The Black Ops 7 Zombies beta is here, and it’s already the most talked-about entry in years. So, what’s the verdict? We’ve gone through every part of the beta—the action, the mood, the technical details, and what players are saying.
This article breaks down all of it, sorting the highs, the lows, and the frustrating parts to give you a complete picture of the new game.
The Good: Highlights That Sparked Hype and Hope
1. The Return of Classic Zombies Vibes
First, we’re just happy to have a Zombies beta—it’s a first for the series. The “Farm Survival” mode feels like a perfect, short throwback to the classic style and tension of older games like World at War and Black Ops 2.
Even though the map is simple, “Farm Survival” has a dark and moody feel. This comes from the look of the game and its small details.
Bodies hang in the barn, fog sits outside the barriers, and a scene with a family all help pull you into the world. It shows that Treyarch’s focus on telling stories through the environment really works.
2. Music & Sound Design: Affective Ambience
The music and background sounds are another strong point. Unique sounds play when rounds change, when the action heats up, and even classic guitar riffs kick in. One saw trap sets off a creepy child’s laugh mixed with techno music—it’s weird, memorable, and totally fits Treyarch’s style.
Nostalgic touches, like the music that plays when a round ends, help connect this new content to the series’ roots.
3. Gameplay Tweaks & Classic Tactics
The beta makes some small but important changes to how you play, especially with weapons. Instead of sticking with one starting gun, players are pushed to switch things up.
This is because it’s slower to earn “salvage” (the in-game currency for upgrades), and the upgrade costs are balanced to encourage using the “mystery box.” This brings back an old-school strategy that rewards taking a chance.
Having limited “streaks” (powerful score-based rewards) at the crafting table also feels more like the classic survival modes. This makes players depend less on them and more on wonder weapons and traps, especially in the higher, tougher rounds.
4. Trap Meta & Tactical Depth
One standout feature is the new “trap meta.” The long-lasting power of traps, like the saw, adds new layers of strategy—sometimes almost too much. While having traps last this long is new, it lets players use the map in ways we haven’t seen since older, trap-focused levels.
A new Easter egg, a trash bin called “Chompy” that gives you salvage, adds another strategic choice. You can choose to sacrifice your equipment for a potential reward, which often pays off for alert players with extra salvage or even bonus weapons like the ray gun.
5. Special Enemies & High-Round Tuning
The new special enemies, the Zersa and the Ravager, are a positive addition. The Zersa is especially seen as a scary and unpredictable challenge that adds much-needed tension in the later rounds.
Unlike some past enemies that were just annoying, the Ravager offers both a real challenge and a useful way to earn extra salvage and points if you deal with it tactically.
Treyarch also adjusted the later rounds by reducing the number of super-fast “sprinter” zombies, increasing zombie damage, and making Ravager rounds truly hard.
This shows a clear effort to make the end-game more challenging and rewarding than it was in Black Ops 6.
6. Attachment and Weapon Variety
Some guns in the beta get special abilities when you upgrade them with “Pack-a-Punch.” For example, the Mark 78 LMG gets better mobility, and a shotgun pistol gets a powerful upgrade.
Even though only a few weapons have these unique traits, Treyarch’s experimentation here is seen as a welcome step in the right direction.
7. Perks and Gobble Gums: Useful Additions
New perks like Wisp, and changes to the “Gobble Gum” power-ups, have been well-received.
For example, the Aftertaste gum works great in solo games, and the overpowered Shopping Free gum has been replaced with a more balanced one called Gift Card.
These give players useful new tools that open up new ways to play. Treyarch’s willingness to adjust overpowered classics is seen as a good move.
8. Engagement & Feedback
The beta itself seems designed to get direct feedback from players before the game’s launch in November. This open and responsive approach scores points for being collaborative and listening to the community.
The Bad: Issues That Dampened the Experience
1. Salvage, Weapon Damage, and Balance Adjustments
While making upgrades harder to get can add strategy, it feels like Treyarch went a bit too far. Improving your weapons is tougher than in Black Ops 6, and most guns feel too weak in the higher rounds.
Only a few regular weapons are useful past round 40, which makes your success rely too much on getting lucky with wonder weapons.
A major downside of the beta was the missing “augments” system. Without it, weapons aren’t at their best, and new players can’t see the full variety of ways to play.
2. Trap Duration: Balancing Concerns
The powerful traps are a mixed blessing.
While they create new strategies, they last so long that they can make the harder rounds feel too easy. This might reduce the number of different strategies players use.
The long wait time between uses might be an attempt to balance this, but it’s still up for debate.
3. Points System and Economic Restrictions
The system for earning points is mostly the same as Black Ops 6, and it feels too limited on the “Farm Survival” map.
Players find it hard to save up enough points for major upgrades and perks, especially when buying new weapons rarely gives you a powerful one.
Unless Treyarch changes this, it could make it frustrating to progress.
4. Missed Opportunities with Core Features
Many players were disappointed that they couldn’t try the “cursed mode” in the beta.
The recent COD Next event didn’t show much new about it either. This was a missed chance, as getting to play this classic-style mode early could have built a lot more excitement and feedback.
5. High-Round Difficulty Curve & Special Enemy Overload
Treyarch’s goal to make the later rounds harder created some issues.
After round 40, a special enemy called the Doppelgast appears without much warning. It feels random and out of place, which can make the late game feel unfairly punishing instead of challenging in a good way.
Also, changes like zombies doing more damage and armor being harder to find are debated.x
6. Lack of Zombies-Specific Attachments
While a few weapons have cool, unique upgrades, the attachment choices for most guns feel standard and boring. They don’t take full advantage of the chance to create crazy, custom options just for the Zombies mode.
What’s needed are attachments that really change how a gun works, giving it a unique identity for fighting the undead.
The Ugly: Major Critiques Threatening Player Experience
1. The On-Screen Display (HUD) is Still a Letdown
Even after a year of fans complaining, the Zombies mode uses the exact same on-screen display (HUD) as the multiplayer. This feels lazy and lacks the unique style that Zombies fans love. Treyarch’s plan to add HUD designs based on older maps is a small fix, but it’s more like a new coat of paint than solving the real problem.
You can turn some parts on or off, like health bars, but critics feel the whole layout should be simpler and look more like it belongs in a Zombies game. The weapon info in the bottom right corner, for example, is unnecessary and hurts the creepy mood that fans expect.
Not being able to truly customize the HUD feels like putting a band-aid on a big cut. The real solution would have been to design a whole new HUD just for Zombies, one that honors the mode’s history.
2. “BO6 DLC” Feeling: Lack of Genuine Innovation
A lot of what’s in Black Ops 7 feels reused. The new features, perks, and weapons often feel like slightly changed versions of things from older games. While it’s okay to bring back good ideas, the beta often feels more like a downloadable add-on (DLC) for Black Ops 6 Zombies rather than a brand-new game.
Things like the Toxic Growth field upgrade and Fireworks ammo mod work fine, but they’re nothing we haven’t seen before. Even the popular Wisp perk is basically an updated version of one from Black Ops 4. The game is missing truly new and bold ideas that would get you excited.
Final Thoughts: Where Treyarch Stands Before Launch
Our final on the Black Ops 7 Zombies beta is largely positive.
Treyarch has done a great job bringing back the classic feel of Zombies while adding smart new changes, especially with the sound, the mood, and the deeper strategy.
If you’ve got access of the beta, how do you fool? Do share your experience by rating it between 1-10.
