Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and Warzone 2.0 Set to Bring Big Changes to the Popular Franchise

New games and updates for the popular military shooter franchise Call of Duty were shown off on Thursday during the Call of Duty: Next event. 

Modern Warfare 2, Warzone 2.0 and Warzone Mobile were the focus of the show. Developers from Infinity Ward ran down what’s new in the future games, which are being dubbed the next generation of Call of Duty. 

A new trailer for Modern Warfare 2 featured the game’s multiplayer mode, showing off new maps, equipment and mechanics that will also make their way to Warzone 2.0. This includes a third-person view, dynamic movements and Gunsmith 2.0, which will let players do even more customizations for their favorite weapons. As for equipment, players will have access to an inflatable decoy to distract opponents, a DDoS tool to take over enemies’ electronics and a drill mine to take out someone who’s camped on the floor above. 

Modern Warfare 2, which launches in October, will add new modes, including a 20 vs. 20 Invasion mode that makes for big battles and features AI-controlled participants. Prisoner Rescue is a six vs. six match type where attackers need to find hostages and carry them out of the base. There will also be a new raid mode consisting of teams of three players that will require exceptional teamwork and will come out later this year. 

Warzone 2.0 is launching on Nov. 16 and will have a new Al Mazrah map as well as proximity chat, which letss players hear each other while playing as long as they’re within a certain distance. The safe space on the map referred to as the “circle” will also see a change in Warzone 2.0.  It can now split into smaller circles meaning players will battle in smaller areas as the match moves along. DMZ is a new mode coming to Warzone 2.0 with players trying to extract loot from a base controlled by other players and AI-controlled combatants. 

Warzone Mobile made its debut at the show and will bring the Warzone experience to phones. The game is designed for touchscreen controls and has the same Verdansk map of the original Warzone. It will have weapons, killstreaks and other components found in the free-to-play game. 

Modern Warfare 2 launches on Oct. 28 on PS4, PS5, PC, Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S for $70. The beta for the game starts on PlayStation platforms starting Sept. 16 and then on Xbox and PC platforms on Sept. 22 with those who preordered the game getting early access. 

Warzone 2.0 will start on Nov. 16 on PS4, PS5, PC, Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S and is free-to-play. Warzone Mobile will be available on iOS and Android in 2023 with pre-registration already available at the Google Play Store.