

This building looks like it might have once been a hotel, but for game purposes it creates a place where short-ranged firefights occur, often between the many floors of the multi-tier lobby at once. Gigantic sand-covered streets lead you into an open pool area, and in objective based modes you’re often funneled to the big center structure. Standard multiplayer still works here, though. Ground War players wanted another map that felt like it was designed to support more than 12 players, and Mirage is Treyarch’s answer. Mirage is also the biggest multiplayer map in Revolution. The sand also means there are a lot of small hills next to pieces of terrain, creating lots of defensible positions. Even the open terrain adds a bit of challenge undulations due to small variations in sand build up mean that your aim is constantly bobbing. Sand and wind have destroyed rooftops, knocked open doors and created impromptu ramps to balconies and roof tops. It takes you to a small complex that’s been completely ravaged by a sandstorm. It makes fighting in the interior of the lodge particularly intense, especially on Demolition, where one of the bomb points spawns between the two lift paths. Ski lifts constantly move through the lodge, and if they hit you dead on they’ll kill you outright (something I’m ashamed to admit happened to me several times). Downhill doesn’t feel much different from what seasoned players have seen before, but it has one twist. The result is Downhill, a map where one side puts you in short to medium range fights in the interior of a small snow lodge and cabin, while the other side gives long-range shooters a chance to pop off shots at anyone who dares come out from behind the limited safety of the large, snow-covered boulders. Seeing as how the core campaign never takes you to the snow, though, Treyarch had to put a lot of time into creating a lot of new art and character models. DownhillIt started out as simple as wanting to put a snow map into Black Ops 2. My guess? SMGs and assault rifles will rule the roost. Snipers will probably find themselves hard pressed to find a great position, especially since grenades are so effective. There’s a decently sized interior space, but it’s all very tight. YES NOGrind feels a bit small, likely because ramps and other obstacles break sightlines.
