Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III, the highly anticipated sequel to the 2019 reboot of the Modern Warfare series, has finally launched globally on all platforms. The game, developed by Sledgehammer Games and published by Activision, promises to deliver an immersive and thrilling campaign, a robust and diverse multiplayer mode, and a revamped and expanded Warzone experience.
The launch of the game comes with a massive patch that addresses many of the issues and feedback that players had during the multiplayer beta testing. The patch notes, released by Sledgehammer Games on their official website, detail the changes and additions that have been made to the game since the beta.
Campaign Stability and Performance
One of the main focuses of the patch is to improve the stability and performance of the campaign mode, which follows the story of Captain Price and his team of elite operatives as they face a new global threat. The patch fixes several bugs and crashes that occurred while loading and playing some missions, as well as improving the audio and graphical quality of the cutscenes and the environment.
The patch also resolves an issue that prevented offline play after setting up an Activision account and ensures the integrity of the save data and the checkpoint loading system.
Multiplayer UIX Visual Changes and New Features
The multiplayer mode, which features 20 maps at launch and a variety of modes and playlists, has also received some visual changes and new features to enhance the gameplay experience. The patch adds a stroke to the enemy nameplates to improve visibility, adjusts the font and contrast of the score event text on the HUD to be less obstructive, and adds a HUD element that displays the player’s current streak after each kill.
The patch also introduces match event popups that feature the respective player’s equipped calling card, skillful player achievements that display a medal splash on the player’s HUD, and match stats that are available during gameplay via a new tab in the scoreboard.
Weapon Balancing and Killstreak Adjustments
Another major aspect of the patch is the weapon balancing and the killstreak adjustments, which aim to provide a more fair and balanced gameplay for all players. The patch reduces the tac-stance spread while sliding for several weapon classes, such as assault rifles, submachine guns, light machine guns, marksman rifles, and pistols. The patch also nerfs the Striker, a submachine gun that was widely considered to be overpowered in the beta, by decreasing its damage and range and increasing its headshot and lower-arm damage multipliers.
The patch also tweaks the Guardian-SC, a killstreak that deploys a microwave emitter that slows and damages enemies, by decreasing its health and lifetime. The patch also fixes a bug that made players immune to damage from gas and equipment, and a bug that prevented supply boxes from opening on the first attempt.
Mode and Map Fixes and Improvements
The patch also addresses some issues and feedback related to the modes and maps of the multiplayer mode. The patch disables the overhead spawn camera sequence upon respawning in Hardpoint, a mode where teams compete to capture and hold a rotating objective. The patch also removes the limited fuel for vehicles driven by the player in Ground War, a large-scale mode that features up to 64 players and vehicles.
The patch also adds collision and fixes clipping issues in various areas of the maps to prevent players from accessing unintended locations. The patch also fixes some spawn points that resulted in unfavorable or instant deaths for the players. The developers stated that they are investigating reports of poor spawn selection quality and making adjustments for launch.
Operator Movement Animations and Stability Fixes
The patch also fixes some issues related to the operator movement animations and the stability of the game. The patch ensures that the operator movement animations will play properly in the moments following a respawn and that the players will be properly notified of playlist updates while idling in the menus.
The patch also addresses some crashes that occurred while matchmaking in the Ground War playlist, while launching the game, and while navigating the menus. The patch also fixes some missing icons and prompts for some attachments and weapons.
The launch day patch notes for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III are extensive and comprehensive, showing the developers’ commitment to delivering a polished and enjoyable game for the fans. The patch notes also state that the launch is only the beginning and that the developers will provide a consistent stream of content updates, bug fixes, and gameplay adjustments in the year ahead.
