Since its official reveal, there have been questions about whether or not Call of Duty: Modern Warfare would include a battle royale mode. While the game promises a return to the series’ roots, battle royale became a breakout hit for the Call of Duty franchise in Black Ops 4 and most figured it was here to stay. But when talking to the Modern Warfare devs, they were cagey about whether or not their game had a battle royale component.
However, a new rumor from a reliable Call of Duty source suggests that Modern Warfare will have a battle royale mode, just not at launch. As well, the Battle Royale component will be free-to-play, so anyone can access it regardless of if they own Modern Warfare or not.
This new info comes courtesy of LongSensation, who has a history of accurately leaking info about the Call of Duty franchise like the Modern Warfare title. In addition to this battle royale rumor, he also revealed some details about next year’s Call of Duty, Black Ops 5, which will apparently send players back to Vietnam.
According to LongSensation, the standalone battle royale mode will release in 2020 and will be free-to-play. Players will access it as a separate “game” with the logo treatment of Modern Warfare. Outside of that, though, we don’t know anything about the battle royale mode, but the hope is that the map will feature iconic MW locations from the multiplayer.
When battle royale first released with Black Ops 4, many players felt it was only a matter of time before the mode went free-to-play. With Fortnite finding massive success using the business model, and Apex Legends following suit, it only seemed appropriate for Call of Duty to chart a similar path. However, with the yearly Call of Duty releases, things were a little different.
This year, though, it appears as though Modern Warfare is taking the feedback and running with it. Battle royale as a free-to-play mode can ostensibly turn Modern Warfare into two games: one paid experience that features single player, Spec Ops, and multiplayer; and a battle royale game that exists all on its own.
Apparently, it is the first game that is keeping battle royale on the back burner, with Infinity Ward focusing on completing its campaigns and multiplayer modes before turning to battle royale. If battle royale is part of the plan, though, expect the developers to start giving some hints as Modern Warfare’s October release date nears.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare releases October 25, 2019 for PC, PS4, and Xbox One.