Impressions: 'Call of Duty: Black Ops II' multiplayer

Class creation just got a whole lot more interesting in Call of Duty.

The release of Call of Duty: Black Ops II, the first-person shooting behemoth that has video game players skipping work and school to take up virtual arms, includes a few fresh features to its popular online multiplayer mode. However, based on my climb up the multiplayer ranks, none might be as critical as the changes to how players mold their digital soldiers.

For those who have yet to experience Call of Duty online, a quick recap: players participate in a variety of competitive matches, from Team Deathmatch to Domination (capture and hold points) and Demolition (destroy/defend key targets). Players earn points with each kill, assist, target capture and other actions, moving up in experience. Each level attained nets new gear such as weapons, grenades and Perks that bolster battlefield skills.

The big change in Black Ops II is how players construct their custom weapon loadouts. The game features a 10-item system where players piece together a combination of firearms, weapon attachments, grenades, tactical gear and Perks. Wildcards offer additional abilities, such as Greed (pick up an extra Perk) and Overkill (carry an extra Primary weapon).

All these components can be thrown together in any fashion, so long as players don't pass the 10-item limit. For example, players could drop an extra concussion grenade to add Overkill and a shotgun in place of that pistol. They could even go with a loadout featuring one Primary weapon, three Greed Wildcards for each Perk tier, and six Perks. Imagine a Sniper armed with Perks that make him virtually invisible, with silent footsteps and the ability to scavenge for more ammo. In the right hands, it's a scary mix.

The class customization offers additional depth, allowing players to carefully craft detailed loadouts, but forces players to make tough choices. With that aforementioned Sniper class, they walk into battle with no secondary weapon, no special attachments and no grenades or tactical items. Is it worth cutting back on a Perk to add an extra gun in case of close-quarters combat?

Black Ops II adopts the Scorestreak system from last year's Modern Warfare 3, rewarding players with special assists for reaching a certain point total before dying. Staples such as the UAV and Care Package return, as well as new items including the Guardian (a turret of sorts that emanates intense heat) and Dragonfire (a small drone players fly around the map by remote to pick off enemies).

Developer Treyarch drops the point-based currency system from the original Black Ops for tokens earned each time a player reaches a new rank. Even though leveling up unlocks more weapons, perks and scorestreaks, players must use the tokens to unlock them a second time for use. It gives player a little freedom to pick and choose what they want to unlock first, but it feels like an unnecessary barrier to earning gear, especially after making the effort to level up.

The other addition is League Play, which attempts to amp up the competitiveness in Black Ops II. Players start by competing in five preliminary matches to determine their skill level. Once complete, they are matched up with players of similar skill levels and battle in a variety of match types, with the chance to move up a competitive level based on success. It has potential, so long as enough players participate. On Tuesday night, with more than 540,000 Xbox 360 players online, roughly 3,400 joined League Play matches.

There are some other wrinkles, such as new match types Multi-Team (skirmishes between three 3-player squads), the return of Combat Training for novices, the ability to add play-by-play style commentary and minor tweaks to perks and gear.

Beyond that, don't expect a ton of significant changes. The pace is still fast, the combat remains explosive, and the selection of weapons, perks and gear is expansive. For Call of Duty veterans, Black Ops II features an online multiplayer suite on par with its predecessors.

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