Facepalm: Console gamers who opt for the physical retail version of Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 will be required to download and install a 50GB day one patch before engaging in combat. It shouldn't be a major hang-up, assuming of course that Activision allocates enough download servers to handle the traffic.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 will require console gamers using a physical retail disc to download and install a day one update before playing for the first time.
Activision on its support page notes that the 50GB day one update must be installed completely in order to access multiplayer, zombies and specialist headquarters game types. Blackout, CoD's take on battle royale, can be played once installation is about 30 percent complete.
On the PlayStation 4, Activision recommends having at least 112GB of free hard drive space available for an "optimized download experience." This isn't the size of the download but rather, the amount of space needed to complete the installation process.
The final installation footprint on both the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One will be approximately 55GB, we're told.
Having to download and install a sizable day one patch is a bit annoying but given the speed of today's Internet connections, it's really little more than an inconvenience. Had something like that happened a decade ago, there'd certainly be more of a reason to be upset.
The easiest way to get around the stumbling block is to simply purchase the digital version of the game and pre-load it.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 arrives on October 12 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Windows PC.