Call of Duty: Black Ops 6

Introduction

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 was released in October 2024 and tells the story of rogue agents, Troy Marshall and Frank Woods, who form a team to hunt down Pantheon, a paramilitary group determined to carry out a false flag attack on the United States to discredit and replace the deputy director of the CIA.

The game is the sixth instalment of the incredibly popular video game series developed by Treyarch Studios and published by Activision. Premiering in 2010, the gameplay focuses on covert military operations carried out by American soldiers during the Cold War and other contemporary conflicts. The series is renowned for its atmosphere of intensity, conspiracy, and intelligence operations. This attracts players looking for dynamic missions and an intriguing storyline.

Denotative Analysis

The cover depicts the figure of a soldier in full battle gear, holding a gun in each hand. In the background is a building with a distinctive dome, reminiscent of the architecture of the US Capitol. The dark, military aesthetic with dominant colours of black and orange heightens the tense mode of address.

Orange and yellow lights and graphics with fragments of digital disruption are typical of the overall style of a contemporary action genre with themes of modern warfare and information manipulation.

The reference to ‘cross gen’ assures the consumer they can join their friends to complete the missions together in multiplayer mode no matter what platform they are using to access the game.

Connotative Analysis

Connotatively, the image contains several meanings. The figure of the soldier in the background symbolises not only combat, but also patriotism and sacrifice. A sense of mystery is encoded by the redacted face. The colour orange in the contrasting lights is associated with danger and action, typical of the Black Ops games.

In turn, the dome of the Capitol building refers to the United States as the setting for the story and signifies a political context to the narrative. This adds to the impression that the events depicted have a direct connection to the US political scene and intelligence.

The building also suggests the presence of great power and entanglements in complex conspiracies. In the American tradition, the Capitol symbolises democracy and political power. This gives the cover the connotation of a conflict in which national interests and state security are at stake. Therefore, the game may evoke the theme of national security or the infiltration of hostile structures to protect democracy.

A pantheon is a collection of gods worshipped in a religion or culture, symbolising spiritual unity. The term also refers to buildings, like the Roman Pantheon, dedicated to gods or prominent personalities. In modern culture, such as in games, Pantheon can mean a group of heroes or a movement with an anti-systemic character.

Commutation Test

The commutation test involves changing elements to see how this affects the meaning of the cover. Note, for example, that if there had been an ordinary building or landscape in the background, the cover would have lost its political connotations. The Capitol dome adds a deeper dimension to the narrative, suggesting the conflict is about state and political issues, not just military action.

We can also see how the orange highlights emphasise danger and intensity. Replacing them with neutral light would weaken the emotional appeal of the cover by taking away its sense of urgency and danger. Furthermore, without the soldier, the cover would lose its militaristic character, and the meaning of Black Ops would become less obvious. The soldier acts as a central element that symbolises mission, conspiracy and readiness to fight.

Myth Analysis

The call of duty myth alludes to the archetypes of sacrifice, duty and heroism. The title “Call of Duty” refers directly to the specific myth of the call to duty. It suggests that fighting national enemies is the highest expression of patriotism. The presence of a Capitol-like building reinforces this myth, introducing an element of defending democratic values.

Such representations often detach war from its brutal reality, giving it an almost ‘noble’ character. They inscribe it within a narrative of moral obligation.

In the case of this cover, the patriot myth is combined with an element of conspiracy and secrecy. This suggests the struggle is not only on the frontline, but also in the political and intelligence sphere, so the protagonist must protect the Capitol dome from danger, or he may seek to infiltrate it to uncover the truth.