Screenshots & trailers
What players say
Why the number is what it is: aspect mentions counted across 300 sampled Steam reviews (242 positive / 58 negative), recent and most-helpful. Plain keyword counting, fully reproducible; nothing here is written by a machine.
What positive reviews talk about
- Multiplayer & servers14% mention it
- Story & writing10% mention it
What negative reviews complain about
- Multiplayer & servers40% mention it
- Bugs & crashes16% mention it
- Story & writing9% mention it
Satisfaction by hours played
Same score, different games: see how sentiment holds up the longer people play.
Under 5h
77%
100 reviews
5-15h
79%
125 reviews
15-40h
91%
47 reviews
40-100h
90%
20 reviews
Review sentiment over time
Weekly positive-review rate (green) and review volume (bars). Dashed lines mark significant patches; the amber line is the start of the current scoring window. Hover the dots to see what drove a dip or a jump.
How this score was computed
The VGC Score is a weighted blend on a press-comparable 0-100 quality scale. Steam approval rates are first calibrated (95% positive on Steam ≈ 89.5 quality, since Steam approval skews high). Press and tracked creator reviews each count ~2x a player review and share one cap against player evidence (creator buy/skip calls pool into an approval rate, calibrated like Steam approval); all-time sentiment is capped and halved (it's context, not verdict); reviews of the current build carry the most weight when a fresh patch anchors the window; and a 'typical game' prior keeps small samples from pegging the scale. Because press reviews and Metacritic user aggregates describe the launch build, their weight decays as the game ages (3-year half-life after a 1-year grace). That's how a game that launched rough can outgrow its old reception once updates win players over. Reviews under 2h playtime (the refund window), non-Steam activations, and free copies are downweighted.
| Component | Positive | Quality (0-100) | Weight (pseudo-reviews) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Press reviews (Metacritic) | – | 83 | 6 |
| Creator reviews (1 tracked) | – | 94 | 0 |
| All-time Steam reviews | 86% | 80 | 1000 |
| Metacritic user ratings | – | 63 | 39 |
| Post-patch Steam reviews (trust-weighted) | 83% | 77 | 64 |
| Calibration prior (typical game) | – | 72 | 50 |
Scoring window: last 30 days (no significant patch detected) · 183 reviews sampled · 157 total reviews in window · weighted 98.2 up / 20.1 down · computed 2h ago · full methodology →
Press & Creators reviews (72)
Individual verdicts from outlets we track: scored reviews first, most trusted outlets first among them. The small badge is each outlet's trust score: how well its scoring history aligns with players.
- 80
“It's hard to recommend Black Ops II to fans of story-based single player campaigns. Treyarch had problems connecting a story with strong characters, with a dynamic, linear shooter. The result is chaotic, but a mediocre single player mode cannot weigh heavily on a final opinion about this game. The most important thing in Black Ops II is an incredible multiplayer - a classic, fast-paced game with many innovations. The Pick 10 system opens up a metric ton of possibilities, and really good maps and play styles create a package never before seen in a Call of Duty game. If that's the thing you want in a modern shooter, you couldn't have picked better.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“Multiplayer is king in Black Ops 2, offering plenty of in-game and inherent rewards for its ravenous online community. It's paired with a lackluster story that fails the ambition shown by the branching campaign, reflecting the overall game's forward-thinking but imperfectly executed ideas.”
read full review ↗ - 88
“There are enough new and fresh ideas here to make it stand out, and there is certainly plenty of content to keep you playing. Black Ops 2 will easily be the best-selling game this year, but it will also be remembered for changing the way we look at the CoD series.”
read full review ↗ - 75
“Despite all of these changes in Call of Duty: Black Ops II, the single- and multiplayer aspects can't quite shake the feeling of déjà vu. On the other hand, it's the same experience that many players have known since Infinity Ward's Modern Warfare.”
read full review ↗ - 85
“Call of Duty's three-pronged attack serves it well in Black Ops II, with the superb online play and Zombies co-op making up for a less-essential campaign this time - though its many changes and occasional high points still warrant a playthrough (or two) to see Treyarch's spin on the well-worn template.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“Black Ops 2 is conflicted. It wants to move in bold new directions, but it falls back on safe, but aging, mechanics.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“Ultimately, ambition is the word that best describes Black Ops 2 - and that's remarkable enough in itself. This is still Call of Duty, with all that entails, and anyone who has resisted the series so far likely won't be won over this time either. For the fans, though, Black Ops 2 offers the rare sight of a series at its height choosing to experiment and change rather than stay loyal to a proven, but tired, formula.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“The campaign hits the same satisfying rhythms, the multiplayer captures the same frenetic intensity, and the cooperative zombies mode delivers the same stale undead-massacring action. Caught between striving for the future and remaining rooted in the past, Black Ops II finds solid footing, providing another great ride on the Call of Duty rollercoaster.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“This is not to say it's a bad game, it's just not different enough from previous Call of Duty titles. The story isn't memorable, the maps and weapons aren't any different to what we've previously experienced, the gameplay is near identical to previous games, and when it's not identical it falls flat and fails to impress.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“Overall Black Ops II is the most ambitious and innovative Call Of Duty for years, but it's also the most inconsistent. But that may well be the short term price for trying to do things differently. ”
read full review ↗ - 83
“Black Ops II presents interesting backdrops and fine shooter action. The game hits its stride when it presents features that move beyond your traditional shooter, whether that be shooting at helicopters from horseback or diving out the back of a crippled plane.”
read full review ↗ - 94
“As far as value for your money goes, Black Ops II is a veritable waterslide of enjoyment, and for a change, actually does a lot different to what we've come to expect.”
read full review ↗
GRYOnline.pl
ZTGD
Worth Playing
The Escapist
Eurogamer
GameSpot
Metro GameCentral
AusGamers…and 60 more tracked reviews.
Patch history
No patch announcements found on Steam yet.