Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0 and Modern Warfare 2 are gearing up for Season 1’s arrival on November 16, Activision revealed in a blog post. As a “new era” in the franchise, the latest Call of Duty title will reinvent maps on the multiplayer front, a new Special Ops mode, an all-new battle pass, and a football-themed event. With the launch of the new battle royale on the horizon, the publisher has confirmed that the first Warzone will take a short 12-day break. Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0 and Modern Warfare 2 launch season one multiplayer on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series S/X.
Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0 release details
Access to the currently running Call of Duty: Warzone will continue as normal until November 16, after which it will be subject to a “short break” coinciding with the release of its sequel. On November 16 at 9:30pm IST India / 8am PT US, the Warzone 2020 servers will temporarily go offline, paving the way for the launch of Warzone 2.0 at 11:30pm IST. During the downtime, developer Raven Software will be focusing on ensuring the new title performs as intended, encouraging players to jump into the sequel.
The 12-day downtime period ends on November 28 at 11:30 PM IST / 10:00 AM PT, after which the original Warzone game will be brought back online, albeit with a new name, Call of Duty: Warzone Caldera, which refers to a map released as part of its integration with 2021’s World War II-themed Call of Duty: Vanguard. specified for use in Warzone 2.0. Keep in mind that no player progression and cosmetics will carry over to either game, as they function as separate entities.
Billed as a “completely revamped experience,” Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0’s biggest sell is its new Al Mazrah map, featuring 18 key points of interest as you plot your victory across coastal towns, deserts, rocky peaks, and an entire city to explore. Season 1 introduces a third-person mode to the battle royale sequel, with the return of custom loadouts that give players quick access to their weapons of choice. Similar to the original Warzone, these can be accessed through on-map shops, random and triggered loadouts, and can also be earned as a reward for clearing a Fortress or Black Site.
The loot system will be further streamlined with the implementation of a new Backpack system. “– like previous Warzone, Supply Crates will drop items to pick up. When a player interacts with any other loot container such as a backpack, med-pack, it will work with a loot menu. When a player dies, they drop their Primary Weapon to the ground and their Backpack, which contains the rest of their contents, is accessed via a loot menu.
Warzone 2.0 will feature a 2v2 Gulag environment where randomly matched duos must coordinate to take down the opposition and get back in the game. Just like the original, operators will be given preset weapons before these rounds, ranging from mere pistols to shotguns. But there is also an alternative way to escape the cells, called Jailer, which will randomly appear in the middle of combat. Defeating them returns all four Gulag prisoners back into the game, creating a quandary over whether both duos agree to wait and fight the powerful enemy together. Then there’s the promise of water combat, new vehicles and AI fighters in select areas to speed up the game.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Battle Pass, Multiplayer Maps
On the same launch day of November 16th, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 kicks off its Season 1 multiplayer component. Ditching the linear progression system at the bottom of the screen used by most titles these days, Activision is adding a unique twist to its Battle Pass. Presenting itself as a multi-sector map, allowing players to unlock five items in each of its 20 sectors using earned Battle Token Tier jumps. Players will have more agency in the type of weapons they want to unlock: “Are you looking for a particularly awesome operator skin, weapon blueprint, or one of the new weapons? Then choose the appropriate sector and start acquiring tokens to unlock those items!” More details about the same will be revealed in time.
Season 1 is bringing two reimagined multiplayer maps – the competitive CDL Moshpit and the co-op focused Special Ops content. In a future season of Modern Warfare 2, developer Treyarch is teaming up with Infinity Ward to deliver a ranked multiplayer experience. And while this mode is being tweaked for its eventual reveal, the developers have created a new CDL Moshpit for Season 1, which utilizes the official standard Call of Duty League rules (tournament) and map rotation, while players participate in three game modes: Hardpoint, Search & Destroy, and Control. Think of it as practice for real content.
The co-op Special Ops segment is also getting a new mission. Dubbed “High Ground,” the mode pits duos on an extraction mission to locate three hard drives containing vital enemy information. One operator will be tasked with piloting an attack helicopter to clear land mines, while the other teams up with AI allies to infiltrate buildings containing the equipment.
Then there’s Raid Episode 1, which continues the story of Modern Warfare 2’s campaign, adding a slew of puzzles and action scenarios, while a group of trios wreak havoc. Previous reports indicated that Activision had plans to increase the campaign’s content in 2023, via a premium expansion. Of course, this DLC is separate from the aforementioned Raid Episode 1 and will not be available as a free update.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 season 1 is also adding renowned footballers to the mix as operator skins. Specifically, Lionel Messi, Neymar Jr. and Paul Pogba. They can be unlocked by choosing special limited-time packs, although each athlete is available on different dates. Brazilian star Neymar will debut on November 21, Frenchman Pogba will debut on November 25 and Argentine Messi completes the operator’s hat-trick on November 29.
The inclusion of the aforementioned soccer players was previously revealed in a data leak, and is likely to coincide with the real-life FIFA World Cup tournament starting on November 20.
The first season of Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0 and Modern Warfare will be released on November 16 for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series S/X. The original Warzone will be offline for 12 days, starting November 16 at 9:30 PM IST / 8 AM PT to November 28 at 11:30 PM IST / 10 AM PT.