Although many of its game mechanics are drastically different than previous installments, Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 is seen as the one that encapsulates the whole of the Black Ops series. With the addition of Blackout, Treyarch has designed its battle royale mode to be a nostalgic adventure that includes elements from the previous Black Ops games. Most of the maps, guns, and characters can be traced back to earlier Black Ops games; however, some of the characters need to be unlocked before they can be used.

There are nine unlockable zombies characters, but the infamous Shadowman can only be unlocked by buying Call of Duty: Black Ops 4's season pass. While some of the remaining eight appeared in one or multiple previous Black Ops installments, and some are completely new, all can be unlocked and become playable by completing various challenges in a particular order. Having appeared in both Black Ops 2 and Black Ops 3, Nikolai is making his third appearance in the Black Ops series.

Similar to unlocking Dempsey, acquiring Nikolai requires players to successfully complete three challenges in a Blackout match. The first thing players must do is find and collect a Cymbal Monkey. Being a recurring staple of Call of Duty zombies, the Cymbal Monkey can be found as loot drops from killing zombies. Once players have collected the Cymbal Monkey they must then kill zombies with it. After having killed zombies using the Cymbal Monkey, all players have left to do is to finish the match in the top ten.

While there are five potential zombie spawns, it is recommended to land near one of the less-populated locations. The building between Fracking Tower and Turbine, also known as Anvil Boxing Gym, and the small building northwest of Array are both typically less-crowded. The other three locations can be hotspots for player-landings, but if the player should so choose to take the risk, Asylum, Graveyard, and Lighthouse are all feasible options overrun by zombies. However, if a player chooses to venture towards Graveyard, they must keep a keen eye out for Blightfather. Despite its extremely worthwhile loot drops, it can abruptly end a player's progress towards unlocking Nikolai.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 is available now for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.