Comic-Con 2015: CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS III: ZOMBIES – SHADOWS OF EVIL Trailer & Escape Room Impressions

2015/07/09 21:32:28 +00:00 | Derek Anderson

Treyarch has unveiled the official trailer for Call of Duty: Black Ops III: Zombies - Shadows of Evil, which is slated for a November 6th release and stars the voices of Jeff Goldblum, Heather Graham, Neal McDonough, Ron Perlman, and Robert Picardo.

Press Release: Santa Monica, CA - July 9, 2015 - Treyarch, the creators of Call of Duty® Zombies is back with, Shadows of Evil, the all-new undead survival co-op mode launching on November 6 with Call of Duty®: Black Ops III. Shadows of Evil will make its world-wide debut today at San Diego Comic-Con, which delivers an incredibly rich and deep narrative and action-packed co-op survival experience that is signature to Treyarch's strain of Zombies. Players are introduced to an all-star cast of characters, including Jeff Goldblum, Heather Graham, Neal McDonough, Ron Perlman and Robert Picardo.

"Treyarch has crafted a totally unique and face-melting gameplay experience for our loyal Zombies community, with Call of Duty: Black Ops III: Zombies - Shadows of Evil" said Mark Lamia, Studio Head, Treyarch. "The development team has packed Shadows of Evil with more gameplay and fun than any other experience before it, and has an appropriately twisted and deep narrative, performed by fantastic acting talent, that will keep our fans spinning. "

Call of Duty: Black Ops III: Zombies - Shadows of Evil drops players into a recognizable yet terrifyingly unfamiliar world, as they uncover the secrets and challenges laid out for them by a shadowy figure, who holds their fate in his hands. Set in a 1940's film-noir era, Shadows of Evil introduces four unwitting characters - The Magician, The Femme-Fatale, The Cop and The Boxer - into an unraveling experience masterminded by the mysterious Shadow Man. Featuring voices and likenesses, the characters are played by Jeff Goldblum (Jurassic Park, Independence Day), Heather Graham (The Hangover 1-3, Californication), Neil McDonough (Captain America: The First Avenger, Band of Brothers), Ron Perlman (Sons of Anarchy, Hellboy) and Robert Picardo (Star Trek: Voyager, Stargate SG-1).

Marking today's world premiere, Call of Duty: Black Ops III: Zombies - Shadows of Evil is taking over San Diego Comic-Con with an action-packed lineup of activities and events for fans. Kicking off the show, Zombies will be front and center at a panel hosted by YouTube superstar, and Call of Duty Zombies fanatic, Syndicate (Tom Cassell). The panel features celebrity stars of the Call of Duty Zombies Treyarch series past and present, exclusive giveaways, behind-the-scenes information and the world exclusive first look of Shadows of Evil gameplay. Throughout Comic-Con, fans can also step into the world of Shadows of Evil via an epic immersive experiential activity (located at 450 Second Ave. from 2:00 pm to 10:00 pm on Thursday, 12:00 pm to 8:00 pm Friday and Saturday) that places them in the middle of an unrelenting Zombie onslaught, giving them a firsthand look at the survivors' intertwined stories for the ultimate Call of Duty Zombies brought to life.

And open to the public for the first time, players can get their hands on Call of Duty: Black Ops III multiplayer on PlayStation 4 inside the PlayStation "Road to Greatness" Tour Bus parked right outside the Zombies experience.

Making its debut at San Diego Comic-Con, the Call of Duty: Black Ops IIIJuggernog Collector's Edition is the unparalleled offering for the die-hard Call of Duty Zombies fan. The limited Juggernog Collector's Edition comes packed with a fully-functioning mini-refrigerator modeled after the iconic Juggernog Perk-a-Cola dispenser from Call of Duty Zombies, the Call of Duty: Black Ops III Season Pass and The Giant, a remake of Der Rise, one of the all-time fan favorite Treyarch Zombies maps. The Call of Duty: Black Ops III Hardened Edition and Digital Deluxe Edition, also include The Giant Zombies map.

Additionally revealed today at San Diego Comic Con, Activision Blizzard launched an exciting campaign with charity fundraising platform Omaze, which gives Call of Duty fans a chance to become a zombie in Call of Duty: Black Ops III. This effort will raise money for the Call of Duty™ Endowment, a non-profit organization founded by Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick, which funds best-in-class nonprofits helping veterans find good jobs after their service. Activision Blizzard is also matching each donation dollar for dollar up to $1,000,000. Starting today, and running through August 31, 2015, fans can enter by donating $10 or more to the Call of Duty Endowment via Omaze for a chance to be zombified at Treyarch and appear in Call of Duty: Black Ops III DLC. The winner will also have their name immortalized in a Zombies mode level, have lunch with Treyarch Studio Head Mark Lamia, and receive a behind-the-scenes tour of the studio behind the game. For more information, fans can visit omaze.com/callofduty.

San Diego Comic-Con also marks the reveal of monumental new Call of Duty: Black Ops III brand partnerships as part of the all-out Black Ops III invasion. Dark Horse Comics and Treyarch have teamed up to create an all-new comic book series, written by Larry Hama and penciled by Marcelo Ferreira, chronicling the exploits of an elite group of soldiers. Additionally, Mega Bloks has created an all-new gold San Diego Comic-Con exclusive Zombies figurine. Fans, 18 years old and up, can pick up a limited edition mini-issue of the Dark Horse Comics Call of Duty: Black Ops III prequel, and the exclusive Mega Bloks Zombies figurine at the show by attending the Black Ops III: Zombies panel to secure a voucher.

Scheduled for release worldwide on November 6, Call of Duty: Black Ops III is published by Activision Publishing, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Activision Blizzard (Nasdaq: ATVI), and developed by Treyarch. The game is in development for PlayStation®4, Xbox One, the all-in-one games and entertainment system from Microsoft and PC. PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and Xbox 360 games and entertainment system from Microsoft versions are developed by Beenox and Mercenary Technology. The title is not yet rated. For the latest intel, check out: www.callofduty.com, www.facebook.com/callofduty,www.youtube.com/callofduty or follow @CallofDuty on Twitter and Instagram.

About Treyarch

Driven by an intense desire to provide video game fans with the most fun of their lives, Treyarch is an industry-leading game developer whose Black Ops series of titles have set entertainment launch records upon release and continues to be some of the best-selling games of all time, according to NPD and GfK Chart-Track. More players have played the studio's Black Ops games online than any other in Call of Duty franchise history. Treyarch is owned by Activision Publishing, Inc.

About the Call of Duty Endowment

The Call of Duty Endowment is a nonprofit organization founded by Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick that gets veterans back to work by funding high-impact organizations that prepare veterans for the job market. Every $1,000 raised for the Endowment helps a veteran get a good job. With the unemployment rate for the youngest returning veterans over 17%, the Call of Duty Endowment is proud to have helped over 12,000 veterans start high quality careers. Learn more at http://www.callofdutyendowment.org.

About Activision Publishing, Inc.

Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, Activision Publishing, Inc. is a leading global producer and publisher of interactive entertainment. Activision maintains operations throughout the world. More information about Activision and its products can be found on the company's website, www.activision.com or by following @Activision.

Escape Room Impressions

A light rain falls down as we make our way inside a dimly lit interior. Stepping through the doorway is like entering a time warp to a club in a pulp novel. Jazz music drifts in through the open door before we're sealed inside. Our night has seemingly turned into a film noir, but we're not about to experience a story from Mickey Spillane. Instead, we're here to survive the Call of Duty: Black Ops III Zombies Escape Room Challenge.

Seated in front of a screen with men in fedora hats and women in black evening dresses visible in our peripherals, we watch as Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 Zombies director Jason Blundell and lead writer Craig Houston step to the front of our small crowd to discuss the making of the new zombies mode, which we're about to sample onscreen. They talk about the passion that went into the game, its infectiously ambitious creative process. They promise more to come at the Comic-Con panel and wish us well on our journey into the eerie interiors waiting behind two doors on either side of the room.

They exit the stage, the lights go down, and the reels roll. We're introduced to Morg City, a place that bears the dark atmosphere of a dime store pulp novel intertwined with the vibe of Robert Rodriguez's Sin City films. Four playable characters are introduced—a boxer, a burlesque dancer, a murderous magician, and a crooked cop. All of them have done more bad than good in their lives and have been selected by an unseen presence for a living dead game from which they may not return. They're drugged one night at the same club and wake up in a living nightmare. Zombies attack from the shadows of the city streets, and these four tortured, multi-dimensional characters must band together with brains, brawn, and firepower to survive to see another dawn.

Atmospheric, darkly humorous, and genuinely frightening, the teaser finishes playing, and our crowd is divided—escorted into two separate rooms by the gentlemen in suits, one of whom warns us that if we break anything, he'll cut our fingers off. Duly noted.

Our group enters a room reminiscent of the club from the teaser. A burlesque stage sits at one end, a bar on the other. We grab our seats. An overhead announcer introduces the burlesque show, but before the performers can take the stage, we hear their screams behind the curtains, their terrified cries soon overtaken by moans and the sickening sound of smacking lips.

We spring from our chairs, the unseen announcer instructing us to search for clues to earn our exit. A boarded up doorway sits to the right of the stage, and it's not long before grasping hands protrude from the openings between the lumber, groping for our flesh whenever one of us walks by in search of a way out.

Communicating amongst the chaos, we find clues and perform tasks instructed by the announcer, eventually solving the puzzle and gaining access to an exit door next to a cigarette machine just as the zombies are set to stagger into our quarters. Finding freedom on the other side of the door, we exit the club and come back to our modern reality.

It's been a surprising experience. The pulp novel / film noir setting of the game and the Escape Room is not all what we expected. But as they've proven with their zombie modes over the years, that's what Activision and Treyarch are good at: throwing gamers into new situations that startle, shock, and make y0u hungry for more.

It's stopped raining. The zombies are at bay. The stylish noir nightmare is done for another night. But the appetites of the dead are demanding and must be sated. And Comic-Con has just begun...

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Call of Duty Black Ops III: Zombies Escape Room Challenge

"Bringing Treyarch's signature brand of Zombies to life, Activision is inviting all Comic-Con attendees to experience the Black Ops III Zombies "Escape Room Challenge." Showgoers must solve clues, and work together in order to escape the room before time expires. The Escape Room Challenge is free and open to the public, running the following days and times: