Call of Duty Black Ops 3 review roundup: One of the most feature-filled games so far?

The latest blockbuster game from the Call of Duty series has been met with positive reviews on the day of release

The game is set in 2065, 40 years after the events of Black Ops 2 (Activision/Treyarch)

Call of Duty: Black Ops 3, the latest in the blockbuster franchise, was released today.

The game's set in 2065, 40 years after its predecessor, Black Ops 2.

The developers have really taken this opportunity to ramp up the science fiction - think robots, futuristic weapons and a huge pile of dystopian grit.

The first batch of reviews are now out, so here's what some of the web's best critics think of it.

The Escapist - 4/5

Like many other reviews, the escapist praised Black Ops 3's movement system.

Previous Call of Duty games have seen the player've movement fairly limited - basically giving them the choice to run, sprint or jump, with the occasional obstacle vault triggered by an unsatisfying button press.

Black Ops 3 has a bunch of other movements, like wallruns, slides and thrust jumps, as well as some hacks that allow you to take control of robots and flying drones.

This makes things much more exciting, but they said the story and gameplay of the single player campaign falls flat under the weight of all the sci-fi weirdness.

Fortunately, the multiplayer mode (which is what everyone buys CoD for anyway) was a hit.

Gamespot - 7/10

Criticising the "boring, incomprehensible campaign", Gamespot's fairly high score was almost entirely down to multiplayer, especially Zombies mode.

Zombies is almost the opposite of the rest of the game, taking place in a bizarre 1940s setting with a host of unusual characters. Fortunately for Zombies fans, they said it was the best version yet.

Gamespot also liked the movement system, but said the repetetive, on-rails campaign hindered the new freedom that players have been given.

They liked multiplayer too, praising the new 'specialist' system that allows players to choose different characters, each with their own special skills.

However, after hour 10, they said even multiplayer's appeal started to wane, with the progression rewards and new weapons failing to hold the reviewer's attention.

Gameinformer - 9/10

Unusually, Gameinformer actually liked the Black Ops 3 campaign, calling it "deceptively complex" and "wonderfully weird" - although it did have the occasional "mundane shootout."

They also liked the balance and added complexity that the specialists bring to multiplayer mode, saying it was a major enhancement of the series' core part.

Once again, Zombies stuck out as a highlight for Gameinformer. Maybe it's worth buying this game just for zombies on its own.

PlaystationLifestyle - 9/10

PlaystationLifestyle were quick to celebrate the sheer amount of content crammed into the game.

The campaign is longer than usual, taking around 7 hours on regular difficulty for many players - on top of that, you've got four player co-op across all modes, a typically expansive multiplayer, and a huge zombies mode. You get a lot of game for your £50.

Their take on the campaign's story showed that opinion is split - some have called it stupid and hard to follow, but PlaystationLifestyle called it a "deep and multi-layered" plot that is "sure to create discussion."

Again, they liked the new level of balance in multiplayer that the specialists feature brings, and of course, they loved Zombies.

As they mention in their closing comments, the Call of Duty name could mean some people will dismiss the game without even giving it a go.

Yes, some Call of Duty titles are very samey, but Black Ops 3 looks like a feature-filled, standout game.