How to play Black Ops 6 early

It’s never too soon to play the next Call of Duty, because the grind is relentless.

Black Ops 6 is here, and its launch will bring about the next era in CoD. Most players will have to wait until launch day on Oct. 25 to play the game when the servers go live and the game unlocks, but there’s a specific way to play BO6 early.

Here’s what we know about how to play Black Ops 6 one day early on Oct. 24.

Does Black Ops 6 have early access?

The straight answer here is no, there is no early access for Black Ops 6’s campaign, multiplayer, or Zombies modes. In previous years, CoD had campaign early access (for MW3 and MW2), but Activision has decided to forego that option in 2024. However, there is a way to play BO6 early.

Black Ops 6 can be played early using what’s called the “New Zealand trick” to begin playing the game when it launches at midnight New Zealand time. Since New Zealand’s time zone is farther ahead than the rest of the world, that region unlocks the game first. But you can join the party by being a little sneaky.

What is the ‘New Zealand trick’?

You can trick your console into thinking that it’s in the New Zealand time zone to begin playing the game on Oct. 24, no matter where you are in the world. Midnight NZ time equates to 11am GMT, 6am CT, or 4am PT.

This countdown below counts down to the exact minute that the game becomes available for New Zealanders, or those who do the New Zealand trick.

Black Ops 6 New Zealand time launch countdown

For more info on the release date and preorder times, check out our guide.

How to do the ‘New Zealand trick’ for BO6

The method of using the New Zealand trick depends on what platform you play CoD on: Xbox, PlayStation, or PC. Read on below for the info on how to do the New Zealand trick on all of them.

Xbox New Zealand trick for Black Ops 6

You will have to change the region on both your Xbox and your Activision account to play CoD as soon as it becomes available. Here’s what you need to do on Xbox:

Open the Settings menu.
Select “System.”
Select “Language & Location.”
Set your location to New Zealand.
Restart your console.

Now, navigate to your Activision account on a PC or phone browser, and follow these steps:

Log into your Activision account.
Select “Profile” at the top of the screen.
Select “Basic Info.”
Select “Edit” next to the address field.
Change the location to New Zealand.

Once this is done, your Xbox will think that you’re in New Zealand and it will allow you to play the game at midnight New Zealand time, which is when the countdown above ends. Don’t forget to call out sick for work!

As of this time, it’s unknown if the New Zealand trick will work with those who play the game on Game Pass. This article will be updated with more info once the method is confirmed or not.

PlayStation New Zealand trick for Black Ops 6

The PS5 method is hit or miss for the New Zealand trick, but you can try to tweak your Activision account to see if it works. Changing regions on PS5 is not as simple or easy (or cheap) as it is on Xbox, because it will oftentimes make you create a new account for that region and subscribe to PlayStation Plus for it, too.

Here’s what you can try on PS5 to see if you can log in early for BO6:

Log into your Activision account.
Select “Profile” at the top of the screen
Select “Basic Info.”
Select “Edit” next to the address field.
Change the location to New Zealand.