Although it can't be argued that Black Ops is indeed a good game, it's merits are somewhat discussible.
It's not open to discussion that COD-Black Ops is a good game.Indeed it is.But as a franchise that came to release a game every single year, it has it's flaws.
Plenty of good action sequences, diversified scenario's and cinematic high points and cut scenes, in a somewhat short single player campaign.As a FPS,several others are just as good, if not better.
So, what makes COD-Black Ops so special? Most say it's his Multiplayer, supported by good marketing.I would agree. Call of Duty series did marked an era in Multiplayer genre with MW 1 and 2, but since Battlefield BC 2 came out, the standards were elevated higher. The graphic engine used in BO is still the same as previous releases, and it's starting to show it's age, specially when compared with others out there (Frostbite comes to mind , yes).
By playing trough the multiplayer, it's easy to understand that the developer tried to make an experience a bit different from MW1 and 2. Smaller maps, with a more frantic action, trying to reward 4 team based play, as a black ops team, where the first shot and quick reflexes count the most. However, this made an overall experience far from the objective, turning BO multiplayer into a place where no tactic approach is rewarded but the spawn killing and far sniping, and to fast paced to be enjoyed by the occasional player, that will get smashed in his kill/death ratios as he tries to get in. Specially considering how rampant the nodders are in all CoD franchise tittles.
It's nearly impossible to make a match without dying a lot, unless you hide someplace only to snipe your opponents, in which case you will only die a few times. There are not many places to hide that everyone does'nt know already. So, this makes everyone goal to simply running around frantically trying to kill as many as possible, turning it into a reflexes contest. To make things even less appealing, many times you have the feeling that the results and outcomes of some matches are somewhat ruled by an invisible hand that gives unseen handicaps to players. It's almost (if not completely) impossible for a team made of 8 elements to beat a team made of 4 elements in a Deathmatch game, when it should be exactly the opposite!
Finally, most of the online multiplayer gamers are kids under 14 years of age, and if it's true that you can simply turn of the sound and not ear their offensive trash talking and screaming while on a match, the way they act as gamers is impossible to ignore, from the attempts to spawn killing , to the harassment of anyone who kills them more than once, to the simple harassment of girl gamers, you name it.
For all this reasons, Black Ops fel far and short from all it's fame, and I can not give it more than the 7,5 out of 10 that I rated it.