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Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War ranked play still coming, Treyarch insists

Suit up.

Ranked play is still coming to Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, developer Treyarch has insisted.

In an October 2020 interview conducted ahead of the release of Black Ops Cold War, Treyarch's David Vonderhaar suggested ranked play was coming to the game. "Do you know a Black Ops game without a hardcore competitive agenda?" he said. "Can you think of one? I cannot."

But we haven't heard about ranked play since, leaving some players to wonder if it's still in the works.

"Yes. Ranked Play will be a thing. I currently don't have a timetable to share with you, however," posted Treyarch developer FoxhoundFPS in the Black Ops Cold War sub in response to a thread on the matter.

Cover image for YouTube videoEurogamer Next-Gen News Cast - What to look forward to in 2021
Eurogamer Next-Gen News Cast - What to look forward to in 2021

Ranked play is of particular interest right now given the ongoing furore over Call of Duty skill-based matchmaking (SBMM), which some say forces them to "reverse boost". The idea here is by deliberately gaining a negative kill / death ratio in matches, Black Ops Cold War's SBMM will essentially demote you down its skill ranking, and thus matchmake you with players more your level (or you'll do better against).

A ranked playlist would theoretically give people a place "to sweat in", as it's known, leaving unranked play a more casual affair.

Black Ops Cold War is set to receive its mid-season update later this week, although there's no expectation ranked play will be added as part of it. Perhaps this is something set for season two.