In what is sure to be welcome news for the COD players out there, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare won’t feature Loot Boxes, but will have a Battle Pass system.
In a blog post on the Activision website, it has been revealed that Call of Duty: Modern Warfare is dropping loot boxes and random rewards in favor of a Battle Pass system. Loot Boxes are being given the Ghost treatment, along with the Season Pass, and the person doing the shooting is called Battle Pass.
According to the blog post, the Battle Pass will be aimed to replace randomized loot boxes as a way to reward players for investing time and money into the game.
· We are introducing a new Battle Pass system, not a loot box system.
· All functional content that has an impact on game balance, such as base weapons and attachments, can be unlocked simply by playing the game.
· The new Battle Pass system will allow players to see the content that they are earning or buying. Battle Passes will launch timed to new, post-launch live seasons, so you can unlock cool new Modern Warfare-themed content that matches each season.
· With the new Battle Pass system, players will be able to earn COD Points by playing the game.
· There will be both a Free Stream and a Premium Stream of content in the Battle Pass System in Modern Warfare. New base weapons will be earned through gameplay, simply by playing Modern Warfare. Functional attachments for base weapons can be unlocked through gameplay as well just like in the game’s Beta.
· The Battle Pass and the In-Game Store will feature a variety of cosmetic content that does not impact game balance.
The game will not launch with an active Battle Pass or Season, which is probably a good idea. The developers will be able to focus on the launch, deal with any issues that arise, and just let people enjoy the game for what it is, with a Battle Pass being used to expand interest at a later date.
I have been a bit hard on Call of Duty over the years, seeing much of the business practices around it as predatory, and the games themselves as samey, despite the gimmicks changing from one to the other. I do find myself interested this year, though. Content parity, no paid DLCs or Season Passes, free modes for all players after release, it all sounds good to me!
I’ll be getting tactical on launch day, for the first time in a while, and I look forward to it. Activision has advised that they are aware that there will still be questions around how the game economy will work going forward, but have advised patience for now.
“Please know we are committed to delivering a fair system guided by the principles we’ve outlined here and will continue to monitor feedback and player engagement to help us achieve that goal.”, the statement reads.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare will release on October 25 on PS4, Xbox One, and PC.
