Cross-generation releases are becoming increasingly rare, but the planned PS3/Xbox 360 launch for this November’s Call of Duty: Black Ops III was expected to keep the practice alive for at least one more year. However, yesterday, Activision announced that the game PS3 and Xbox 360 owners will receive will be considerably different from the one in development for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
Just how different is it? According to an update on the official Call of Duty website, the PS3/Xbox 360 version of the game won’t include the Campaign.
“The ambitious scope of the 1-4 player coop Campaign design of the PS4, Xbox One and PC versions could not be faithfully recreated on old generation hardware,” wrote a spokesman from Acitivision, which likely means the Campaign story mode was axed due to the complicated nature of its four-player co-op option. This means that Call of Duty: Black Ops III on the PS3 and Xbox 360 will only include the competitive multiplayer mode and “Shadows of Evil,” its noir-inspired Zombies Mode. The Weapon Paint Shop and Black Ops III’s new suite of eSports tools will also only be included in the game on the PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
In development at Beenox and Mercenary Technology, the PS3 and Xbox 360 version of Call of Duty: Black Ops III is still expected to be released on November 6 in spite of this setback. Activision has also decided to discount the game’s regular price to $49.99 and include a download code for a digital copy of Call of Duty: Black Ops to make up for the missing features.
