Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 – Everything you need to know about the new shooter

Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 is officially here, months after the reveal of a concrete release date dropping during the Gamescom 2025 schedule. And now that the new game is out, we're here to help you decide if it's worth your time and hard-earned money.

First revealed during the Summer Game Fest 2025 schedule of showcases, Black Ops 7 throws us into a futuristic setting that takes us into the year 2035, some 40 years after the events of Black Ops 6. After playing the game for ourselves and keeping track of all the hottest news from events such as COD Next, we've collected a ton of details about some of its main features, as well as some hands-on experience, to give you more insight into the new shooter.

It's certainly an exciting time for FPS fans, with Battlefield 6 having also just dropped. So to make sure that you know which 2025 game should be your next big purchase, read on below for all the information that you need to know about Black Ops 7 before jumping into it.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 release date

Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 launched on November 14, 2025.

Fans can now buy the game for $69.99/£69.99 for its Normal Edition. If you want the Vault Edition, it'll cost you $99.99/£99.99. The Vault Edition offers a ton of add-ons such as a Battle Pass, skins, and weapons. So if you want to get all the bells and whistles, it'll be worth your time.

However, it's worth keeping in mind that Black Ops 7 is on Game Pass as well. For more details on that, you can also read our detailed Black Ops 7 Game Pass guide.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 platforms

At launch, Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 is now on Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, PS5, PS4, and PC via Xbox PC, Battle.net, and Steam.

Of course, with Activision now being in the Xbox family, Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass subscribers have it from day one. But a potential release on the Switch 2 hasn't been mentioned yet.

Despite the cutting-edge tech involved in the most recent Call of Duty games (BO6 used the IW 9.0 engine with current-gen-specific optimizations), the powers that be aren't ready to let go of last-gen consoles yet. Don't expect an optimal experience on 12-year-old hardware, though.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 trailer

The first trailer for Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 arrived right at the end of June 2025's Xbox Games Showcase and mostly consisted of a CG cutscene establishing the in-universe tech advancements in line with what we saw in 2012's Black Ops 2. It's an intriguing 3-minute teaser, though.

At the very end, we get quick glimpses of what appears to be in-game action, including multiplayer maps, campaign sections, and this year's Zombies mode. Of course, there's a new menace that needs to be taken down, and David Mason is back in action. Watch out for a surprise comeback, too.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 story and setting

Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 is set "more than 40 years" after Black Ops 6 in the year 2035, meaning it happens a whole decade after Black Ops 2, which took place in 2025 outside of its late-Cold War sections. If the 'numbers situation' of this sub-franchise doesn't make sense to you, know that you're not alone. It's the result of jumping all over the timeline in a very non-linear way and deciding to bring back numbered entries after Black Ops: Cold War.

Before we dive any deeper into Black Ops 7's story and setting, here's a rundown of the chronological order of the Black Ops sub-franchise: World at War (yes, it's connected to the series), 1, Cold War, 6, 2, 7, 4, and 3. Two important notes: If you want to avoid a bunch of spoilers, it's recommended to play 2 before 6 due to its late 1980s flashbacks, which have an impact on what comes after. Second, Black Ops 4 is skippable as it's the franchise's only multiplayer-only installment... and just isn't good overall.

With that whole mess out of the way, let's go back to Black Ops 7. Yes, it's set in the future, and the world is "on the brink of chaos" yet again. At this point, it's important to bring up that Black Ops 2 offered several endings depending on a couple of player choices and whether the optional Strike Force missions were completed or not before reaching the end of the campaign.

Without getting into spoilers, the new campaign follows JSOC Commander David Mason and his team "Specter One", as they uncover the return of the previously thought deceased terrorist Raul Menendez. It turns out that Raul Menendez is threatening the world once again.

We won't get into the story too much here, but in an interview with us here at GamesRadar+, Tryarch said at COD Next that Black Ops 7 is promising to deliver "some of the most unique and unexpected moments of the series".

The teaser trailer also provides some clues: peace has been restored (or is in the process of being restored) thanks to an organization called The Guild. During the events of Black Ops 6, this group is involved in weapon trafficking and smuggling. 40 years later, it's evolved into a seemingly huge global weapons manufacturer led by CEO Emma Kagan. They're offering to protect the world from itself thanks to all sorts of automated weapons, drones, and robots.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 gameplay

We got our first proper look at Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 gameplay during the Gamescom Opening Night Live 2025 showcase. Showing off some of it's "reality shattering" campaign, we see shots of big swords crashing down into the earth, and a giant figure shadowing over the environment in the futuristic setting, as David Mason and the team remark that what they're seeing can't be real.

Said to feature 18 maps at launch for multiplayer, Black Ops 7 is setting out to be the "most mind-bending entry yet", and we get that vibe in the gameplay trailer. It looks like we can still expect a refined take on the winning first-person shooter formula seen in some of the best Call of Duty games over the years, with a bizarre new twist.

Additions introduced in 2024's Black Ops 6 – namely, the omni-movement system – are also back in 7 with more fine-tuning, with shots of the Black Ops team traversing across a changing environment and jumping up to a platform.

We also know that the story campaign, developed by Raven Software, will be playable in co-op for the first time since Black Ops 3 (2015). "Round-based Zombies in the heart of the Dark Aether" are also returning, meaning that Activision and Treyarch aren't messing with the core structure for the foreseeable future.

In our Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 hands-on preview from Gamescom 2025, in which design director Kevin Drew explains that this Black Ops will feature an Endgame mode that Tryarch believes can "redefine what campaign can be in Call of Duty" by bringing in more replayability.

For more information, you can also read our Black Ops 7 review in progress.

Call of Duty Black Ops 7 Multiplayer

Our hands-on experience at COD Next also highlighted 10 takeaways about Black Ops 7's multiplayer experience, with editor-in-chief Josh West explaining that it not only feels like a true sequel to Black Ops 6, but it also brings in more control over movement, the pace of matches feels more tactical, and every loadout comes with three perk slots, so you can fine tune your playstyle.

It also sheds light on the fact that Black Ops 7 introduces Hybrid Combat Specialties, which can be activated when your pairing perks from different categories. An example given is Tactician (Red and Green Perks), which sees you earn bonus scores from kills for 10 seconds when you complete an assist.

For more future outings, read our pages on all the upcoming Xbox Series X games and upcoming PS5 games on the way. Or check out our guide on how to play all the Black Ops games in order before picking up the new title.