Call of Duty: Cold War Black Ops Multiplayer will be free starting December 17th and we want to make sure you’re ready for the festivities. Below, we outline the dates, start times, and demo links you need to know to get into the action sooner rather than later.

Call of Duty: Cold War Black Ops free multiplayer week start and end time

the Cold War Black Ops weekly free multiplayer races December 17 at 1 p.m. EST to December 24 at 1 p.m. EST. As there is no preload available for PlayStation, Xbox, or PC, players will need to download the demo anytime from now until the end date stated above.

How to download the free multiplayer demo

Contrary to Modern war the free weekends which were mainly accessible through the Warzone app, you will need to download a completely separate demo to access the Cold War Black Ops multiplayer lobby.

  • PS4 / PS5: in Warzone, go to the store, then select “franchise store”. The free access demo download area should be there.
  • Xbox: Search “Cold War Black Ops free access ”on the Microsoft Store or use this link.
  • PC: In Battle.net, go to the “BLACK OPS” tab and select “try for free”.

Note that it looks like you’ll need to download the full game to participate in the free trial week. This can take up to 100 GB of hard drive space depending on the platform of your choice.

What maps and modes can I play for free?

As the graph below shows, the free content will roll out in stages throughout the week. Further down we have described what we know so far.

black ops free cold war week fashions
‘Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War’ multiplayer is free from December 17-24. Get the start time and download the details above. ‘Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War’ is available on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X | S, Xbox One and PC.
Treyarch / Activision

December 17-21

  • TDM: 6v6 mode where the first to 100 wins. Played on Moscow, Cartel, Miami, Satellite, Checkmate, Garrison, Armada Strike, Crossroads Strike, Nuketown ’84, The Pines and Raid.
  • Domination: 6v6 teams fight in three 200-point objective zones. Maps include Moscow, Cartel, Miami, Satellite, Checkmate, Garrison, Armada Strike, Crossroads Strike, Nuketown ’84, The Pines, and Raid.
  • 2v2 Gunfight: the duos compete to be the first to win six rounds in Game Show, ICBM, KGB and U-Bahn
  • Nuketown ’84: Play Nuketown as much as you want.
  • Raid the Mall Playlist: A playlist containing new pin and raid maps.

December 21-24

This phase includes all of the previous content plus:

  • Hunting for props: teams split up into props or hunters. The match ends when all props are found or the timer is up.
  • Combined Arms Hardpoint: In this 12v12 mode, teams compete for a rotating objective with the optional use of vehicles. Can be played on Armada, Crossroads, Miami and Catel.
  • Fireteam Dirty Bomb: This mode features 40 players working to collect and drop uranium. The matches are played on two maps.

In other words, while the Modern war free weekends restricted players to a specific set of maps and modes, with the vast majority of Cold War Black Ops multiplayer will be playable for everyone over the next few days. It does require a much larger download, but there’s a lot more content to enjoy after you’ve murdered your data limit.

Call of Duty: Cold War Black Ops is now available on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X | S, Xbox One and PC.

What do you think of Cold War Black Ops free multiplayer week? Have you finished downloading the demo? Tell us in the comments section!