Technologies

Call of Duty Black Ops 6 Season 4 Reloaded Release Date Revealed

We now know when the Eclipse night club and the Fringe distillery will make their multiplayer debut.

If you enjoy smaller, quicker Black Ops 6 multiplayer experiences, the Season 4 Reloaded update has you covered with a pulse-pounding new Gunfight map.

The next big midseason update adds multiplayer maps, zombies events and gameplay features for Warzone’s battle royale mode. Whether you’re looking to earn time-limited rewards, try out your Season 4 weapons in some new places or you just want to enjoy zany map reskins, Season 4 Reloaded has something for everyone.

Here’s everything you need to know about the arrival of Black Ops 6 Season 4 Reloaded, including the release date and time, and what new content you can expect to see once the update arrives for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S and PC.

When does Call of Duty Black Ops 6 Season 4 Reloaded come out?

The new Black Ops 6 midseason update will launch on July 2, including a substantial content package for multiplayer and zombies mode players. Here’s when the Season 4 Reloaded patch will come out in your time zone:

Eastern Time: July 2, 2025 at 12 p.m.
Central Time July 2, 2025 at 11 a.m.
Mountain Time: July 2, 2025 at 10 a.m.
Pacific Time: July 2, 2025 at 9 a.m.

Two new multiplayer maps coming to Black Ops 6

One of developer Treyarch’s best three-lane multiplayer maps from Black Ops 3 is making a return in Black Ops 6 Season 4 Reloaded.

Fringe is a war-torn version of a small town, where heated sniper battles take place down an open street and flankers scuttle through crowded buildings that fill up the sides of the map.

The new version of the map takes place on the grand opening of a rustic-looking distillery — too bad you won’t have time to grab a drink with all the gunfire breaking out around you. Fringe is a medium-sized map for 6v6 core playlists.

Eclipse is a much smaller map, but it has a really groovy vibe. This Avalon nightclub is streaked through with purple strobing lights, which could be disorienting in the middle of battle. Your battles here will be up close and personal: Eclipse is a small-sized map designed for 2v2 playlists, but some 6v6 playlists will also add this map to the lineup.

CODtoons: Cel-shaded map variants arrive alongside Beavis and Butt-Head event

Fan-favorite multiplayer maps are getting a cartoon glow up (or glow down?) during the CODtoons event. Cel-shaded versions of Nuketown, Babylon, Skyline, Stakeout and Grind will be added to the game in a special moshpit playlist — which means it’s fairly safe to assume you’ll be playing on cel-shaded Nuketown and Stakeout for a majority of the event.

The Beavis and Butt-Head event includes a free and premium reward track, wherein players can earn the Olympia shotgun from the original Black Ops, a Pickaxe melee weapon, an SVD full auto mod and a CQB auto conversion kit for the TR2 marksman rifle.

If you pay for the premium track, you’ll have a chance to earn cel-shaded Beavis and Butt-Head operator skins in their most famous cartoon attire. If you want to deck them out in tactical gear for the true Call of Duty experience, you’ll have to shell out even more money for the Tracer Pack: Beavis and Butt-Head.

Zombies starting room challenge is a new limited-time mode

Treyarch has acknowledged the long-standing challenge in the zombies community with an official game mode. Don’t worry about neglecting to buy the door — you physically can’t leave the starting area in this limited-time offering.

This limited-time mode is available on all of the current Black Ops 6 zombies maps, including Liberty Falls, Terminus, Citadelle des Morts, The Tomb and Shattered Veil. The space you have to work with, wall buy weapons and mystery box, perk machine and GobbleGum machine availability varies by map.

Each map will have a special high-round challenge associated with it. If you’re able to reach that round without getting downed by the zombie horde, you’ll earn 15,000 account XP points, a high-value GobbleGum and a GobbleGum pack.

Everything else coming in Call of Duty Black Ops 6 Season 4 Reloaded

We’ve covered the biggest parts of Season 4 Reloaded — but that’s not all that this update will change in Black Ops 6. Here are the other changes you’ll see with the launch of the midseason patch.

Multiplayer

The Party Ops limited-time mode is a new free-for-all playlist where players compete in different minigames. These include controlling moving zones (which force you to dance), a version of red light, green light and more. The three top performing players will each count as victors.

Zombies

The Abomination Challenge limited-time mode brings players back to a fully cel-shaded version of Liberty Falls. Here, opening the church door unleashes Mo, a special boss Abomination zombie that’s always in its enraged form. Mo is a real threat — this guy will gain immunity to weapons frequently fired at him, refuse to eat your tossed grenades and he can knock perk bottles out of you with his charge attack. If you can brave this challenge and defeat the boss, you’ll unlock a special calling card.
New leaderboard events will let you test your undead-slaying prowess against other Black Ops 6 players and earn special rewards for doing so. Everyone gets something, but the top players will unlock exclusive items for stacking up zombie eliminations.
The Grief mode is getting tweaked. Now, you can inflict more punishing effects on enemy players. Revive-based GobbleGums are outright banned, and zombies spawn faster after a zone is captured on the map. Completing Grief matches also guarantees you’ll earn a Whimsical-tier GobbleGum, which is a fun little quality-of-life update.

Warzone

A cel-shaded variant of Rebirth Island will be available to play alongside the multiplayer maps during the CODtoons event.
Resurgence Casual and Havoc Amped are new game modes you’ll be able to queue for. Havoc Amped lets you drop in with their full loadout in quick 15-minute long matches that ramp up as you unlock special powers when the circle closes.
Players will now be able to call in a care package outside of the Clash game mode to earn new gameplay items, the Hand Cannon and Door Barricade.
The Loot Master perk is the next way you can augment your Warzone loadout. It’s a simple perk, letting you spawn more loot from supply caches.
The Search and Destroy contract is a new way to get discounts at buy stations — if you can hold off against enemy squads for long enough to set off a bomb.

Black Ops 6 Season 4 Reloaded will be released for free on July 2 for PlayStation, Xbox and PC. If you want to keep an eye on when we’ll get a double XP weekend in Season 4 Reloaded, keep up with our coverage here.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for Feb. 18, #513

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for Feb. 18, No. 513.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections: Sports Edition has a fun yellow category that might just start you singing. If you’re struggling with today’s puzzle but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by The Times. It doesn’t appear in the NYT Games app, but it does in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: I don’t care if I never get back.

Green group hint: Get that gold medal.

Blue group hint: Hoops superstar.

Purple group hint: Not front, but…

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: Heard in «Take Me Out to the Ball Game.»

Green group: Olympic snowboarding events.

Blue group: Vince Carter, informally.

Purple group: ____ back.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is heard in «Take Me Out to the Ball Game.» The four answers are Cracker Jack, home team, old ball game and peanuts.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is Olympic snowboarding events. The four answers are big air, giant slalom, halfpipe and slopestyle.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is Vince Carter, informally. The four answers are Air Canada, Half-Man, Half-Amazing, VC and Vinsanity.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is ____ back. The four answers are diamond, drop, quarter and razor.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Wednesday, Feb. 18

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for Feb. 18.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Today’s Mini Crossword is a fun one, and it’s not terribly tough. It helps if you know a certain Olympian. Read on for all the answers. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: ___ Glenn, Olympic figure skater who’s a three-time U.S. national champion
Answer: AMBER

6A clue: Popcorn size that might come in a bucket
Answer: LARGE

7A clue: Lies and the Lying ___ Who Tell Them» (Al Franken book)
Answer: LIARS

8A clue: Close-up map
Answer: INSET

9A clue: Prepares a home for a new baby
Answer: NESTS

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Bold poker declaration
Answer: ALLIN

2D clue: Only U.S. state with a one-syllable name
Answer: MAINE

3D clue: Orchestra section with trumpets and horns
Answer: BRASS

4D clue: «Great» or «Snowy» wading bird
Answer: EGRET

5D clue: Some sheet music squiggles
Answer: RESTS

Technologies

The Witcher 3, Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 Bring the Heat to Xbox Game Pass

Two amazing games will be available soon for Xbox Game Pass subscribers.

The second half of February and early March could be considered one of the best stretches in recent memory for Xbox Game Pass subscribers. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, widely regarded as one of the best games of the past decade, and Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 headline a lineup that leans heavily into sprawling, choice-driven adventures but does throw in some football to mix things up a bit.

Xbox Game Pass offers hundreds of games you can play on your Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, Amazon Fire TV, smart TV, PC or mobile device, with prices starting at $10 a month. While all Game Pass tiers offer you a library of games, Game Pass Ultimate ($30 a month) gives you access to the most games, as well as Day 1 games, meaning they hit Game Pass the day they go on sale.

Here are all the latest games subscribers can play on Game Pass. You can also check out other games the company added to the service in early February, including Madden NFL 26.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Complete Edition

Available on Feb. 19 for Game Pass Ultimate and Premium Game Pass subscribers.

The Witcher 3 came out 10 years ago, and it’s still being praised as one of the best games ever made. To celebrate, developer CD Projekt Red is bringing over The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Complete Edition to Xbox Game Pass. Subscribers will be able to play The Witcher 3 and its expansions, Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine. Players once more take on the role of monster-slayer Geralt, who goes on an epic search for his daughter, Ciri. As he pieces together what happened to her, he comes across vicious monsters, devious spirits, and the most evil of humans who seek to end his quest.

Death Howl

Available on Feb. 19 for Game Pass Ultimate, Game Pass Premium and PC Game Pass subscribers.

Death Howl is a dark fantasy tactical roguelike that blends turn-based grid combat with deck-building mechanics. Players move across compact battlefield maps, weighing positioning and card synergies to survive increasingly difficult encounters. Progression comes through incremental upgrades that reshape each run. Battles reward careful planning, as overextending or mismanaging your hand can quickly end a run.

EA Sports College Football 26

Available on Feb. 19 for Game Pass Ultimate subscribers.

EA Sports College Football 26 delivers a new take on college football gameplay with enhanced offensive and defensive mechanics, smarter AI and dynamic play-calling that reflects real strategic football systems. Featuring over 2,800 plays and more than 300 real-world coaches with distinct schemes, it offers expanded Dynasty and Road to Glory modes where team building and personnel decisions matter. On the field, dynamic substitutions, improved blocking and coverage logic make matches feel more fluid and tactical.

Dice A Million

Available on Feb. 25 for Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass subscribers.

Dice A Million centers on rolling and managing dice to build toward increasingly higher scores. Each round asks players to weigh risk against reward, deciding when to bank points and when to push for bigger combinations. Progression introduces modifiers and new rules that subtly shift probabilities, making runs feel distinct while keeping the core loop focused on calculated gambling.

Towerborne

Available on Feb. 26 for Game Pass Ultimate, PC, and Premium Game Pass subscribers.

After months in preview, Towerborne will get its full release on Xbox Game Pass. The fast-paced action game blends procedural dungeons and light RPG progression, with players fighting through waves of enemies. You’ll unlock permanent upgrades between runs and equip weapons, spells and talents that change how combat feels each time. The core loop pushes risk versus reward as you dive deeper into tougher floors, adapting builds on the fly, and mastering movement and timing to survive increasingly chaotic battles.

Final Fantasy 3

Available on March 3 for Game Pass Ultimate, Premium and PC Game Pass subscribers.

Another Final Fantasy game is coming to Xbox Game Pass. This time, it’s Final Fantasy 3, originally released on the Famicom (the Japanese version of the NES) back in 1990. Since then, Final Fantasy 3 has been ported to a slew of devices and operating systems, including the Nintendo Wii, iOS and Android. Now, you’ll be able to play on your Xbox or PC with a Game Pass subscription. A new group of heroes is once again tasked with saving the world before it’s covered in darkness. Four orphans from the village of Ur find a Crystal of Light in a secret cave, which tasks them as the new Warriors of Light. They’ll have to stop Xande, an evil wizard looking to use the power of darkness to become immortal.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2

Available on March 3 for Game Pass Ultimate, Premium and PC Game Pass subscribers.

Last year was stacked with amazing games, and Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 was one of the best. Developer Warhorse Studios’ RPG series takes place in the real medieval kingdom of Bohemia, which is now the Czech Republic, and tasks players with a somewhat realistic gaming experience where you have to use the weapons, armor and items from those times. The sequel picks up right after the first game (also on Xbox Game Pass) as Henry of Skalitz is attacked by bandits, which starts a series of events that disrupts the entire country.

Games leaving Game Pass in February

For February, Microsoft is removing four games. If you’re still playing them, now’s a good time to finish up what you can before they’re gone for good on Feb. 28.

For more on Xbox, discover other games available on Game Pass now, and check out our hands-on review of the gaming service. You can also learn about recent changes to Game Pass.