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Call of Duty: NEXT 2025 Recap: What Black Ops 7 Showed

Call of Duty: NEXT showed six Black Ops 7 Multiplayer maps and Overload, previewed Zombies content, and covered Warzone and the wider franchise. The event and 2025 beta have ended.
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Call of Duty: NEXT took place on September 30, 2025, and gave viewers a look at Black Ops 7 Multiplayer and Zombies. Multiplayer gameplay featured six maps and the new Overload mode; the broader franchise event also covered Warzone, Call of Duty: Mobile, and esports. The 2025 event and its beta are over, and the official Black Ops 7 site now lists the game as available.

What Black Ops 7 Multiplayer showed at NEXT

The broadcast focused on Core Multiplayer and showed six of the 18 launch maps announced for the game:

  • Blackheart
  • Cortex
  • Exposure
  • Forge
  • Imprint
  • Toshin

The matches included Team Deathmatch, Domination, Hardpoint, and Overload. The six maps were also planned for the beta, according to the official NEXT recap.

How Overload works

Teams fight to seize a device and carry it into one of the opposing team’s two control zones. The carrier receives extra intel, while the device’s location appears on the HUD and Tac-Map. The recap said Overload was planned for both the beta and launch.

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Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 | Standard Edition | XBOX and Windows Digital Code
  • STANDARD DIGITAL EDITION – Includes Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 for Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and Windows devices.
  • CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS 7 – Treyarch and Raven Software are bringing players the most mind-bending Black Ops ever.
  • CAMPAIGN MODE – Squad up or go solo in an innovative Co-Op Campaign that redefines the Black Ops experience. Take on high-stakes challenges across a wide spectrum of environments, from the neon-lit rooftops of Japan to the Mediterranean coast, and even into the deepest corners of the human psyche.
  • MULTIPLAYER MODE – Multiplayer explodes out of the gate with 16 electrifying 6v6 maps and two 20v20 maps at launch. From futuristic Tokyo vistas to the frozen, unforgiving wilds of Alaska, every environment is brimming with danger and opportunity. Master a cutting-edge arsenal and outmaneuver your enemies with an evolved Omnimovement system.
  • ROUND-BASED ZOMBIES MODE – The nightmare begins where reality ends. Trapped in the heart of the Dark Aether, the crew is thrust into a vast, ever-shifting hellscape. This isn’t just survival. It’s a descent into madness.

Other Multiplayer features discussed

Developers also covered refined Omnimovement, a new Wall Jump, faster base movement, and the removal of default Tac Sprint. Other announced features included Overclocks for equipment and Scorestreak customization, Hybrid Combat Specialties, the Specialist Wildcard, and the return of Classic Prestige. These were announced features, not all necessarily demonstrated as playable during NEXT.

The recap separately discussed 20v20 Skirmish, with two large maps planned for launch and vehicles, grappling, and a wingsuit. It was part of the event’s feature coverage rather than one of the Core Multiplayer matches highlighted in the gameplay segment.

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  • CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS 7 – Treyarch and Raven Software are bringing players the most mind-bending Black Ops ever.
  • CAMPAIGN MODE – Squad up or go solo in an innovative Co-Op Campaign that redefines the Black Ops experience. Take on high-stakes challenges across a wide spectrum of environments, from the neon-lit rooftops of Japan to the Mediterranean coast, and even into the deepest corners of the human psyche.
  • MULTIPLAYER MODE – Multiplayer explodes out of the gate with 16 electrifying 6v6 maps and two 20v20 maps at launch. From futuristic Tokyo vistas to the frozen, unforgiving wilds of Alaska, every environment is brimming with danger and opportunity. Master a cutting-edge arsenal and outmaneuver your enemies with an evolved Omnimovement system.
  • ROUND-BASED ZOMBIES MODE – The nightmare begins where reality ends. Trapped in the heart of the Dark Aether, the crew is thrust into a vast, ever-shifting hellscape. This isn’t just survival. It’s a descent into madness.

What NEXT revealed about Zombies

Treyarch guests Kevin Drew and Steve Bianchi discussed the meeting of the Black Ops 6 crew and reimagined original crew members in the Dark Aether. The event offered an in-depth look at Ashes of the Damned, which the recap called the biggest round-based Zombies map in Black Ops history. Four of its six major locations were explored during the broadcast.

Modes and other Zombies details

  • Cursed: Players start with a pistol and seek Relics that add debuffs, raising the challenge in exchange for rewards.
  • Survival: Survival maps were set to return, with Vandorn Farm planned for limited beta availability.
  • Dead Ops Arcade 4: The returning mode was described as a four-player twin-stick experience.
  • Necrofluid Gauntlet: Treyarch discussed it as a launch Wonder Weapon, but it was not playable at NEXT.

Warzone and the rest of the franchise program

Warzone coverage included a preview of the Haven’s Hollow Resurgence map and planned Verdansk points of interest: Signal Station and a remastered Factory. Developers also discussed movement adjustments, perk changes, a five-attachment weapon limit, removing Wildcards, and new tactical and equipment options. These are details previewed in the 2025 recap, not a definitive description of Warzone’s live state in 2026.

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Rank #3
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  • In Call of Duty: Black Ops 7, Treyarch and Raven Software are bringing players the biggest Black Ops ever.
  • Squad up or go solo in an innovative Co-Op Campaign that redefines the Black Ops experience. Take on high-stakes challenges across a wide spectrum of environments, from the neon-lit rooftops of Japan to the Mediterranean coast, and even into the deepest corners of the human psyche.
  • Multiplayer explodes out of the gate with 16 electrifying 6v6 maps and two 20v20 maps at launch. From futuristic Tokyo vistas to the frozen, unforgiving wilds of Alaska, every environment is brimming with danger and opportunity. Master a cutting-edge arsenal and outmaneuver your enemies with a next level Omnimovement system.
  • In Treyarch’s legendary Round-Based Zombies mode, the nightmare begins where reality ends. Trapped in the heart of the Dark Aether, the crew is thrust into a vast, ever-shifting hellscape. This isn’t just survival. It’s a descent into madness.

The wider event also marked Call of Duty: Mobile’s sixth anniversary and introduced DMZ: Recon, an extraction mode planned for Serpent’s Island. A Team RICOCHET segment discussed TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot requirements for PC beta access; those requirements applied to PC access, not to watching the event.

The C.O.D.E. Bowl VI followed NEXT, with the Royal Air Force Esports team recorded as the winner. The surrounding Las Vegas program also included the World Series of Warzone Global Final, which the recap described as a 50-trio competition with a $1 million prize pool.

Rank #4
Call of Duty®: Black Ops 6 - PlayStation 5
  • Developed by Treyarch and Raven, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 is a spy action thriller set in the early 90s, a period of transition and upheaval in global politics, characterized by the end of the Cold War and the rise of the United States as a single superpower.
  • This is signature Black Ops across a cinematic single-player Campaign, a best-in-class Multiplayer experience, and the epic return of Round-Based Zombies.
  • The Black Ops 6 Campaign provides dynamic moment-to-moment gameplay that includes a variety of play spaces with blockbuster set pieces and action-packed moments, high-stakes heists, and cloak-and-dagger spy activity. 
  • In a best-in-class Multiplayer experience, players will test their skills across 16 new maps at launch, including 12 core 6v6 maps and 4 Strike maps that can be played 2v2 or 6v6. 
  • Black Ops 6 also marks the epic return of Round-Based Zombies, the fan-favorite mode where players will take down hordes of the undead in two brand-new maps at launch. Post-launch, players can look forward to even more exciting maps and groundbreaking experiences dropping into both Multiplayer and Zombies.
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When the event and beta took place

The official recap is dated September 30, 2025. The contemporaneous Blizzard and Call of Duty announcement set the beta for October 2–8, 2025: Early Access began October 2 at 10 a.m. PT for eligible purchasers and Game Pass subscribers, followed by the open beta on October 5 at 10 a.m. PT. Those dates have passed.

In a June 2025 announcement, Activision said Black Ops 7 was scheduled for Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and PC via Xbox PC, Battle.net, and Steam, with day-one Game Pass Ultimate or PC Game Pass availability. For current platform and edition details, the official game page lists purchase paths and editions. The event recap is not a source for present-day prices or stock.

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  • GLOBE‑SPANNING CAMPAIGN — Fight across the Korean Peninsula, New York, Paris, and Mumbai in a high‑stakes narrative where global conflict escalates and survival depends on tactical precision.
  • MULTIPLAYER BUILT ON CONTROL — Engage in grounded, precise combat where fluid movement, player choice, and refined mechanics give you greater control in every firefight.
  • TACTICAL DMZ OPERATIONS — Deploy behind enemy lines as an off‑the‑books asset, making high‑risk decisions on objectives and extraction in a dynamic mode where every run counts.

A collectible shown at NEXT

The recap also featured an officially licensed, working GobbleGum Replica Dispenser made of die-cast metal. Its published dimensions are 12 × 3 × 4 inches, and it supports gumballs up to 0.5 inches in diameter. The recap does not establish whether it is currently available to buy.

Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.

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