Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War Zombies has certainly had its ups and downs when it comes to storytelling. While there is some genuinely great writing and acting to see if players go out of their way to collect the Zombies intel hidden in the round-based maps and Outbreak, it takes a lot of effort to hunt it all down. Likewise, the playable characters just being Operators from multiplayer has severely damaged the experience for some longtime fans. Still, flaws aside, it is hard not to enjoy the setup seen within Forsaken.
The latest and final Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War Zombies map gives players answers to some of the biggest questions they had, though it still leaves other plot threads open for gamers to theorize about. From a tease of the next game’s main antagonist to the reveal of a potential ally, there are a lot of huge moments that take place in Forsaken’s five-minute outro. However, it seems like players will be waiting a few years until they learn where the story will be going next.
What Happens In Forsaken’s Outro Cutscene
After completing Forsaken’s main quest, Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War players are treated to an emotional moment with Samantha Maxis. While The Forsaken is stunned by what the players do to it during the boss fight, it is impossible for humans to kill a being with that much strength. As such, Samantha uses her powers to defeat the creature, sacrificing herself by flying into the monstrosity. She then traps it in the Neutralizer, with both The Forsaken and Sam sent back to the Dark Aether.
While Weaver is sad to see Sam go, as she could be stuck in the Dark Aether for a long period of time or even forever, things get even sadder for Requiem after this moment. With the Forsaken contained, the mysterious Requiem Director has the entire group taken into custody. Grey, Carver, Strauss, and Weaver are arrested instead of being treated as heroes, and players do not see what happens to them next. They do finally see the Director’s face, however, as the fan theories regarding his identity are confirmed to be true. Edward Richtofen, or Eddie as this version is called, is in charge of the group.
A post-credits scene focuses on Peck, one of the villains from Omega. He mentions searching for “some old friends” after asking a fisherman if he can borrow a boat. He then points to a small island somewhere in Japan, which has gotten Zombies fans theorizing that Shi No Numa or Zetsubou No Shima could be the location he is pointing to. With music from Blood of the Dead playing in this scene, and the moment taking place five years after Forsaken, it will be very interesting to see what Treyarch has planned.
Where Call of Duty Zombies’ Dark Aether Story Could Go Next
Obviously, a lot happens in the cinematic, and players have already begun theorizing about several parts of it. When it comes to Peck, the “friends” he is referenced in the cutscene could be Weaver and the other detained Requiem characters. However, it is important to note that during the fight with the Forsaken, players are shown a future where all the captured characters are dead, with “No One Escapes Alive” written on the wall behind them - another Blood of the Dead reference. As such, their fates are unclear. The area Peck points to may also be hinting at the missiles players dropped in the ocean during Outbreak’s first easter egg, or it could be a remake of one of the Japan-based maps like some have suggested. Regardless, the Peck scene does confirm that the next part of the Dark Aether story will take place in 1990.
While it is unclear how this fits in with Call of Duty 2023’s supposed semi-futuristic setting, an equally interesting part of the scene deals with the Requiem Director. The memo Eddie sends mentions Blacksite 13, which may be the island Peck points to on the map. It also mentions project Janus, something that the Zombies community still has no idea about. However, Eddie’s secret plan does have an interesting name, with Janus being the Roman god of pathways. He is often depicted with two faces, something that could imply Eddie is opening a gateway to the old Aether universe. This would explain the Blood of the Dead music and the phrase written on the wall, though it remains to be seen if this is what Eddie wants.
Eddie’s desk also contains a snow globe with the House from Revelations, something that serves as an interesting connection to the past. A picture on the table also reveals that Eddie has/had a wife and son, with some theorizing that Project Janus will focus on him trying to rescue them or bring them back. One theory that is growing in popularity suggests that “the boy” Sam and Weaver killed (now known as Samuel) was actually Eddie’s son. If true, it would explain why Eddie turned on Weaver and was so cruel with how he pushed Samantha. As of now, though, these are just theories, with players knowing little about Peck’s plan, Project Janus, and the fate of those Eddie captured.
Why Call of Duty Zombies Fans Will Not Get Their Answers Until 2023
While the next part of the Dark Aether timeline is intriguing, players will not be heading to 1990 in Treyarch’s next installment of Zombies. Instead, they will be heading to World War 2, with Call of Duty: Vanguard’s Zombies mode serving as a prequel to the Dark Aether story that began in Black Ops Cold War. It will deal with Nazi occultism and should serve as a darker take on Zombies, and though this is intriguing, players should not expect to see any of the characters from Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War make a return.
While some might hope to see answers in 2022, that too is unlikely. This is because next year’s Call of Duty game is all but confirmed to be a sequel to Modern Warfare 2019, with the follow-up apparently focusing on a fight against drug cartels. While it is possible that Treyarch could guest-develop a Zombies mode for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare just like it is doing for Vanguard, the time periods do not line up. With a thirty-year difference in weaponry, it is hard to imagine a Zombies mode set in 1990 working well if it features guns from present day.
While Treyarch could go back to the old style of Zombies where the maps were not tied to the setting of the rest of the game (i.e. Gorod Krovi being in the futuristic Call of Duty: Black Ops 3), the five-year time jump seen in the Peck sequence feels deliberate. Either way, an exciting future has been set up, with fans having plenty to theorize about over the next few years. With things like the Aether Bunny not properly answered just yet, and Sam likely still alive in the Dark Aether, there are even more things that can be explored in the future. Still, with Call of Duty: Vanguard Zombies being a prequel, and 2022 being Infinity Ward’s year, fans are going to need to be very patient.
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.