Treyarch Details Lessons Learned From Black Ops 4 Multiplayer Beta

Following a couple weekends of multiplayer beta tests, those anticipating the release of Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 now have a couple months to wait before release. While Black Ops 4 players still have the Blackout beta to look forward to starting September 10, the competitive multiplayer experience is now volleyed back to Treyarch to make tweaks based on lessons learned during the beta tests.

The Black Ops 4 developer took to Reddit today to detail several of the tweaks it is making based on the beta feedback.

"With Black Ops 4 Multiplayer, one of our biggest priorities has been to add depth to gameplay for an experience that will be more rewarding the longer you play it: we’ve added variety to combat, increased differentiation in gameplay items, extended counter play, and tightened the nuances of movement and gunplay. What you played in the Beta was an early version of all those changes working together for a game that we hope you found both familiar and new, challenging and rewarding, and fun for casual and competitive players alike. There is a meta to the game that will unfold over time, so we took a slightly conservative approach to changes in the Beta until all the gameplay data had been reviewed and digested. Now, we have a wealth of information and are excited to get to work polishing the game for launch." – Treyarch on Reddit

In addition to rewarding a permanent unlock token to all players who reached level 34 in the beta, Treyarch listed a host of changes it is making. From changes to the way Fog of War works in the minimap and spawning during certain modes to balancing changes for body armor and gear, Treyarch went into great depth about the changes it is making and why. Treyarch also confirmed it is adding the ability to see the loadout of the person who killed you during the Killcam, something it wanted to put in the beta but couldn't get ready in time.

You can see the full, in-depth list of changes Treyarch is making based on fan feedback on Reddit.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 launches on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC on October 12.

[Source: Treyarch on Reddit]

While the point of beta tests has always been to test of infrastructure and accumulate feedback from those participating in the test, it's always a nice reminder that the beta tests of today are more than just publishers' marketing ploys to get you to preorder their games. It sounds like Treyarch learned quite a bit from fans' seemingly overall positive thoughts on the beta test, and as a result, Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 will likely be a better game because of it.