SANTA MONICA, Calif.,
Nov. 13, 2012 /PRNewswire/
-- The wait is over. The groundbreaking
Call of Duty®: Black Ops II is now available at
retail locations across the globe. The highly-anticipated
sequel to the best-selling Xbox 360® and PlayStation ® 3 console
game in history has been called "the most ambitious Call of
Duty® ever," pushing the boundaries of the blockbuster
franchise to new heights by propelling players into a world full of
advanced weaponry, robotics and drone technology in the year
2025. Call of Duty: Black Ops II, which has
shattered pre-order records set last year by Call of
Duty®: Modern Warfare® 3, is on
its way to a historic launch, and is poised to usher in a new era
for the 30-million Call of Duty fans worldwide with a host
of new innovations to deliver the complete gaming experience.
Providing great value to the Call of Duty community,
starting today Activision's Call of Duty® Elite
services for Call of Duty: Black Ops II are free,
providing fans with deeply integrated features, including Clan
Operations, Zombies Leaderboards and more.
To view the multimedia assets associated with this release,
please click:
http://www.multivu.com/mnr/59129-call-of-duty-black-ops-ii-activision
(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20121113/MM10455 )
Activision kicked-off the celebration overnight as eager fans
lined-up at midnight across an unprecedented 16,000 retailers
around the globe from Sydney to
Dubai to Paris to Los
Angeles to get their hands on Activision and their
award-winning studio Treyarch's innovative new release.
Anticipation for the title has reached a fever pitch and is
expected to be the "biggest game launch of all time," as GameStop
Tony Bartel recently noted.
"From the very beginning, our goal with Call of Duty:
Black Ops II was to deliver a new high watermark for the
franchise. And thanks to the hard work and creative
brilliance of our team at Treyarch, I think that's exactly what
we've done," said Eric Hirshberg,
CEO of Activision Publishing, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of
Activision Blizzard, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI). "In addition to an
amazing and innovative game, we're also proud and humbled to see
the launch of Call of Duty: Black Ops II creating yet
another legitimate, pop cultural phenomenon. To our millions
of fans worldwide, who have driven everything from pre-orders to
YouTube views, to midnight lines outside of stores worldwide to new
levels, we just want to say, thank you. You are the best fan base
in the world, and the unprecedented thrill ride that is Call
of Duty: Black Ops II is all for you."
"From day one, we've pushed ourselves to make the best gaming
experience of our lives and I am so incredibly proud with what this
team has created with Call of Duty: Black Ops
II," said Treyarch Studio Head, Mark Lamia. "Our vision has been to
deliver the complete package – something for every type of
player. Beginning with the single player campaign, Treyarch
introduces things that you've never seen in the Call of Duty
franchise before, like branching storylines, non-linear missions
and customizing player load outs; or multiplayer, where we've
re-written the rules with an all-new 'Pick 10' Create-A-Class,
Score Streaks, and entire suite of eSports competitive features
like CODcasting, Live Streaming and League Play that further makes
Call of Duty a spectator sport; all the way to our biggest
Zombies experience yet, which has three modes of play by itself –
it's been an absolutely amazing experience developing Call of
Duty: Black Ops II, and now we can't wait to play it with
our fans."
Delivering an epic scale that rivals Hollywood blockbusters, Call of Duty:
Black Ops II also features a heavyweight musical lineup
with contributions from Academy Award® winning
composer Trent Reznor (theme), BAFTA
nominee Jack Wall (score), and
tracks from musical acts Avenged Sevenfold and an original
collaboration by Skrillex and Alvin
Risk. The plot-twisting, generation-spanning story,
co-written by David S. Goyer,
screenwriter for The Dark Knight and the upcoming Man of
Steel, picks up where Call of Duty: Black
Ops' Cold War era tale left off, in its explosively
cinematic single player campaign taking gamers to the year 2025,
against the most sinister villain in Call of Duty lore.
Armed with branching storylines and non-linear missions known
as Strike Force levels, which provides players a sandbox style
gameplay experience, Call of Duty: Black Ops II
affords players the opportunity to actually affect the outcome of
the game, and for the first time in series history deliver multiple
endings to this epic saga. "Collaborating with
David Goyer has been an incredible experience. From the
beginning, we had a shared vision to rewrite the rules of
storytelling in the Call of Duty franchise and deliver a
truly innovative experience for players," said Call of
Duty: Black Ops II Director and Co-Writer, Dave Anthony.
Tapping into the heartbeat of millions, Call of Duty:
Black Ops II multiplayer mode delivers a true package of
innovations, including the all-new "Pick-10" Create-a-Class system
that revolutionizes the traditional slot-driven system by allowing
fans to gear up for battle by customizing an unprecedented number
of combinations to best suit their play-style. Further
leveling the playing field for more gamers, the new Score Streaks
system rewards all-types of players for helping their team win from
capturing flags, securing objectives, defending teammates and
more.
Without a doubt, the most prolific multiplayer additions to
Call of Duty: Black Ops II are the ones lining up to
bring Call of Duty online gaming and eSports to the masses.
Accessible to players of all skill levels, Call of Duty:
Black Ops II multiplayer introduces League Play, a
skill-based matchmaking system that makes competition fun at any
skill level. Multiplayer also now seamlessly integrates a
play-by-play "CODcasting" commentary system that allows fans to
create their own eSports commentaries on games. And in a historic
first for console gaming, Call of Duty: Black Ops II
also features live streaming of League Play games on the Xbox 360
and PlayStation 3, without the need for any additional hardware.
With the live streaming feature, players now have the ability
to broadcast their Call of Duty: Black Ops II games
to the masses in real-time on YouTube, so anyone in the world can
enjoy watching the action. Call of Duty Elite takes
the live streaming experience even further, enabling viewers to see
the player card of the user that is streaming. Viewers can
dig deeper on Call of Duty Elite to see class
loadouts, recent match data, as well as career stats across
supported Call of Duty games on the Call of Duty
Elite service. Live streams of Call of Duty:
Black Ops II are viewable via web browsers, mobile and
tablets through Call of Duty Elite as well as
individual YouTube user channels. A verified YouTube account
is required to live stream. A valid Call of Duty
Elite registration is necessary to view the streams and
related information inside Call of Duty Elite.
Call of Duty: Black Ops II player live streams will
be subject to limitations and restrictions.
The complete package also delivers the fan-favorite Zombies game
created by Treyarch. The beloved and terrifying cooperative
game mode pits players against an unrelenting horde of the undead.
The Call of Duty: Black Ops II Zombies offering is
the biggest to date, featuring three different modes to survive the
zombie apocalypse. Unravel the mysteries of a dying Earth in
Tranzit, fight endless waves of zombies in Survival mode, or
compete in the new 4z4 last-human-standing mode Grief.
Activision also is making available pre-orders for the
Call of Duty: Black Ops II Season Pass at select
retail outlets. The Season Pass lets gamers access four epic
Call of Duty: Black Ops II DLC Map Packs to be
released in 2013 at a bundled discount (discount based on a
suggested retail price of $49.99 and
four DLC Map Packs at a suggested retail price of $15 each). The DLC Map Packs will be available on
the Xbox LIVE® online entertainment network first, and pricing and
release dates may vary by platform. Additionally consumers
who purchase the Call of Duty: Black Ops II Season
Pass will not only receive an exclusive in-game calling card, but
also access to the Nuketown Zombies bonus map. Nuketown
Zombies will be offered to Season Pass holders in December,
releasing first on Xbox 360 with other platforms to follow.
Call of Duty: Black Ops II is available today
worldwide on the Xbox® 360 video game and entertainment system from
Microsoft, PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system, and Windows
PC. The title is scheduled for release in North America on November 18, 2012, for the
new Wii U™ game system from Nintendo. Call of Duty:
Black Ops II is published by Activision Publishing, Inc.,
and is rated "M" (Mature – Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong
Language, Suggestive Themes, Use of Drugs – content suitable for
persons ages 17 and older) by the ESRB. More information on
Call of Duty: Black Ops II can be found at
http://www.callofduty.com/blackops2 or on
www.facebook.com/codblackops. Fans can also follow @Treyarch
on Twitter.
Also releasing today for PlayStation Vita is Call of
Duty® Black Ops: Declassified,
bringing classic Call of Duty-style gameplay to
gamers-on-the-go. Developed by Nihilistic, this intense
Call of Duty handheld title features frenetic 4v4
multiplayer across popular modes and hallmark features, including
Care Packages, Create-A-Class, Killstreaks, Perks, Prestiging and
more. The title also delivers an original fiction taking
place between Call of Duty®:
Black Ops and Call of Duty: Black Ops
II. Utilizing both touchscreen and "Near" technology,
Call of Duty Black Ops: Declassified
puts the adrenaline-rush combat and action of Call of
Duty in the palm of your hands. The title is also
included in a limited PlayStation®Vita Call of Duty®: Black
Ops Declassified Special Edition Bundle Pack for the
ultimate value on the go. Call of Duty
Black Ops: Declassified is rated "M" (Mature – Blood,
Drug Reference, Strong Language, Violence – content suitable for
persons ages 17 and older).
Activision Broadcast Media Center
Members of the media
can visit Activision Publishing's Broadcast Media Center to
download broadcast quality video, web-ready video and
high-resolution images. Broadcast Media Center:
www.activisionvideo.com.
About Treyarch
Treyarch is an industry-leading game
developer, wholly owned by Activision Publishing, Inc. whose
previous game Call of Duty®: Black Ops set an entertainment
launch opening record upon its release in 2010 and continues to be
one of the best-selling games of all time, according to NPD and GfK
Chart-Track.
About Activision Publishing, Inc.
Headquartered in
Santa Monica, California,
Activision Publishing, Inc. is a leading worldwide developer,
publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment and leisure
products.
Activision maintains operations in the U.S., Canada, Brazil, Mexico, the United
Kingdom, France,
Germany, Ireland, Italy, Sweden, Spain, Norway, Denmark, the
Netherlands, Australia,
South Korea, mainland China and the region of Taiwan. More information about Activision and
its products can be found on the company's website,
www.activision.com.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Statements:
Information in this press release that involves Activision
Publishing's expectations, plans, intentions or strategies
regarding the future, including statements about the expected
success of Call of Duty: Black Ops II and expected release of a
version of the title for the Wii U, are forward-looking statements
that are not facts and involve a number of risks and uncertainties.
Factors that could cause Activision Publishing's actual future
results to differ materially from those expressed in the
forward-looking statements set forth in this release include
unanticipated product delays and other factors identified in the
risk factors sections of Activision Blizzard's most recent annual
report on Form 10-K and any subsequent quarterly reports on Form
10-Q. The forward-looking statements in this release are based upon
information available to Activision Publishing and Activision
Blizzard as of the date of this release, and neither Activision
Publishing nor Activision Blizzard assumes any obligation to update
any such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements
believed to be true when made may ultimately prove to be incorrect.
These statements are not guarantees of the future performance of
Activision Publishing or Activision Blizzard and are subject to
risks, uncertainties and other factors, some of which are beyond
its control and may cause actual results to differ materially from
current expectations.
ACTIVISION, CALL OF DUTY, CALL OF DUTY BLACK OPS, and THE FUTURE
IS BLACK are trademarks of Activision Publishing, Inc. All
other trademarks and trade names are the properties of their
respective owners.
Microsoft, Windows, Xbox, Xbox 360 and Xbox LIVE are either
registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation.
"PlayStation" is a registered trademark of Sony Computer
Entertainment Inc. Wii U is a trademark of Nintendo.
SOURCE Activision Publishing, Inc.