Press Release Details

Beginning Today, Fans Can Get Their First Experience with Black Ops 4’s All-New Battle Royale Mode, Blackout

A Celebration of the Black Ops Universe, Blackout Delivers Signature Call of Duty Gameplay Immersed in Classic Environments and Characters from the Series

SANTA MONICA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sep. 10, 2018-- Black Ops comes to life like never before in the Call of Duty®: Black Ops 4 Blackout Private Beta, beginning now, first on the PlayStation 4. The Call of Duty community will get their first experience with Black Ops 4’s all-new mode, Blackout, which drops players into a last-player-standing Battle Royale experience that is uniquely Call of Duty: Black Ops. A celebration of the Black Ops series, Blackout features fan-favorite characters, weapons and iconic parts of classic maps, all in the biggest map in franchise history complete with land, sea and air vehicles. The Private Beta will provide valuable user feedback and data as Activision and developer Treyarch prepare to release the deepest, most engaging Call of Duty game ever on October 12^th.

“The Blackout Beta is just the beginning of a long journey that we plan to take with our fans,” said Dan Bunting, Co-Studio Head, Treyarch. “We are going to support Blackout for the long haul, and there’s such a rich history with Black Ops that allows us to continuously update and evolve Blackout to keep it fun and fresh for the community. It’s a true celebration of Black Ops in every way, and getting our community in to play the mode before launch is vital. We can’t wait to see the feedback and hear from players as they get a taste of what’s coming in October.”

The Blackout Private Beta* schedule is as follows:

• PlayStation 4:
  • Monday, September 10^th at 10 am PT – Monday, September 17^th at 10 am PT (PlayStation 4)
• Xbox One and PC**:
  • Friday, September 14^th at 10 am PT – Monday, September 17^th at 10 am PT (Xbox One, PC)
  • Saturday, September 15^th, 10 am PT – Monday, September 17^th at 10 am PT (PC Open Beta only)

“The development effort behind Blackout has been an extraordinary undertaking and we couldn’t be more proud for what the team has accomplished,” said Mark Gordon, Co-Studio Head of Treyarch. “It’s awesome to watch how making Blackout has engaged the whole team in ways that we have never seen before. We couldn’t be more excited to bring the vast heritage of Black Ops heritage to life in Blackout, and can’t wait for the community to share their feedback as we head to launch.”

Deeply rooted in the Black Ops series, which has surpassed more than 200 million players and 15 billion hours played over its lifetime, Blackout spans some of the greatest characters and iconic map locales from Black Ops, Black Ops II, Black Ops III and Black Ops 4. The Private Beta includes a variety of new and classic playable characters, including campaign characters like Mason, Reznov and Woods; Zombies characters like Richtofen and Takeo; and Specialists like Crash, Battery and Seraph, to name a few. Across the sprawling Blackout map, players will fight in locations inspired by fan-favorite Black Ops maps like Nuketown, Firing Range, Raid, Cargo and more.

Fans who have already downloaded the recently completed Multiplayer Beta, or who have since pre-ordered Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 at participating retailers, will receive access to the Blackout Private Beta. Code redemption and other Beta access information can be found at the Activision Beta support site.

The Blackout Private Beta is just the beginning, as the development teams will be actively gathering community feedback throughout the Beta test and will use the player data to fine-tune gameplay balance, stress-test servers and optimize the online experience ahead of the game’s launch on October 12^th. Beta participants will have the opportunity to share their feedback and join in an active dialogue with the development team across a variety of outlets, including player surveys and online forums, with frequent Beta update posts planned from Treyarch:

• Twitter (@Treyarch): Treyarch’s Community and Live Ops teams will be watching their social channels throughout the Beta to get player feedback on everything regarding gameplay and any issues or bugs that may arise. Please tag your feedback with #BO4Beta to make it easier to find. Particularly for the PC crowd, players should follow @TreyarchPC.
• Twitter (@ATVI Assist): For specific technical issues, players should tweet @ATVIAssist, with the tag #BO4Beta.
• Reddit: Treyarch’s Community and Live Ops teams will also be watching Reddit, so players should add their comments to the r/BlackOps4 subreddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/Blackops4/
• Console: Depending on the technical issue, players may also be given the opportunity to “report a problem” directly on their console. If that happens, please do so, as it helps Treyarch track down the source of issue.
• Survey: After you’ve played the Beta, players will be given the opportunity to provide the team with direct feedback through a detailed survey.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 is published by Activision and developed by Treyarch with additional development support from Raven Software and PC development with Beenox. The title is scheduled for release on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC on October 12^th. Black Ops 4 for thePC delivers a fully-optimized experience, which for the first time in Call of Duty’s history will be available exclusively on Battle.net, Blizzard Entertainment’s online gaming service. For more information and the latest intel check out: www.callofduty.com, www.youtube.com/callofduty and follow @CallofDuty and @Treyarch on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 is scheduled for release on PlayStation®4 system, Xbox One, and PC. The game is rated M for Mature (Blood and Gore, Drug Reference, Intense Violence, Strong Language).

About Treyarch

Treyarch is an award-winning video game studio, driven by the desire to create epic gameplay experiences that are enjoyed by as many video game fans as possible. It is an approach that has helped to make the studio behind the Call of Duty®: Black Ops series of games, an industry-leading developer. Call of Duty: Black Ops set an entertainment launch opening record upon its release in 2010 and continues to be one of the best-selling games of all time, according to NPD and GfK Chart-Track; Call of Duty®: Black Ops II set world-wide launch day records; and the studio’s most recent Call of Duty®: Black Ops III held the biggest entertainment opening weekend of 2015, and was the #1 console game globally for the calendar year. Additionally, Treyarch is the birthplace of Call of Duty’s Zombies. Treyarch is wholly owned by Activision.

About Activision

Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, Activision is a leading global producer and publisher of interactive entertainment. Activision maintains operations throughout the world and is a division of Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ: ATVI), an S&P 500 company. More information about Activision and its products can be found on the company's website, www.activision.com or by following @Activision.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Statements: Information in this press release that involves Activision Publishing's expectations, plans, intentions or strategies regarding the future, including statements about the expected release dates, features and functionality of Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, including the Blackout Private Beta and PC Open Beta, are forward-looking statements that are not facts and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Factors that could cause Activision Publishing's actual future results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements set forth in this release include unanticipated product delays and other factors identified in the risk factors sections of Activision Blizzard's most recent annual report on Form 10K and any subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. The forward-looking statements in this release are based upon information available to Activision Publishing and Activision Blizzard as of the date of this release, and neither Activision Publishing nor Activision Blizzard assumes any obligation to update any such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements believed to be true when made may ultimately prove to be incorrect. These statements are not guarantees of the future performance of Activision Publishing or Activision Blizzard and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, some of which are beyond its control and may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations.

*Blackout Beta starts September 10, 2018 on PS4 system; other platforms to follow. Private Beta pre-order offer does not apply to PC platform version. Actual platform availability and launch date(s) of Blackout Beta subject to change. See www.callofduty.com/beta for more details. Beta duration subject to change. Limited time only, while beta codes last, at participating retailers. Internet connection required.

**Blackout Beta starts September 15, 2018 on PC. Early Access starts September 14, 2018. Actual platform availability and launch date(s) of Blackout Beta subject to change. See www.callofduty.com/beta for more details. Limited time only, while beta codes last, at participating retailers. Internet connection required.

ACTIVISION, CALL OF DUTY, and CALL OF DUTY BLACK OPS are trademarks of Activision Publishing, Inc. All other trademarks and trade names are the properties of their respective owners.

"PlayStation" is a registered trademark and "PS4" is a trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180910005338/en/

Source: Activision Publishing, Inc.

Activision
Kelvin Liu
Senior Manager, Public Relations
310-255-2213
kelvin.liu@activision.com