Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare To Receive Post-Launch Battle Passes

Activision have confirmed how they intend on monetising Call of Duty: Modern Warfare post-launch. The good news is that it won’t be loot boxes, confirming what Infinity Ward’s art director Joel Emslie said earlier in the week, but the bad news is that it will utilise a battle pass system, with both free and premium reward tiers known as streams.

The official blog post revealing the news is quick to point out that all functional items that have “an impact on game balance” will be unlockable via gameplay, so that includes weapons and attachments. The Battle Pass and all in-store items will only feature cosmetics, so there won’t be any pay-to-win advantages. That’s the theory anyway. One of the skins could end providing some light advantage just because the colour blends better on certain backgrounds. 

The Battle Pass system won’t be available when the game launches on October 25th, as Activision and Infinity Ward are currently “focused on making the Day One experience awesome”. Also, they want to give launch day players to opportunity to unlock all the rewards available to them from the off, before chucking more in. Activision and Infinity Ward expect the battle passes to kick off before the end of the year, with each pass tied to a new in-game season.

While the fact that all post-launch maps and modes will be free for all players is a welcome one, a premium battle pass for a game like Call of Duty just doesn’t feel right. It’s a bitter pill to swallow when you’ve already shelled out £50/$60 for the game already. At the very least, as it’s currently been outlined, the battle pass system is completely optional and Call of D, so if you just want to pick up the full game and enjoy a year of free maps and modes, you can do so.