Call of Duty: Black Ops Killstreak Guide - The Spy Plane Vs. The Blackbird

Call of Duty: Black Ops is the newest, and hottest, installment in the Call of Duty series. The series has already surpassed the $1 Billion revenue marker after the first week it was released. One way in which the Call of Duty series is unique is that players can obtain "killstreaks", which are helpful vehicles, weapons, and even dogs, that aid the player after they obtain a certain amount of kills without dying. While some of these killstreaks help the player get some additional kills, other killstreaks aid the player, as well as their team, by shooting down killstreaks, jamming an enemy radar (mini-map), or revealing the location of enemy players.

The two killstreaks that reveal enemy locations are the Spy Plane and the Blackbird. While these two killstreaks essentially do the same job, they're very different altogether. Another difference between the Spy Plane and Blackbird is the amount of kills needed to obtain these killstreaks - 3 and 8, respectively.

First, we'll go over the Spy Plane, as it's the killstreak that's easier to obtain:

The Spy Plane has been in the Call of Duty series since Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (the fourth installment in the series), and was also a 3-kill killstreak. Subsequent to Modern Warfare it was in Call of Duty: World at War, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, and now Call of Duty: Black Ops. Although it was called different names in some of these games (Call of Duty: Modern Warfare called it a "Radar" and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 called it a "UAV"), it potentially did the same thing through these games - showed enemy locations on the mini-map.

In Black Ops, things haven't changed - it does the same job and still needs 3 kills to obtain. So why not use it compared to the Blackbird? Well, in each game there is a counter-perk for the Spy Plane. In Black Ops there is a perk titled "Ghost", which renders players invisible to enemy Spy Planes. At this point in time many players are utilizing the Ghost perk, especially since the other perks in the same category seem less viable.

But why should players use the Spy Plane in comparison to the Blackbird perk? It's simple - not many players can whip out a consistent 8 kills in a row, especially newer players that aren't used to the maps, the mechanics of the game, and the hot spots within the maps.

Another reason to use the Spy Plane over the Blackbird is because players, especially when there's multiple players on a team using it, is that it'll be up constantly. It's unlikely that a team will work together and keep up a Blackbird constantly, especially since most people will generally be using the killstreaks that net them more kills directly.

The last reason to use Spy Plane is because it can be obtainable in 2 kills when a player uses the Hardline perk. Getting two kills in Black Ops is easy and can even be obtained with a single grenade if it's well-placed. This'll mean that you can stockpile Spy Planes and, in some cases, have them up the whole game.

With all of these good facts mentioned about the Spy Plane, why would a player even consider using the Blackbird instead?

Well, the Blackbird is a 8-kill killstreak, so there are a few advantages it holds over the convenient Spy Plane.

First, the Blackbird shows you, and your team, where all enemy players are on the map for a longer duration of time. There is also no-to-minimal loading, meaning that the mini-map will show you in real-time where enemy players are.

Second, the Blackbird shows enemy players as arrows rather than dots. This is helpful since the arrows point in the direction in which the enemy player is facing, making it easier to flank enemy players, especially those pesky campers.

Third, the Blackbird is indestructible, meaning that it cannot be shot down by enemy players. It doesn't even show up in the sky for players to target it.

Fourth, the Blackbird shows all players on the mini-map, even those using Ghost, meaning that there is no perk that can counter the Blackbird.

Fifth, there is only one true counter to the Blackbird - a Counter Spy Plane (4-kill killstreak). However, lucky for Blackbird users, not many players equip the Counter Spy Plane killstreak. The vast majority of people that even use Counter Spy Planes get them from Care Packages (5-kill killstreak).

Overall, which killstreak a player uses should be based on a few different variables - your/their skill level, how the other team is playing (Are they using launchers/SAM Turrets? Are they killing you easily, so the chance of you getting a 8-kill streak is unlikely? Are many enemy players using Ghost?), and other basic game variables (game type, availability of weapons/killstreaks, ect).

My advice to players is use what you're comfortable with. If you feel like you can successfully obtain a Blackbird frequently, than go for it. These help your whole team significantly, especially when the other team is camping and flanking from certain areas. Using the Blackbird almost always helps me, and my team, acquire their killstreaks that their currently working for. The Blackbird is also especially useful in Team Deathmatch since there's no specific "hot spots" like in Domination, where you can generally figure out the ways in which enemies are coming from since their spawn is definite in a specific area. It's also good in objective games to see where enemy players are trying to flank from.

But if you cannot obtain a Blackbird, and generally go negative in kill/death ratio, than simply go with the Spy Plane. I find that most of the time players usually won't shoot them down, and getting them more frequently than unsuccessfully obtaining a Blackbird helps out your team more so in the long run. Just don't rely on Spy Planes, use them as a reference, as many players are running the Ghost perk.