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The Workshop thumbnail of the map: the title Call of the Dead in red over the lighthouse and the wrecked ship, black and white, Call of the Dead BO3 Custom, Call of Duty Black Ops III Zombies

Call of the Dead BO3 Custom

Call of the Dead BO3 Custom, copforthat's Black Ops III remaster of the Escalation map: the frozen shore as the First Room and its ZFRR rules, George A. Romero from round 1, the eight perks, the moving Pack-a-Punch, the V-R11 and Scavenger, the main quest and the new secrets.

  • 9 min read
  • 10 chapters
  • updated

The First Room

The starting shore in the snow, the lighthouse on the horizon and the burning wreckage of the ship on the right, during the solo world record, Call of the Dead BO3 Custom, Call of Duty Black Ops III Zombies

On ZFRR, the First Room of Call of the Dead BO3 Custom is the starting shore, as on the 2011 map: the frozen coast where the four actors appear, by the icy water, with the stranded ship on one side and the lighthouse on the horizon. The remaster keeps the layout of the original, so a First Room game is played in the same place, but with the tools of Black Ops III: GobbleGums, Alternate Ammo Types and a reworked George.

Every game starts with the M1911. The ways off the shore are piles of debris: Grave and MrDalekJD both clear one for 750 points to reach the ship, where the power switch waits at the top. With the doors closed the power stays off, so there is no Pack-a-Punch and no main quest. In the first rounds, Grave keeps a barricaded window of the shore behind the player and rebuilds it for points.

The meteorite resting on a barrel in the snow of the starting shore, Call of the Dead BO3 Custom, Call of Duty Black Ops III Zombies

A meteorite

On a barrel of the shore, the first of the three rocks of the song Not Ready to Die. Flapix places it across from a Mystery Box spot.

A horde of zombies with glowing eyes coming across the snow of the starting shore, round 41 of the solo world record, Call of the Dead BO3 Custom, Call of Duty Black Ops III Zombies

Enemies

Zombies, and the electric zombies George creates. The solo world record shows a horde coming across the snow of the shore at round 41.

Quick Revive

On a small island of rock and ice of the starting area, according to Ricktness. No guide shows another perk machine on the shore.

A GobbleGum machine

In a corner of the starting area, noticed by MrDalekJD in the first minutes of a game. The world record run shows the GobbleGum pack chosen before the game.

Wall weapons

On the 2011 map, the Olympia and the M14 hang on the bridge of the shore. In the remaster, Ricktness is seen with an M14 on the shore, and the solo world record at rounds 41 and 53 with the Mnesia, the upgraded M14, but no guide read for this book shows them on the wall or gives their price.

George A. Romero

He arrives at round 1 in the water of the shore and follows the players for the whole game. Beaten, he drops a random perk bottle and a Death Machine: a way to get perks without a machine.

The water

It covers the screen in frost, slows the player and ends up freezing them in place. Zombies freeze in it too, and it calms George.

In the solo world record, by round 17 the player already has eight perk icons on screen and a Death Machine in hand, and later rounds are played with Pack-a-Punched weapons carrying Alternate Ammo Types such as Dead Wire, Fire Works and Turned. No guide read for this book explains how they are upgraded without the power.

The Call of the Dead BO3 Custom leaderboard ranks the highest rounds reached without opening a door, in solo and in co-op. Call of the Dead BO3 Custom is a custom map: it is listed with the Black Ops III custom maps, apart from the official map of 2011, which has its own book, Call of the Dead. The rules:

Doors closed

“Reach the highest round you can without opening any doors or barriers.” “Every round must be played in full.”

GobbleGums

“Flavor Hexed, Self Medication, Near Death Experience, Power Vacuum and Round Robbin are NOT ALLOWED.”

George

“Glitching out George is NOT ALLOWED.”

No glitch

“Glitches or Exploits are NOT ALLOWED.”

Video

“Full gameplay is required.” “Twitch: Make sure your footage is highlighted as past broadcasts will not be accepted.” “YouTube: Make sure your video is public or unlisted.”

Overview

Call of the Dead is a Black Ops III remaster of the Zombies map of Escalation, the second map pack of Black Ops, made by copforthat and released for free on the Steam Workshop on December 31, 2022. Its Workshop page opens on the official description of 2011: “A shipwrecked crew of fearless explorers are hopelessly stranded in an abandoned Siberian outpost. Their dream of discovering the true origins of the mysterious Element 115 unravels into a Hellish nightmare.” It warns that the map contains strobe lights, which the console command /disable_flashing_lights 1 turns off at the start of a game.

GameBlack Ops III (PC, Steam Workshop)
Creatorcopforthat (Sean), with DMac_442, Ghillie, Planet and a team of modders
Workshop releaseDecember 31, 2022Last update on January 6, 2023
Steam WorkshopCall of the Dead, 7.7 GB
Subscribers568,141 current subscribers, 870,461 in all (November 11, 2026)
Based onCall of the Dead, Black Ops, 2011
LocationAn abandoned Siberian outpost: a stranded ship, a lighthouse and a frozen coast
CharactersSarah Michelle Gellar, Robert Englund, Danny Trejo and Michael Rooker
PerksThe eight perks of 2011, and GobbleGums
Pack-a-PunchAppears on one of three spots once the power is on
Wonder weaponsV-R11, Scavenger, Wunderwaffe DG-2
Players1 to 4

Zombies Chronicles, the remaster pack Treyarch released for Black Ops III in 2017, brought back every map pack map of Black Ops except Call of the Dead, copforthat recalls. He tells in his video “How I Remastered a CLASSIC COD Zombies Map” that he started the map in January 2022 to learn the mod tools, then joined DMac_442, who had been working on the map for years with H00dedSn1per177, the founder of the project. They started again from scratch with the lighthouse, then the ship, and copforthat led the project alone from June 2022, teaching himself the scripting. The first trailer came out on December 11, 2022, and the map went live at 6 p.m. on December 31, after a last day of work.

The team chose a faithful remaster in the style of Zombies Chronicles over an early idea of playing as the Ultimis crew, as in the mobile version. What changes from 2011:

GobbleGums

The only real addition to the layout, with machines on the shore and on the ship.

The water

Reused from Origins, with the mud of that map as the base of its slowing effect, and a freezing overlay that ends up locking the player in place.

The wonder weapons

The V-R11 now turns its human into a lure that every zombie chases before it explodes; the Scavenger deals infinite damage.

The main quest

New rules for the dials of the lighthouse, and the door of the Ultimis crew opens at the end.

New secrets

Free Matryoshka Dolls, the song Partytime, cassette tapes of the actors and a cave in memory of George Romero.

Black Ops III touches

Alternate Ammo Types on the Pack-a-Punch, the window barriers of Black Ops 4 and new round numbers.

The red and white lighthouse covered in ice, rising over the snowy rocks of the coast at night, official Workshop screenshot, Call of the Dead BO3 Custom, Call of Duty Black Ops III Zombies

The lighthouse

Rising over the snowy rocks of the coast, official Workshop screenshot.

The stranded freighter and its two cranes seen from high above, a zipline cable crossing the sky, official Workshop screenshot, Call of the Dead BO3 Custom, Call of Duty Black Ops III Zombies

The ship

The stranded freighter and its cranes, seen from above with the zipline cable, official Workshop screenshot.

Characters

As in 2011, the players are four horror actors playing themselves, cast in a zombie film George A. Romero is shooting at the lighthouse. The Workshop page credits Connor Custom for the “Celebrity Crew” and Glitch for the character icons, and copforthat says the player models were reworked before release.

S

Sarah Michelle Gellar

The star of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

R

Robert Englund

Freddy Krueger in A Nightmare on Elm Street.

D

Danny Trejo

Of From Dusk till Dawn and Machete, named in the trailer of the map.

M

Michael Rooker

Then a guest star of The Walking Dead.

The loading screen of the port, which reuses the 2011 poster of Treyarch: They crave your brain! Call of the Dead, with Danny Trejo, Michael Rooker, Robert Englund, Sarah Michelle Gellar and George A. Romero, Call of the Dead BO3 Custom, Call of Duty Black Ops III Zombies

The loading screen

The loading screen of the port reuses the 2011 poster, a comic book poster of the film with the names of the four actors and of the director.

Behind a locked door under PhD Flopper, the Ultimis crew, Dempsey, Nikolai, Takeo and Richtofen, wait for the players to help them escape: that is the main quest. Each actor also has a cassette tape hidden on the map.

Enemies

Zombies

The water slows them down and can freeze them, as it does the players.

George A. Romero

The director, turned into a zombie, who hunts the players from round 1. He hits very hard, his roar turns zombies into sprinters and water calms him down. Beaten, he drops a free perk.

Electric zombies

Zombies struck by George, which can deal massive damage to a player, Grave warns.

George A. Romero, his behaviour and how to beat him

Perks

The eight machines of 2011 are back in their places, from Quick Revive on the shore to Speed Cola at the foot of the ice slide. Widow’s Wine is not on sale: its machine is frozen under the ice of the lighthouse. GobbleGum machines join them, with five gums banned by the creator.

Quick Revive

On a small island of the starting shore.

Double Tap Root Beer, Juggernog, Mule Kick

On the ship.

PhD Flopper, Deadshot Daiquiri, Stamin-Up, Speed Cola

On the lighthouse side.

The perks, the power and the moving Pack-a-Punch

Weapons

Every game starts with the M1911. The guides show wall weapons of the original in their old places, from the MPL of the ship to the AK-74u by the lighthouse and the Sickle by Speed Cola; none shows the Olympia and the M14 that hung on the shore in 2011. The Mystery Box holds the V-R11 and the Scavenger, now with infinite damage; the Wunderwaffe DG-2 comes from the main quest and from George.

The wall weapons, the Box and the wonder weapons

Power and Pack-a-Punch

The power switch is in the captain’s cabin at the top of the ship. With the power on, the lighthouse beam starts to sweep the coast; when it swings wildly and stops, it points at the Pack-a-Punch Machine, which appears on one of three spots: the starting shore, the hold of the ship or behind the lighthouse.

The lighthouse at night, its beam sweeping the sky, seen from the rocks at its foot with the V-R11 in hand, Call of the Dead BO3 Custom, Call of Duty Black Ops III Zombies

The lighthouse beam

It sweeps the sky once the power is on, and stops on the Pack-a-Punch Machine.

How the Pack-a-Punch moves

Easter egg

The main quest sends the Ultimis crew to Shangri-La with the Golden Rod, as in 2011, with two steps for co-op only. Its steps:

  1. Knife the door under PhD Flopper, bring a fuse and blow up four red generators.
  2. In co-op, catch a bottle of vodka frozen in the ice.
  3. Activate four radios in order and set the wheel and levers of the power room to call a submarine.
  4. In co-op, sound four foghorns in order.
  5. Set the four dials of the lighthouse with the codes on four scraps of paper.
  6. Shoot a zombie with the V-R11, kill the floating human in the green light and bring the Golden Rod to the door.

The door opens on the room of the crew and a Wunderwaffe DG-2.

The main quest, step by step

Secrets

The secret cave of the tribute: a portrait of George A. Romero painted on the rock, with the words Rest in peace George A. Romero 1940-2017, The Godfather of zombies, Call of the Dead BO3 Custom, Call of Duty Black Ops III Zombies

The tribute to George Romero

The Flinger throws the player into a cave in memory of the director.

Not Ready to Die

Three meteorites play the Avenged Sevenfold song, one of them on the starting shore.

Partytime

Three bells behind Stamin-Up play the zombie version of the 45 Grave song.

Matryoshka Dolls

A crane, a crate and five Samantha dolls lead to free Matryoshka Dolls and Samantha’s Lullaby.

The songs, the dolls, the tribute and the other secrets

Trivia

  • copforthat started the map in January 2022 with no knowledge of game development; the first feature he scripted was the Flinger.
  • The Workshop page credits the songs “Not Ready to Die” by Avenged Sevenfold and “Partytime (Zombie Version)” by 45 Grave, and the window barriers to TJ, from Black Ops 4.
  • The map came out on New Year’s Eve because copforthat was afraid it would not be ready before: he chose the last day of the year as the release date.
  • In the first days, players on Reddit found that the code of the dials was no longer the code of the original, and shared the new solutions.
  • copforthat later remastered Mob of the Dead, and says in his video that it ended up featured in Black Ops 6.