BLACK OPS FIELD GUIDE

Black Ops 1 Story

Campaign spoilers ahead. Six short beats covering the original 2010 story and its ending.

Jason Hudson wearing sunglasses in the Pentagon control room in the original Black Ops. — Campaign scene: Jason Hudson at the Pentagon, earlier in Mason’s memories.

STORY BEAT 1 OF 6

The numbers in Mason’s head

In 1968, CIA operative Alex Mason wakes strapped to an interrogation chair. His questioners demand the meaning of a mysterious numbers broadcast. The campaign follows his fractured memories, gradually revealing why the numbers matter and who is questioning him.

Reznov speaking into the prison public-address microphone during the Vorkuta uprising in the original Black Ops. — Campaign scene: Reznov uses the prison public-address system during the uprising.

STORY BEAT 2 OF 6

Cuba, capture and Vorkuta

A 1961 mission to assassinate Fidel Castro kills a double. Mason is captured and handed to Soviet general Nikita Dragovich. In Vorkuta prison, he befriends Viktor Reznov. They lead an uprising; Mason escapes in 1963, but Reznov stays behind.

Kravchenko and Dragovich in the snowy 1945 Project Nova mission from the original Black Ops. — Campaign scene: Kravchenko and Dragovich during Project Nova.

STORY BEAT 3 OF 6

Nova 6 and an old betrayal

Reznov’s 1945 flashback explains his vendetta: Dragovich, Kravchenko and scientist Friedrich Steiner tested the deadly Nova 6 gas on Soviet soldiers, killing his friend Dimitri Petrenko. Years later, Dragovich plans to use Nova 6 against the United States.

Frank Woods wearing a headband and combat uniform in the original Black Ops campaign. — Character portrait: Frank Woods in his original Black Ops campaign appearance.

STORY BEAT 4 OF 6

The hunt across Vietnam

Mason, Frank Woods and Joseph Bowman pursue Dragovich’s network through Vietnam and Laos. Bowman is killed; Woods disappears while fighting Kravchenko. Meanwhile, CIA agents Hudson and Weaver trace Nova 6 to Rebirth Island, where Steiner could expose the plot.

Viktor Reznov wearing a dark headscarf in the original Black Ops campaign. — Character portrait: Viktor Reznov in the original Black Ops; his appearances after Vorkuta are Mason’s hallucinations.

STORY BEAT 5 OF 6

The truth about Reznov

Hudson reveals that Mason himself killed Steiner. The Reznov accompanying him after Vorkuta was a hallucination. Dragovich’s brainwashing targeted Kennedy, but Reznov redirected Mason toward revenge on Dragovich, Kravchenko and Steiner. Hudson’s interrogation finally helps Mason identify the broadcast source.

Smoke rising from the damaged Rusalka broadcast ship in the original Black Ops Redemption mission. — Campaign scene: the damaged Rusalka during Redemption.

STORY BEAT 6 OF 6

Rusalka and the final question

Mason and Hudson assault the Rusalka and its underwater station. They stop the numbers transmission that would activate Soviet sleeper agents to release Nova 6, and Mason drowns Dragovich. The final Kennedy footage hints at Mason’s involvement in the assassination, without conclusively resolving his role.

Story references

Call of Duty: Black Ops game imagery © Activision. Screenshots and character portraits from the original 2010 game; image references: Call of Duty Guide.

References

Covered edition: Original Black Ops and its four DLC packs. The separate Nintendo DS game is not covered.