
- Black Ops 7 will bring a new mode called Cursed, offering a hardcore Zombies experience for diehard fans.
- The mode features unique items named Relics that can unlock special rewards.
- To unlock the mode, any one player/team in the world has to complete the Ashes of the Damned main quest.
Black Ops 7 Zombies will feature a brand-new mode named Cursed at launch. The newly-crafted experience strips current-day Zombies of its modern mechanics in favor of a classic, more hardcore challenge. As intriguing as the mode sounds, you won’t be able to play right away at launch. This has obviously caused many players to wonder exactly how to access the mode. So, if you’re on the same boat, here’s how to unlock Cursed mode in Black Ops 7 Zombies.
What is Cursed in Black Ops 7 Zombies?

As mentioned at the start, the new Cursed Mode in Black Ops 7 Zombies is basically a revival of the original experience. In it, you’ll be dropped into the map with just a pistol in hand, no loadouts, no minimap, and a classic point system inspired by Black Ops 3.
From there, your focus is on finding archaic artifacts of great power, known as Relics, hidden away across Dark Aether time and space. Each Relic is themed around a totem from Black Ops Zombies’ history. It also has a unique condition for being accessed, and the requirements can be unforgiving.
Black Ops 7 Zombies: Cursed Mode Relics Explained
The devs have remained tight-lipped on exactly what these Relics look like, but we do know that they come with special benefits and unique rewards.
Unlocking these benefits will be quite the ordeal as every Relic will provide a debuff modifier, making your subsequent matches even more challenging. Each Relic offers a unique challenge to overcome, and once unlocked and applied to a match, several of these modifiers can enable further restrictions. These include a limit of four Perk-a-Colas and the removal of Ammo Caches, among others.
By overcoming these challenges, you’ll gain access to classified rewards and can then pursue more powerful Relics. Each Zombies map will also have more Relics to discover throughout the post-launch seasons. As for those classified rewards, these will likely be special Weapon Blueprints or Calling Cards
How to Unlock Cursed Mode in BO7 Zombies
As confirmed by Treyarch during an episode of Dev Talk, Cursed Mode will be unlocked as soon as one player or team manages to complete the Ashes of the Damned main quest in Black Ops 7 Zombies. For clarification’s sake, this means any one player/team in the entire world; they do not have to be in your party.
It’s a bit of a strange requirement, reminiscent of how Raids work in Destiny 2, but it does mean that Cursed will be available pretty quickly. Diehard Zombies players will have the easter egg wrapped up in just a few hours, meaning you’ll only have to wait instead of playing through the Standard mode yourself. Of course, you can always take a stab at being the first player to unlock Cursed for the community. However, the odds of that happening are audacious, to say the least.
And that wraps up our guide on how to unlock the Cursed Mode in Black Ops 7 Zombies. Are you excited for Ashes of the Damned? Be sure to let us know in the comments below.