It’s been over nine years. Think about that for a second. In the world of annual shooters, a game from 2015 should be ancient history, a dusty relic buried under the weight of newer engines, flashier graphics, and more modern "live service" models. Yet, if you boot up Steam or check the PlayStation Store right now, Call of Duty: Black Ops III is still pulling numbers that would make a new indie release jealous. It isn't just nostalgia. It’s because Treyarch, by some miracle of development or sheer stubbornness, accidentally created a platform that refuses to die.
People bought it for the jetpacks. They stayed for the undead.
The game arrived during the "jetpack era," a divisive three-year stretch where Call of Duty tried to out-halo Halo. While many purists hated the wall-running and thrust-jumping in multiplayer, the movement system felt fluid. It felt right. But the real reason we’re still talking about this game in 2026 isn't the specialists or the colorful maps like Combine. It’s the fact that Black Ops III represents the absolute peak of the Zombies sub-genre, a peak that Activision hasn't been able to scale since.
The Zombies Chronicles Gamble
Initially, the game launched with Shadows of Evil. It was weird. You had Jeff Goldblum voicing a magician and Ron Perlman as a boxer in a 1940s film-noir setting with Lovecraftian monsters. It was a massive departure from the "four guys in a room with a mystery box" vibe of World at War.
Honestly, it could have failed.
The complexity was through the roof. You weren't just surviving; you were performing rituals, collecting parts for a shield, and upgrading an elemental sword. For the casual player, it was a lot. But Treyarch doubled down. They released the Season Pass maps—Der Eisendrache, Zetsubou No Shima, Gorod Krovi, and Revelations—each one more ambitious than the last. Then, they did the unthinkable: Zombies Chronicles.
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By remastering eight classic maps from World at War, Black Ops, and Black Ops II, they turned this game into a museum. It became the one-stop shop for every fan of the mode. You want the simplicity of Nacht der Untoten? It's there. You want the emotional weight of Origins? Got it. By consolidating the history of the "Aether" storyline into one engine, they made Black Ops III the definitive version of the experience. The lighting in the remastered Kino der Toten still looks better than some 2024 releases.
Steam Workshop is the Real MVP
If you're playing on console, you’re playing a great game. If you’re playing on PC, you’re playing an infinite game. This is the only Call of Duty title to offer full Steam Workshop support.
Think about that level of freedom.
Treyarch released their actual development tools to the public. Because of this, the community has spent the last decade building maps that sometimes surpass the quality of the original developers. You can download a 1:1 recreation of the Titanic or play a map based on SpongeBob SquarePants. There are "mod menus" that let you tweak the difficulty, new weapons from Modern Warfare (2019) ported back into the 2015 engine, and entirely new Easter Egg quests that take weeks to solve.
The modding scene is basically the lifeblood of the community. When gamers got frustrated with the lack of round-based maps in Vanguard or the open-world shift in Modern Warfare III, they just went back to the Black Ops III Workshop. It’s a self-sustaining ecosystem. You don't need a battle pass when you have a thousand free community maps.
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Why the Multiplayer Still Feels Distinct
Let's talk about the movement. It’s polarizing, sure. But the "Specialist" system in Call of Duty: Black Ops III was actually somewhat balanced compared to the chaos that followed in later years. Each character had an ability or a weapon—Prophet’s Tempest or Ruin’s Gravity Spikes—that earned over time.
It added a layer of hero-shooter strategy.
The "Pick 10" system was also at its zenith here. You had to make actual sacrifices. Do you want six perks but a bare-bones gun? Or do you want a fully kitted-out Man-O-War with no tactical grenades? Modern CoD titles have moved away from this toward a "more is more" approach, where you can have five attachments on everything. It feels less like a choice and more like a checklist. In Black Ops III, your loadout actually felt like a "build."
The Campaign Nobody Understood (But Should)
Okay, the campaign. It’s the black sheep. "Train go boom," right?
Most people played the first mission, saw the protagonist get their limbs ripped off by a robot, and then got lost in the psychedelic, mind-bending narrative that followed. It didn't help that the "twist" was hidden in scrolling text at the start of missions. But if you actually dig into the lore, it’s a terrifyingly prescient story about AI, neural interfaces (DNI), and the loss of human identity.
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It wasn't a military thriller; it was a cyberpunk horror story.
Is it the best campaign in the series? No. That probably belongs to the original Black Ops or Infinite Warfare. But it was bold. It tried something experimental with 4-player co-op and a customizable safehouse. Even if the execution was messy, the ambition was undeniable.
Performance and Visual Fidelity
Even today, the game holds up. On a PS5 or Xbox Series X, the backwards compatibility keeps the frame rate locked. On PC, you can crank the resolution to 4K, and the textures in maps like Revelations still pop. The art direction leaned into a vibrant, high-contrast palette that age has treated much better than the "gritty" grey and brown tones of the titles that immediately followed it.
What You Should Do Now
If you’re looking to jump back in or try it for the first time, don't just buy the base game. It’s a trap. The base game is essentially a demo at this point.
- Wait for a Sale: This game goes on sale frequently. You can usually snag the "Zombies Deluxe" edition—which includes the Season Pass and Zombies Chronicles—for about $40. It’s the only way to get the full value.
- Get the PC Version for Mods: Even if you’re a console person, if you have a decent laptop, buy it on Steam. The Workshop content is where the "endless" gameplay lives. Search for "Leviathan" or "Daybreak" in the Workshop; these are professional-grade maps.
- Learn the "Slide-Cancel" (The OG version): Movement in this game is about momentum. Slide, jump immediately, and repeat. It’s how you get across the map before the spawns flip.
- Ignore the Supply Drops: The loot box system in Black Ops III was, frankly, predatory. It’s the game's biggest flaw. You don't need the "XMC" or the "Marshals" to have fun. Stick to the base weapons like the VMP or the M8A7; they're still top-tier.
Black Ops III isn't just a game; it's a platform. It represents a time when Treyarch was firing on all cylinders, willing to be weird, and willing to give players the tools to keep the lights on long after the developers moved on. Whether you're hunting for the "Shadow Man" or just trying to hit a cross-map combat axe, the game remains a masterclass in engagement. It’s the last time a Call of Duty game felt like it was built to last a decade instead of a year.