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In a recent visit to the Treyarch office, we were able to check out the new Call of Duty Black Ops II multiplayer feature, Shoutcasting, and give it a spin with professional shoutcaster and eSports advisor to Treyarch, Mike "Hastro" Rufail. Shoutcasting allows players to spectate matches using a unique user interface that displays player stats, detailed map overlays, scoreboards, and loadouts, so the shoutcaster knows what's happening on the map at any point in time. Check out the Shoutcasting feature for yourself as we try it out in the video below.
Truth be told, we found it quite difficult to get a hang of the interface controls while trying to pay attention to everything that was happening in the match. Basically, don't expect to pick it up and automatically have the skills of a professional sportscaster. That said, you'll feel like you have an eagle-eye perspective over the whole multiplayer match thanks to the ability to swap between the map overlay, see where the action is, and drop right into the first-person perspective to see the action first-hand. But we can already tell, it will take some practice to be able to follow the action, call out the play-by-play, and navigate the interface while remaining entertaining at the same time. As it stands, Shoutcasting feels geared towards eSports professionals and the hardest of the hardcore competitive players, so we're interested to see how the average Black Ops II player reacts to Shoutcasting when Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 releases on November 13.
