Death from below in Black Ops II

Playing team deathmatch in Black Ops II on the night of its release, I rack up one kill and 27 deaths in one of my games. So that’s how it’s going to be, huh? Apparently, the kind of person playing online after a midnight release is considerably more, uh, committed to the gameplay. Or maybe my assault rifle of choice, the Type 25, just sucks.

Then I try the ironically named hardcore mode, which relies less on watching the minimap, since it doesn’t have a minimap. It furthermore relies less on the damage ratings of weapons, since all you have to do is basically brush someone with a slow velocity bullet to kill him. In my first game in hardcore mode, I get ten kills to eight deaths.

But by far the most reliable way to earn points has been farming UAVs. As soon as I hear the UAV announcement, I switch to the SMAW I carry on my back. One guided missile for an easy 75 points! And the best thing about UAVs is that they don’t shoot back.