Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War has brought the tactical nuke back, which would undoubtedly delight diehard fans of the franchise. The killstreak first appeared in Modern Warfare 2 in 2009 and has since appeared in various forms, but Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War is the first Treyarch game to include the nuke.
In 2019, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare had a nuke, but to get it, players had to get 30 kills without using killstreaks. It was the first time the tactical nuke had appeared since 2009, and it provided players with a satisfying way to end matches.
Other big killstreaks in the past, such as the MOAB in MW3 or the DNA Bomb, didn’t end matches after being earned. The new nuke resembles the latter more than the original MW2 nuke.
The nuke in Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War was added quietly in the most recent update, discovered by player Ghost Rymms, and wasn’t even mentioned in the patch notes (via Dexerto). The nuke is only available for a limited time in the new Black Ops: Cold War 80s Action Heroes update’s “Die Hardpoint” mode and activated after 25 kills with any weapon.
Players will then call it in, which will destroy everyone in the lobby, but the game can resume until everyone has respawned. It also seems that it can be won several times in a single game, which is pretty cool for outstanding players.
I GOT A SNIPING TACTICAL NUKE?!? HUH pic.twitter.com/rSPofaHbeC
— Ghost Rymms ♨️ (@Rymms) May 20, 2021
It’s unclear whether there are any plans to keep the killstreak after the mode is removed, making it a more official part of the game. Given that it doesn’t have much of an effect on gameplay beyond forcing everyone to respawn, it’s likely to be limited, but Treyarch may be swayed if there’s enough fan demand for it.
It’s not the first time a nuke has been linked to this game; during the season 3 update for Black Ops Cold War, which added deeper integration with Warzone, Verdansk was nuked, allowing a flashback to the same map in 1984. Treyarch was the only developer to never experiment with a massive killstreak like this, so perhaps fans can expect more streaks like this in future games from the beloved developer.
Given that nuclear bombs played a major role in the war, it’s unclear whether Sledgehammer Games will include a nuke in its rumored WWII title, but it could be deemed insensitive. The next game from the company is scheduled to be released later this summer.
