Activision lays out the vitals for Call of Duty Elite

In case you didn’t know, there have been some changes to the Call of Duty Elite ‘subscription’ program.

The main new addition for the service is actually a subtraction, as in there’s no cost to partake anymore. Activision has officially waved the subscription fees for Elite as of the just released Call of Duty: Black Ops 2. There’s a lot more to it than that though and the big A has laid it all out in five neatly arranged bullet points for you.

Basically, if you’re wondering why you should use Elite, keep reading…

1 – Call of Duty® Elite for Call of Duty®: Black Ops II is free.  Just sign up and gain access to this robust suite of player services that will enhance your Call of Duty®: Black Ops IImultiplayer experience.

2 – Now free for Call of Duty®: Black Ops II, Call of Duty Elite® TV delivers a renewed community focus, featuring tips on loadouts and playstyles, strategies on the best ways to play the maps, and more. This year, Call of Duty Elite® TV programming features an emphasis around helping players improve their multiplayer skills, with three new Call of Duty® Academy shows:

–          Create-a-Class Guide – Focusing on gameplay styles to help players get the most out of Call of Duty®: Black Ops II‘s new “Pick 10” create-a-class system.

–          Multiplayer Guide – Featuring tips and strategies on taking cover, long-range combat, movement, using grenades, close-quarters combat and tactics, and more.

–          Tutorials – Episodes dedicated to teaching players how to use some of the groundbreaking new features available in Call of Duty®: Black Ops II multiplayer, including Livestreaming, CODcasting, Leagues, and the “Pick 10” create-a-class system. For example, log into Call of Duty® Elite right now (for free) and watch the tutorial episode on Custom Classes.

3 – Call of Duty® Elite for Call of Duty®: Black Ops II features Zombies support.  For the millions of Zombies fans out there, now you can track your Zombies stats and compare them to other players’ stats from around the world.

4 –Call of Duty® Elite is the HQ for your complete Call of Duty®: Black Ops IImultiplayer experience.  In addition to tracking your overall performance, new and improved features include:

–          Expanded Clan Communications – Clan leaders can communicate directly with their Clan via push messaging to mobile devices for a more social and immediate experience, making tasks like updating the message of the day, or alerting Clan members to upcoming Clan Ops and Challenges even easier.

–          Improved Access to Clan Ops and Challenges – Now any Clan member can enlist their Clan into upcoming Clan Ops and Challenges, no longer being solely reliant on the Clan leader to jump into competitions.

–          One Button Class Copy – Copying another player’s loadout is now easier than ever. If another player perpetually owns you in Call of Duty®: Black Ops II multiplayer, just click a button in Call of Duty® Elite to copy that player’s loadout to try it out for yourself.

5 – Call of Duty® Elite for Call of Duty®: Black Ops II is available where you want it – through your game console, on your tablet and mobile devices, and on the Web.  With expanded functionality for tablet and mobile apps, players can now view features like Call of Duty Elite TV, and Call of Duty: Black Ops II Livestreaming – where, in addition to the video stream, players are also able to view the Livestreaming user’s stats, view and copy their loadout, as well as explore other useful information.

So, yes- it’s basically just multiplayer stuff. Even if you’re not into CoD multiplay though, you kind of have to admit that that’s a lot to do and play with for free.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 is available now for the Xbox 360, PS3, PS Vita and PC. A version of the game is also on the way for Wii U.