Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 Arrives Nov. 13 With Futuristic and Retro Combat

Treyarch returns to first-person shooter (FPS) action on Nov. 13 with Call of Duty: Black Ops 2. Grumpy gamers who decry that Treyarch is churning out yet another FPS in an already-flooded market may find that the upcoming release looks to add a new twist to the formula.

It starts with the setting. Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 occurs years into the future (2025) where an enemy seizes control of high-tech, unmanned war machines that were designed to protect the country. According to The Guardian, this foe is a terrorist group led by the antagonist, Menedez, who hacked into the U.S. defense network. There's also a simmering Cold War between America and China over rare Earth materials.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 2's story was penned by David Goyer, one of the minds behind Batman Begins and The Dark Knight, according to Kotaku. The gaming site also states that a portion of Black Ops 2 is set during the 1980s (which ties into the Cold War theme), and that there's a branching storyline based on user decisions.

Besides the futuristic weaponry and military craft that look like they were pulled from the set of a Terminator flick, there are also shootouts that occur on horseback. The Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 trailer (below) reveals that battles occur in a desert environment as well as war-torn Los Angeles.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 2, a PS3 and Xbox 360 title, will arrive on store shelves Nov. 13. Pre-orders are now being accepted via Activision, Steam, Amazon, Best Buy, Gamestop, and Target for $59.99.