Summary
The recent Xbox Games Showcase capped things off with the full reveal ofCall of Duty: Black Ops 7, leading to an explosion of discussion around the premise of 2025’sCoDentry. A lot of the current discourse aroundBlack Ops 7is related to the game’s nature as the second consecutiveBlack Opsrelease, with some fans wondering if this back-to-back involvement of Treyarch could lend itself to the same rushed content criticisms of 2023’sModern Warfare 3.
Away from this, the reveal ofCall of Duty: Black Ops 7came in the form of an interesting trailer, confirming the pre-reveal theories of the game being a direct sequel to 2012’sBlack Ops 2. Aside from its portrayal of robots and the advanced tech of its 2030s setting, the trailer forBlack Ops 7drew a lot of attention thanks to its involvement of iconic past characters like David Mason and Raul Menendez, with the return of the villain being one massive question mark alongside the uncertainty over howBO7will handle the multiple endings ofBlack Ops 2and the fate of its many major characters.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 Has Some Massive Decisions to Make For the Series' Past
It had been theorized for quite some time that2025’sCall of Dutytitle would directly continue from the story ofBlack Ops 2, with future-set games likeBlack Ops 3not really possessing many direct links to the mainline narrative of the sub-franchise. Being set in the 2030s, it already seems clear thatBlack Ops 7will operate in the middle-ground betweenBlack Ops 2and3in terms of the technology at the center of its gameplay and story, with it seeming likely that the game will see the return of more advanced movement mechanics like wall-running.
Carrying on fromBlack Ops 2’s story makes it no wonder thatDavid Mason appeared throughout the reveal trailer forBlack Ops 7, with the son of iconic franchise protagonist Alex Mason being the main character of the 2012 title. It has also been confirmed that Michael Rooker will reprise the role of Mike Harper forBlack Ops 7, with the appearance of Raul Menendez in the reveal trailer being another direct link to the franchise’s past.
Menendez’s role as the major antagonist ofBlack Ops 2is considered one of the most memorable acrossCall of Dutyas a whole, although the many endings ofBlack Ops 2are largely centered around the different fates of the villain. The possible endings forBlack Ops 2can see Menendez be permanently imprisoned, die, or incite global riots, each being distinct enough to giveBlack Ops 7the major task of deciding which of the game’s many endings is now considered canon.
Treyarch Has Already Taken Some Major Steps in Terms of Canonizing Black Ops 2’s Story
It is worth noting thatBlack Ops 6canonized the fact that Alex Mason was accidentally killed at the hands of Frank WoodsinBlack Ops 2, with past information also suggesting that Menendez’s death in the game is also one of the official outcomes of the title. This could mean that Menendez’s appearance in theBlack Ops 7trailer is potentially a psychological apparition, with the trailer’s mind-bending visuals indicating a warped perception of reality throughout the game’s story.
Small sections of dialogue and data logs inBlack Ops 3allude to Menendez dying in 2025, with the figure’s appearance as an AI in theBlack Ops 7trailer being another potential justification for his presence.
This still leaves questions in terms of the fates ofother characters like Karma and the aging Frank Woods, with Treyarch even potentially retconning the vague pre-existingBlack Opstimeline to give a different canonized fate to Menendez prior toBlack Ops 7’s events. If David Mason’s execution of Menendez is in fact canon going intoBlack Ops 7, then he may appear as a Reznov-like hallucinated figure to David throughout the story, with there still being plenty of debate and intrigue over how Treyarch will handle the many moving parts ofBlack Ops' pre-existing timeline.
