Now that the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 Beta has officially wrapped up (sans a sneaky extra half a day), we can properly evaluate the test. I did a deep dive on the first weekend, which I’ll bookmark the link below, and it houses a lot of thoughts that are largely still true. That said, there have been some significant changes that came in weekend two, alongside the introduction of Warzone and the Nintendo Switch 2. There’s a lot to go over, and I’ve qualified several thoughts below on things that are great, should be adjusted, and more.
David Burdette
TTK needs to find a middle ground
I spoke on time-to-kill in my previous article, and sadly, it’s still a point of contention. Where the team had found something almost perfect on the final day of weekend one, the second week boosted it a bit too far. Maybe it’s just me, but I felt like I was dumping half a mag, if not more, into enemies just to take them out. It could be netcode and hit registration working against me, accuracy issues, or other things, but Modern Warfare doesn’t need to be operating on Treyarch fundamentals. Faster TTK is a staple of Infinity Ward games, something that shouldn’t go away because of a vocal minority. Infinity Ward has already said they’re working on it, and I’d implore them to look specifically at day four of weekend one.
Tac-sprint is dead… and so is movement
If you like to sit on a heady or in a corner, the current state of movement in Modern Warfare 4 has to have you excited. It’s clear that removing tac-sprint by default is necessary, it’s a mechanic that detracts from the speed of the game by adding a third gear. Even so, the maps were built with that mechanic in mind, so the flow is thrown off in the process. Tac-sprint isn’t completely gone, now tied to the Blood Rush perk, but it shouldn’t become a clutch perk in order to get to certain positions first.
Treyarch did things right, offering tac-sprint as an option without forcing you to choose it. This is another area where the team is looking at making perk changes, but I’d go a step further. Warzone upped the base movement, slide speeds, and more. That needs to happen in MW4’s multiplayer. The dead slides also need to be figured out. I constantly get caught trying to get away because my input just doesn’t register. I’m not asking for omnimovement – I don’t want this game to become a movement fest – but I do want the pacing to feel a little smoother and quicker.
Hijack is GOOD
We broke the official news about Hijack during the announcement of Modern Warfare 4, which was mainly about how this is the potential third mode for the Call of Duty League. I liked what I heard from Jacky Reynolds about his aspirations of a new Uplink-inspired game mode, but after how good Overload was, I was hesitant. All of those doubts have been thrown out of the window now that I’ve tried Hijack, which is a fun mode that features a lot of depth.
The back and forth of grabbing the device, then pushing towards the enemy’s data tower is thrilling, and the tension of trying to make the right play is palpable. Oftentimes I’d find myself on my own and would chuck the data spike as far as I could, hoping it would delay the opposing relay. My favorite part is finding the best breakoff at the start of the map, as you can score almost instantaneously if you make the right move. On Lotus, for example, I could huck the spike into place in close to ten seconds. While we couldn’t defend the spike for anything, which meant it was defused quickly and we were left to gather for another push, my discoveries surrounding the routes have me excited to see how this could play in the CDL. It has enough depth to it that it should be an exciting watch.
I still don't like Ground War, but the Hajin maps are good for it
Ground War is my least favorite part of a Call of Duty game. I didn’t pick the game up to play Battlefield, and the usual trot from spawn, get sniped, respawn, repeat is still here. That said, I really like the way the map flows. My time was spent on Imjin Farmland, as Wolves Stadium wasn’t available at the time I was testing the mode, but the feel and aesthetic of the map make me excited for how DMZ will play on it. Although there is plenty of elevation for sniping, the grassy plains are littered with rocks and trees, allowing you to escape your scoped watchers. Here’s hoping the promise of these POIs extend to all of Hajin, for both Warzone and DMZ.
Warzone is a very different flavor in this iteration
Zodiac is the new Resurgence map for Warzone, and paired with this new style of gameplay, I’m extremely impressed with how it feels in action. This new map is incredibly colorful, to the point where Haven’s Hollow looks dull in comparison (are we sure this map is being made for an Infinity Ward game?). I love the flow of the Zodiac, with plenty of tall buildings, multiple floors, and intentional spacing that lets players who haven’t hit the zipline try to sneak or sprint to safety. The train that passes through the middle of the map randomly has new loot boxes to sift through, but you can’t be too slow or you’ll die as it moves out of the map or into the gas.
Similarly, there’s almost an Apex Legends quality to the ground loot. Perks are more pronounced, coming in big boxes. Other items seem easier to sift through. It’s still Warzone, but the changes are good and makes your looting experience better.
Somehow, this mode feels more fluid than the multiplayer. After a single day, Raven Software raised a lot of movement mechanics and their percentages, leading to how Warzone felt most of the time. There are still some things to adjust, like health tweaks and UI clean up, but I very quickly felt welcomed onto Zodiac. Gunplay is already fantastic, and weapon metas will come and go. If the map stinks or the pacing is bad, Warzone will be abandoned. If they can take what they’ve learned here and transpose it onto Hajin when it arrives as the big map, we’re in for a great year of Warzone.
This game somehow works on Nintendo Switch 2
As the beta was completely open on the Nintendo Switch 2, I had to give it a try. What I found was a competent build of the game, although obviously limited by the hardware it’s on. Playing in handheld mode is a chore, especially if you use the Joy-Cons. Those thumbsticks suck, so you end up wildly waving your gun around while trying to trigger aim assist. It doesn’t look terrible, but it’s certainly not the best way to play a multiplayer game that still moves fast in its slowest form.
It was better on a TV. I also used my Pro controller, which mitigated the thumbstick issues and gave me back buttons to play with. The biggest problem here still involves visuals, and mainly that the muddy textures make your opponents fade into obscurity amongst the map and its objects littering the field. Silkworm was a nightmare, as players behind cars hid even more easily than in matches I played on PC.
While I wouldn’t make this my main platform, there’s merit to playing on the Nintendo Switch 2. You can swap over to Switch 2-only matchmaking, which helps, and of course engage with the campaign and DMZ. Considering it’s also running at up to 60FPS in multiplayer unless things get hairy and crowded, and 30FPS everywhere else (including Warzone, which will also be included), you could do worse. It’s not a bad first impression.
Matchmaking still overshadows all
Sadly, Modern Warfare 4 will still be judged over skill-based matchmaking. The intensity of matches was exhausting through two weekends. I’m not sure of the answer here. I’m a better player than most, who plays in a group of similarly skilled players, so I’m bound to be chosen as the guy who has to drag other players. That’s getting old though, as most of the time I feel like I’m slogging my way through matches where the godlike player on the other team drops 100 eliminations on my head. If this is my punishment for being a better player, so be it. But if it’s not drawing casuals back to help with the health of the game, lets stop the charade and find a way to introduce real classic matchmaking into the fold for more lobby variety.
After playing 50+ hours of Modern Warfare 4, I’m still enjoying the base gameplay. I like how fresh it is, and the modern stylings have always been a favorite. I just hope the team can work towards fixing and tweaking the clear problems that still exist. It’d be a shame to see all the hard work give way to another weak launch. Black Ops 7 has everything the community really wants in it, but no one wanted another Black Ops game at that point. Modern Warfare is a strong brand; I look forward to where Infinity Ward takes it as they lock in for October. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 marches to launch on October 23rd, with campaign early access starting on October 16th. You can pre-order now on Xbox Series consoles, PC, PlayStation 5, and for the first time, Nintendo Switch 2.
