RUMOR: BLACK OPS 6 IS REUSING MW3 (2023) MAPS

Black Ops 6 releases on October 25th & will be bringing the heat with Multiplayer content. However, there has been rumors circulating regarding some of the maps we’ll eventually see in the post launch of BO6. How MW3s later Seasons (5 & 6) seemed to be “missing” some maps for the Multiplayer offerings. Today, we’re going to be taking a look into what these rumors entail, & how it affects Sledgehammer, Treyarch, MW3, & Black Ops 6:

MW3 MAPS COMING TO BLACK OPS 6?

There’s currently a rumor suggesting that there would be maps borrowed from MW3 & brought over into Black Ops 6. This rumor suggests that Season 5 & 6 of MW3 had less of an offering for multiplayer, because Treyarch would need some of those maps for the Black Ops 6 post launch cycle. Is this rumor to be believed? Are the maps they “borrowed” from Sledgehammer for the launch window of Black Ops 6?

It’s unknown at this moment in time. For all we know, the maps confirmed for Black Ops 6’s launch could have been originally planned for MW3, but then were borrowed for Black Ops 6. Then, a 90’s Aesthetic was applied to the map, so it’d fit the theme of the new Black Ops title. A 90’s style spin will likely be used regardless so that the maps fit the Treyarch style.

HOW SLEDGEHAMMER FOCUSED ON 6V6 MAPS

Sledgehammer had a lot of time to work on 6v6 content for MW3. This boils down to a few different reasons that ultimately benefit Sledgehammer in the long run for MW3:

They worked together with Infinity Ward on the Campaign for MW3.

All of their launch Multiplayer maps were remakes from the MW2 09 game.

They really didn’t have to work on Zombies until much later after Treyarch stepped off to begin focusing more on Black Ops 6.

Considering the fact we haven’t really seen much support for Gunfight, Ground War, or Invasion, the majority of their efforts have been focused on 6v6 content. We had “G3T H1GH” as well as other sick LTMs for Multiplayer. Sledgehammer just had more resources available to give MW3 a strong output for their Multiplayer mode.

TREYARCHS 4 YEAR DEVELOPMENT CYCLE EXPLAINED

Now I can already hear you asking: “If they’ve had 4 years to develop this game, how could Black Ops 6 be borrowing maps?” While it has been about 4 years since Treyarch’s last official premium release (Cold War), it’s worth noting all that time hasn’t been focused solely on making Black Ops 6. Here’s a rundown on all the projects Treyarch’s had to step in & work on in those 4 years:

Ranked for Vanguard Multiplayer

Vanguard Zombies

Ranked for MW2 Multiplayer & Warzone 2.0

Ranked for MW3 Multiplayer

Outbreak 2.0 MWZ Experience

Resurgence Ranked Mode

Area 99 (Season 1 Warzone Map)

Quite possibly the biggest one is when they bailed Sledgehammer out of Cold War’s development. According to large media outlets like Kotaku, COD 2020 was supposed to be Sledgehammers game, alongside Raven. Treyarch then had to step in for Sledgehammer & create Black Ops: Cold War. After all that Treyarch has done, possibly borrowing a few maps to ensure the post launch of Black Ops 6 is healthy like previous titles isn’t so bad.

WHY THIS HELPS TREYARCH WITH MULTIPLAYER

Now while some transparency on the matter would be nice for example: “Hey, these maps you’re seeing in Seasons 2 or 3 of Black Ops 6 are maps from MW3.“, it’s unlikely that we will get confirmation. This would likely only cause more negativity & controversy, leading people to accuse studios of “laziness” & “sitting on their thumbs for the past couple years“. All of this being said without the knowledge of what Treyarch has had to deal with these past few years.

While Treyarch didn’t have to do the Campaign for Black Ops 6 (or Cold War), they’ll be keeping their hands full with a variety of other projects & modes:

The Biggest Selling Point: Zombies

6v6 Multiplayer

Strike Experiences for Faceoff & Gunfight

Possibly a Fireteam or Gunfight mode, if it returns.

Just worked on Area 99 (WZ Season 1 Map)

Treyarch has never really had time to solely focus on 6v6 maps. Perhaps with how Sledgehammer was able to work on 6v6 maps, Activision may now have a sort of “expectation to release more than 4 6v6 maps per season, while Treyarch can probably commit to 3 max. This being because they’re working on so many other experiences for every major content drop.

COD HQ UNIFIES THE STUDIOS

For every Call of Duty title in recent years, there’s been so many studios helping each other out with each of the modes. Maybe it boils down to ‘since Treyarch helped Sledgehammer on numerous fronts & occasions, maybe Sledgehammer can step in through BO6’s cycle & help Treyarch with some 6v6 support.’

Obviously, an announcement for it would be great, probably would cause a little controversy from the usual crowds. But it’d be fantastic to hear because Sledgehammer did such an amazing job on MW3s’ live service support. Nobody would really complain if we got extra 6v6 content thanks to help from another studio while Treyarch is hard at work on other modes.

DID THIS REALLY IMPACT MW3 THAT MUCH?

The COD Cycle is a set in stone term in the community. How it works is that around Seasons 5 or 6, people tend to drop off of the current COD title. This was especially true for MW3 Season 5 with the BO6 Beta being live. Many people probably weren’t playing much MW3 during that time. MW3 Season 6 is more focused on “The Haunting”, & most of the content for it is over in Warzone.

It’d probably fly under the radar for most players that a couple maps from Seasons 5 & 6 back-to-back, were borrowed & moved over to Black Ops 6 for the post launch. Saved for a newer game that’s releasing soon & has a lot of attention on it from the community. However, if you’re a hardcore MW3 enjoyer, your frustration of not getting the same level of support like the first few seasons did, is understandable. Five different variations of “Shipment” was definitely not on my list.

TREYARCH & SHG TEAM UP FOR 2025?

The possibility of a futuristic Black Ops game for 2025 has been in the rumor mill for some time now. If Treyarch & Sledgehammer are rumored to be working on that game together, who’s to say they aren’t working together right now on Black Ops 6? To ensure 6 full & healthy seasons of content, regardless of who’s in charge of the 6v6 & gunfight maps. There’s also the possibility that maybe Gunfight or Ground War maps will be borrowed for Black Ops 6. Maybe not just the typical 6v6 maps.

THE END

That’s all we got for you today! What are your thoughts on the potential for maps being saved from the current Call of Duty, & being used in the post launch for Black Ops 6? For a full breakdown of these rumors on borrowed maps, check out the video below: