Activision’s Black Ops 1 & 2 PS4/PS5 Ports Trigger Crossplay Confirmation, Record Sales and Exploit Fallout

Activision released PlayStation ports of Call of Duty: Black Ops 1 and Black Ops 2 on July 9 2026 for PS4 and PS5. The publisher clarified that the titles support cross‑play between the two PlayStation generations while excluding PS3 and other platforms, stating: “PS4 and PS5 players are able to matchmake with one another.” Season‑Pass owners can also matchmake with non‑pass players. Each game launched at $39.99 (or $19.99 with a limited PlayStation Plus offer) and quickly topped the PlayStation Store’s best‑selling list, with player counts reported to exceed those of the current Black Ops 7 across all platforms. The ports, however, run at a native 1080p resolution with modest frame‑rates and lack visual upgrades, drawing technical criticism. Within days of launch, multiplayer lobbies were flooded by exploits – notably an XP‑glitch that lets players instantly reach max level by self‑destructing – leading many users to label the experience “unplayable.” Activision responded by disabling selected playlists while investigating the cheats.