Black Ops 3 won’t have a campaign mode on Xbox 360 and PS3, and the game’s frame rate will fluctuate between 30 and 60 frames-per-second. But here’s why they’re making a version for aging hardware: Activision’s revealed there are still 12 million monthly active users for the three-year-old Black Ops II. Damn.
Call of Duty fan site Charlie Intel noticed this incredible statistic buried in Activision’s latest financial report, overshadowed by the King acquisition:
On November 6, 2015, Activision Publishing expects to release the highly anticipated Call of Duty: Black Ops III from its award-winning studio, Treyarch. Momentum ahead of launch has been strong and engagement for Call of Duty: Black Ops II grew quarter-over-quarter again to nearly 12 million MAUsB, an unprecedented level for a game that is three years old and only available on old-generation consoles.
That number was 11 million in August, meaning the player base has grown, likely driven by people getting ready for the release of Black Ops 3 in a few days.
Activision doesn’t break down players by platform, however, so it’s worth noting that we can’t specifically say how this splits between 360, PS3, and PC.
Black Ops 3 might not be the optimal experience on Microsoft and Sony’s old machines, but players are sticking with their old consoles, so Activision is, too.
You can reach the author of this post at patrick.klepek@kotaku.com or on Twitter at @patrickklepek.