Activision has officially rolled out new versions of Call of Duty: Black Ops 1 and Black Ops 2 for PlayStation consoles. However, early gameplay footage emerging online indicates that these ports offer very few changes compared to the original 2010s releases on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.
Tech outlet Digital Foundry was among the first to publish a preliminary analysis of Black Ops 1, expressing profound disappointment. The review highlights that the project exposes how little time, funding, and engineering effort Activision dedicated to this release, criticizing its steep price point and the decision to completely bypass a native Xbox version.
While Digital Foundry notes that the PlayStation 5 port technically outperforms the legacy Xbox edition, the improvements remain remarkably slim.
“Surprisingly, the game is still better than the Xbox version running in backward compatibility mode, which remains locked at the Xbox 360-era 608p resolution, featuring lower-resolution shadow maps and darker graphics – meaning no upgrades are present on Xbox. But for a native PlayStation 5 game and a fairly high-profile port, this is an incredibly bizarre situation. Even the original game’s obvious visual flaws have been preserved: shadow quality back then was naturally poor, but why keep this issue today when vastly superior graphical hardware is available?”
Meanwhile, Xbox players retain the benefit of backward compatibility for both Black Ops titles, meaning they can play without purchasing them again. However, some users have complained about hackers dominating these classic Xbox lobbies, a problem Digital Foundry suggests could have been solved by upgrading the backward-compatible versions or launching a comprehensive, paid 4K remaster for current-gen platforms.
“I understand why Activision’s parent company, Microsoft, wouldn’t want the game to look superior on PlayStation 5 compared to their own Xbox Series X, which could create a false impression regarding the relative power of the two systems, but the game still launches with a resolution advantage on PlayStation. If that was the concern, wouldn’t the logical solution be to enhance backward compatibility on Xbox, or simply release Black Ops 1 as a paid remaster for both platforms with minor touch-ups in clean 4K?”
Ultimately, the ports face severe criticism for failing to deliver an acceptable modern experience, an assessment that is hard to argue with. While PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 users will certainly enjoy revisiting these iconic titles, and sales will undoubtedly skyrocket, the lack of meaningful visual upgrades remains a missed opportunity.
The rushed nature of this launch might stem from a desire to maintain parity with Xbox, avoiding backlash from original owners who would feel forced to buy the games again despite having backward compatibility. Moving forward, offering a choice – allowing players to keep their legacy versions or pay for an upgraded 4K edition with quality-of-life enhancements – would be ideal, hoping such updates arrive later.
