Recent PlayStation ports of Call of Duty: Black Ops and Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 have achieved significant popularity, becoming two of the most played games of 2026. These re-releases, priced at $40 each and lacking any DLC, have nonetheless proven to be substantial earners for Activision and Microsoft.
Gavin Goslin, who spent 15 years at Black Ops studio Treyarch as a level designer and artist, shared his perspective on the situation via LinkedIn. He noted that the success of these legacy titles demonstrates a demand for the quality experiences found in older games. "These legacy titles are still massive money-makers for Activision and Microsoft," Goslin stated. "Despite being basic $40 digital re-releases with zero new features, both titles immediately shot into the Circana US Top 10 for weekly active users. They are printing money off of work completed over a decade ago."
Goslin described the situation as "bittersweet," acknowledging the lasting appeal of the games he and his colleagues poured immense effort into. "I poured my life into those games, spending countless, brutal hours in crunch alongside an incredibly talented team to make sure they were perfect," he said. "Seeing our blood, sweat, and tears still dominating the charts in 2026 is amazing, but it’s hard to watch the suits rake in giant financial windfalls from our old code while the actual creators don’t see a dime of it."
The former developer highlighted a significant disparity in how profits from older games are distributed. He explained that game industry employees typically do not receive residuals or ongoing payments based on the continued sales of their past work, a practice common in industries like Hollywood. Goslin argued that this model is inequitable. "That wealth needs to be shared retroactively," he contended. "Legacy revenue should mean legacy rewards for the devs who survived the crunch to build them."