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Activision aware gamers want 'better-looking' Call of Duty

Treyarch studio head Mark Lamia says Black Ops II answers calls for better graphics with modified version of original Black Ops engine.

494 Comments

Treyarch studio head Mark Lamia is aware of the fan excitement for a "better-looking" Call of Duty and wants players to know that the engine running his studio's upcoming Call of Duty: Black Ops II features advancements over the technology that ran the original Black Ops.

Black Ops II is sticking with the same game engine, but this isn't a bad thing, says Lamia.
Black Ops II is sticking with the same game engine, but this isn't a bad thing, says Lamia.

"Engines, each time they get touched, they change," he said in an interview with Activision's One of Swords blog. "The creators alter them; they don’t modify what they don't need to, and then they alter what they need to. You can't make a competitive product if you're not upgrading that engine along the way."

Concerning what is specifically new to the Black Ops II game engine, Lamia said the team focused on visuals and lighting advancements.

"I think what people are asking for is for us to push. They want us to make a better-looking game; they want things. I don't think those are things people can't ask for. We asked ourselves that very same question--we wanted to advance the graphics. I think the questions are valid. The answer may not need to be an entirely new engine, but you might need to do an entire overhaul of your entire lighting system. The trick is, we're not willing to do that if we can't keep it running at 60 frames per second--but we did that this time. So this is the Black Ops II engine."

Call of Duty: Black Op II is due out for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC on November 13. The game will feature a campaign split in two. One half of the adventure will pick up immediately following the events of the original Black Ops, with players following the journey of Frank Woods. The other half of the campaign begins in the year 2025, a time when advanced weapon technologies rule supreme.

For more on Black Ops II, check out GameSpot's latest preview.

Got a news tip or want to contact us directly? Email news@gamespot.com

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NickyWithATicky

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Edited By NickyWithATicky

How about you guys wait a year or two to make it look even nicer?

Thought not.

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happy_dude64

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Edited By happy_dude64

@NickyWithATicky actually the do take two years to make a game. Last year was Inifinity Ward, the year before that Treyarch..etc.

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DITHRICH

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Edited By DITHRICH

Do something good 3arc ....i believe in you!

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GOWzztrippinzz

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Edited By GOWzztrippinzz

What I want is a new and interesting game, not some rehash with slightly improved graphics.

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MusclesJAM

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Edited By MusclesJAM

Yea, I think we're ready for next gen. I don't think this generation of consoles is incapable of bigger and better things, but a new console is really the only catalyst that will force Activision to get off their a** and step it up.

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The-Neon-Seal

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Edited By The-Neon-Seal

When'd they take a hint? Also, I saw the trailer, the graphics on the talking guy were good but actually gameplay looked poor.

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donebythebook

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Edited By donebythebook

Okay, so they make it better looking. And that's about it.

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SirSpoon84

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Edited By SirSpoon84

i just want 2143

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bblundell

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Edited By bblundell

Sure...... BLOPS: 2 will have better graphics.......just like every year they say the same stuff. Lemmings.....I swear.

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tduhon07

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Edited By tduhon07

Simply put, CoD can't look much better than it does while maintaining 60 FPS (which is a huge reason people play CoD over games like Battlefield, because of the responsiveness).

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Alpr1010

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Edited By Alpr1010

I read it as "We hear you, so we'll tweak some random things so you can't say we didn't do as you asked, but you'll see no difference"

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simonsolidsnake

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Edited By simonsolidsnake

I find it funny how so many people complain about CoD yet it's the best selling series ever meaning that 90% of people who moan about and call it trash are hypocrites and have bought and played it themselves.

I love CoD SP, yeah it needs updating and things added but it's still a fun game, that's what I want, fun. Not many FPS games are different, the only thing BF3 has over CoD is graphics, BF3's SP was basically a rip off of MW2 and Black OPs.

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Raisiine

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Edited By Raisiine

@simonsolidsnake

First of all, yes, lot of us bought it bc the situation is the same as with harry potter movies. I dont even care about hp but I've watched like the first 5 movies, I aint gonna miss the other 2 or 3 whatever. Same with CoD. I think cod is a decent arcade shooter with hell of a fun but no real value to it. On the other hand, take Battlefield. Updated graphics, new mechanics, better engine, a lot more way to play it and so on. It's just better. I dont see why ppl cant deal with it. Cod isnt bad, but compared to Battlefield, it sucks real big time. Yeah the single player sucked in BF3 (apart from the aircraft mission I think that rocked), but you cant compare the multiplayer to those of the cod series. It is on a whole different level.

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NickyWithATicky

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Edited By NickyWithATicky

@Raisiine

But the last three Harry Potter movies are the best!

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Raisiine

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Edited By Raisiine

@NickyWithATicky

True that:)

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danielmbg

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Edited By danielmbg

@simonsolidsnake You never actually played Battlefield 3 did you? Battlefield 3 is the most realist shooting game, not only because of the graphics, but because of the mechanics, the entire scenery can be destroyed what makes the game more believable.Still, CoD is a nice game, not as good as BF, but it's becoming more one of that series that has a new release every week. I really think they should wait a while before releasing another one, or it will happen the same thing that happened with Guitar Hero, too many games, with the same mechanic, people get bored.

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k2theswiss

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Edited By k2theswiss

@simonsolidsnake

more a game sales, more it is known about, more people respawn to it. NOT hard to understand the way it work...

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PeterDuck

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Edited By PeterDuck

@simonsolidsnake

You seriously believe that the only thing that BF3 has over Cod is graphics? and that BF3 SP is a rip off from MW2 and Black Ops even though there is no resemblance at all?

wow

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Raisiine

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Edited By Raisiine

@PeterDuck

yo bro there are a lot of the same levels. I cant remeber a bc its been a while since I did the sp but I recall that there was like that level with the tv station or whatever. That looked a lot like cod and I do remember myself saying while I played bf3: Oh they got this from cod. and they did

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simonsolidsnake

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Edited By simonsolidsnake

Yes, and I have both.

And I didn't mean MP I meant SP BF3 has a better MP by far but they are two different game styles BF3 is realistic and CoD is just pick up and play, run and gun.

Both are good games but the SP are not much different from each other apart from graphics.

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ziproy

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Edited By ziproy

Took them about 5 games to get the hint. I wonder how long it will take them to realize that they are destroying video gaming as a whole

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Spartan_418

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Edited By Spartan_418

Asking CoD to make significant changes to its gameplay is an effort in futility. When a series breaks sales records every single year, real changes are a risk that Activision's shareholders won't allow.When the next CoD releases for the Next Xbox and PS4, you can bet there will be a real graphics improvement, but the gameplay will still be CoD 4 for most intents and purposes.

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k2theswiss

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Edited By k2theswiss

i rather have a decent storyline for once... I like cod games but i don't even touch the SP until a storm knocks out my internet for a day. not kidding. it's fast and fun gameplay but the story is a complete mess.

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musibop

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Edited By musibop

wow i bought MW2 for 60 bucks..BIGGEST MISTAKE OF MY LIFE!..some friend on xlive gave me free code for gears 2 expansion pack so that i could play on expansion maps with his team...i felt bad n offered him my mw2 copy..he said he doesn't want that trash lol..i said it's almost brand new..he apologized politely but said thank you anyway..i literally put the game in trash next day cause i knew i wasn't gonna play it..i hate to trade in games with gamestop..better throw games away than get ripped off! true story.

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Trickymaster

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Edited By Trickymaster

I think it's funny and sad. People want the graphics to look like BF 3 with real time radiosity and all that other stuff which requires huge processing power. At the same time they want it to run at 60 fps. On consoles, you simply can't have both.

Heck, even High end PCs barely run BF3 at its highest setting (Ultra) above 60 fps and you want a 6 year old console to do that? It's not gonna happen. It's that simple.

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Cillah187

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Edited By Cillah187

@ALCHEMYSTO Although I am not a fan of Zombies, I agree with you. People want Zombies, and they should listen to their fans. But think about it, something as popular as Zombies, and from the same company that does this game, it will get played out just like COD once they see the cash flow. If Zombies stays a mode in a main game, it won't get raped for money as a series of its own. Would you prefer a quality game mode, or a low quality yearly cash grab?

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Search_for_Vali

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Edited By Search_for_Vali

I always wonder, have the suits ever played a video game? How can someone do business with games, when they don't like, understand games?

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k2theswiss

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Edited By k2theswiss

@Search_for_Vali

clearly you don't understand bussiness. It don't matter what you (big wigs) like, it's about what sales

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ToughCritic28

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Edited By ToughCritic28

@k2theswiss Clearly you don't understand grammar, judging from your comments.

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QuadManX

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Edited By QuadManX

Boost in graphics, 2 hour long single player campaign, whiny kids playing the same types of matches (death match, capture the flag, etc) online all day... sound about right to everyone? (sarcasm, by the way)

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EggEmperor

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Edited By EggEmperor

The answer is a modified version of the Black Ops engine? That was a heavily modified version of the World at War engine! Why not just use the IW5 engine? You know, the better one?

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Search_for_Vali

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Edited By Search_for_Vali

Don't talk the Talk, just walk the walk. You can't bullsh*t me, the game looks just like MW3 ans BO1

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OneSamTwoCups

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Edited By OneSamTwoCups

I wasn't aware of asking for better graphics, as I recall, I asked for something to refresh the Call of Duty series that wouldn't make it seem like I was playing the same damn thing over and over again.

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residude

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Edited By residude

lol, "aware gamers want a better looking COD but sticking with the same engine".

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mickey_mickey48

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Edited By mickey_mickey48

But they don't care..

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suitedup0

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Edited By suitedup0

lets be realistic here, graphics wont improve until the next gen consoles is out

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dogman7

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Edited By dogman7

@suitedup0 it's not about improving the graphics to the next level, it's about bringing them up to the current generational standard. All CoD games look pretty sub-par regardless of whether someone is a fan or not, this is something (almost) everyone agrees on.

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PeterDuck

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Edited By PeterDuck

They have plenty of manpower and resources to create a new engine.

"They want us to make a better-looking game; they want things. I don't think those are things people can't ask for"

wow, seriously?

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zulwalks

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Edited By zulwalks

@PeterDuck I dont think its the resources they're worried about......building a new engine would require lots of time. The annual release window (2 years each for treyarch and infinity ward) is not enough. plus, in order to convince activision to cough up some money is going to take a lot of paperwork and graphics better than crysis or battlefield 3 especially since the franchise is making a lot of money without graphics overhaul anyway

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PeterDuck

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Edited By PeterDuck

@zulwalks

I know. It's sad.

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zulwalks

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Edited By zulwalks

Looks like they've done all that they can but seriously, they can't just keep rehashing a graphics engine that is about a decade old (older if you think about it). They should leave IW or treyarch with loads more time to build a totally new engine. But then again, the source engine is doing quite well for its age though

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Takeno456

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Edited By Takeno456

this will still sell millions, people will still say it sucks and they will never buy it again and I'm sure the cycle will repeat itself. people must stop buying the product if they want to see change. in the industry money is the real driving force of change so vote with your wallet.

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gokulgamer

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Edited By gokulgamer

@Takeno456 you are right buddy but people think that it is better than other first person military shooters that come out in a year

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suitedup0

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Edited By suitedup0

modified engine, yeah..

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noturfangirl

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Edited By noturfangirl

Why make the graphics better when they have millions of mindless drones buying the same rehashed game? They will never make the graphics better.

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