CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS III DLC PACK, DESCENT AVAILABLE NOW ON PLAYSTATION 4
All-New Descent DLC Pack Features Four Intense Multiplayer Maps Set in Exotic Locales and the Next Chapter of the Origins Zombies Story Gorod Krovi
SYDNEY, Australia. – July 13, 2016 – Descent, the third DLC pack for Call of Duty®: Black Ops III, the best-selling console video game on next generation platforms*, is available today, first on PlayStation 4 with other next-gen platforms to follow**. Published by Activision Publishing, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Activision Blizzard, Inc. [Nasdaq: ATVI] and developed by Treyarch, Call of Duty®: Black Ops III Descent, takes players across the globe to four new multiplayer locales and an all-new Zombies experience in the classic Origins saga.
“From the beginning of development, Treyarch has been committed to delivering the most epic gameplay experiences we have ever created. Descent continues to make good on that promise, while answering the community’s requests for a re-imagining of Raid, the beloved multiplayer map from Call of Duty®: Black Ops II,” said Mark Lamia, Studio Head, Treyarch. “In addition to four amazing Multiplayer maps, the Zombies team is flat out bringing it with our newest chapter, Gorod Krovi, harkening back to Treyarch’s roots, with a twisted Stalingrad experience.”
Call of Duty: Black Ops III Descent comes packed with four new multiplayer maps that offer fans non-stop run and gun action in a cryogenic penitentiary, a Viking hamlet, a robot death-match arena and a contemporary reconstruction of an ancient Roman estate:
- Empire: Fan favourite map Raid returns, re-imagined in this classic, medium-sized map as an authentic Roman villa, where a classic map structure mixes with the new gameplay mechanics of Black Ops III.
- Berserk: A Viking village frozen in time enlists players to fight through blizzards, for control of the centre bridge. This medium-sized map features wooden buildings, deadly rocky outcroppings, and tight chokepoints.
- Cryogen: Located far in the Dead Sea, this isolated compound holds some of the world’s most dangerous criminals in frozen isolation. Sentry towers keep watch over the small map’s circular design as frenetic combat and wall running attacks abound.
- Rumble: Gamers battle amongst larger-than-life mechanized warriors in, this medium-sized map, which funnels high-speed combat to the central arena, where players battle their way through fallen mechs and pyrotechnics.
Descent transports players to an alternate-timeline of Stalingrad in the newest twisted chapter of the Origins Zombies storyline, Gorod Krovi. Player’s face-off against a swarm of mechanized zombie soldiers and avoid hell-fire from aerial dragon assaults, all in the midst of a raging battle within the remnants of Nikolai’s motherland. Gorod Krovi delivers a harrowing Zombies experience, filled with horrifying new enemies, exciting new gameplay mechanics and an epic set of undead-annihilating weapons.
Descent is now available on PlayStation 4 at a discounted rate via the Call of Duty: Black Ops III DLC Season Pass***, which features four DLC Map Packs planned for the year, as part of the discounted bundle offered at a suggested retail price of AUD$64.95. Individual purchase of the DLC Map Packs, including Descent, is at a suggested retail price of AUD$19.95. Purchase Call of Duty: Black Ops III Descent for PlayStation 4 to receive an exclusive Gorod Krovi dynamic theme. Call of Duty: Black Ops III is rated R18+ for High Impact Violence and Online Interactivity by the Australian Classification Board.
*Based on North American physical game sales as of April 1, 2016.
**Descent DLC content not available on PS3 or Xbox 360.
***Season Pass content not available on PS3 or Xbox 360. Downloadable content in the Season Pass may be sold separately. If you purchase the DLC Season Pass offering, do not also purchase these standalone DLC Map Packs, as you will be charged for them. DLC Season Pass and DLC Map Packs may not be available on all platforms or in all territories. Pricing and release dates may vary by platform. Call of Duty: Black Ops III game required; sold separately.
About Treyarch
Treyarch is an award-winning video game studio, driven by the desire to create epic gameplay experiences that are enjoyed by as many video game fans as possible. It is an approach that has helped to make the studio behind the Call of Duty®: Black Ops series of games, an industry-leading developer. 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; Call of Duty: Black Ops II set world-wide launch day records; and the studio’s most recent Call of Duty: Black Ops III had the biggest entertainment opening weekend of 2015, and was the #1 console game globally for the calendar year. Additionally, Treyarch is the birthplace of Call of Duty’s Zombies. Treyarch is wholly owned by Activision Publishing, Inc.
About Activision Publishing, Inc.
Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, Activision Publishing, Inc. is a leading global producer and publisher of interactive entertainment. Activision maintains operations throughout the world and is a division of Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ: ATVI), an S&P 500 company. More information about Activision and its products can be found on the company’s website, www.activision.com or by following @Activision.
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 Call of Duty: Black Ops III Descent release on other platforms, 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.
That being said, there is a lot on offer here as far as the story is concerned. You see while the main storyline for the guild does follow this path that challenges those trying to revive the once great empire, players will eventually be able to unlock the ability to explore individual storylines for each of the four warring nations and pledge their loyalty to them. This means that there is a lot of content here for players to dive into, though don’t expect anything complex.
When not at the hub where they can recruit forces, purchase equipment, and take care of various other basic functions players will be spending the majority of their time out in the field fighting enemies. The field map in Grand Kingdom is designed to be something of a board-game where the player’s unit and enemy units are similar to chess pieces that must be moved along paths. Players must move their piece one spot at a time and occasionally they can find items, treasure chests, fall into traps, or uncover hidden paths that allow them to skip past an area or sacrifice turns in an effort to take a shortcut. For almost every basic mission that isn’t simply exploration, players will be given a limited number of turns to complete an objective so whether to avoid fights and take a shortcut or simply powering through is a choice that appears fairly often.
Thanks to the seventeen classes available to the player over the course of the game, players can craft a squad that fits their play style perfectly or can change things up if a certain mission isn’t working out well for their initial set up as every class plays differently and has unique skills that may help in combat. Each of these classes can be broken down into four types, melee (where the most variety can be found), ranged, magic, and specialty units. These specialty units fit special niches such as being able to heal allies, place obstacles or platforms, and even bring a dominant force into combat at the cost of taking up the place of two units.
This is especially true with some classes that have skills that can target separate aisles that may accidentally strike one of your units or accidentally healing an enemy while also trying to heal your frontline solider with a health potion since some strike zones are poorly displayed. In fact some occasions might even call for striking your own team mate once to cause separation and then deal more damage to the enemy afterwards. The enemy is also affected by this and can attack their own units so this is something of a double edged sword that will keep players constantly keeping an eye on who will be acting next in an effort to take advantage of the battlefield layout and take out the enemy without damaging their own team.
NIS America has released this game with their own well-handled English dub and have also included the Japanese voice track for those who prefer that route. As far as the soundtrack is concerned, Grand Kingdom sports a satisfying array of tracks that fit well during battle sequences as well as a wide array of background music that plays while simply exploring the menus at the Guild base.
