It’s been a whirlwind first few days for the original Black Ops games on PlayStation. The decision to put the games on modern PlayStation consoles has been a popular one, but unfortunately, hackers have been taking advantage of the games, which are basically the exact same games from 16 years ago.

You Can Still Blow Yourself Up To Prestige In Black Ops

Players with Black Ops know-how have proved that by taking advantage of an exploit from the first Black Ops that is somehow still present in its PS5 port. It’s a relatively simple trick to pull off. All you need to do is blow yourself up with a grenade and then quit, rendering the match a forfeit. If you nailed the assignment, your level will then max out so that you can prestige.

Do that 15 times, and you will have maxed out your Black Ops prestige level. As always, when there’s nothing tangible on the line, I’m unsure why people go to the effort to do this sort of thing, but as you can see in the clip shared by ModernWarzone, there are indeed people using this glitch on PS5 in 2026.

The Negative XP Problem Has Been Addressed

It doesn’t appear to be a pressing issue in Activision’s eyes either. The first patch for the Black Ops ports has been applied, and there doesn’t seem to be any mention of the exploding prestige exploit. Instead, it focuses on eliminating the far more troubling negative XP issue that has plagued the ports’ first few days.

It didn’t take long, but the PlayStation versions of the Black Ops games have been infiltrated by hackers. Maybe now Xbox players won’t feel quite so left out. One of the biggest problems those hackers have been inflicting on fellow players is awarding them negative XP. Not only is that extremely annoying, but it’s also potentially game-breaking.

Having negative XP can block players out of Black Ops’ multiplayer, which, let’s be honest, is the only reason any of us are playing these games again in 2026. That’s why a patch preventing hackers from handing out negative XP was of the utmost importance. It's also very welcome as some have admitted they weren’t expecting the ports to receive post-launch support at all.

Thankfully, they have, and negative XP should no longer be an issue. What’s more, those who were given negative XP by hackers should see their accounts restored and returned to level 20 once today’s update has been applied. This is being referred to as the “first phase” of issues impacting player XP, so if you want to blow yourself up to prestige faster, I’d do it now before it’s potentially too late.

Call of Duty: Black Ops Like Follow Followed FPS Systems Released November 9, 2010 ESRB M For Mature 17+ due to Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language Developer(s) Treyarch Publisher(s) Activision Engine iw Multiplayer Online Multiplayer, Local Multiplayer, Online Co-Op, Local Co-Op Franchise Call of Duty
Where to play Close

WHERE TO PLAY

DIGITAL
PHYSICAL
Genre(s) FPS Powered by Expand Collapse