Call of Duty Black Ops 7 multiplayer reveal: How will new features impact esports?

Activision has shared major details surrounding Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 multiplayer, including information on maps, game modes and movement mechanics.

The reveal also included information on what weapons will be available when the first-person shooter franchise releases.

On September 22nd, 2025, Black Ops 7’s multiplayer reveal trailer went live alongside Treyarch publishing a blog post sharing further information on what the developer has worked on following the launch of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6.

Treyarch has revealed Black Ops 7 will release with a total of 16 six-versus-six maps. Three of them are Raid, Express and Hijacked, first debuted in Call of Duty: Black Ops 2. Notably, all three of the Black Ops 2 remakes featured in the title’s esports circuit, which ran between 2012 and 2013.

In addition to a brand-new weapon arsenal for players to master, the Black Ops 7 loadout features an Overclock system designed to offer various benefits based on a specific style of play.

Benefits include a reduction in Scorestreak cost and a decrease in Field Upgrade recharge time, both of which could influence the loadouts used in competitive play.

At launch, Black Ops 7 features a total of 30 weapons split across nine categories:

In total, 16 weapons will make their Call of Duty debut, while others are more familiar to fans of Black Ops 2’s esports scene. The M8A1 assault rifle featured heavily in Black Ops 2’s meta and returns in Black Ops 7 as a Marksman rifle.

Marksman rifles have never featured in the Call of Duty League since the category was added to the title as part of 2019’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.

Futuristic movement in Black Ops 7 remains a hot topic of conversation among fans, with Treyarch’s latest title introducing an evolved Omnimovement system.

Wall jumps are new for this year’s release and enable players to navigate maps at a faster pace. The jumps can be chained together, with each one losing momentum.

The Tac Sprint mechanic that has featured since 2019 is no longer mandatory. Instead, it has become an optional Perk. Treyarch states that the change provides ‘a more controlled experience’ when moving during matches.

Described as a ‘competitive respawn mode’, Overload makes its Call of Duty debut in Black Ops 7. Players compete to overload their opponent’s control zones by securing control of a single device.

Teams in control of the device score points by disrupting an enemy zone, with a score causing the device to reset.

The addition of Overload could act as a potential replacement for one of the three existing game modes used in the Call of Duty League.

Elsewhere, the new movement mechanics have the potential to increase a skill gap, which could result in a higher level of competition in the upcoming season.

Considering the M8A1’s prominence in Black Ops 2 esports, it’s interesting to see it feature in the Marksman rifle category. Depending on how the arsenal is balanced, Black Ops 7 could feature weapon categories that have never been seen in competitive play.