5 Iconic Maps Treyarch Should Put Into Blackout

Iconic Maps Treyarch Should Put Into Blackout

Hijacked

On the Blackout map, there are whole areas of water that just aren’t being used. That sounds like a waste, especially when Hijacked, a map that takes place on a cruise ship, is one of the best maps in the Black Ops franchise. Filled with an open middle arena, decent verticality, and claustrophobic corridors, a docked Hijacked map or reference would have fitted nicely into Blackout mode. More importantly, the map can help give extra depth to the mode’s already impressive scope by diversifying the map’s environments. Vehicles have little to no place in Call of Duty outside of killstreaks, but with the success of transport in PUBG, perhaps the water can open up avenues for boats, naval combat, and the like, which would make Hijacked the perfect out at sea port. On the other hand, a washed-up or marooned Hijacked would have been a nice touch.

Iconic Maps Treyarch Should Put Into Blackout

Standoff

Standoff, despite launching with Black Ops II, is a level entrenched in classic Call of Duty map design. The map invokes memories of Call of Duty 4 and World at War, contrasting its verticality with sharp-turned alleyways perfect for shootouts and flanking. The many buildings, nooks, and crannies of Standoff would have made a perfect high-risk drop-off point to be filled with consumables and weapons. Much like Tilted Towers or Pleasant Park of Fortnite fame, Standoff can act as an urbanized area riddled with loot and, most likely, an early death. The level was a shining example of classic Call of Duty design, even being nominated to be in Call of Duty Online, which serves as a de facto Hall of Fame for the series’ maps.

Iconic Maps Treyarch Should Put Into Blackout

Slums

Slums, much like Standoff, would not necessarily add anything new or different to Blackout mode, but it’d slip into the map’s desert and jungle setting perfectly. Offering up the same advantages as Standoff, the map could serve as an essential urban hub, riddled with high-risk rewards. Mostly, Slums would thematically fit into Blackout’s first map, with its Panama-inspired and developing world architecture suited to the map’s dusty environs. What makes us want the map included, though, is the potential it has to facilitate close-quarters combat, with the map being an absolute haven for SMG users. Battle royale maps need to finely tune and balance the playstyles they force upon players, so Slums would be an excellent way to reward (or punish) players who prefer to go in all guns blazing as opposed to safer, more measured play.

Iconic Maps Treyarch Should Put Into Blackout

More World at War Maps

The knowledge that Asylum, the map made famous as the basis of the Zombies map Verrückt from World at War, would be incorporated into Blackout mode led to a record purchasing of nostalgia goggles, yet it’s what this addition implied that got most fans really excited. With the addition of Verrückt comes the possibility that additional World at War maps could be included, greatly improving the scope and reach of Blackout mode. Many of World at War’s maps would fit the battle royale format effortlessly, contrasting tightly-knit indoor areas with open outdoor arenas. The open vistas of Battery or Seelow would lend themselves well to the tension of battle royale. Maps like Castle and Outskirts, while not thematically consistent with Blackout’s current map, would offer something truly different for the battle royale genre, with their sniper-nest towers likely to cause a few headaches.

Iconic Maps Treyarch Should Put Into Blackout

Summit

Sure, Blackout mode’s current map has no place for a snowy, low visibility map like Summit at the moment, plus it would just look plain dumb compared to the map’s dry, low altitude status. Who says that this Blackout map will be the only one, though? With Activision’s resources, Treyarch could easily create more than one map centered around different environmental pressures. The series has the resources to add hazards such as unique weather and environmental hurdles for players to exploit or evade. However, Summit could still be incorporated into the current Blackout map with some changes, particularly if Treyarch manage to patch in some dynamic weather events. Summit, theoretically, could be a time-gated part of the map that is only triggered during snow or colder weather changes. To have a high-altitude, difficult to access portion of the map, Treyarch could use this area as a treasure trove of loot, and a hotbed of combat. A map like Summit can work as an example of Blackout mode’s truly scary potential, which is making battle royale games, especially PUBG, nervous.