After Black Ops 6, CoD 2025 May Be Better Off Playing It Safe in One Way

Posted by By our-little-miss-is-home November 2, 2024 1 View 8 Min Read
After Black Ops 6, CoD 2025 May Be Better Off Playing It Safe in One Way



Since its inception, the Call of Duty franchise’s multiplayer has always thrived on small to medium scale maps. Players have flocked to the series for its high-stakes, arcadey, and frantic matches that it offers. However, in recent years, the series has tried to shake that up immensely by delivering larger scale maps, more strategic opportunities, and very different types of experiences. And while some players loved that approach, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 has seemingly been a reminder of why the classic approach works better.




In recent years, one of the biggest complaints players had with the likes of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 is that the maps are just too large and convuluted. With Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, most of the maps avoid this issue, but have seemingly gone too far in the other direction by being small and directionless. This lack of flow has players seemingly yearning to go back to the mid-size, three-lane map formula instead. Because of that, the next Call of Duty will likely want to play it safer than Black Ops 6 has.

Black Ops 6 Vault

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Black Ops 6’s Campaign Strikes the Perfect Balance Between Old and New

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 delivers a fantastic campaign that not only draws from the franchise’s extensive past, but also dabbles in its modern side.

Call of Duty 2025 Might Want to Walk Back a Controversial Map Style


Black Ops 6 Maps Have Come Under Fire

Titles like Modern Warfare 2 got a lot of flak from players as its maps were perceived as too large, too open, and lacking in the structure that many players seem to love. With Black Ops 6, Treyarch aimed to rectify things by going back to the basics on a lot of concepts, including its round-based zombies and larger campaign. When it comes to multiplayer maps, though, not every location is traditional. Maps like Red Card, for example, lack the three-lane formula due to their odd L-shape, and it has become a bit of a meme for the community to pick a random map instead of BO6‘s more controversial locations.

There is just something special and easier to manage about a three-lane Call of Duty map. Teams are able to better organize their pushes, players can anticipate where the enemy is coming from easily, and everything just feels a bit more cohesive. That is likely why Call of Duty: Black Ops has made that a core part of its identity, and why entire genres like MOBAs have been built from the concept. It just offers a feel that other types of maps lack, and when the franchise tries something different – like with a few Black Ops 6 locations – it has proven pretty controversial.


Call of Duty 2025 Needs to Continue this Trend

Not every map in Black Ops 6 has delivered on the classic Treyarch formula, but the ones that have done so have proven to be the most popular of the bunch. With the release of Nuketown, the three-lane offerings have increased, as that map is often considered one of the better locations to use the approach. With the Call of Duty community making it clear that three-lane maps remain the ideal style, and that experimental maps like Red Card or extremely small arenas like Pit are not fun to play, the next Call of Duty should stick with the three-lane path.

Of course, there is room for a variety of map types. Not every single Call of Duty map needs to be the same, as variety helps spice things up and keep players engaged. That being said, the majority of the maps should still be structured around the three-lane model and they should be mid-sized. That model has proven successful, with some of the most popular maps being built around that ideology.


Time will tell what the next Call of Duty will look like. Since Black Ops 6 has only just launched, it will likely be a little bit before Activision sheds light on the next chapter, especially as the post-launch content has only just begun. But whatever form it takes, it needs to put a larger emphasis on the three-lane style. Black Ops 6 was a step in the right direction overall, but its small and seemingly random maps have been a common point of criticism, so going back to the traditional form of map design is likely the best route to take with Call of Duty 2025.

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