Black Ops 6: New Arachnophobia Mode Unveiled

CoD has unveiled new features coming to Black Ops 6 with its imminent release. Furthermore, as the game launches on Game Pass day one, analysts have offered their forecasts on CoD's impact on Xbox's subscription service.

Black Ops 6 Update Introduces Arachnophobia Mode and Enhanced Accessibility FeaturesArachnophobia Mode Transforms Spider Zombies Into Limbless, Floating Creatures

Ahead of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6's official launch on October 25, the Call of Duty developers announced a new arachnophobia toggle for Black Ops 6 Zombies, the game's survival mode featuring, yes, zombies. This setting lets players alter the look of spider-like foes in Zombies without impacting gameplay.

Activating this feature results in purely cosmetic alterations. As shown above: the spider zombie loses its legs, amusingly making it appear to float. While terrifying to envision in reality, these legless spider zombies create some uncertainty. It's unclear if the spider zombie's hitbox shrinks to match its new form, as the dev team provided limited details, but it's likely in this shooter.

Also arriving to Black Ops 6 Zombies is the "Pause and Save" feature that allows players in Solo matches to pause, save, and resume games while at full health. With the return of the "Round-Based" mode in Zombies, the developers stated that this pause and save function "can make all the difference in gameplay for some players," especially since Round-Based maps are replete with challenges where players must restart from the first round upon death.

Black Ops 6 Could Attract an Additional 2.5M Players To Game PassBlack Ops 6 Game Pass Day One Launch a Double-Edged Sword

Upon its release, industry analysts have projected that Black Ops 6 could augment Xbox Game Pass' total subscribers as Microsoft implements its novel strategy for its gaming subscription service. Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz, analysts stated they anticipate millions of subscribers joining Game Pass, particularly considering that Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, the latest installment in one of the world's most popular shooter games, launches Day One.

The game is the first Call of Duty title to launch day one on Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass, and although the move is viewed as potentially harmful to game sales, analyst Michael Pachter observed that placing Black Ops 6 in Game Pass could "result in between three to four million people signing up to Game Pass to access the title."

Conversely, analyst Piers Harding-Rolls informed the news site that this will only yield a "10% increase in Game Pass Ultimate subscribers," estimated to be around 2.5 million subscribers. Furthermore, these subscribers will probably not be entirely new users, considering the likelihood of existing subscribers upgrading from Game Pass Core and Game Pass Standard to Game Pass Ultimate to access Call of Duty.

Meanwhile, Katan Games' Dr Serkan Toto noted that the success of Black Ops 6 on Game Pass is a crucial requirement for Xbox. "We all know that Microsoft's gaming unit has not been growing as expected, which is why Microsoft approved the Activision Blizzard mega deal in the first place," he said, according to GamesIndustry.biz. "Now the pressure on Xbox is immense: If Call of Duty will not make the Game Pass business model successful, what possibly can?"

For more details on Black Ops 6's release, gameplay, and more, check out the related articles in the section below! And if you're looking to learn about our experience playing the game before you get your hands on it, check out our Black Ops 6 review linked down right there. Spoiler: Zombies mode is highly enjoyable again!