Unused Text

This is a sub-page of Call of Duty: Black Ops (Windows, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii).

To do: Is the following text in en_code_post_gfx_mp.ff unused? Listening Device Not Enough Clearance - Grouped among onscreen messages that appear when the player tries to use grenades/equipment they no longer have. Is the following text unused (found in /zone/English/en_frontend.ff on PC, which covers main menu text): This map contains CLASSIFIED materials. A higher clearance level is required.

All Modes#

M1911 Multiple Attachments
Python Multiple Attachments
Makarov Multiple Attachments
G11 Multiple Attachments
Stakeout Multiple Attachments
SPAS-12 Multiple Attachments

The following weapons have unused "multiple attachments" text that does not appear in singleplayer and is absent from multiplayer due to being incompatible with the Warlord perk. Python Multiple Attachments was used in an early version of Gun Game where the Python had a Snub Nose and Speed Reloader.

Model 1887

Unused text for the name of the Model 1887 shotgun. During the motorcycle segment of the "Vorkuta" campaign level where this weapon appears, the name of this weapon is never displayed, although its weapon file does specify a string for its name which is never displayed in-game.

Multiplayer#

To do: Is the following unused: ^3&&1^7 Handbrake (/zone/English/en_code_post_gfx_mp.ff, placed among RC-XD controls text)

You must have at least one Ops and one Communist class

Placed among text for Private Match customization.

Weapons#

To do: Add the rest of the Dual Wield text.

Anti-personal free fire and anti-aircraft lock-on semi-auto missile launcher.

Unused Create-a-Class description for the Grim Reaper, which normally is only available via the Care Package.

There exists unused Create-a-Class text for every single Dual Wield weapon, including the unused Dual Wield versions of the MP5K and MPL.

Semi-automatic dual wielded M1911 pistols. Effective at close range.
Semi-automatic dual wielded Makarov pistols. Effective at close range.
Semi-automatic dual wielded Python pistols. Effective at close range.
Semi-automatic dual wielded CZ75 pistols. Effective at close range.
Fully automatic dual wielded Mac11 guns. Effective at close range.
Fully automatic dual wielded PM63 guns. Effective at close range.
Fully automatic dual wielded Kiparis guns. Effective at close range.
Fully automatic dual wielded MP5K guns. Effective at close range.
Fully automatic dual wielded MPL guns. Effective at close range.

Menu Text#

MISSION OBJECTIVES
Mission Objectives

Presumably for a cut multiplayer game mode and meant to be displayed in the pause menu.

Add a camouflage finish to your weapon.

The camo option in the menu has no text.

Second Attachment
SECOND ATTACHMENT
Add a second attachment to your gun.

Warlord in the final does this by just allowing the player to select a second attachment.

Most Kills with Cooked Grenades

This was intended for the After Action Report. In the final game, cooked grenade kills are tracked as part of normal grenade kills.

Loading Screen Lines#

To do: Is this used: "You can steal enemy Care Packages and crates."

The game contains unused loading screen lines that would be displayed on the loading screen before a match.

The Killstreaks menu lets you select up to three Killstreaks.
Use the coordinates on the mini-map to pinpoint your location.
The Strela-3 launcher can lock on to Spy Planes and helicopters.
Use the SAM Turret to take out enemy helicopters and Spy Planes.
The Tactical Mask Perk protects you from most Tactical Grenades.

This Tactical Mask line is not true in the final game, as it only protects from Nova Gas while Pro protects from Nova Gas, Concussion, and Flashbangs. Perhaps an early idea for the perk?

Game Modes#

To do: The names of these strings might shed some light on what they were intended to be used for.

Beware: Your enemy is fast and can see you on their radar at all times
Beware: Your enemy is slow, but has powerful weaponry.

Placed among text for Headquarters.

Zombies#

To do: Check the text on the notes page for whether it is unused. Also check strings on other platforms if theres anything exclusive on those Names of the strings that mention the Paris map.

Hold ^3[{+activate}]^7 to buy OLD P90 [Cost: &&1]
Hold ^3[{+activate}]^7 to buy M1911 [Cost: &&1]
Hold ^3[{+activate}]^7 to buy Python [Cost: &&1]
Hold ^3[{+activate}]^7 to buy RPK [Cost: &&1]
Hold ^3[{+activate}]^7 to buy Dragunov [Cost: &&1]
Hold ^3[{+activate}]^7 to buy Thunder Gun [Cost: &&1]
Hold ^3[{+activate}]^7 to buy ENFIELD [Cost: &&1]
Hold ^3[{+activate}]^7 to buy Sabertooth [Cost: &&1]
Hold ^3[{+activate}]^7 to buy Ray Gun [Cost: &&1]
Hold ^3[{+activate}]^7 to buy Minigun [Cost: &&1]
Hold ^3[{+activate}]^7 to buy M202 Flash [Cost: &&1]

The game contains many strings for buying weapons off walls that are either only in the Mystery Box or entirely absent from any map in the final game. Many of these were likely made for testing purposes as it's unlikely that some (such as Wonder Weapons) were ever intended to appear as wall buys.

Strangely, one of the weapons is the P90, which does not appear anywhere in the game and is likely a leftover from Modern Warfare 2.

Grim Reaper Upgraded
MAC11 Upgraded
Enfield Upgraded
AUG Grenade Launcher Upgraded

Clearly temporary names for Pack-a-Punch versions of some weapons that go unused in Zombies. For some reason, none of the other unused upgraded variants have translation strings.

Hold ^3[{+activate}]^7 to buy Tesla Gun [Cost: &&1]

A prompt to buy a weapon off the wall called "Tesla Gun", which does not exist in the final game. This name possibly refers to the Wunderwaffe DG-2, whose internal name in World at War and Black Ops is "tesla_gun". In both games the Wunderwaffe DG-2 can only be obtained from the Mystery Box and not off the wall. A weapon called "Tesla Gun" was later introduced in Call of Duty: WWII in the Nazi Zombies mode.

"Chainsaw Mayhem!!!"

Seemingly intended as a pickup text for the unused Sabertooth chainsaw.

Press & and Hold^3 &&1 ^7to Store Weapon

A prompt to stash away the player's currently-used weapon. A weapon storing system would later be added to Black Ops II in the maps TranZit, Die Rise, and Buried.

Hold ^3[{+activate}]^7 to Activate the Kill Counter. [Cost: &&1]

Text for activating a "kill counter". The leaderboard already has a kill counter for each player in the final game, so what purpose this would serve is unknown.

Pickup your death marker to retrieve your lost gear

A tip referencing a cut "death marker" mechanic that would presumably return weapons lost after bleeding out. A similar mechanic exists in Black Ops II in the form of the perk Tombstone.

"Hold ^3&&1^7 to Rebuild Barrier [Reward: 10]"
"Hold ^3&&1^7 to Rebuild Barrier [Reward: 20]"
"Hold ^3&&1^7 to Rebuild Barrier [Reward: 30]"
"Hold ^3&&1^7 to Rebuild Barrier [Reward: 50]"

Prompts to rebuild barriers with different amounts of points awarded. The game always gives 10 points (20 with Double Points) by default and doesn't indicate the reward in the used text.

Hold^3 &&1 ^7to Build Bridge [Cost: 1000]

It's unclear what map this would have been used in.

Transporter activated
Transporter waitng for all players

Undescriptive text relating to some transporter mechanic. Notably the names of the strings mention the cut Paris map.

Press DOWN on the DPAD to drop money for your teammates

Text referencing a cut mechanic where players could give points to their teammates, like in Killing Floor. The final game doesn't use the D-Pad Down button anywhere.

Ascension#

The centrifuge trap requires power!

In the final game, the centrifuge activates on its own even without power.

The rocket trap requires power!

Perhaps the rocket that's launched to access Pack-a-Punch was originally supposed to be used as a trap?

Hold ^3[{+activate}]^7 to go to No Man's Land [Cost: FREE]
Waiting for &&1 connection...

Presumably at one point the Lunar Landers would be able to travel to a location called No Man's Land. While this name is commonly used for the starting area of Moon, whatever this location was is likely unrelated.

Call of the Dead#

Hold^3 &&1 ^7to use zipline [Cost: 1000]

Implies that the ziplines in Call of the Dead at one point cost points to use.

Shangri-La#

Hold ^3[{+activate}]^7 to use elevator [Cost: &&1]
Hold ^3[{+activate}]^7 to call elevator
Elevator not usable in Pack a Punch round
Elevator not usable when monkeys are near.
You and your companions must drop before you may ascend.

Prompts intended for a removed elevator in Shangri-La. Could have been disabled by monkeys and during some sort of "Pack a Punch round".

Blow Gun
Super Blow Gun

HUD strings for a weapon referred to as the "Blow Gun", along with its aptly-named upgraded variant. Its unclear if this was an early name for the 31-79 JGb215 or something else entirely.

Campaign#

Operation 40#

To do: Are the following unused: Carlos Died! - It does not appear that Carlos can ever die in the level. You killed your squad. Press ^3[{+stance}]^7 to duck Press ^3[{+breath_sprint}]^7 to sprint

Bar
Street
Drive
Zipline
Courtyard
Compound
Mansion
Castro Assasination
Support
Airfield
Escape
Captured
Pick Up
Assasinate

Labels for level segments and major objectives that were presumably used during development. These labels might have been displayed in-level floating in the air at the level segments or objects they pertain to or in a table that would have allowed the developers to go to a specific part of the level. While the level segment labels are listed here according to the level layout in the final game, internally they are not placed in order and are also scattered among in-level menu objectives and messages for the level.

Watch your head.

Presumably this was a message would have been displayed on screen at a segment where the player would have had to crouch to navigate through an area.

Get off the streets

This line presumably refers to the first segment of the level, although where it would have been used is not known. It is also possible this may have been dev text used during development.

Press ^3[{+activate}]^7 to open the gun chest

Text for an unused gun chest item. Presumably this item would have weapons in it.

^1MASON: ^7Lev Kravchenko. Sadistic, evil...
^1MASON: ^7But he was nothing compared to Dragovich.

Unused subtitles that occur just before Mason's final line in the interrogation room after recounting how he was captured by Dragovich and Kravchenko.

The Defector#

To do: The weapon file, spas_db_sp, appears to have remnants of this in the form of unique changes to altDropTime, altRaiseTime, altRaiseAnim, and altDropAnim parameters over the base SPAS-12.

Press ^3[{+actionslot 3}]^7  to use to Dragon's Breath shells

This string indicates that Dragon Breath rounds at one point were intended to be an alternate type of ammunition that could be switched to, like the Explosive Bolts on the Crossbow in Executive Order and WMD. In the final game, the Dragon Breath is an attachment for the SPAS-12 that replaces the normal shotgun shells.

Numbers#

The level briefing contains an unused line that would presumably appear in the following spot based on where it occurs in the level's file. It has been bolded.

Victor Charlie#

To do: Document where the unused mid-level cutscene would have appeared.

Repeatedly press ^3[{+activate}]^7 to open the door.

Early version of the text to open the helicopter door at the start of the level. The text in the final version is "Press ^3[{+activate}]^7 to open door.", where "^3[{+activate}]^7" will flash on screen.

Approach the boat and press ^3[{+melee}]^7 to take out the VC

This text was presumably intended to appear when Woods and Mason initially see the sampan with the Viet Cong soldiers who they later kill by pulling off the boat. In the final game, no such text appears.

^1INTERROGATOR: ^7Where had Reznov been? Why did you split up?
^1MASON: ^7Viktor Reznov was a loner. He didn't trust anyone.

Subtitles that presumably were for an unused mid-level cutscene.

^1US PILOT: ^7We're hit!!! We're hit!!

An unused subtitle possibly intended for the start of the mission.

The game contains an early version of the subtitle for the pilot in the helicopter at the start of the level.

^1BOWMAN: ^7Lima niner X-ray - do you monitor?
^1BOWMAN: ^7Lima niner X-ray - do you read me?

Unused subtitles for Bowman.

WMD#

WMD has the following unused subtitles which would have occurred during the Blackbird boarding segment at the start of the level right before firing the Blackbird engines.

The following subtitle occurs among subtitles pertaining to the segment of the level where Neitsch has to guide Kilo 1 to various buildings. This line appears to suggest that the first safehouse skirmish, which takes place completely inside the safehouse, was different at one point.

The following unused subtitles pertain to an event during the Blackbird segment where Kilo 1 would attack and destroy vehicles, which does not occur in the final game. Multiple pairs consisting of Neitsch alerting Hudson and Hudson responding exist.