Though there was a good deal of hype following the announcement ofCall of Duty: Black Ops 7at 2025’s Xbox Games Showcase, in the weeks since, more and more concerns have started to appear online. TheleakedBlack Ops 7screenshotsdrew criticism due to their muted color palette, with the game’s aesthetic being a far cry fromBlack Ops 4or evenBlack Ops 2, the latter of whichBO7is a direct successor to. The announcement of a co-op campaign has fans wary of another lackluster experience that resemblesMW3’s open-combat missions, with leaks saying that players control nameless soldiers in multiple missions not inspiring confidence. Add on the usual SBMM fears and the worry that Treyarch is under too much pressure by having to release games twice in a row, and it’s clear that fans will need to see lots of gameplay to be assured that this is theBO2follow-up that they’ve always wanted.
While I share all these concerns, the main barrier to hype for me is a problem I’m all but certain won’t be addressed by this year’s game, and it’s one that a majority of players won’t bat an eye at. I’m talking aboutBlack Ops 7’s trophy list, and those who know me won’t be surprised that it’s something I care about. Since I first got my PlayStation 3, I’ve been hooked on collecting Trophies, finding their clear tiers - and the Platinum for hitting 100% on a specific game - far more satisfying than other platforms' achievement systems. I’ve prided myself on filling out my digital Trophy case, seeking out community-run competitions and hitting as many goals as I can. From 50,000 Trophies to 1000 platinums, I’ve hit countless goals I’ve set for myself, and that includes platinuming as many games from my favorite franchises as possible. Unfortunately, that has not been possible for recentCall of Dutygames on PS5, and I’m worriedBO7will be the same.
Modern Call of Duty Games Lacking PS5 Platinum Trophies Has Been a Big Letdown
BetweenCall of Duty: World at WarandCall of Duty: Modern Warfare 2(2022), everyCoDgame had a distinct Trophy list and a Platinum Trophy to match. I managed to get all but two of these -World at War’s Veteran difficulty and its grenade spam always scared me off, while I couldn’t commit to the sheer grind needed for full completion ofBlack Ops 3’s campaign. With every other game, though, I made full completion my personal mission. FromCoDZombies Easter eggs and beatingDead Ops Arcade 3toVeteran difficultiesand unlocking all Blackout characters, I did all there was to do for over a decade ofCoDgames. I even went out of my way to Platinum the PS Vita-exclusiveBlack Ops: Declassified. Unfortunately,Modern Warfare 3brought a forced end to my yearly tradition.
With 2023’sModern Warfare 3essentially being a DLC forMW2- its multiplayer carried weaponry forward and was largely composed ofremakes from the OGMW2- the idea that its achievement list was treated like DLC made sense, even if it was disappointing. Unfortunately, this approach carried over toBlack Ops 7, confirming the community’s fears that the achievements being tacked on toMW2’s list instead of being separated was actually a result of the divisiveCall of Dutylauncher, which acts as a hub for the series. WithCall of Duty’s hub unlikely to go anywhere anytime soon, it sadly seems likely thatBO7’s list will also lack a Platinum Trophy.
Typically,DLC Trophiescome alongside major updates for free-to-play games, offering a handful of extra achievements to chase but no additional Platinum Trophies. It’s very rare for an entire game’s worth of Trophies to be added on through this method, makingCall of Dutyunique.
Call of Duty Trophy Hunters May Still Be Able to Get a BO7 Platinum, But There’s a Big Asterisk Attached
Call of Dutyplayers can technically still get aPlatinum Trophy forBlack Ops 6and MW3, but this requires playing the PS4 versions of the game. Because last-gen consoles lack theCall of Dutyapp, the games launch traditionally and have dedicated Trophy lists as a result. For me, though, playing a game that looks worse and feels less smooth just for a Platinum Trophy isn’t worth it, especially something likeCoDwhere I’m grinding Zombies and multiplayer content for hours on end. And really, this isn’t a choice that players should have to make in the first place. TheCall of Dutyapp has been widely criticized for slowing down the startup process, having a poor interface that’s hard to navigate, and being largely useless since players are unlikely to have multipleCoDgames downloaded at the same time due to their size. If bringing back Platinums on current-gen consoles means retiring this app, I certainly wouldn’t lose sleep over it.
Sadly, though, with the PlayStation Trophy hunting community being rather niche, andCall of Dutyenjoyed by so many casual players, its unlikely that many gamers will even care about the series’ newer games lacking Platinum Trophies on PS5. For the few like me who do care, though, it’ll undoubtedly be disappointing to seeBO7repeat this mistake. WithBlack Ops 7expected to be the lastcross-genCoD, too, its potential PS4 list could offer the finalCall of DutyPlatinum for the foreseeable future, as the next Platinum wouldn’t come until the PS6 version of theCoDapp releases (and even then it’d be a one-off). This approach killed a lot of the joy in Trophy hunting forMW3andBO7for me, but sadly, I don’t see it changing. For now, maybe I’ll dig up my PS3 to PlatinumWorld at War, because there’s a good chance this year’sCoDgame won’t be able to scratch the same itch.
