Where some games in the Black Ops subseries have been more standalone than their Modern Warfare brethren, 2025’s planned Call of Duty will reportedly be a follow-up to 2012’s Call of Duty: Black Ops 2, with players taking control of returning protagonist David Mason.

Because of the way the Call of Duty franchise is handled on PS5, Black Ops 6 will be the second entry in a row missing a Platinum Trophy for the current-gen version. Instead, it will be added to your PS5 Profile page as a DLC list for 2022's Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2,

Leaks indicate the 2025 Call of Duty will be a Black Ops 2 sequel set in the 2030s, with fans awaiting confirmation from Activision.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 is set to launch on October 24 at 9 PM PT for Battle.Net and Steam. For those looking to access the game in different regions, here’s when they can expect Black Ops 6 to launch in their respective time zones:

Players who already have Call of Duty installed will receive the Black Ops 6 preload as an automatic update to their existing install, which is similar to previous Call of Duty updates. Activision warns that the download will be larger for these players, as they're getting the new UI and Black Ops 6 at the same time.

Raise your hand if you have been personally victimized by the riot shield spam in Call of Duty. This feature has been at the center of flame wars and is individually responsible for dozens of broken controllers and headsets flung across the room in anger as your character eats yet another 9mm bullet through the skull after emptying a 30-round magazine into a shield enjoyer.

Over the last few Call of Duty games, the riot shield has met with consistent calls for it to be either nerfed or pulled from the game. It’s a particular favorite of the Modern Warfare sub-brand, appearing in last year’s Modern Warfare 3,

Black Ops 6 reveals that it's leaving out one controversial weapon that has caused frustration throughout previous titles in the series.

Black Ops 6 trailer as The Replacer fills in for the Call of Duty Marketing Team. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 will be available on PS4 (PlayStation 4), PS5 (PlayStation 5), Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC on October 25,

Black Ops 6 is coming out on October 25, and the game has leaned heavily on historical figures and the post-Cold War chaos in its marketing materials. It would be easy to think that such reliance on history was going somewhere.