MW2 & Warzone 2 Season 3 Brings Weapon Rebalancing & Pacing Changes: Full Patch Notes
After much anticipation from the player base, Season 3 of Modern Warfare 2 and Warzone 2 has dropped in-game, doing so on April 12. The changes are significant and what we’ve come to expect from the inception of new seasons.The full Warzone 2 and Modern Warfare 2 Season 3 Patch Notes are detailed below.
Among the standout changes are those to snipers, whichcan now one-hitso long as incendiary ammunition is equipped. Thedevelopershave also promised further monitoring of Warzone 2’s pacing, with some changes to movement, weapon damage and looting coming as a result of player feedback.
The changes to certain weapons, like the ISO Hemlock and M13B, did come as a surprise, with players doubtless now needing to adjust their playstyles to compensate. It’ll be incredibly interesting to see how the meta develops moving forwards, but you’re able to trust that players will find ways to combat and use all the changes Infinity Ward and Raven have brought.
MW2 & Warzone 2 Season 3 Patch Notes
A new season has arrived, and with it – new content and gameplay updates spanning Modern Warfare II and Warzone 2.0. Fan favorites Alejandro and Valeria have returned to settle the score. New modes including Massive Resurgence, Gunfight and Cranked have arrived, along with new multiplayer maps. Season 03 is anyone’s game!
For the latest live issues tracking please refer to our officialTrello board.
RICOCHET ANTI-CHEAT
BATTLE PASS
Automatic Spend
There is still the option to unlock Battle Pass sectors manually, and players can switch between Automatic and Manual pathing at any time during the season, which is great for those who don’t mind what other rewards they earn after they get their favorites.
For more details, visit theSeason 03 Battle Pass blog.
PROGRESSION
Progression has been updated for Season 03:
CHALLENGES
New Weapons
WEAPON BALANCING
Season 03’s changes add more responsiveness to movement and the fluidity of combat including a reduction to the intensity of damage feedback (e.g., camera shake and HUD overlays). We have also decreased the magnitude on some of the more punitive Attachment cons. We feel this will result in an expansion in Attachment viability that will enable a broader spectrum of playstyles to excel—Including a change to Explosive Ammo, which allows Bolt-Action Sniper Rifles to down players in one shot. As we head into Season 03 Reloaded, we will be keeping a close eye on Weapons, Equipment, Killstreaks—among other mechanics, to ensure fair, fun, and strategically rich gameplay
NOTE: Updates listed below that have certain impacts listed for Armor are only present in Warzone 2 and are indicated with: “Warzone 2.0 Only”
In the context of the below changes—when a Minimum Armor Damage value is added to a Weapon or Attachment, it is an increase to effectiveness. When a Maximum Armor Damage value is added, it is a decrease to effectiveness.
» Assault Rifles «
» Battle Rifles «
» Handguns «
» Light Machine Guns «
» Marksman Rifles «
» Submachine Guns «
ATTACHMENTS
Ammunition
Barrel, Stock, and Magazine Attachment stats are affected according to how ‘Large’, ‘Small’, ‘Heavy’, ‘Light’, ‘Long’, or ‘Short’ they are relative to other Attachments. In essence, the below changes increase the upsides of most Attachments stats while decreasing their downsides—resulting in an overall increase to Attachment power level.
Small Magazines
FIELD UPGRADES
Adjustments
KILLSTREAKS
GLOBAL BUG FIXES
Weapons Bug Fixes
Vehicles Bug Fixes
Killstreaks Bug Fixes
Field Upgrades Bug Fixes
Equipment Bug Fixes
UI/UX Bug Fixes
PC SETTINGS
SPECIAL OPS
ATOMGRAD RAID
ATOMGRAD RAID BUG FIXES
COOPERATIVE
COOPERATIVE BUG FIXES
MULTIPLAYER
Gameplay Updates
MULTIPLAYER BUG FIXES
RANKED PLAY
Ranked Play continues in Season 03, featuring NEW Seasonal Rewards! So whether you’re jumping into your first Ranked Play match or continuing your Season 02 Grind, there’s plenty to unlock and lots of competition to face. Here are the important details to keep in mind for new players. For returning players, consider this a refresher:
Competitive Game Modes, Maps, and Settings
SR (Skill Rating)
Test yourself against your peers and track that progress with a visible SR (Skill Rating) that determines your place across 8 Skill Divisions.
Ranks & Rewards
Competitive Integrity Features
WARZONE 2.0
The patch notes detailed in the section below affect all Warzone 2.0 content across both Battle Royale and DMZ.
Map Updates
Ashika Island
GAMEPLAYAll Maps | All Modes
QUALITY OF LIFE
BATTLE ROYALE
The patch notes detailed in the section below are exclusive to Battle Royale, which includes but is not limited to standard Battle Royale, Resurgence, Mini Royale, Unhinged, and more.
Battle RoyaleAl Mazrah
For regular updates about the Playlist and other Scheduled Events, check out the dedicatedWarzone Trello Board.
New ModesAl Mazrah
Al Mazrah | Standard Battle Royale
New Gameplay Features
All Maps | All Modes
Al Mazrah | All Modes
Gameplay Adjustments
We felt that the initial search circle that contained the laptop was too inconsistent with the time it took players to find the laptop on average. This time was very heavily dependent on the location of the laptop. This change aims to counteract that concern.
We’re making significant improvements to how we determine the spawn location of Buy Stations, this change not only increases the amount available in a match but more appropriately spaces out their locations. The goal being to address negative space and to reduce frequency of buys being in too close of a proximity. Buy stations will remain static in Al Mazrah Battle Royale so that learned behavior can be relied on.
We’ve identified a number of regions on the map that would benefit from an Ammo Cache to assist with either regain potential, or just keeping an active engagement going longer. As with Buy Stations, we’re evaluating much of our spawn philosophy and will be making additional changes in other areas over the course of the chapter.
Ashika Island | Resurgence
The patch notes detailed in the section below are exclusive to DMZ.
In Season 02 we focused on refreshing and resetting DMZ, but Season 03 is all about new game mechanics.
NEW FOR SEASON 03
New Faction
Active Duty Operator Slots
Private Exfil
New Contract
New Equipment/Items
That’severything to know right now about Modern Warfare 2 and Warzone 2 Season 3 and the update’s full patch notes.Naturally, we expect a host more changes in the coming weeks dependent on problems that emerge and weapons that need further tweaks.
