Black Ops 6's 'Emergence' pays homage to the zombie past

This article contains MAJOR SPOILERS for the Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 campaign

Call of Duty campaigns have dipped their toes into the horror genre once or twice, but often focus on depicting the horrors of war. Past posts like Call of Duty: WW2 they didn't hold back on showcasing the brutality and futility of war, and every game in the series has its fair share of harrowing, violent moments. But Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 takes a slightly different approach and focuses on more psychological fears.

Without spoiling too much, Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War featured a mission that saw the player control a character in the midst of an identity crisis, resulting in somewhat underwhelming gameplay. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 takes those themes a step further, delivering two missions that focus on psychological horror, one of which feels like a sort of love letter to the franchise's Zombies mode.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6's 'Emergence' looks like a zombie love letter

It takes place about halfway through Call of Duty: Black Ops 6The 'Emergence' campaign sees Frank Woods' team of rogue black ops agents stalk an old CIA research facility in Kentucky in hopes of finding out more about a mysterious biological weapon known as “The Cradle”. Upon reaching the facility, the player character William “Case” Calderon falls into an elevator shaft, isolating him from the rest of the team.

After hitting the bottom of the shaft, Case's gas mask breaks and he is forced to inhale an unknown green gas. The psychoactive effects of the gas soon begin to rear their heads as the mannequins surrounding Case begin to move whenever his back is turned. Players eventually find themselves in a large atrium and are told that they must find four keys to enter an elevator that will reunite them with their team.

'Emergence' is essentially a narrative zombie mission

Once this target appears, players will hear a cohort of throaty sounds behind them. Turning will bring the player face to face with a small horde of undead researchers and facility workers that they will have to dispatch with their equipped axe.

For the next 20-30 minutes, the player engages in a narrative-driven single-player game. Call of Duty Zombies experience. Players will have to get to four access keys located throughout the facility and fight waves of hallucinating zombies between each one. To obtain each key, the player must fight a mini-boss from which each is taken Black Ops 6's Zombies mode or seemingly referencing the past Call of Duty Zombies antagonist.

Players will face off against the Mangler, the Abomination, and a monster that can suddenly turn invisible and hide in objects, which could be a shadow version of Termino's Amalgam boss. The final bosses are fighting Call of Duty: Black Ops 6The 'Emergence' map is a floating undead researcher that attacked with yellow lightning. While this boss doesn't have a 1:1 comparison, it could be a subtle reference to Avogadro, the electric boss from Black Ops 2's TranZit and Black Ops 4Alpha Omega.

At one point in 'Emergence', a zombie scientist flies past the player when they open the door, which could be a reference to The Pentagon Five.

'Emergence' contains a direct reference to the famous Kino der Toten Easter Egg

But by far the most obvious reference to Call of Duty Zombies'long history in Black Ops 6'Emergence' comes during the third boss fight of the mission. How the aforementioned invisible boss appears for the first time, a long time ago Call of Duty fans are treated to a powerful blast of nostalgia as the opening riff to a beloved song 115 starts playing.

Written by Kevin Sherwood and originally starring Elena Siegman, 115 it was first heard all the way back in 2009 as music on a deadly screen Call of Duty: World at War map of Der Riese. Full version 115 was then heard on Call of Duty: Black Ops the Kino der Toten map, where it functioned as a musical Easter egg on the map.