Six months after launch, Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 finally gets a Combat Record

Treyarch has finally released the Black Ops 4 Combat Record feature - but not in the game itself.

Combat Record is now live in the Call of Duty companion app and on the Call of Duty website. The level of detail on offer is impressive - not only can you check general stats for things like weapons, you can go as deep as checking your stats for individual pieces of equipment and weapon attachments.

But while Black Ops 4's Combat Record offers the kind of deep stats dive the hardcore Call of Duty community has called for for months, the revelation the Combat Record is on mobile and web only was criticised by players who had hoped to access the feature in the game.

Expectation was set when Treyarch promised the Combat Record feature would be added to Black Ops 4 back in a post on Reddit from five months ago. (The Combat Record arrived alongside the first Black Ops game in 2010 and has been in each Call of Duty game since then.)

In a new post on Reddit, Treyarch said it went with mobile and web for Black Ops 4's Combat Record because it "brings the stats that players want to the platform where they will get the most use out of them without taking time away from playing the game, so you can check your stats quickly and easily on your phone, tablet, or PC between matches".

Apparently, Combat Record "was a big feature that unfortunately only a small number of players engaged with in the game because it was buried deep in the menus", Treyarch explained.

"Our design goal with Black Ops 4 has been to bring the most meaningful statistics to more players in more locations where they will see and interact with them."

Some stats are displayed in Black Ops 4. For example, in multiplayer, there's a stats synopsis at the top level of the Barracks. Also, your personal stats for every map and mode are displayed on the loading screens of each match you play, and there's specialist performance stats included in the specialist personalisation menus, so you can see them every time you customise your character.

The Combat Records issue is compounded by a leaderboards problem players have complained about ever since Black Ops 4 came out.

Black Ops 4's in-game leaderboards are a barebones offering that lets you compare your stats against what's called a "Players List". This includes friends and recent players only. Global leaderboards had been a part of the Call of Duty series for years, and were in previous Black Ops games. There is no global leaderboard for Black Ops 4.

"With millions of players racking up an endless stream of stats across Multiplayer, Blackout, Zombies, and League Play, we took a new approach to making Leaderboard stats more meaningful to players who want to know how they stack up against their peers," Treyarch said.

Again, this hasn't gone down particularly well.

"Sorry but that's a ridiculous excuse," wrote MP115. "Leaderboards in their current state are absolutely meaningless. I don't care how my stats compare to those of my five random internet 'friends', I want to see where I stand globally and in the current lobby.

"The only possible explanation I have for this is that you want to prevent stats-shaming and lobby shopping which is also why we can't see the teams before a match begins."

All this comes six months after Black Ops 4 came out, and the Combat Record revelations will be seen as yet another issue in a string of problems afflicting Treyarch's shooter. While Black Ops 4's gameplay fundamentals are on point, and the Blackout battle royale mode remains a huge amount of fun, depressing monetisation and a divisive Black Ops pass have fuelled negativity among the community and it shows no sign of abating.

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