“There’s a lot to absorb in Ancient Evil, and we can’t wait for the community to experience it.” – Jason Blundell, Director of Zombies, Treyarch.
First on Playstation®4 and with other platforms to follow, the latest adventure in the Black Ops 4 Chaos Zombies storyline is here! The companions wake from their mind-trip after the concluding events of “IX”, where Bruno, Diego, Scarlett and Shaw fought armies of undead within an ancient coliseum that culminated in a deadly battle against the High Priest of Chaos. Now tentatively exploring the subterranean caverns of Greece with newfound knowledge at hand, the team are guided by a strange, disembodied voice.
The voice belongs to the fabled Oracle of Delphi, trapped within the Temple of Apollo, and seeking freedom from her entrapment. Scarlett seems particularly keen on helping with this task, as the mystery of Scarlett’s father, Alistair Rhodes, is inextricably linked to the Oracle. So begins the exploration of a subterranean city -- a strange sunken settlement buried deep below the sacred, and almost-identical surface Greek city of Delphi. Built by unknown hands, it lies at the base of a gigantic underground cavern, and was undiscovered for centuries. Until now!
Jason Blundell explains: “So far, the Chaos story has introduced a lot of different myths of ancient gods and monsters - like the different towers dedicated to Odin or Ra in IX, or the Celtic myths in Dead of the Night. One of the most exciting things about this map is that it gets to really focus on the granddaddy of them all - Ancient Greek Mythology. It’s been such a joy to draw inspiration from such rich material, and actual historical locations, and get to bring it all to life in a really vivid way.”
“A great thing that this location offers in common with some our favorite maps, is that it’s very layered - You get these huge vistas and iconic landmarks and monuments - but there’s also so much more to it than initially meets the eye.”
Thanks to a Sentinel Trial permanently trapping the city’s initial inhabitants, expect to encounter no end of fraught and frantic fights against the unrelenting undead. Aside from zombies, other mythical beings from skeletal warriors to multi-armed giants are also waiting to battle you. Though the odds may be stacked against you, not every entity seeks your demise. The winged Pegasus provides some otherworldly assistance when you summon it for crowd control duties, which can help your team as you journey deeper into this ancient hellhole.
Also expect a new arsenal of unique Zombies weapons that Treyarch is famous for. While we can’t reveal what mythical firepower, armaments, power-ups, and traps are available just yet, you’re definitely going to need every crazy contraption as the Chaos crew explores new depths, intent on stopping the High Priest of Chaos and his deranged disciples from accessing ultimate power!
Jason Blundell is keen for fans to experience the continuation of the Zombies narrative: “After so many different Zombies maps at launch, DCL1, the prequel comic books… it’s nice that Ancient Evil gets to move the story forward now that the chronology has settled down, so to speak. A few of the bigger story threads that we saw developing in previous maps are really going to come to the foreground now, which means we get to see some significant moments and development for our cast of characters.”
Ancient Evil is the culmination of the current Chaos story arc thus far, following the events of “Voyage of Despair”, “IX”, and the recent star-studded prequel, “Dead of the Night”. If you’re new to the Black Ops 4 Zombies saga, there’s never been a better time to jump in, start solving those Easter Eggs, and immerse yourself in the ever-twisting narrative behind it all. Fans of the classic Aether story can also experience “Blood of the Dead” as the Primis crew (Richtofen, Dempsey, Takeo, and Nikolai), and Black Ops Pass holders get instant access to “Classified”, the raucous return to the Pentagon in a reimagined Black Ops fan-favorite.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 Zombies: Ancient Evil is available to all Black Ops Pass Owners of Call of Duty®: Black Ops 4, and is available to play now, first on PS4 with other platforms to follow.
For more intel about Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, be sure to visit CallofDuty.com/blackops4 and follow @CallofDuty and @Treyarch on Twitter.