You’ve hit level 55. Your XP bar is glowing, but it’s not moving anymore. Honestly, that moment in Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 hits different because it marks the return of the "Classic Prestige" system everyone has been begging for since the franchise switched to those weird seasonal level resets back in 2019. If you’ve been playing for a few years, you might have forgotten what it feels like to actually lose your stuff.
Entering prestige in BO6 isn't just a button click; it's a commitment to the grind. You aren't just getting a shiny icon. You are choosing to reset your progress to earn the right to call yourself a veteran. It’s glorious and frustrating all at once.
How to Enter Prestige in BO6 Without Getting Lost in Menus
The UI in Black Ops 6 can be a bit of a maze. To find the option to prestige, you need to head over to the Barracks tab from the main multiplayer menu. Once you’re there, look for the Progression tile. If you are at the max level of 55 and have filled that final XP bar, a massive "Enter Prestige" button will be staring you in the face.
It asks you if you're sure. It warns you. It tells you that your weapons, lethals, and perks will be locked again. Take a breath. Click it.
Once you confirm, your rank resets to Level 1, Prestige 1. You get a unique icon, a permanent unlock token, and access to the Prestige Hub where you can track your journey toward the eventual goal of Prestige Master. The first time you do this, it feels like a gut punch seeing your favorite high-level assault rifle locked behind a level 40 wall again, but that’s the soul of the game.
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What You Actually Keep (and What’s Gone)
Treyarch was pretty specific about the rules this time around. When you decide how to enter prestige in BO6, you need to know what stays in your inventory. You don't lose everything.
- Weapon Levels: This is the big one. Your gun levels do NOT reset. If you have a Level 50 AMES 85, it stays Level 50. You just can't use it until you reach the required player level to unlock the base gun again.
- Camos: All that hard work on Diamond or Dark Spine is safe.
- Blueprints: Anything you bought or earned through the Battle Pass remains available as soon as the base weapon is unlocked.
- Challenge Progress: Reticle challenges, calling card missions, and operator skins are permanent.
Basically, you are resetting your access, not your progress. You still have the attachments; you just don't have the gun.
The Permanent Unlock Token Strategy
Every time you enter a new prestige level, you get one Permanent Unlock Token. Don't waste this on a frag grenade. Seriously.
The smartest move is to look at the unlock path from levels 1 to 55. Identify the one item—whether it’s a high-level perk like Ghost or a late-game weapon like the AS Val—that you absolutely cannot live without. By using your token on a level 50+ item, you bypass the worst part of the grind every single time you prestige. Most players go for the "Ghost" perk early because playing without it against constant UAVs is a nightmare.
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Why the Prestige Hub Matters
There is a dedicated Prestige Hub now. It’s not just a menu; it’s a trophy room. You can see the rewards for each tier, which often include exclusive operator skins and "Legacy" calling cards that throw back to the original Black Ops titles.
If you’re aimlessly playing, you’ll miss the fact that there are 10 levels of Prestige before you hit the real end-game: Prestige Master. Once you hit Master, the level cap jumps to 1,000. It’s an absurd amount of playtime, but for those who want to show off that they’ve mastered every map from Skyline to Rewind, it’s the only way to go.
A Common Misconception About Seasonal Resets
People keep asking if the game will reset their level at the start of Season 1. In the old "Seasonal Leveling" system, yes, that happened. In BO6? No.
If you are Prestige 3, Level 20 when the new season drops, you stay Prestige 3, Level 20. The grind is continuous. This means there is no "safe" time to wait to prestige. You might as well jump in as soon as you hit 55 because any XP earned at the level cap without prestiging is essentially wasted XP that could have gone toward your next icon.
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Preparing Your Loadouts for the Reset
Before you hit that final button, make sure you have at least one or two "low-level" weapons you actually enjoy. Since the XM4 and C9 are early unlocks, you’ll be seeing a lot of them in the first few hours after you reset.
Actually, it's kinda fun. It forces you to play the game differently. You go from being a kitted-out super soldier back to a grunt with a basic reflex sight. It keeps the gameplay loop from getting stale, which is exactly why the community fought so hard to bring this system back.
Actionable Steps for Your First Prestige
If you are staring at the level 55 screen right now, here is exactly what you should do to make the transition easier:
- Check your weapon camos: If you are one or two headshots away from a gold camo on a high-level gun, finish it before you prestige. Otherwise, you’ll be waiting another 40 levels to finish that skin.
- Spend your leftover points: Ensure all your current challenges are wrapped up.
- Use the Permanent Unlock on a high-level Perk: Ghost or Flak Jacket are the standard choices because they provide the most consistent value across all game modes.
- Enter the Prestige Hub: Claim your "Prestige 1" reward pack immediately. Usually, there’s a blueprint in there that can help you level up faster in those early stages.
- Focus on Daily Challenges: Since you’re level 1 again, the massive XP boosts from daily and weekly challenges will catapult you back to level 20 in just a couple of matches.
Don't overthink it. The reset is part of the fun. Just hit the button and start the climb again.