Call Of Duty: Black Ops 3's New Game Mode Is Race Against The Clock

There's a brand new mode for Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 that combines asymmetrical multiplayer competition with platforming skills. The name of the mode is Free Run and it sees players racing against the clock to post the best times possible.

Gamespot did a write-up on the mode after it was revealed during a live-stream by Treyarch. You can see the mode in action with an asymmetrical head-to-head bout below.

Basically it's like a training mode but also offers its own meta game by allowing players to run through the levels, post their times and compete for leaderboard supremacy. The mode is automatically unlocked at the start of Call of Duty: Black Ops 3, so you don't have to unlock it or earn it, although I do admit it would have been pretty cool if it was unlocked after completing the story mode. I always loved games that had additional modes and features unlocked after completing a major objective or challenge in the game.

The mode is two-fold in the sense that not only can you compete against other players to post the best times possible, but it also teaches you how to navigate through the Black Ops 3 levels using the boosts, wall-runs and thrusters.

Some of you might recognize that the obstacle course looks a little bit like Titanfall's training sim, and the parkour elements are not unlike Mirror's Edge, where you can run, jump, hop and slide over, under and through things.

To help mix up the challenges, there are also some light target practice segments interspersed throughout the levels. Players will have limited ammo to take out the stationary targets and increase their time while blasting through the stage. Failing to hit the targets will result in a time penalty, similar to rolling on the grass in Gran Turismo or Forza Motorsport.

The Free Run mode was met with a little bit of resistance from the core Call of Duty community. I'm not entirely sure what else they would expect from the game or for the game, but those who aren't entirely entrenched in the Call of Duty fan circles actually thought the mode was pretty cool. As someone who has grown tired of the standard-fare, military FPS genre, I can at least say that the Free Run mode in Black Ops 3 adds something extra to the game that makes it look slightly more appealing than before. At least Treyarch is attempting to innovate, yeah?

Treyarch and Activision plan on unleashing Black Ops 3 onto the world for the Xbox 360, PS3, PC, Xbox One and PS4 starting November 6th, next month. Take note that the campaign mode will not be featured in the seventh-gen rendition of the game.