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

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.

That's according to a new community update blog post penned by Call of Duty staff, which leads with tacit acknowledgement that modern installments have become a Fortnite-ified clown fiesta of tacky, out-of-place cosmetics that have long since taken a sledgehammer to the game's tone and identity.

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"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."

Following the "north star" of delivering "a spiritual successor to Black Ops 2," the CoD folks affirm that "Operators, Operator Skins, and Weapons from Black Ops 6 will no longer carry forward into Black Ops 7." However, "Double XP tokens and GobbleGums will still carry forward, because we recognize your time and progression are important."

The post stops just short of saying, yeah, Nicki Minaj shouldn't be running around Call of Duty with a dragon rifle, nor should Beavis and Butt-Head, but for a pretty corporate blog, words are not very minced: "Black Ops 7 needs to feel authentic to Call of Duty and its setting. That is why Black Ops 6 Operator and Weapon content will not carry forward to Black Ops 7."

Note that this only affects Black Ops 7, not any existing Warzone or Black Ops 6 content.

The backdrop to this is the Black Ops 7 Vault Edition and its many weapon and operator skins (below), which include half-wrecked, chest engine-equipped cyborg T.E.D.D. and red-lit murder robot Reaper EWR-3. Do those clear the bar for authentic and visceral by Black Ops 7's sci-fi standards? Given that I genuinely did not recognize Black Ops 7 until I was about 20 seconds into its latest trailer, maybe?

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."