Die Rise: How (and How Not) to Make a Difficult Map 

I loved this map when it came out. Despite its difficulty, it wasn't nearly as complicated and confusing as Tranzit, and the theme of the map was much cooler. I was surprised when I saw the zombie community generally didn't like Die Rise. It's far from the best, but I would consider it a fun map to play.

Everyone can hate it all they want, but the location and eerie feeling it gave off was extremely good. No one realizes that the idea of being in China, which is one of the most populated nations in the world, during a zombie apocalypse in abandoned morbid-looking towers is absolute nightmare fuel, and the "Great Leap Forward" title of the map was extra salt in the wound, lol. You'd be overwhelmed easily with zombies in reality due to the large population and being in a tight urban area, it is really scary to think about for me and I hate it, which is what the zombies game mode is supposed to be like, that is why this specific map is the scariest to me.

I think the least the devs could've done is introduce some really hard way of obtaining PhD Flopper on this map. Like, maybe a special elevator key that allows you to stop the elevator halfway up and go grab the PhD, but you need to be quick because the zombies will block your only exit if you're too slow. Like, make it a reward for all your hard work the way Easter Eggs would give you all perks.

In my personal opinion, this is one of the most unique and fun maps and I actually enjoyed it. It isn't without flaws, but the gimmicks and features are interesting and unique. My rating would be 8.5/10. Also, I sometimes see people make the argument that the map lacks a theme and that it's utter randomness, but that isn't true. It's an extension of Tranzit, It displays the aftermath of the rockets crashing into earth.

Maybe someday, the less popular maps will be remade, this time no longer held back by the inferior consoles.

One thing I will always praise die rise for, is the storytelling and background. The radios (especially the radios) and ambiance are absolute gold. And no other map has come close to it.

I love finding these small channels that do zombies map analyses. Ive found many like yours and theyre truly hidden gems. Keep it up man!

I made the mistake of binge watching all of your videos and now I just can't wait for the next one. I've really enjoyed listening to you cover the gamemode and maps that made my childhood. I never played any map newer than Shadows of Evil, but it'll be nice to hear your thoughts even on the newer maps as you go.

This has been my favorite map since I was a kid and still is. And it’s exactly for the immersion. No other zombies map tried so hard to be so real. No other zombies map was set in the middle of Hong Kong or a big city let alone on a high rise. That immersion and realism of the map, paired with the fact that The Walking Dead was growing so much at that time. Man. It was all just, so perfect, down to the last…. Minute detail.

I binged this whole series and gasped when I saw your subscribers. These analysis videos are so well made and deserve all the praise in the world. I'm very excited for the next one!

Man, Die Rise was the only Bo2 map I played for months. Then Buried came out and I didn't try it right away. Die Rise had a great vibe when it comes to post apocalyptic type of vibes

One of my top 5 zombies maps I can’t lie, I loved it.

The siliqiufer is actually my fave wonder weapon in that regard when use a wonder weapon like thunder gun the map and aspect of surviving ends up not being fun anymore always bein on ur toes n adding more fall deaths is actually a really fun gimmick I really wish tranzits jet gun gave u that feel I’m glad u brought that into light I’ve said that for years it usually just gets a lotta slack die rise is actually my fave map

Die Rise is my favourite map. Always has been. It was the one me and my friends played the most, and the challenging verticality was so fun to overcome!

good video man, it would have been cool to have a grappling system like in BO4

I’m glad I was recommended this video. Currently doing some research on what a good level design is for something I’m making. Keep up the good work!

i said this from the moment the map dropped, i have always loved die rise and all of the bo2 dlc maps. literally none of them were bad, in fact they were all really good. every person i know or have seen talk about die rise has hated it and i just have gotten so tired of it, i just roll my eyes to myself every time now. finally, someone else who loves the map or at least agrees on the fact that it is good and sees the value in it

please keep doing every map ! I love how you manage to justify map philosophy in an objective way that i never heard/thought of. it goes way beyond the usual ''i love this- i hate that''

Really took me back with TheRelaxingEnd and NGTZombies clips. Fun fact, NGT came back to youtube recently after a few years and started right back with zombies.

This skybox, along with the mars one on Tag, are fucking beautiful. I really wish we got more inventive atmosphere changes like that. Seeing chunks of the earth just floating in space was super cool.

Just finished binging your retrospectives! This series came at the perfect time as I've recently fallen back in love with Zombies. Loving your work man, looking forward to seeing more!

I actually think the 3D platforming worked best in this because of how “boots on the ground” bo2 was. Feel like it gave the obstacles more of a challenge

I haven't played zombies in years but you lowkey make me miss all the amazing moments I had with the bros. Thanks for the nostalgia and keep it up

Holy shit, this is the best review and break down of Die Rise I have ever seen. Far too long people on RU-vid and Reddit talk so much shit towards this map and ignoring the whole idea behind it. Very well done, good job! Thanks for taking a fair go at this map

Your video was recommended and I really enjoyed it. Looking forward to the next one 😁

Honestly I am glad to be subbed to you this early on man, you're putting out well educated Zombies content that takes a lot of time research and effort. Best of luck to you!

Great video can't wait to see more of these

What a channel this is! You've got me hooked listening to your thoughts and opinions on the different maps. Keep up the great work :)

So glad you popped up in my recommended, watched all your videos and they're honestly such great content, looking forward to the rest of the series and whatever else you do! Subbed!

Instant sub. Hard to find new zombies content, especially with this much love and thoughtful insight

I am glad this video is performing so well, I have seen so many of these videos from you and the LACK of views they get is honestly insulting

I'm so hyped for the mob video. I love your content and I've been binging your entire map retrospective series. Keep making these great videos.

I just binged this entire series in a day. Thank you so much sir for putting into words what makes zombies so special!!

Damn this video is great!! Good job dude. Keep it up

i found your channel and binge watched all the videos. im so excited for the rest of the maps. it’s good to see you getting more views and subs. i miss the golden age of zombies when i was a young teen and your videos brought back that nostalgia. keep up the amazing content man.

It seems that the algorithm has blessed your channel, and it's well deserved! Can't wait for more videos

Tbh I wanted to make this video, but got discouraged by other retrospectives. This was actually perfect. Thank you for defending this map in the perfect way

I found this video and immediately started watching all of your other content, I love the video essay format, and I think you do an amazing job explaining ever aspect of maps. Would love to see your take on origins

Awesome video. Not many zombies RU-vidrs know how to put these game mechanics into words but you’ve done something cool here.

Loved this map, I remember always trying to get high rounds on this map. We were never really good at zombies, but it was always an amazing experience on dierise

Watched the entire video essays and i gotta say they're all so good you should be proud of yourself and the content you produce is amazing

RU-vid recommending a good small channel for once is a blessing. Origins is my favourite map in Zombies so I'm incredibly keen to see your video on it, subbed just in anticipation for that honestly! Hopefully you enjoy making it since it'll certainly be longer than the rest :D

This video popped up in my recommended and I enjoyed it so I've been watching the others amd have been enjoying them. Would love to see you do a video on Buried, my favorite map!

this vid is MAD underrated. one of the best i've seen focusing on a single zombies map, and it honestly made me reconsider how i feel about die rise. good shit.

i like how unbiased your retrospective videos are compared to the larger yts, and how they're actually good here. good luck!

I only needed to watch a few videos before I knew this channel was gonna go far. Wonderful analysis, Cliff. Take my sub.

Another great video, Looking forward to more

Dude you are blowing up thanks to the algorithm, just watched all the previous retrospectives after Die Rise. Last night you were like 1000 subs and now your nearly 2k.

Congrats on 1k subs! I think you had like 700 when i subbed a few days ago so it's dope to see you're getting the recognition you deserve for your great content.

Really hoping your channel takes off king. Really liking these retrospective lookbacks/reviews. Keep it up

Doh! I've just binge-watched the whole series up until now, don't see another yet, and I feel like I'm going through withdrawal. I guess I'll go play some of these maps while I wait for more. Can't wait to see the next few specifically. :)

Just binged aw your videos lad 👏🏼good shiii

This was one of my favorite solo maps in black ops 2. The free perk drop made it so fun

This is a great high-quality video, and I suspect your channel will grow with this type of content.

Loving this series Can't wait for the rest

this series is dope, hope all the other vids can get the same recognition and you can continue this series!

great video! im starting to binge on your vids, and holy, you've got some amazing content! Keep up the good work.

I hope you keep growing these videos are a must for any zombies fan ❤ Instant sub

Here before you blow up in subscribers. Quality content that pulls on the nostalgia strings many of us had playing these iconic maps. Good stuff👍👍.

I feel the going up adds tension. Going down has options and and a bit of careful to not try to go down too much at a time. Going up involves going to the bottom in a dangerous place to be, you'll have to hold off zombies close quarters and not in good training spots while waiting for the elevator to be ready, even trying to hold one zombie solo you gotta get in before the zombie climbs in or you may have to kill it or run a very small loop risking hits and a down. Both going up and down aren't done on a whim, you need to be careful and you don't want to be stuck in bad spot while doing so as you risk death. Even the wonder weapon has a risk of poor timing or luck and having you slide off to your death or slide into the zombies thanks to reduced traction. I do love this video and agree, I just think going up feels intentionally like it's there to cause a tension moment, especially if it's mid-round

great video, really nice to see a more positive perspective on this map. it absolutely had its flaws but once you really learn how to play it i actually enjoy it. after you can get past the learning curve i think it’s a good time

I'm marathoning these videos and this is the best zombies retrospective I've ever seen thank you for your work

I have a lot of nostalgia for this map, first and only DLC I bought lol Edit: 4:35 what a sick transition

Amazing video mate!

Awesome video and details

Haven't even watched the video yet but love that you made a RU-vid channel just going in on zombies

Very grateful for the algorithm recommending me your channel. Great video, keen to see what’s next up. When we get to Buried, I hope you mention that bullshit Juggernog hallway that you could camp in for basically infinite rounds 😁

I know I am late to the video, but I recently just got this in my recommendation! And I subscribed to your channel. I like your quality of somewhat “retrospecting” these maps. It’s great and I think your channel is refreshing for me; giving me motivation to play zombies again after being burnt out of the mode for awhile.

Thanks for making this video, Die Rise was my favourite map.

These videos are awesome! Sub earned!

73k views but only 3k subscribers. I know you probably hear it enough but you deserve more dude. The quality of your videos is amazing to the point where this Playlist is starting to feel like an analysis of the entire zombies experience/evolution, keep doing what you do best and have patience, you'll blow up eventually

That Who's Who clip around 10:00 had my heart in my mouth

Your stuff popped up in my recommended today and I’ve jus watched every video, keep it up dawg and maybe you can do a full long ass lore video sometime 🤘🏻 good shit

11:55 also something interesting I noticed, I think they either coded it incorrectly, or too specifically as if you get more than 100% accuracy, you actually miss out on the free perk as well. But not if u don’t shoot at all. (When I tested it, I was using mustang and sally, and it would give me the perk bottle ONLY if I shot each one individually. If I got any double kills or hit markers with one shot I’d lose the 100% accuracy

It’s criminal that you have so few subs. Love the videos they’re pretty entertaining. But just remember to do whatever you want to do and make whatever you want to make. Your happiness is what’s most important

Very well made video man, still not a fan of the map but this was definitely a great way to look at it

Loved the commentary keep it up man👍

You make crazy good videos man! I was shocked to scroll down and see only 250 subs. These are super high quality and very in depth. Keep it up dude! Also maybe a buried video coming soon? It's one of my favorite maps.

This guys understanding of the zombies dev mindset is unmatched!

I just played Die Rise for the first time in YEARS. Probably since 2013/2014. I downloaded a bunch of last gen CoDs on my Series S for nostalgia, replaying all the older CoD games that I used to play on my PS3 back from elementary all the way to my freshman year of High School. Recently I’ve been wanting to play every Zombies map (Both Treyarch and non-Treyarch) since I’m older and can now afford all the games/DLCs. And it has been so much fun, replaying maps I used to play when I was younger and a noob, and also experiencing new Zombies, like IW and AW. I haven’t touch BO2 zombies since at least 2015/2016 (because I absolutely love BO3) and when replaying Die Rise, Buried, and Mob, I surprisingly remember so much about the maps. I remember all the buildables, where the Teddy Bears are for the songs, and even some of the quotes the characters say. I would say the quotes along with the game and be like “Holy shit, I can’t believe I remember that.” Zombies has been a huge part of my childhood and these map analysis videos are part of the reason I wanted to go back and play all those maps. I’ve beaten every BO3 Easter Egg, and half of the BO4 Easter Eggs (I do NOT look forward to Blood or Voyage.) I’m really glad I decided to go back and sort of relive a part of my childhood. Thank you man, keep up the great videos.

Very good quality video, you deserve way more views.

Man me and my mates played this map hundreds of times and loved it. One of my favorites.

Great content bro keep up the grind !!!!!

definitely my favourite map and gives me the most nostalgia

great video man!

had so much fun paying this map when it came out when I was in middle school! wow how time flies!

Great video!

To me, the problem about Die Rise is the way to move around the map. Ya gotta be patient with those elevators, otherwise you miss your ride, you gotta wait again for it to go up, then come down. (Unless you have a key, but who even holds onto those.)

Besides the original Origins, die rise is my favorite map. It did lack alot of rewarding side objectives but the map layout combined with the tramplesteam was so fun, so many different applications and shortcuts to keep in mind when needing to rescue a teammate and the bonus sniper points perma perk just shined with this map. Also you can sliquify the edge of a drop just as a teammate is about to jump across instant death. Good times good times.

I really like these kinds of videos. Die rise is fun and unfun at the same time. People hated it cause they didn't understand how to play it or not fall off the map. Honestly a good video, keep it up.

This map will also be a guilty pleasure of mine, I will be the first to acknowledge the flawed design of Die Rise but man do I love revisiting it from time to time.

This map was literally the funniest on public lobbies

As someone who got way too good at zombies back in the day and a good amount of the maps became way too easy it was nice to have a map like this to go back to when you wanted an actual challenge, cause even the best zombie players struggled with this map on its release!!!

Glad i found this channel its a hidden gem for aure

Had a blast playing this map.

Perfect video to watch while eating, thank you

I would def pop Die Rise in my top 5 for sure. absolutely adored the map

This is a really fucking good video and it makes me want to come up with an idea for a truly great vertical map

die rise is like the black ops 1 shang when it came out it was shit but has aged amazing and die rise is one of my top tier maps as it wasn't room to room it was up and down a new take on zombies all together

God these videos are freaking awesome