Black Ops 6 New In-Game Ads Really Want You To Buy Its Battle Pass And Bundles

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Season 4 is now live, and fans have quickly noticed new in-game advertisements pushing players to buy its premium battle pass, bundles, and weapon blueprints.

As part of the Season 4 update and highlighted by Charlie Intel on X, advertisements for the battle pass and other bundles now appear when creating a class (probably the menu players spend the most time in) and on the game’s Events tab. Additionally, advertisements for weapon blueprint bundles now appear in the weapon select menu–a constant reminder of what players might be missing.

Why these ads were added four seasons into Black Ops 6 instead of earlier (or preferably never) is unclear, but it’s easy to see why players aren’t exactly thrilled about them. For starters, it’s not like the battle pass isn’t already featured very prominently, as it has its own dedicated menu tab and there are frequent reminders for players to claim rewards and upgrade to the premium version.

Ads for weapon blueprints are equally frustrating. If a player hasn’t kept up with each season, they may have numerous weapons they need to grind XP for in order to unlock. Buying a weapon blueprint for that weapon, however, unlocks it immediately. It’s easy to see these in-game advertisements then as publisher Activision’s way of trying to entice players to simply pay for access to new weapons.

Call of Duty is, of course, no stranger to microtransactions. Black Ops 6 has sold mini-event battle passes and even an option for better audio, and its store is filled with so many weapon and Operator bundles it’s hard to keep track. In-game advertisements for those microtransactions sadly feel par for the course, but it’s still disappointing nonetheless.

As for what else is coming as part of Black Ops Season 4, new maps, modes, and weapons are available now, with a John Wick Ballerina crossover set to begin later in the season. Players have also datamined an upcoming Mastercraft weapon blueprint that has one of the most elaborate weapon-inspection animations to date.