Tag Archive

Black Ops III Sub Reddit Moderation Team Quits After Death Threats

Posted on March 6, 2016 by Rae Michelle Richards

It appears that the moderation team that oversee the popular Call of Duty: Blacks Ops III sub reddit r/BlackOps3 have taken a hiatus from moderation duties after backlash from the community that calumniated in one particular mod receiving death threats.

The whole situation can be quite confusing, specifically because the front-page of the sub reddit appears to be filled with spam threads, threads complaining about the lack of moderation and just general immaturity.

But from what I can gather from reading this stickied thread and several threads about “the purge” (a name given to the lack of moderation by the community, referencing the 2013 film of the same name) all of this began after the r/BlackOps3 moderation team suggested a merge with another popular Call of Duty sub reddit, r/CallofDuty.

Black Ops 3_MP_Battle at Ruhanga_WM

r/BlackOps3 sub reddit mod Gurr3nX received death threats and summed up his unfortunate and probably very scary situation thusly:

“I just had like the shittiest work week ever, 7 days and 67 hours. I also put up with some of the most toxic, vile, piece of shit people as best as I could. So “Your time is up, my time is now” everyone.

I didnt ask for the purge, but god damn I cant say I dont enjoy it after the shit some of you guys pull.”

Some posters on r/BlackOps3 have side-stepped the absolutely toxic behavior of their peers and instead expressed their opinion on the proposed merger and its’ potential impact on the existing community:

“I wanna clarify, I’m pretty neutral on this whole merge thing, I just think the mods should listen to what their community wants. I reckon if they had made the proposal of just trying it, and if the community thinks it doesn’t work, they revert it (correct me if a mod did say this), this shitstorm would have been avoided in the first place.”

As someone who has managed several communities – both large and small – I can say with certainty that community organization / moderation is often a thankless job. Deepest sympathies to Gurr3nX and here’s hoping that the immature antics of the r/BlackOps3 community don’t cause him any personal distress or harm. I know it shouldn’t be surprising that a game as well renowned as Call of Duty for screaming 14 year old would foster a community that issues death threats to their peers but online harassment is very real and unacceptable.

I’ll be keeping tabs on the r/BlackOps3 situation and will update this story with any major developments.

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Voting For PlayStation Blog’s Game of the Year Opens

Posted on December 19, 2015 by Rae Michelle Richards

The Official PlayStation Blog has opened up voting in their annual user lead series of polls for The Game of the Year Awards. As 2015 comes to a close perhaps it is time to reflect upon which games have left the biggest impact on you over the past 12 months before clicking on over to vote.

The year in PlayStation started off with a bang with the release of exclusives like The Order: 1886 and Bloodborne while continuing to amaze right up until December with massive open world games like Just Cause 3.

SCEA’s Social Media Manager Justin Massongill outlines some of the rules that Sony used in the selection of their eligible titles. Readers even suggested new additions in the comments section of the original poll, like Life Is Strange, and they’ve found their way into the official polls.

Here are the ground rules:

  • Nominees are limited to games that have never appeared on a PlayStation platform before.
  • Additionally, if a game has won for a specific category in a previous year, it’s no longer eligible to win in that category this year.
  • We tried to include a (very) wide range of nominees for each category, but if your favorite isn’t on the list feel free to write it inat the bottom of each form.

Voting is performed via a series of rather long polls available on the PlayStation Blog. Each category contains a number of titles – for example in the running for “Best PS4 Game” are Assassin’s Creed Syndicate, Axiom Verge, Arkham Knight, Bloodborne, Broken Age, Black Ops III, Dying Light, MLB the Show 15 & more. So take your time and pick your favorites carefully.

Did your favorite game make Sony’s cut? 2015 was certainly a fantastic year for gaming!

[Source]

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Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 review: Here we go again all over again.

Posted on November 13, 2015 by Erika

Black Ops III

Please note that this review covers the PS4 version, and some features are not available for the PS3/Xbox 360 versions

Treyarch does an amazing job once more with another installment in the Call of Duty franchise, Black Ops 3. The series has come a long way from the World War II era setting of World at War, to Cold War settings of Black Ops 1, and the more recent near future settings of Black Ops 2 and now 3.  Just like Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer Games, Treyarch tries to keep the Call of Duty fresh and engaging for it’s fans, and I feel that it has succeeded with those objectives.

Upon starting up the game and getting the necessary content downloaded to be able to play single player, I brought up the menu and happened upon the Identity section and was immediately taken aback when I explored further into it. I was taken aback due to the fact of the sheer level of customization that can be done with individual weapon setups. A new feature in the franchise is the ability to customize optics, attachments, camos, and paint jobs. In addition to that, the player can save multiple variants of individual weapon setups and use them across Campaign, Multiplayer, and Zombies, provided that the weapons and attachments are unlocked though each mode. One thing to note is that similar to the emblems, paint jobs add an individual flair if one wants to take the time to make use of a whopping 64 layers for the left and right sides, and the top of the gun. All of that can be done within Gunsmith or Paintshop sub-menus. Also making returns are unlockable calling cards and customizable emblems, franchise staples introduced in Modern Warfare 2 and Black Ops 1, respectively. Expanding upon those two features you are now the abilities to unlock calling cards via Campaign, Zombies, and from Supply Drops found in Multiplayer.

Read More

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PlayStation 4 COD: Black Ops III Beta Sets Record

Posted on August 31, 2015 by Rae Michelle Richards

Activision announced today that the PS4 beta for Call of Duty: Black Ops III that ran from August 19th thru the 23rd enlisted millions of gamers to help stress test Treyarch’s latest FPS.  Black Ops III has set the record for the highest number of players playing a beta on the PlayStation Network according to a press release issued by Activison.

Rob Kostich a VP and Call of Duty general manager had this to say about the beta version of COD: Black Ops II:

 “Becoming the biggest beta on PS4 speaks to the excitement felt by gamers and the quality of work by Treyarch.  And remember, this beta is just a fraction of the overall multiplayer experience and a portion of what’s coming on November 6 when the full game – spanning campaign, multiplayer and Zombies hits worldwide.”

PS4 owners weren’t the only ones enlisted to help test our Black Ops III– PC gamers and Xbox One owners got a chance to try out the same beta version as their Sony counter-parts this past weekend.

The full version of Call of Duty: Black Ops III will ship for PS4, Xbox One, PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 on November 6th. New features include specialists in multiplayer – preset characters who each have their own special ability that charges up over time and the inclusion of vertical movement and wall running.

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Black Ops III Beta Available To All PS4 Owners

Posted on August 22, 2015 by Rae Michelle Richards

Activistion’s previously closed beta for Call of Duty: Black Ops III is now open to everyone for about the next 24 hours. If you don’t mind the the hefty 13 gigabyte download you can try out three maps and several different game modes ahead of the next COD’s release this November. Other new features for Blops 3 include the inclusion of “specialists” – soldiers who each have their own power weapons that can be earned through kill streaks.

A separate beta for Windows PC and Xbox One will be available from August 26th thru the 30th and both will presumably have some open period available to all.

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Black Ops III Officially Unveiled

Posted on April 27, 2015 by Rae Michelle Richards

Yesterday Activision and Treyarch took the wraps off of Call of Duty: Black Ops III with a reveal trailer that has amassed over 6 million views on YouTube in the past 24 hrs! Activision has also revealed that the game will be released on November 6th 2015 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Windows PC.

In terms of game modes Black Ops III’s campaign mode can not only be played alone but also co-operatively with up to three friends with the new 4 player Co-Op campaign feature. Fans expecting the popular Zombies mode, which Treyarch pioneered with the original Call of Duty: Black Ops, can rest assured that the mode will be making a return. Activision mentioned that the Zombies mode will actually have its own progression system separate from the one used in the multiplayer mode.

In the world of Black Ops III a new type of bio-engineered super solider is being developed thanks to technologies like the Direct Neural Interface (DNI). Hopefully the game will try to tackle some of the less military focused questions that the teaser trailer brought up in regards to what rapid technological advancement could mean for the human race.Read More

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Black Ops III “Embers” Teaser Asks How Far Can Technology Take Us?

Posted on April 23, 2015 by Rae Michelle Richards

With only 3 days left until the official reveal of Call of Duty: Black Ops III Activision Publishing Inc has released a brand new three minute trailer for their upcoming title. Beginning with a montage of technological achievements from the last fifty years such as the completion of the Human Genome Project in 2000 and the rise of wearable computers this decade the trailer, titled “embers”, quickly heads down a very speculative path.

What would happen if organ replacements became an option for only the rich and famous? How would athletics handle the introduction of augmented humans into competitions? What would happen if the military were using augmentation technologies to build the perfect super soldier?

Honestly this trailer gives me some hope that Treyarch are ready to explore some of the societal questions they’ve raised in their pre-reveal campaign. In all honesty this three minute trailer raises questions about technological advancement a lot better than Square-Enix did with their three day long #CantStopProgress marketing event a few weeks ago for the new Deus Ex. It was also kind of amusing that Activision decided to use an Edward Snowden lookalike in their latest trailer as well.

The world reveal for Call of Duty: Black Ops III  is scheduled for this coming Sunday, April 26th!

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Black Ops III Full Reveal Coming April 26th

Posted on April 9, 2015 by Rae Michelle Richards

Activision sent out a cryptic press release this morning that simply linking to a YouTube video with the hashtag #BackInBlack. Anyone who is familiar with the Call of Duty franchise will recognize the stylized “III” up in the header of this article as being very similar to the font used to promote Call of Duty: Black Ops II. We’ll find out what the pair of companies has planned when the game’s world reveal takes center stage on April 26!

It is important to note that Activision also partnered with popular Advanced Warfare YouTuber TmarTn for this reveal. Perhaps we will get more small glimpses of the game on his channel before the big reveal.

Earlier in the year there were a number of rumors that the next Call of Duty game would take place during World War 2. Perhaps Black Ops III will have us hoping between the near future and the battles of the Second World War?

More as it develops…

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