In many ways, this year’s batch of Call of Duty marks a turning point, as Modern Warfare 2 and Warzone 2.0 mark the first time multiple Call of Dutys have used a unified engine. In the trio with Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile, the goal is to bring the franchise “closer together than ever before,” according to Activision.

Call of Duty – The engine as a turning point

The engine for Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 and Warzone 2.0 was developed specifically for next-generation systems. Se builds on the technology of the 2019 Modern Warfare reboot and features 4K HDR, a physics-based render system that enables state-of-the-art photogrammetry, and a hybrid tile-based streaming system. A new water and underwater render system, volumetric world lighting, and a new toolchain to implement it all smoothly.

Since Modern Warfare 2019 already looked excellent, you can probably look forward to this.

Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2: Raids, new moves and a third-person mode

How Activision envisions its multiplayer sounds a little bigger and more sprawling overall than you might think. A “memorable new approach” to classic boots-on-the-ground gameplay is what they want to deliver. You’re supposed to balance the role of stealth, amphibious assaults, and vehicle-based warfare.

Especially the new movements should provide variety and new tactical possibilities: Now you can also fight while swimming, do a Dolphin Dive (which hopefully means that you arc out of the water like a dolphin while swimming and make pinball noises to do so!) For the time being, you can pull yourself up on edges and even get stuck on them to shoot over the edge one-handed. This already looked pretty mean in the trailer shown.

More about Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

– Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2: Everything we know about the beta

– Call of Duty: “Inappropriate on many levels” – Sony angry about Microsoft’s offer

– CoD Warzone 2.0 confirmed for 2022 on PC, old and current consoles

You should also be able to lean out of the windows of the many new vehicles, get onto their roofs and ultimately use the wheeled underlings to destroy their surroundings in small ways.

Also nice is the implementation of a third-person playlist. This is supposed to bring a more tactical way of playing multiplayer. We’ll see how well that goes down with the fans and whether the increased overview and looking around the corner might not be perceived as an unfair advantage by some players.

Raids are a completely new experience and will appear after launch, but probably this year. This is a 3-vs-3 mode that is supposed to rely on communication and coordination “like never before.” Exciting.

Special Ops has been reworked as a two-player cooperative experience in which you explore large “hot zones” with a teammate.

A new Gunsmith is designed to let you switch between weapons more smoothly while offering more freedom for customization.

Both Modern Warfare 2 and Warzone 2.0 are said to bring AI improvements related to AI squad member positioning, enemy schematics, and NPC and civilian movement, all of which are said to dynamically adjust to the player’s choices. You can read more about what this means for Warzone 2.0 in particular below.

Last but not least, there is also a new Ricochet anti-cheat system that now runs on a unified security platform.

As we already know, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 will be released on October 28. The beta starts for PS5 pre-orderers this weekend. Melanie has compiled a list of what’s inside for you here: .

DMZ and AI opponents – this is how Warzone 2.0 wants to recapture the free-to-play market

On November 16, 2022, Call of Duty Warzone 2.0 will be released. This should be a first for an ongoing live service game to be replaced by a successor of sorts after only about two years. 2.0 could also be read as a version number of an ongoing development, but when Activision talks about a “completely new” Warzone experience and the “most ambitious release in Call of Duty history,” it sounds more like a full-fledged second installment.

I have a feeling EA would rather develop Titanfall 3 (where would we go with that!?) than announce an Apex Legends 2 anytime soon. So an unusual move, but someone has to be the first to try.

The setting for Warzone 2.0 is the West Asian desert region of Al Mazrah (someone took pains not to say “Middle East”), which should also be the name of the first map. This one now also makes a AI faction uncertain, which is to “bring to life” the Al Mazrah region by providing higher risk and more realistic combat scenarios.

In addition, a new circle mechanic should allow multiple circles to appear, making end-game scenarios much more flexible.

A new mode is likely to be DMZ. What exactly it is is not clear from the information that Activision provided in advance. But it should stand for “Demilitarized Zone” and is said to be an “all-new sandbox experience” that will be available at Warzone’s launch on November 16.

The Gulag also returns, but is now a two-on-two where you have to loot weapons and then take on the “jailer”. What I find most interesting about this is that it sounds like you’ll also be thrown in with any antagonists you then have to work with. A nice twist.

Although there’s no crossplay with Call of Duty Warzone Mobile coming in 2023 – that game gets its own playlists – there’s cross-progression across all three games for Battle Pass and unified social features.