Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 developer Treyarch Studios has given fans an explanation for why the game only features a wall-jumping mechanic, rather than wall-running, citing the series’ timeline and canon as the primary reason. There were long-standing rumors that Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 would feature wall-running and other futuristic movement mechanics, but the game’s full reveal and ongoing open beta confirmed that the shooter only features a slightly evolved omnimovement system, which allows players to jump off walls.
Back in June, Call of Duty publisher Activision shut down speculation that Black Ops 7 would have jetpacks and wall-running, similar to previous entries, such as Black Ops 3 and Infinite Warfare. These rumors were sparked after some players managed to access unreleased Warzone files that seemingly included new wall-running abilities. As Warzone is fully integrated with each new Call of Duty title, the leak led many to believe that this feature would be carried over from the upcoming Black Ops 7. We, of course, now know that the new entry will only feature a wall-jumping mechanic, and Treyarch has explained its decision not to go all-out with a new movement system.
Treyarch Explains Why Black Ops 7 Doesn't Have Wall-Running
Call of Duty fans are finally getting to go hands-on with Black Ops 7 as part of its open beta this week, and while many are loving the new entry in the series, some are eager to know why Treyarch didn’t simply go all-out and include wall-running alongside its evolved omnimovement system. Well, in a new interview with GamesRadar+, associate creative director Miles Leslie explained that it boils down to the canon and timeline of Black Ops 2 and Black Ops 3, which are set in 2025 and 2065, respectively. “We are really precious to our own canon, we have to respect that. So that meant we couldn’t have Thrust Jump, because the tech didn’t exist in 2035,” the developer explained.
Leslie then goes on to explain the decision-making process behind the lack of wall-running, saying, “Wall running made sense when we were further in the future, but with our return to the Black Ops 2 era, that world just didn’t have that sort of technology, so it made sense not to do it.” For those who might be unaware, Black Ops 7 takes place in the year 2035 and picks up ten years after the events of Black Ops 2, featuring returning characters such as David Mason and Raul Menendez.
As Black Ops 3, which was one of the few Call of Duty games to feature jetpacks and wall-running, is set in the year 2065, it is implied that these advanced movement systems weren’t invented until around that time period. Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, a prequel to Black Ops 3 set in the early 2040s, doesn’t feature jetpacks or wall-running, so it would make little sense, canonically, for Black Ops 6 to have them.
Fans who have yet to check out Call of Duty: Black Ops 7‘s evolved omnimovement system will need to hurry, as there are only a couple of days left of the game’s open beta. While the playtest was initially set to end on Wednesday, October 8, Treyarch recently announced that it had extended the Black Ops 7 beta to Thursday, October 9. The extension gives fans an extra day to play the next Call of Duty game ahead of its release on November 14 for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.