map is fairly linear up until a certain point. Then you can stride forward with a bit of confidence and swagger, safe in the knowledge that you’ve got enough munitions to take down a small army, undead or otherwise.
Do a trial run
There will be a temptation to try and complete each Zombies map as quickly as possible to brag about your skills to your friends. This isn’t a good idea. You won’t know your way around any of the maps yet, where the mystery weapon box is located, or any other necessary things to complete the mode.
So, what’s your best bet? Learn the map. And don’t be scared to fail. Doing this will help you to acclimatize to the area and work out where all of the hidden corners are on each map. This will give you a better indication of where the mystery weapons box will spawn, where the machines – such as Pack-a-Punch – will likely appear, where zombies will come from, and much more. You’ll be better equipped next time around instead of flying off, Leroy Jenkins-style, in a bid to complete each map as quickly as possible.
