In this article we'll go over everything included in the Modern Warfare 2 beta. Most noticeably, it will include Ground-War, and because Ground War is always played on the BR map you'll get to see the location for Warzone 2.
Modern Warfare 2 Beta: Modes
New Ground War Mode: Invasion (32v32)
It's basically a massive Team Deathmatch with vehicles, but there is one exception: each team get 20 AI combatants to help them to attack both teams.
New Mode: Knockout
This is a 6v6 mode with no respawns (like Search and Destroy), but revives are enabled (which suggests Warzone mechanics will feature in this mode like armor, and possibly even a higher base health). Here's the basic outline of how it works:
Knockout is a very fast, very tactical round-based 6v6 mode. Eliminate the opposing force or hold the package to win.
This is a curious one, we'll have to see how well it plays out.
New Mode: Prison Rescue
This is also 6v6 mode with no respawns (like Search and Destroy), but where revives are enabled. The objective in Prison Rescue is to capture the prisoner and take them to exfil if you're on attack, and stop that happening if you're on defense.
So... Capture the Flag with people.
Traditional CoD Modes
Only Team Deathmatch and Domination have been confirmed so far, but they'll probably enable a few other modes like Search and Destroy on the second weekend of the beta. At least, that's what they usually do during CoD betas. A shame we don't get to see Hardpoint early, but this is still more content than we expected.
Modern Warfare 2 Beta: Maps
New Map: Sarrif Bay (32v32)
This is actually a section of the unreleased Warzone 2.0 map:
Sarrif Bay, an up to 32v32 map set in the Republic’s main port of call, home to the country’s valuable fisheries and where there is plenty of action on land, sea, and air.
They want you to try the new swimming mechanics with this map.
New Map: Valderas Museum (6v6)
We've heard good things from the pros about this map, here's how IW describe it:
Valderas Museum is set in Spain, with very clean sightlines, easy-to-read thoroughfares, and modern architecture.
Could this be a map for competitive CoD? Perhaps, but we're sure our Player of the Month will find a way to break it in no time...
New Map: Farm 18 (6v6)
This is how the devs describe Farm 18:
Farm 18 is a classified shoothouse-like location.
Shoothouse was popular, but Infinity Ward actually showed us a bit of this one, check it out:
Welcome to Farm 18. Location: [classified]. Shoothouse optional. #ModernWarfare2 #IntelDrops pic.twitter.com/OkZuuwjPXD
— Infinity Ward @ #CODNext (@InfinityWard) August 11, 2022
It looks like there's a lot more wasted space than Shoothouse had, which is a shame.
New Map: Mercado Las Almas (6v6)
And here is the pure-chaos CoD map:
Mercado Las Almas is a small bustling marketplace with fast-paced routes and lanes that blend together that lead to pure, frenetic fun.
This won't play well for any mode, but it'll probably be the quickest to level up on.
Modern Warfare 2: Weapons
We will get all the weapons that will be unlocked by the time we hit the level cap, so probably 2 or 3 weapons per class, and definitely an AR-15 variant. We'll update you here when we can 100% confirm the full list of weapons available to play in the beta.
Modern Warfare 2: Perks, Field Upgrades & Equipment
It looks like we're going to get all the normal perks, field upgrades and equipment that will be unlocked as we level in the full game. We'll update this section when we have more info.
Modern Warfare 2 Beta: Level Cap
The beta's level cap is 30, which is in line with previous years, and should allow anyone no-lifing it to hit the cap pretty early into the first weekend. Then you can pop that podcast in and the let the weapon level grind begin. Bliss!
What About The Campaign, Spec-Ops, Warzone 2 & DMZ?
The beta will only include multiplayer content. For those other modes you'll need to wait until these dates:
- Campaign: October 20 (Available to play a week before launch via early access)
- Spec-Ops: October 28 (MW2 release date)
- Warzone 2: November 16
- DMZ: November 16 (requires Warzone 2 launcher)
But hey, as you can see, the beta's multiplayer content should be more than for us all to get a strong feel for the game.
And you can check out the new map with all these new movement and vehicle mechanics: