By Kendall Smih

Last November, gamers everywhere llined up at stores in anticipation of the release of “Call of Duty: Black Ops.” Coming on the heels of the immensely successful “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2,” “Black Ops” managed to sell over 7 million copies worldwide within the first day of its release.

Now, UK students will be able to put their skills to the test against other students in the Cats Den Black Ops tournament. Like other popular first-person shooter videogames such as “Halo,” “Black Ops” has fostered a competitive atmosphere with its online multiplayer aspect.

“I get really into the game when I’ m playing online,” said Brennan Smith, a UK sophomore. “I don’t take the game too seriously like others, but you can’t help but be thrilled when you play well and frustrated when you don’t. It’ll be interesting to see how that plays out when everyone is in the same room.”

“Black Ops” is the latest iteration in a long line of games from the “Call of Duty” franchise. The franchise started out as a World War II shooter before declining in popularity and seeing itself reinvigorated by “Modern Warfare” in 2007, the first game in the series to base itself off the present-day idea of war.

“Black Ops,” however, takes place during the Vietnam War, bringing with it a mix of dated weaponry and more modern arms familiar to those who enjoyed the “Modern Warfare” games. Although “Modern Warfare” was developed by Infinity Ward and “Black Ops” was developed by Treyarch, many believe “Black Ops” has become the new gold standard in the “Call of Duty” franchise.

“I’d say they stepped up the quality of their usual war game not just by including better graphics and weapons, but also through the online multiplayer mode,” said Kris Nava, a UK senior. “There’ s a lot to unlock and so many different ways to play. I think this tournament will show just how well this game was made.”

The tournament will provide a departure from the way people typically enjoy multiplayer in “Black Ops,” which is mostly online. Just like any other online videogame, “Black Ops” runs the gamut in terms of what kind of people you encounter while playing.

From the casual, friendly gamer to the hardcore player yelling expletives at his team for not playing well, who you end up playing with online can be a virtual shot in the dark.

“It can really ruin the fun when some jerk on your team is yelling at everyone,” said Jai Chirravuri, a UK junior. “Online, everyone is basically anonymous, so you never know what you’ re going to get when you play. I think it would be refreshing to have everyone playing actually be there in person. It would probably be more civil.”

The Black Ops tournament will take place tonight from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. in the Cats Den. It is free to attend and students who choose to play will compete for prizes.