October 6th marked my 15 year anniversary at
@Treyarch
! I'm very fortunate to have found a studio so early in my career that allowed me to learn and grow as a designer. I thought it would be fun to take a look back at my favorite contributions over the years.
1/14
Let me be clear. Please keep asking for ZC2. That passion and demand is what keeps the door open to the possibility of it! Just maybe don’t ask in my tweets about a painful situation at work.
We have big plans for zombies and want to grow the team to realize them. There are several design positions open at a range of experience level so it’s a great time to apply if you are interested!
We're hiring!
We continue to expand our world-class team with open positions in Engineering, Design, Creative, Animation, Art, UI/UX, and Production.
Apply today!
It's been incredibly rewarding to see the reactions and excitement of our BO6 Zombies reveal over the last day. The team's hard work and dedication are on full display, and we can’t wait for everyone to experience it!
Projects we're working on:
• Round-based maps in
#Vanguard
Zombies
• New Ranked Play seasons & rewards
• Jungle remaster in BOCW MP
• A new secret in BOCW Zombies 😉
• Outbreak & Onslaught updates
• New weapons & bundles for BOCW & Warzone
• Future COD content
This is my last tweet. It's a shame but this platform is just awful now. It was nice being able to connect with zombie fans on some level. I'll be on some other platform when the dust settles.
Sorry everyone but the Halloween Cold War Zombies had to end a little early to make room for the new hotness that is MW2. We appreciate the excitement for it though and will continue to push for themed events like this in future games!
Big shoutout to the Shi No Numa team! Revisiting a classic map and striking the balance of innovation while maintaining what made it special to begin with is no easy task. It looks amazing as well. You did a wonderful job!
Hello, my name is Kevin and I'm an Associate Design Director
@Treyarch
. I started my first design job here after graduating from
@DigiPenNews
over 15 years ago and at this point the Black Ops series is as much a part of me as I am a part of it.
#WhatAGameDevLooksLike
This project we challenged ourselves to create a new zombies experience in an open world format. We built all our gameplay systems to work for both. I couldn’t be prouder of the result. This is going to be an exciting week as the community finally gets their hands on it.
Hope everyone enjoyed the goodies from the new not so secret Easter Egg! It was a swan song and a big thank you from the team to everyone who stayed with us throughout Cold War and completed all the quests. The big question for me is do I go with Peck or Raptor One?
For those who don't want Pack-a-Punch camo applied to their Blueprint weapon or prefer a specific Pack-a-Punch tier camo try punching the machine before packing after the update goes live.
I got too many posters over the years and I'm feeling that holiday spirit. Doing a little homework too. Reply to this with your least favorite Perk, Field Upgrade, and Ammo Mod from Cold War Zombies by the end of the year and I'll pick someone at random to send this set to.
Video game development is complex, just like any entertainment industry. It is very rare that a single individual is responsible for the success of a game. It takes many talented people to create something special.
It's great to see such a positive reaction to the Rampage Inducer. We thought that the normal pace of the mode past Round 20 was exciting enough as is. Clearly there is an appetite for more. We will look into how to extend it further until natural Round rates match up.
It's been an honor making these over the past year and actually having some face time to talk about all the hard work the team does. I think this last one does such a great job expressing the passion of our team and their ability to deliver so much content during a pandemic.
The final showdown begins on Oct. 7th with all-new maps, the conclusion of
#BlackOpsColdWar
Zombies, earth-shattering changes in Verdansk, and much more.
Get a look at exclusive gameplay from the devs in our Season Six Special Broadcast.
On a semi-related note, everyone please buy the HD Onimusha remake so Capcom can get on the rest of the trilogy. I long for Jean Reno and his demon whip.
Two colleagues and I spent months reporting on allegations of sexual misconduct at Activision and what CEO Bobby Kotick knew and did about them. I hope you’ll read the story we just published. I’ll also thread key findings…
Sometimes I think about checking out Destiny 2 since I haven’t played since launch. Then I start looking at what I need to buy and then get confused/overwhelmed and play something else.
@JrrizzoYT
Another pass will be coming with the next map. We will be lowering the health cap back closer to the old model but adjusted for all the weapon buffs in Season 3. Also looking at sniper and melee buffs.
Black Ops 2 - Mob of the Dead
Point Designer/Scripter
My first time working on Zombies and leading a team of designers. We knew it was going to be special after taking a real tour at Alcatraz which inspired the Easter Eggs. I worked directly on the Afterlife mechanic.
5/14
As the consumer, it is their right to play it and form an opinion, negative or positive, and voice that. What troubles me is when people claim that the developers have no passion for the game they work on. This could not be further from the truth.
I believe this will strike the right balance of difficult but not tedious at the highest rounds and objectives. Equipment and support are feeling real good with these adjustments. I'm excited to see what you think next week.
Having gone through that many times over the years, they are likely taking that criticism the hardest as they reflect on the unique challenges of that project and how they can do better. Regardless of the circumstances, we always want people to enjoy the things we make.
Black Ops 3 - Zetsubou No Shima
Design Director
This map means a lot to me. It was my first shot directing a Zombies map. I really wanted to embrace the horror aspect and create a dark and tense atmosphere. I learned so much about what people do and don't enjoy in Zombies.
9/14
Black Ops 2 - Origins
Designer/Scripter
I got to implement the quest steps designed by
@MechaHyena
which was a cool coincidence having also worked on Vorkuta. I created some side features like digging and associated Easter Eggs.
6/14
Black Ops Cold War - Zombie Systems
Lead Designer
The biggest pivot of my career, I switched over to the systems design team. Based on my past Zombies experience, I set out to unify the multiplayer mechanics with Zombies and make the mode as accessible as possible.
12/14
Even with an amazing team, there are circumstances beyond their control that can impact a game. Development time, budget, and meeting consumer demands to name a few. Ultimately that should not matter to the person playing the game.
Black Ops 4 - Ancient Evil
Design Director
Rather than chasing something I thought players wanted, I instead created a map that I'd want to play - one of the biggest takeaways of my career. Love this map, love Greek lore, and absolutely love partner Pegasus.
11/14
@MrRoflWaffles
@Treyarch
That was exactly our goal this game. Get more people comfortable in zombies so they can feel like they can do the EEs. Also thanks for the awesome guides over the years. I don't always find the friends or time to do my own EEs, but when I do I use no nonsense to jog the memory.
Your favorite game or entry in a game series is intrinsically tied to a more innocent time in your life when everything was new and exciting, before you felt the weight of responsibilities in adulthood.
Black Ops - Vorkuta
Designer/Scripter
First work on Call of Duty and one of the levels I'm most proud of. A lot of late nights coming up with new ways to push the AI count and fill that prison up during the escape. Step 1: Secure the keys!
3/14
Black Ops 4 - Blood of the Dead
Design Director
It is very rare you get the chance to revisit something you worked on in the past. We got to build out the rest of the island that had to be cut the first time around while telling a personal story here with the iconic crew.
10/14
Watched and experienced a wide range of emotions the last 24 hours with the Outbreak quest. I hope everyone is having fun, but I recognize that fun means something different to everyone. These were the goals we had while designing this quest and I feel like the team succeeded.
Which brings us to the present. It was rarely easy, but worth it! I've gotten the chance to work with so many talented individuals Treyarch over the years and I look forward to the future!
14/14
Black Ops Cold War - Outbreak
Lead Designer
Accessibility also meant creating more ways to play Zombies. Outbreak is all about giving the player control over the pacing. A new mode that we can build on and refine, just like we did with round-based over the last decade.
13/14
Just me doing a regular check in to see how the zombies community is reacting to our seasonal content announcement. Also I really like Death Perception as an average skilled player.
What an awesome group of people I got to work with on this game! We all showed up to a random GameStop at midnight to celebrate with fans. They did not expect so many of us!
@Shabatoge
@SteveH_
@ChrisAPierro
@ObusWolf
Did we make Hallows' Eve Outbreak LTM so that I could quickly earn crystals now that I have more time to play?
No, but I'm going to take advantage of it anyway.
#TheHaunting
#BlackOpsColdWar
Black Ops 2 - Celerium
Designer/Scripter
For this level we got to blend together neat future tech mechanics along with with some stealth gameplay. The mountains of Myanmar during a monsoon was a great environment to work in.
4/14
Black Ops 3 - New World
Design Lead
This was the game I stopped scripting and got the opportunity to lead level teams. This level was a challenge as we had to teach all our game mechanics while also telling an important historical disaster for the story. Train go boom.
7/14
@ScottJ1998
@TheGamerCherry
Anything is possible. We are very aware the community wants more challenge at high rounds and harder to discover elements like older games. We want to find a way to have that without removing everyone’s ability to experience the story.
@TheGamerCherry
One of the reasons we did it in Cold War like this was to get time to find and fix stability issues with the map so they don’t interfere with quest discovery. Millions of players will find things that even the best QA can’t. It was largely successful, the quests were more stable.
I keep thinking about this response the Chargers HC gave about leadership. It perfectly summarizes how I feel. How can we begin rebuilding that trust at ABK while the man who allowed this abuse of power still leads without consequence.
#FireBobbyKotick
Sorry a few of these slipped through the initial patch notes! Big credit to
@MechaHyena
for keeping our Wonder Weapons all nicely balanced while also juggling creation of of our Round Based maps.
👀 More new Zombies updates in Season Six:
• RAI K-84 vortex explosion damage increased by 100%!
• D.I.E. Wonder Weapon can now be Pack-a-Punched with some sweet upgrades!
• In Onslaught, Plaguehounds capped at 15 per Surge. Chance to spawn has been lowered from 10% to 5%.
All previous Season Challenges will be revealed for everyone on Dec. 8th!
If you weren’t able to reveal them all before the end of a season, now you can.
Finish a previous season's full set in MP or Zombies to earn an animated Master Calling Card and 10,000 XP with each set.
Quantum of Solace - Siena
Designer/Scripter
My first shipping content and it ended up being an E3 demo. I learned so much from my design leads about pacing and composition of different gameplay moments.
2/14
@Tony_Flame
I'm sorry to see you go Tony! I've enjoyed working with you over the many years. Even when we didn't get to work on the same parts, I was comforted knowing you were doing amazing work on the other side. Whatever you do next I'm sure it will be great!
Black Ops 3 - Hypocenter
Design Lead
Another favorite level of mine because it had a goal of being more than just intense action. We tried to create a creepy atmosphere as you descend down the massive abandoned structure, unsure of what was hiding within.
8/14