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Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Receives “Mixed” Reviews on Steam Amid Technical Issues and User Frustrations

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 may have quickly climbed to the top of Steam’s Top Sellers chart following its release on October 25, 2024, but player reviews tell a mixed story. As of October 26, the game’s user rating has dropped to “Mixed” on Steam, with early adopters pointing to several pain points that go beyond a single issue, revealing a range of player frustrations.

Technical Difficulties
Many players are expressing disappointment over Black Ops 6’s technical performance. Reports of game crashes, networking issues, and low frame rates are frequent in the negative reviews, with some players unable to get past the loading screen due to persistent Call of Duty HQ (CoD HQ) crashes. These technical issues have left some players unable to fully experience the game and have notably impacted its initial ratings.

Call of Duty HQ Controversy
One recurring theme among user complaints is the integration of Black Ops 6 into CoD HQ, which has been a topic of frustration since the app’s launch in 2022. Since Black Ops 6 is technically considered an add-on within the CoD HQ platform, it shares playtime with Modern Warfare 2 and Modern Warfare 3. For some, this setup has been a barrier to refunds; players who have already logged time on CoD HQ across multiple games cannot benefit from Steam’s two-hour playtime refund policy. Many players have voiced concern that this structure bypasses consumer rights and makes the refund process unnecessarily complicated.

Zombies Mode Criticism
Black Ops 6’s Zombies mode, a staple of the franchise, has also been met with mixed reactions. Several players describe the map selection as uninspired and sparse, predicting that Activision may eventually release classic maps from Black Ops and Black Ops 2 as paid downloadable content. This possibility has further fueled user complaints, with some players suggesting that the current Zombies experience is intentionally lackluster to encourage future purchases.

Conclusion
Though Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 has achieved substantial sales, early user feedback on Steam highlights a variety of frustrations, ranging from technical setbacks to concerns around CoD HQ and the Zombies mode’s perceived shortcomings. While Activision has yet to comment on these critiques, the publisher’s approach to addressing these issues in the coming weeks could significantly impact the game’s long-term reception.