Modern Warfare Dev Addresses Highway Of Death, Waterboarding, And The Intent Of Its Story

The reboot of the Modern Warfare subseries in the Call of Duty franchise reworks much of the formula at a mechanical level; the result is something that plays genuinely different from most entries. And as narrative director Taylor Kurosaki puts it, gameplay and story go hand-in-hand. Modern Warfare’s single-player campaign, meanwhile, opts for a noticeably less bombastic tone, using parallels to real-world conflict and tragedy.

However, questions of whether or not these things were handled properly in-game comes with the territory–GameSpot editors Michael Higham and Tamoor Hussain sat down with Kurosaki for a long conversation about the controversial direction Modern Warfare’s campaign goes.

We talk about Farah’s waterboarding scene, the game’s use of the Highway of Death, the killing of those who walk the line between threat and non-combatant, and how Modern Warfare attempts to build empathy with those involved in these very real conflicts.

The following interview was edited for clarity and readability–you can also watch the video version above. Be warned, spoilers are ahead from this point on.

Michael Higham: Modern Warfare is very story-heavy, which is a bit different from a previous Call of Duty games, at least recently, but it seems that Infinity Ward went all-in on crafting a full story for this game. Why is that?

Taylor Kurosaki: Well, when we set out to sort of re-imagine this kind of branch of the Call of Duty tree, we not only used consultants, military consultants, cultural consultants, regional consultants, sort of for gameplay and mechanics, but we also used them as inspiration for the story. And as we like to say at Infinity Ward, you can’t really separate gameplay from narrative. They kind of go hand-in-hand and narrative enhances gameplay. It enhances the way that the player feels on the stick and good mechanics also enhance the narrative. So going all in was to go in on both, really.

Tamoor Hussain: I’m interested in Call of Duty as a franchise and the purpose of a narrative, even to you. It’s so many different things right now with so many developers working on it. It’s hard to get a good grasp on what the identity of the franchise is when it comes to storytelling. One Call of Duty is almost like a Michael Bay-style Hollywood blockbuster, and another one is trying to pull from real life events. When you come into writing a story, what was the purpose and what was the intent behind the narrative in Modern Warfare?

TK: I would step back and say, that Call of Duty is almost a genre now. It’s not just a franchise, right? We have so many different branches of the tree. And what Call of Duty means to me is, it’s interactive entertainment in the military genre. So for us, our inspiration was from real-world events, and the purpose of the narrative is, frankly, to build empathy. That’s what we’re trying to do. We want our players to have empathy for the characters they play alongside and play as.

When you’re looking at motion pictures or TV, you’re building empathy with a character that is on a screen, a character that is external to you. And we believe that one of the powers of interactive entertainment is that you can build empathy for a character, that you are literally walking, in this case, in the boots of. That is really the purpose of the narrative in these games.

Farah Karim plays a major role in the story, giving a perspective of someone who grew up around tragedy and conflict.

TH: How do you build empathy in these characters and with players when the game is so focused on the disposability of life and your input in that? You’re dispatching them at an incredibly quick pace and the identity, as you said, has changed so many different times. It’s not exactly known for being a franchise where you go to try and build empathy with characters? Those who come back year to year and treat this as a kind of like a yearly blockbuster franchise, how do you reach them? How do you think about those people when it comes to your narrative and it’s, especially when it’s a narrative where you’re discussing events and inspiration is pulled from the headlines?

TK: Again, I would look at Call of Duty more broadly than as a franchise. It now encompasses a lot of different takes on this sort of war genre in games. Now, for me and the team at Infinity Ward, the way we build empathy is, frankly, by putting characters under pressure. There’s no greater source of pressure than being in conflict zones, than being in war. And so, seeing characters overcome pressure and overcome obstacles in their life is the stuff that we all look for in storytelling, in general. There is no story without conflict.

If I have pressure in my life or I have an obstacle in my life, how am I going to overcome that? I can’t just do the same thing over and over and expect a different result. These characters are under this pressure. They have to kind of figure out a way to solve it and that’s sort of the point of kind of playing these games, kind of getting into the boots of these characters playing alongside heroes like Captain Price or new characters like Farah Karim and overcoming the obstacles that they face.

MH: Part of this reboot of Modern Warfare is touching on very sensitive subjects. There are controversial things built into Modern Warfare and I imagine y’all did that for a purpose. But there are going to be a lot of conversations about whether or not it was handled correctly. Do you feel like you and your team handled all those things correctly–all the things that you put into Modern Warfare narratively?

TK: I think that having a discussion about this stuff is very useful. We didn’t invent the subjects that you’re seeing in our game. We did painstaking research over years and years and these are the real-world scenarios that combat operators find themselves in, that local civilians on the ground find themselves in. So, our goals were twofold. One, [to portray] a Tier 1 operator who’s going into a combat zone, where the delineation of where it’s safe or where there’s conflict is blurred, where enemies don’t wear uniforms and don’t identify themselves as such. So you have imperfect intel, how are you expected to go into those areas and conduct yourself perfectly? That’s the burden that these combat operators face. And this was a theme that they thought we could convey and that was a goal for us. And again, to put the player in their shoes and figure out how they, with this imperfect intel, operate perfectly; it’s the quandaries, the burden of those operators.

But that’s not where we wanted to stop. There are people in the world who are living in conflict zones today who didn’t ask or choose to sign up, they didn’t choose to deploy somewhere over there, the conflict comes to their local town, their families, their communities. And we also wanted to build empathy with those characters that don’t have a choice and have to figure things out on the fly.

TH: With that in mind, do you feel a responsibility to actually say something about that? Having played a majority of the campaign, and as someone who grew up with those conflicts in mind, I don’t need to be told about them. They’ve touched my life in various ways. I’ve thought about these things since I was young. Perhaps it works for a few people, but in 2019 it’s not a “light bulb” moment for a lot of people. They understand that stuff wherever they are in the world, those conflicts are readily apparent. So, is there then a responsibility for Infinity Ward to, instead of just saying this exists, which is unnecessary because everyone knows it exists, to make a statement about it? The majority of the campaign I played didn’t seem to make a statement. What’s your stance on whether you should have made that statement or wherever you feel the need to make that statement?

TK: I think we’re making a tremendous statement about this. You talk about you knowing these conflicts exists and knowing these situations exist. I would argue that the majority of our player base does not have a background anywhere similar to a character like Farah.

And so for us to educate, to enlighten this player base about people like her, and again there are millions of people put in her position, I think is bringing awareness to something that’s sort of outside of the understanding of a lot of people. If it encourages them to look more things up or do more research, or again, build empathy with people whose backgrounds, cultures, and ways of life are dissimilar to their own, I think that’s a good thing.

TH: I suppose the follow-up to that is, you’re placing a lot of faith on people reading into that as something that has real-world implications. I don’t want to minimize the Call of Duty audience or paint them all with the same brush, but for the past few years they’ve at least been trained to treat all these things as fictional, kind of like constructs. Whereas, these are very real-world events. There are echoes of the Haditha massacre, and the Highway of Death; these were American atrocities that have been turned into Russian atrocities. For the average Call of Duty audience, are they going to be able to distinguish between the fact that this is something that really happened, that these are people that really exist and this is just a construct that a few game developers have created to be this blockbuster set-piece?

My argument would be, for people to make that connection, you would need to say ‘this is based on real-world events,’ or that these things are inspired by events to commemorate them in some way, as a way to create that line of what’s real.

TK: So, you know that they’re based on real-world events and yet you don’t give the player-base the credit. You’re sort of saying that the Call of Duty audience should be talked down to or things should be simplified or dumbed down. In fact, we have tons of research that the Call of Duty audience wants more accurate portrayals of conflict areas. They don’t want a dumbed-down experience. They want an experience where characters aren’t purely good or purely evil, where there is moral complexity involved. We’ve done a lot of research into this. So, for me, I like to speak up to my audience and I do believe that they are sophisticated enough to make the parallels.

When you mentioned the Highway of Death, if you, if you go back, I encourage you to go back and play start from the beginning of that mission, where you get the mission briefing. Farah talks about this location as the Highway of Death before the mission takes place. So the Highway of Death is not what came out of that mission. It was already that. And then if you look at the environmental storytelling, there’s already bombed out vehicles and all kinds of, you know, things that are relating to previous episodes and it’s even mentioned in there.

MH: You mention pulling from real-world events, but then having it make sense in the context of what you’re trying to do with Modern Warfare. Urzikstan is a fictional country, but you’re bringing in a real-world event into a fictional country. Do you feel okay with the fact that the Highway of Death, literally name-for-name of an American atrocity during the first Gulf War that was committed by Americans, has a mission briefing with Farah saying that what happened there was a Russian military terrorist attack? Do you feel like that was necessary? Are you okay with taking a real-world event but flipping the script in the same breath?

TK: I think you could probably find many instances of the words ‘highway of death’ being used in a lot of cases.

The reason why Urzikstan is a fictional country is because we are taking themes that we see played over and over again in the last 50 years in countries and locations all around the world. We’re not making assimilation of one particular country or one in particular conflict. These are themes that play out over and over again with a lot of the same players involved. We don’t portray any one side as good or bad in our game. There are American characters who sort of betray the trust of other characters in the story. There are Middle Easterners who kind of resort to extreme tactics that you wouldn’t think are sort of above board and, and there’s also characters that are from the same sort of region that, that you think are, are more morally just, same thing for Russian characters.

We have Russian antagonists and Russian heroes in this game. And again that was our goal. This is not some kind of propaganda or anything like that. This is reporting on what is happening in these conflict zones. To really break it down, these conflicts in the world today, these are proxy wars, super powers trying to gain influence in specific places. And the biggest victims of these proxy wars are the local people on the ground. I think that when you finish the campaign and look at it in its totality, that’s really what we’re trying to say here. I think that for people who are from a more privileged background or don’t live in close proximity to these conflict zones, they don’t think about the cost or the locals in these areas.

I think that this is a thing that we’re really building awareness for. When I was a kid, I learned a lot about stuff through things like Schoolhouse Rock, you know what I mean? I was singing songs and I was learning about real-world things, but in an entertaining fashion. And so I think that for people today, if we learn about some of these things, even while we’re engaged in an interactive experience, I think that it’s still valuable.

TH: How do you select the moments of gameplay that you use to tell a story? Because at a very fundamental level, you’re doing things like walking into a room, clearing it and almost taking out families just because they perceive you as a threat. There are gray areas where you’re trying to find The Wolf and there are men with guns, but there are also women who react, and kids who react to you bursting into a room. You instantly shoot who’s a threat and move on. And there are characters who mention that as a thing that’s kind of unfortunately but you have to do.

Then you have things like the gamification of waterboarding, a moment which a character is waterboarded and you’re looking left and right and pressing a button to breathe. And the Russian leader is on top of you saying, ‘Oh, you’re really good at this.’ There are these moments of dissonance where I’m like, this is one of the most horrific things, it’s basically a war crime and I’m partaking in it in this very gamey way. How do you kind of factor that in? How do you justify that?

Also, how’s that relationship with the gameplay team where you need to dictate, ‘we need a waterboarding scene’ and how do you set the tone for that? Because for me, that missed the mark. Obviously, waterboarding is an incredibly awful thing, but then it was just a confluence of moving left and right and turning your head for these safe zones to breath while having this character almost goading me. How do you strike that balance?

TK: You mentioned two things. You mentioned the clearing techniques in our new CQB [close quarters battle]. Again, this is the burden that these combat operators face. That people are not identifying themselves clearly, they don’t talk about good guys or bad guys. They talk about threats, unknowns. These are the concepts that are actually being used in these operations. And the game does tons of heuristics, constantly, when you’re playing in these areas. And if you take action against someone who has proven themselves to not be a threat to you or your team, you will fail. And it’s the game’s way of basically saying: that’s not becoming of a combat operator. But if someone demonstrates themselves as a threat to you, then you need to protect yourself. You need to protect your squad mates and complete this mission. That’s the metric there. And again, we spent a lot of time putting those heuristics into the game to try to read player intent.

In the same way that if you’re a combat operator and you acted in an unbecoming way, you might be court-martialed, you might be put in prison. The game has its own way of, kind of keeping you on the straight-and-narrow and we have tons of user test data that shows that our players care about the character they’re playing as and with, and they are trying their absolute best to do the right thing in these difficult circumstances.

And then your second question was about the waterboarding sequence and the gamification of it, as you put it. By that point in the campaign, you have played alongside Commander Farah Karim as a fully-fledged commander. You’ve also seen some of the more formative moments in her early life. So, for a player base that doesn’t have the same background as she does, they now know enough about her and have seen enough of it to have a better understanding of who she is and what she stands for.

There’s nothing in the game that compels you to play along and there’s nothing in the game that makes you gamify that moment as you say. The game doesn’t fail you, the game progress is regardless. We are giving our players a choice and we believe that most players know who she is and know that she would fight in that circumstance, and we know that she would resist and use whatever means necessary to gain an advantage over her captor. If your instinct in that moment is to sort of retreat within yourself, the game allows you to do that and progress regardless.

MH: There are a lot of traumatic moments in the campaign. One that sticks out to me is at the embassy in Urzikstan and The Butcher is behind glass. He kills someone’s father, the child runs away into smoke, he then shoots into the smoke, implying that The Butcher killed a child. And there are many moments that do touch on those sorts of things. Do you feel like you were able to draw the line properly? Do you feel like you went too far? Do you see all of that as necessary to hone in on the point that you’re trying to make with Modern Warfare?

TK: When we first started talking, we talked about the philosophy of making games; design, mechanics, and narrative being inextricably linked. You can’t make a story about something or say it’s about something and not have the player experience be about that thing. So, if we’re saying that the burden of a modern combat operator is that there are not always good choices, or there isn’t always a clear cut way forward, that they’re put in these no-win situations and they do their best, you can’t just have a veneer of a narrative wrapper on top of the game and not have the player experience that. Otherwise, those [design, mechanics, narrative] are sort of disconnected, and then you might as well just be making a movie and a little minigame. If the game is going to be about that thing, we walk the walk and we talk the talk.

Characters are what they do. They aren’t what they say they do. That is the reason for these moments in the game. If we’re making a game about the burden of these soldiers and the burden of these local fighters, then to not have those gameplay moments in the game decouples the narrative from the gameplay. Then you really got nothing.

MH: You mention that Modern Warfare is very character focused story and by the end of it, Captain Price forms his special task force. Having played through it to the end, I noticed how it’s weaving in things that we’ve seen in the original Modern Warfare and Modern Warfare 2, and it implies that there is more to be told.

You’re told to play Spec Ops to continue part of the story, but I know the team isn’t leaving it at that in terms of the story. So, is this really a reboot for the series and will we see the story of Captain Price and Task Force 141 again?

TK: We have big plans to continue this story and like we’ve said since we revealed the game, we’re calling it a reimagining, you could call it a reboot. The point is that, like Christopher Nolan’s Batman or Joker, or like Daniel Craig’s James Bond, the reimagining of those series were not beholden to the specific plot points of the originals. What they’re beholden to is the spirit of the originals. And so, us having Price in there and us referring to Task Force 141, we get to play with those ingredients.

But we want to make it clear to our fans to not try to connect the dots too much. This is not a prequel. Again, when you watch Quantum of Solace, Daniel Craig’s Bond doesn’t have to [abide by] Moonraker right? But Daniel Craig is quintessentially Bond. And I’d say that Barry Sloane is quintessentially Captain Price. And so yes, many more stories to tell in this universe.

Source: GameSpot.com


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Modern Warfare devs ‘actively’ working on bug fixes and updates, updates to come over next few days

Infinity Ward’s Senior Communications Manager has responded on Reddit to many fans asking about where the Infinity Ward communication is since the release of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.

Fans have been experiencing many issues with crashing on PC and Xbox One, alongside other bugs across the entire game that have frustrated players, including challenges not tracking and more.

Infinity Ward’s Senior CM on Reddit says that they are actively working on fixes for the crashes on Xbox One and PC and hope to fix the issues.

Fixes are currently being worked on by numerous teams between IW and Beenox. We have a few updates we’re working on that should improve the stability and help prevent against crashes or any other issue you may encounter. It’s always helpful to let us know details of what’s happening when you encounter any bug or crash as it can help us prioritize and debug issues as they come in.

Willams says on Reddit that these updates will be going live over the next few days, but they don’t want to give exact timing as update releases can change.

We have a few updates going out over the next few days. I don’t want to give an exact time and date as we’re wrapping up testing on a few more things.

She also responded on a Reddit thread that was asking why Infinity Ward has been quiet since the game’s launch.

Here’s her full reply:

Really appreciate this, OP. We’ve been working on updates and patches for everything we’ve been seeing and plan to roll these out within the next few days.

Feedback comes in from everywhere, so we prioritize from most concerning issues, like crashes, unable to run the game, etc., and go down the list from there. Once changes from the team have been made, we pull them into a patch or a title update, depending on what the fix is.

The Known Issue list on Activision’s Support blog is a great way to see some of the issues that we’re working on along with threads you see tagged with “Infinity Ward reply inside.” We can post them here moving forward so there’s more eyes on it.

She elaborated on this a bit more on this, saying they have to balance out fixing current bugs while also ensuring new content is coming to the game.

I mentioned this in another thread, but we prioritize feedback as it comes in, most importantly crashes, unable to run the game, etc., and go from there. Devs also work on their portion of work too, so someone who works with vehicles is prioritizing feedback from vehicles and nothing else. There’s tons of people working on fixes while working on future content at the same time, so once fixes for current issues are in, we test, and create either a patch or a title update, depending on the fix. If we feel it’s good to go, we get it out the door as soon as possible.

Willams says that they will be updating the Known Issues post on Activision Support site here with the latest on what they’re looking into and the tracking of the fixes for the updates.

Here’s the known issues:

Issue Description
I think I got the wrong weapon for completing a challenge.
– All platforms
We’ve identified graphical errors with the final reward for completing the Weapon Master and Well Equipped challenges.The Urban Defiler pistol awarded for completing the Weapon Master challenge is marked as an Epic (purple) weapon when it is, in fact, a Rare (blue) weapon.The Judgment shotgun awarded for completing the Well Equipped challenge is marked as a Legendary (orange) weapon when it is, in fact, an Epic (purple) weapon.
I can’t see the requirements to unlock the Commando camo for the .357.
– All platforms
We’re aware that the Commando camo requirements aren’t listed.
My MK2 keeps reloading even after it’s full.
– All platforms
We’re investigating an issue where reloading a weapon continues past full capacity.
I’m running into graphical glitches during the Captive mission in Campaign.
– All platforms
We’re investigating instances where textures, lighting, and shading isn’t rendering properly at various points during the Campaign.
I earned Killstreaks in a match, but they don’t appear in the HUD.
– All platforms
We’re investigating an issue where players earn Killstreaks in a match, but there is no indicator of earning them in the lower right corner of the screen.
I was killed by an enemy whose gun wasn’t even pointed at me.
– All platforms
We’re investigating instances where an enemy’s weapon appears to be pointing in different directions though it is actually aimed at its target.
I didn’t get my XRK Weapons Pack.
– Xbox One
We’re currently investigating issues with the delivery of the XRK Weapons Pack included with all digital editions of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.Please note: The base versions of the XRK Weapons need to be unlocked through progression before they can be added to a Loadout and used in game. However, be sure to check the Armory for your XRK Weapons. The XRK M4 Weapon Blueprint is listed under Assault Rifles, and the XRK .357 is listed under Handguns.
I didn’t get my Operator Pack.
– Xbox One
We’re working to resolve an issue with the delivery of the Operator Pack included with the Operator, Operator Enhanced, and Physical Precision editions of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.
I’m getting a message that says my GPU driver version does not meet the minimum requirements.
– PC
Please check out Updating Video Card Drivers on a PC to be sure that your drivers are up to date.If your drivers are up to date, be sure to try the following:If you’re using multiple monitors, try unplugging a monitor, launching the game, and then plugging the monitor back in.Disable your integrated/onboard graphics card.
I’m experiencing issues with my console crashing.
– Xbox One X
We’re working to resolve an issue that is causing crashes on Xbox One X.
My installation progress bar doesn’t seem accurate.
– All platforms
This is a graphical issue where the progress bar shows a lower percentage even though the download is being completed.
I’m getting Memory error 21 1749 when playing matches.
– All platforms
We’re currently investigating instances that cause Memory error 21 1749 after playing consecutive Ground War matches.Workaround: If the error persists, try restarting the game
I’m getting a Dev Error 6144
– Xbox One
We’re working to resolve an issue prompting Dev Error 6144, which can occur for players in a match when another player attempts to join a Multiplayer match that’s in progress. If this occurs, back out of Multiplayer and try playing again.
I’m getting Dev Error 6065/6066/6068.
– PC
We’ve identified an issue that is causing hang crashes on the GPU, particularly during Campaign cutscenes. These crashes will be addressed in an upcoming patch.Workaround: Try running VRAM under maximum and/or run the game with the default settings.
I can’t get into the Graphics menu.
– PC
We’re actively working to fix an issue where selecting the Graphics menu on PC takes you back to the main menu.Workaround: Delete the local config file on your PC.Open Documents.Open the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare folder.Delete the Players folder.
I can’t activate RTX.
– PC
Make sure your version of Windows and your video card drivers are up to date. RTX requires running Windows 1809 and above.Learn more about Updating Video Card Drivers on a PC.Be sure to check out the Minimum and Recommended System Requirements for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare on PC.
The progression on my launcher isn’t tracking
– All platforms
We’re investigating an issue where launcher progression is only counting XP from enemy kills and not from destroying Killstreaks.
I have a progression bar that isn’t tracking properly.
– All platforms
We’re investigating an issue where several progression bars tracking Camos, Missions, and Challenges are not displaying the correct progression. This is only a graphical issue; you’re still earning your progress.

Stay tuned for the latest news.

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Rumor: List of potential DLC Maps for Modern Warfare leaked

TheGamingRevoYT has posted a YouTube video claiming to know some of the DLC maps that are in the works for Cal of Duty: Modern Warfare.

He claims the following maps are being developed for DLC for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.

  • Wet Work (6v6)
  • Terminal (6v6)
  • Crash (6v6)
  • Vacant (6v6)
  • Broadcast (6v6)
  • Scrapyard (6v6)
  • Rust (6v6 and Gunfight)
  • Farah
  • Boneyard
  • Caged
  • Hook
  • +4 Ground War Maps
  • +3 Gunfight maps

This list is not confirmed in any way, but it does provide a hope for some of the future maps being remakes for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. A lot of people have been complaining about the style of the maps and how they play.

[embedded content]

All post launch maps for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare will be available for FREE for all players, and will launch on all platforms at the same time.

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Modern Warfare had the most successful launch of any Call of Duty of this generation

Activision has announced that Call of Duty: Modern Warfare has had the most successful launch weekend out any Call of Duty title on this console generation.

Modern Warfare generated more than $600 million in its first three days, beating out both Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 and Call of Duty: WWII – the previous two best selling Call of Duty’s on this generation.

Activision also stated that Modern Warfare was the biggest digital release in Activision’s history, and the company said that the game set new records on the PS4 store for the most downloads in its opening weekend.

Activision also says that Modern Warfare’s opening weekend has more than “doubled” the box office opening of this year’s Joker movie.

Activision’s Call of Duty®: Modern Warfare® had more than $600 million in sell-through worldwide in its first three days of release. The title has sold more units in its first three days than any other Call of Duty® game sold in its first three days in this console generation, and is the top-selling new premium game release of 2019. Modern Warfare also established a new record as the #1 top-selling digital opening in Activision history. With its blockbuster launch, in its first three days of release, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare more than doubled the box office opening of Joker.

Modern Warfare set new records on the PlayStation Network for the highest digital pre-orders and highest three-day digital sales ever on PlayStation 4. Modern Warfare also has become the #1 top-selling Call of Duty PC launch ever, as opening weekend PC sales on Blizzard Battle.net® were significantly up over last year.

“Call of Duty is once again the top selling new premium game of the year, proving the enduring nature of the franchise across console, PC, mobile, and esports,” said Bobby Kotick, Activision Blizzard’s Chief Executive Officer. “In its first three days of release, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare more than doubled the box office opening of Joker.”

“Through the first three days, Modern Warfare has more total players and total hours played than any Call of Duty opening release in the last six years. More importantly, our players are having a great time playing,” said Rob Kostich, president, Activision. “Congratulations to Infinity Ward and all our teams involved on an incredible game and its spectacular launch. We also want to thank the community for your incredible support. The launch of Modern Warfare is only the start. There’s much more to come.”

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Call Of Duty League Season Will Kick Off In January 2020 With A Launch Weekend Tournament

Call of Duty League, Activision’s big Call of Duty eSports push, will begin on January 24, 2020. The event will take place over the Call of Duty League Launch Weekend at the Minneapolis Armory, and will see teams competing in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. It’s the first event of what promises to be a major new league for competitive Call of Duty.

The event will see 12 teams play off over three days in five-on-five matches, with a best-of-five format. The exact ruleset will be announced closer to the event. Teams from Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Florida, London, Los Angeles, Minnesota, New York, Paris, Seattle, and Toronto taking part. The Call of Duty League website has further details on the teams competing, and lets you sign up for updates in the lead up to opening weekend.

The Call of Duty Challengers Open will take place over that same weekend, allowing amateur teams to compete in an open bracket tournament that will be determined by a series of online tournaments, beginning next month. There’s a prize pool of over $1 million on offer in the open.

The cost of entry is reportedly $25 million per team, which has prevented eSports organization 1000 Thieves from competing. The specifics of the prize pool have not yet been announced, but expect a major top prize.

If you’re looking to sharpen your own skills in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, we’ve compiled a list of tips for beginners. It’s also useful to know your different perks inside and out. In our review-in-progress of the game, Kallie Plagge wrote that the multiplayer in Modern Warfare “is up to par, with a variety of game types for different kinds of players.”

Source: GameSpot.com


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Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Competitive Settings V1 Announced

Activision and Infinity Ward announced the Competitive V1 Settings for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare in a post on Call of Duty League website.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare marks a new era for Call of Duty esports with the start of the Call of Duty league. The company announced that the first Open Event, featuring both the 12 teams and open bracket, takes place Jan 24.

There will be a total of 12 teams in the Call of Duty League’s first season, and it will feature both home and away events in the 12 city markets for the league.

Here’s the details on the rule set, direct from Call of Duty League team:

Competitive Call of Duty rules adjust over time. The rules below do not represent the final competitive settings but an initial set of rules to kickoff the season. Competitive Settings V 1.0 have been developed in coordination between League Administration and representatives (players, coaches) of the Call of Duty League.

With the game having been released last week, we recognize that our final map set will need to be further refined than what we’ll have in place for the first version of our ruleset. That said, we’ll be paying close attention to both pro and amateur player feedback to ensure the best map set by season launch.

Maps and modes may change at a later date. Our pro player community is heavily involved in this process, and we look forward to narrowing down our settings a bit closer to the start of the season.

Maps & Modes List

Search & Destroy

  • · Arklov Peak
  • · Azhir Cave
  • · Gun Runner
  • · Hackney Yard
  • · Piccadilly
  • · Rammaza
  • · St. Petrograd

Domination

  • · Gun Runner
  • · Hackney Yard
  • · Rammaza
  • · St. Petrograd

Hardpoint

  • · Arklov Peak
  • · Azhir Cave
  • · Gun Runner
  • · Hackney Yard
  • · Rammaza
  • · St. Petrograd

Search & Destroy Settings

Game Settings

  • · Round Time Limit: 2 M : 00 S
  • · Round Win Limit: 6 Rounds
  • · Win By Two Rule: Disabled
  • · Win By Two Max Rounds: N/A
  • · Round Switch: Every Round
  • · Match Start Time: 15 Seconds
  • · Round Start Time: 10 Seconds
  • · Skip Infil: Disabled
  • · Practice Round: Disabled
  • · Codcaster: Enabled

Advanced Settings

  • · Bomb Timer: 45 Seconds
  • · Plant Time: 5 Seconds
  • · Defuse Time: 7.5 Seconds
  • · Multi Bomb: Disabled
  • · Silent Plant: Enabled
  • · Reset Plant/Defuse Progress: Enabled

Player Settings

  • · Number of Lives: 1 Life
  • Max Health: 100 (Normal)
  • · Health Regeneration: Normal
  • · Tactical Sprint: Enabled
  • · Allow Revives: Disabled
  • · Show Enemy Death Location: Disabled
  • · Downed Health: N/A
  • · Downed Revive Health: N/A
  • · Downed Bleedout Timer: N/A
  • · Downed Revive Time: N/A
  • · Downed Give Up Time: N/A

Team

  • · Spectating: Team Only
  • · 3rd Person Spectating: Disabled
  • · Killcam: Enabled
  • · Final Killcam: Final Kill
  • · Enable Mini Map: Yes
  • · Radar Always On: Disabled
  • · Weapon Pings on Minimap: Enabled
  • · Weapon Pings on Compass: Enabled
  • · Enemy on Compass: Enabled
  • · Respawn Delay: None
  • · Wave Spawn Delay: None
  • · Suicide Spawn Delay: None
  • · Force Respawn: Enabled
  • · Team Assignment: Enabled
  • · Friendly Fire: Enabled
  • · Team Kill Punish Limit: Disabled

Gameplay

  • · Hardcore Mode: Disabled
  • · Spawn Ammo Mags: 3 (Normal)
  • · Realism Mode: Disabled
  • · Headshots Only: Disabled
  • · Health Steal: Disabled
  • · Perks: Enabled
  • · Killstreaks: Enabled
  • · Round Retain Streaks: Enabled
  • · Retain Streaks on Death: Enabled
  • · Equipment Delay: 5 Seconds
  • · Equipment Protection: Disabled

Domination Settings

Game Settings

  • · Round Limit: 2 Rounds
  • · Round Switch: Every Round
  • · Round Time Limit: 6 Minutes
  • · Round Score Limit: Unlimited
  • · Match Start Time: 15 Seconds
  • · Round Start Time: 10 Seconds
  • · Skip Infil: Disabled
  • · Codcaster: Enabled

Advanced Settings

  • · Points Per Kill: 0 Points
  • · Points Per Death: 0 Points
  • · Headshot Bonus Points: 0 Points
  • · Killstreak Kill Bonus Points: 0 Points
  • · Time to Capture Zone: 10 Seconds
  • · Zones Required to Score: 1 Zone
  • · Points Per Zone: 1 Point
  • · Objective Scaler: x4
  • · Flags Enable Kill Scoring: Disabled
  • · Starting Flags Captured: Disabled

Player Settings

  • · Number of Lives: Unlimited
  • · Max Health: 100 (Normal)
  • · Health Regeneration: Normal
  • · Tactical Sprint: Enabled
  • · Allow Revives: Disabled
  • · Show Enemy Death Location: Disabled
  • · Downed Health: N/A
  • · Downed Revive Health: N/A
  • · Downed Bleedout Timer: N/A
  • · Downed Revive Time: N/A
  • · Downed Give Up Time: N/A

Team Settings

  • · Spectating: Team Only
  • · 3rd Person Spectating: Disabled
  • · Killcam: Enabled
  • · Final Killcam: PotG
  • · Enable Mini Map: Yes
  • · Radar Always On: Disabled
  • · Weapon Pings on Minimap: Enabled
  • · Weapon Pings on Compass: Enabled
  • · Respawn Delay: 5 Seconds
  • · Wave Spawn Delay: None
  • · Suicide Spawn Delay: None
  • · Force Respawn: Enabled
  • · Team Assignment: Enabled
  • · Friendly Fire: Enabled
  • · Team Kill Punish Limit: Disabled

Gameplay

  • · Hardcore Mode: Disabled
  • · Spawn Ammo Mags: 3 (Normal)
  • · Realism Mode: Disabled
  • · Headshots Only: Disabled
  • · Health Steal: Disabled
  • · Perks: Enabled
  • · Killstreaks: Enabled
  • · Round Retain Streaks: Enabled
  • · Retain Streaks on Death: Enabled
  • · Equipment Delay: 5 Seconds
  • · Equipment Protection: Disabled

Hardpoint Settings

Game Settings

  • · Time Limit: 5 Minutes
  • · Score Limit: 250 Points
  • · March Start Time: 15 Seconds
  • · Skip Infil: Disabled
  • · Codcaster: Enabled

Advanced Settings

  • · Points Per Kill: 0 Points
  • · Points Per Death: 0 Points
  • · Headshot Bonus Points: 0 Points
  • · Killstreak Kill Bonus Points: 0 Points
  • · Time to Capture Zone: Instant
  • · Zone Lifetime: 1 Point
  • · Initial Activation Delay Time: 30 Seconds
  • · Activation Delay Time: Disabled
  • · Location Order: Linear
  • · Scoring: Constant
  • · Pause Time: Enabled
  • · Capture Team Spawn Delay: Enabled

Player Settings

  • · Number of Lives: Unlimited
  • · Max Health: 100 (Normal)
  • · Health Regeneration: Normal
  • · Tactical Sprint: Enabled
  • · Allow Revives: Disabled
  • · Show Enemy Death Location: Disabled
  • · Downed Health: N/A
  • · Downed Revive Health: N/A
  • · Downed Bleedout Timer: N/A
  • · Downed Revive Time: N/A
  • · Downed Give Up Time: N/A

Team Settings

  • · Spectating: Team Only
  • · 3rd Person Spectating: Disabled
  • · Killcam: Enabled
  • · Final Killcam: PotG
  • · Enable Mini Map: Yes
  • · Radar Always On: Disabled
  • · Weapon Pings on Minimap: Enabled
  • · Weapon Pings on Compass: Enabled
  • · Respawn Delay: 2.5 Seconds
  • · Wave Spawn Delay: None
  • · Suicide Spawn Delay: None
  • · Force Respawn: Enabled
  • · Team Assignment: Enabled
  • · Friendly Fire: Enabled
  • · Team Kill Punish Limit: Disabled

Gameplay

  • · Hardcore Mode: Disabled
  • · Spawn Ammo Mags: 3 (Normal)
  • · Realism Mode: Disabled
  • · Headshots Only: Disabled
  • · Health Steal: Disabled
  • · Perks: Enabled
  • · Killstreaks: Enabled
  • · Round Retain Streaks: Enabled
  • · Retain Streaks on Death: Enabled
  • · Equipment Delay: 5 Seconds
  • · Equipment Protection: Disabled

Restricted Items

Primary Weapons

  • · LMG (All)
  • · M91
  • · PKM
  • · MG34
  • · L86A2
  • · Shotgun (All)
  • · Model 680
  • · R9-0 Shotgun
  • · 725 Origin
  • · 12 Shotgun
  • · Melee
  • · Riot Shield

Secondary Weapons

  • · Launchers (All)
  • · RPG-7
  • · PILA
  • · JOKR
  • · Strela-P

Attachments

  • · Underbarrel
  • · M203 40mm Concussive
  • · M203 40mm Smokescreen
  • · M203 40mm Recon
  • · M203 40mm High-Explosive
  • · M203 40mm Flash
  • · M203 40mm Incendiary
  • · 12 Gauge Deputy
  • · Perks
  • · Frangible – Wounding

Kill Streaks

  • 3 Kill
    • Personal Radar
    • Shield Turret
  • 4 Kill
    • Counter UAV
    • UAV
    • Care Package
  • 7 Kill
    • IAV
    • Sentry
    • Wheelson
  • 8 Kill
    • Emergency Airdrop
  • 10 Kill
    • White Phosphorous
  • 12 Kill
    • Advanced UAV
  • 15 Kill
    • Juggernaut

Perks

  • Perk 2
    • High Alert
    • Kill Chain
    • Restock
  • Perk 3
    • Shrapnel
    • Tracker

Equipment

  • Lethal
    • Claymore
    • C4
    • Molotov Cocktail
    • Proximity Mine
  • Tactical
    • Heartbeat Sensor
    • Gas Grenade
    • Snapshot Grenade
    • Stim

Field Upgrades

  • · Recon Drone
  • · Stopping Power
  • · Weapon Drop
  • · Tactical Insertion
  • · Deployable Cover

SOURCE: Reddit

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Source: CharlieIntel.com


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Trials now live in Modern Warfare with XP rewards

Infinity Ward has announced on Reddit that “Trials” are now live in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.

Players who have reached Officer ranks are getting rewards with “Trial” consumables, and now, per Infinity Ward’s post, this feature is live in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.

@WhosImmortal

Infinity Ward has described how Trials work in game:

Once you’re in Officer Ranks, you’ll earn tickets you can use to compete in Trials. Already in Officer Ranks? You’ll get access to tickets you already earned.

  • One ticket is needed to take part in a Trial
  • One ticket grants you 3 tries
  • Based on your performance, you’ll be given a 1, 2, or 3-star rating
  • Each star rating grants XP rewards:
    • 0 Stars: 0 XP
    • 1 Star: 5000 XP
    • 2 Stars: 7500 XP
    • 3 Stars: 10000 XP

Officer Ranks start after you hit Level 55 in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. The new progression system removes prestige for seasonal based Officer ranks.

SOURCE: Reddit

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Source: CharlieIntel.com


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Bug with equipping weapon charm in Modern Warfare makes your hip-fire worse

UPDATE: Infinity Ward Senior CM has confirmed on Twitter that a fix is ready to go for this and will be released soon.


An odd bug has been identified in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare by users across Reddit and on Twitter about using weapon charms in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.

Per images and videos shown on Reddit and Twitter, using weapon charms on your weapon in Modern Warfare makes your hip-fire aim worse, which results in potential to miss more shots.

Here’s the image showing the difference by Reddit user u/JustFuckMyShitUpTbh:

Drift0r also posted a video on Twitter showing this effect in action, that the weapon’s hip fire is slightly off center compared to not using a weapon charm in game.

It would be wise to avoid using weapon charms till a fix is in place.

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Source: CharlieIntel.com


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IW dev provides small update on issues studio is looking into

Infinity Ward’s Co MP Design Director has mentioned on Twitter some of the feedback points they are aware of in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare after seeing some of the feedback from this weekend.

In a tweet, Cecot noted four things that fans have been talking about:

  • Footstep Audio
  • Claymore Interaction/Feedback
  • Spawns
  • Player Battle Chatter in One Life Modes

This is not the full list of feedback they are looking into, but some of the high priority complaints from fans thus far beyond map design and matchmaking.

The studio has been releasing patch updates throughout the weekend to the game to address many of the issues that fans have been experiencing, including crashing bugs and other related issues. Patch notes for the newest update, 1.05, is available here.

We’ll update this post as more is shared by the development team.

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Source: CharlieIntel.com


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Call of Duty: Modern Warfare being review-bombed on Metacritic over portrayal of Russia

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare’s review score on Metacritic has been dramatically impacted by review-bombers this past week.

The negative sentiment comes from users who are claiming to be “upset” about how the game is portraying Russia as the main enemy throughout the game.

First reported by Polygon, the game’s score has dropped to 3/10 because of the spam of content by users who didn’t like how Russia was portrayed. Some comments say “Russophobia is not appropriate, ‘dear’ Activision” and calling out the company for showcasing Russian military committing war crimes throughout the story.

People even commenting and reviewing asking why Activision does not highlight America’s war crimes but only Russia.

“Russophobia is not appropriate, ‘dear’ Activision,” says the comment. “There is no gray morality in this game, only bad Russians and good Americans. Can you show us hundreds of American war crimes all over the world in your next game?”

The game is a fictional game, set in a fictional world about events happening in Modern times.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare’s campaign has been a worrisome topic for mainstream media because of how real the campaign is and the stories it portrays. Activision has used Russia as an enemy in previous games, but this one pits the country as committing acts of war crimes with gassing children, murdering civilians, and plotting against countries in the Middle East.

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Source: CharlieIntel.com


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