Best broadband for Call of Duty: Black Ops 6

Call of Duty's latest game, Black Ops 6, is released today, and is expected to create an increase in demand for broadband bandwidth.

Gamers are also having to consider if their Internet connection is good enough, with Activision warning new players Black Ops 6 requires a "continuous internet connection".

So, let's look at what Internet connection is required for Black Ops 6, and which is the best broadband package for gamers.

Source: Callofduty.com

Black Ops 6: Internet connection required

Activision released a blog back in September 2024 on the upcoming launch of Call of Duty's new game edition Black Ops 6.

They revealed in order to minimise the storage space required to play Black Ops 6, the game utilises texture streaming across all game modes.

Activision's blog stated, "To deliver the highest-quality visuals while also reducing the game's overall storage space on your hard drive, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 will use texture streaming across all game modes. This means you'll need a continuous internet connection to play any game mode, including Campaign."

In simple terms, this means while most of the data to play the game will be downloaded onto the hard drive of your console, some information - notably that needed to render the current viewpoint - will be streamed whilst playing.

That means gamers will need a constant connection to the Internet, and there are understandably concerns a poor broadband connection could cause lags and even buffering for console users.

Which, while the download size for Black Ops 6 multiplayer has now been confirmed at 52GB to 80GB on Xbox and PlayStation for those who don't have Call of Duty Headquarters already installed, those looking to play the game on Xbox or PlayStation will still need a fast - and reliable - broadband plan.

Best broadband for Black Ops 6

The best broadband for gaming needs to be fast, but latency rates and reliability also make a big difference, especially in situations where elements of the game are being streamed.

Those who want to play Call of Duty Black Ops 6 should seriously consider upgrading to full fibre broadband if it's available in their area.

Not only is full fibre broadband often faster, but connecting via full fibre optic to the home will be much more reliable, with faster latency and ping rates, as has been shown in independent research carried out by Ofcom.

Using a wired connection will also help gamers playing Black Ops 6, with a connection that won't be affected by any problems with the wireless network, signal or interference from neighbouring networks.

Some of the best offers on fast broadband available right now include:

	Package	Broadband	Monthly price	Upfront price	Contract term
Go	Gig1 Fibre Broadband	1.13Gb average	£39.99	Free	18 months
	Offer: £75 bill credit + Reduced price: £39.99 per month + No setup fee (was £35) (Ends 06/11/2024)
Go	Rebel 1000	1Gb average	£55	Free	24 months
	Offer: £100 Amazon Gift Card with code WIFIREBEL + Fixed Price Guarantee + Tri-band Wi-Fi extender £5/mth each
Go	Pro II Full Fibre 1.6	1.6Gb average	£65	Free	24 months
	Offer: £4 off for Vodafone pay monthly customers

Vodafone are also offering customers £100 towards any early cancellation fees if they want to exit a contract and switch to their broadband sooner, after their research found as many as 63% of households were putting off switching.

See more of the best broadband offers available now, or find out what's available in your area with our free broadband search tool.

Usage spikes

Independent full fibre broadband network, Trooli, has recently said the release of Final Fantasy 16 pushed data usage up by 17% on its network in September 2024, and is expecting a similar surge of up to 30% when gamers start downloading Black Ops 6.

Andy Conibere, broadband expert and CEO of Trooli, said, "Our data shows that broadband usage has increased by up to 30% on the day of major game launches in the past, and this demand has been growing with every new Call of Duty launch. So, we expect usage to spike even more significantly when Black Ops 6 launches. This means we could be experiencing record demand on broadband networks across the country on 25th October.

"Households connected to ultrafast broadband shouldn't be affected by this increased demand. However, for those whose internet already struggles to keep up with day-to-day demand, this could cause a major problem, both for those who want to play the game and others trying to work or stream using the same connection.

"To help minimise the risks of frustrating buffering and freezing whilst gaming, it's worth checking if your current broadband package offers the speeds required for gamers. The average household with multiple connected devices needs speeds of over 100Mbps as a bare minimum, but between 1-2Gbps is recommended to guarantee a truly seamless gaming experience."

However, despite initial concerns Black Ops 6 was going to weigh in at over 300GB, its now been confirmed to be around 52GB to 80GB on Xbox and PlayStation, with 102GB of SSD space required for PC gamers.

That means users can expect Call of Duty Black Ops 6 to download in around 12 minutes on a gigabit broadband connection of 900Mbps, or they could be waiting as long as 3 hours on a fast part-fibre plan at 65Mbps.

Find out about the fastest broadband in the UK in our guide.