Activision owns up to ugly Call of Duty skins, reverses course on Black Ops 6 skins transferring and promises "authentic" skins for Black Ops 7 – a game that is already selling cyborgs and murder robots

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"Black Ops 7 needs to feel authentic to Call of Duty and its setting"

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Beavis and Butthead skins
(Image credit: Activision)

Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 will not carry forward operators, operator skins, and weapons from Black Ops 6 after all, as Activision changes its mind after previously committing to full cosmetic carry-over.

With Battlefield 6 making a powerful case for universe-appropriate skins, the folks at the reins of the Call of Duty franchise seem to have decided that fans are right: Black Ops 6 looks ridiculous, and we don't need that clownery in this new game.

"We know there’s been a lot of conversation recently about the identity of Call of Duty," the post reads. "Some of you have said we’ve drifted from what made Call of Duty unique in the first place: immersive, intense, visceral and in many ways grounded. That feedback hits home, and we take it seriously. We hear you."

Black Ops 7 skin pack

(Image credit: Activision)

The 2025 rekindling of the old rivalry between Battlefield and Call of Duty has sparked intense debate about the strengths and weaknesses of the two FPS giants. With Battlefield 6, DICE recommitted to a grounded approach to cosmetics, much to the relief of fans enjoying the series' resurgence. This only intensified longstanding complaints that Call of Duty has gone off the deep end.

We can't draw a straight, unquestionable line positioning this Black Ops 7 change as a direct response to the Battlefield 6 beta chatter. Again, player feedback is cited as the driving factor, though some of that feedback was surely fueled by Battlefield showing those fans some different pastures. But the CoD taskmasters do seem to align with Dice's stance somewhat: things got out of hand, and it's high time to reign it in.

Today's blog post continues: "In Black Ops 7, bundles and items will be crafted to fit the Black Ops identity. We hear the feedback. We need to deliver a better balance toward the immersive, core Call of Duty experience."

I've read a lot of Call of Duty blog posts in my career, and this is one of the straightest 'we done goofed' messages I've seen.

The post concludes with assurances that developer Treyarch will have more to share in the coming weeks, including new map and weapon info, "refined movement updates" (another big talking point with this year's military shooters), Zombies details, a progression breakdown, and "what we are doing to ensure the core moment-to-moment gameplay experience takes a leap forward."

Black Ops 7 is fighting franchise fatigue in the most unexpected of ways with an ambitious co-op adventure which Treyarch believes can "redefine what campaign can be in Call of Duty."

Austin Wood
Austin Wood
Senior writer

Austin has been a game journalist for 12 years, having freelanced for the likes of PC Gamer, Eurogamer, IGN, Sports Illustrated, and more while finishing his journalism degree. He's been with GamesRadar+ since 2019. They've yet to realize his position is a cover for his career-spanning Destiny column, and he's kept the ruse going with a lot of news and the occasional feature, all while playing as many roguelikes as possible.

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