Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0 and Modern Warfare 2 Season 3 is now out, and it introduces quite a few cosmetics and a new battle pass. However, a few of the update’s paid cosmetics grant players advantages in Warzone’s DMZ mode, and some fans aren’t happy.
On April 12, Activision introduced a new cosmetic bundle to Warzone 2.0. In what Activision referred to as a “DMZ boost,” the game’s new $12 Bomb Squad bundle gives players a skin for Fender, a SAKIN MG38 LMG blueprint, an active duty slot, a sticker, and an emblem.
But, as PC Gamer pointed out, the boosts that this bundle provides in DMZ, the game’s extraction mode, are quite valuable. Players who equip Fender’s skin are given a medium backpack, and the LMG has a cooldown that’s much shorter in comparison to free guns.
Because of the advantage that this paid bundle provides, fans are taking to Twitter to express their disappointment with the game becoming “pay-to-win.”
They added a Pay To Win bundle to DMZ which gives you access to a 4th Operator slot, a PERMANENT Medium Bag when you use the Operator skin in the bundle and a blueprint that has a separate, shorter 15min cooldown.
This is wrong & completely tone deaf.pic.twitter.com/vCgO3aovh4
— Westie (@MrProWestie) April 12, 2023
There has been several bundles added with Season 03 that give players a benefit in DMZ, practically making DMZ a pay to win experience. Activision should absolutely reconsider and stop attempting to grab sales based on P2W mechanics. This is leaning very similar to locking… pic.twitter.com/FLhybnN9X7
— CharlieIntel (@charlieINTEL) April 13, 2023
DMZ, Warzone 2.0’s extraction mode, is still in beta, but it seems that Activision might stick with this model going forward — according to a datamine on Reddit, more bundles that provide DMZ advantages could be on their way.
We gave Warzone 2.0 an 8 in our review, calling it “a positive update to Call of Duty’s battle royale mode, even with few drawbacks of its own.” In January, Microsoft announced it was “confident” it could bring Call of Duty to the Nintendo Switch, though Sony has raised concerns about Xbox sabotaging the franchise’s performance on PlayStation.
Amelia Zollner is a freelance writer at IGN who loves all things indie and Nintendo. Outside of IGN, they’ve contributed to sites like Polygon and Rock Paper Shotgun. Find them on Twitter: @ameliazollner.