Call of Duty: Warzone Season 01 Patch Notes

The following changes to Weapon Motion and Aiming Idle Sway only apply to Black Ops 6 weapons.

» Weapon Motion «

• Reduced visual recoil on all weapons, especially full-auto weapons.
• Reduced turn sway on all weapons, especially on higher magnification optics.
• Reduced gun kick on higher magnification optics on all weapons except for Sniper Rifles.
• Reduced default idle sway on all weapons except Sniper Rifles.
• Further reduced idle sway while firing on all weapons except Sniper Rifles.
• Reduced weapon motion (bob, translation, and additional idle sway penalties) as a result of walking or changing stances in ADS.
• Removed additional layers of hip fire deviation, which caused crosshair to bounce while firing.

We have taken a comprehensive pass on weapon motion and applied reductions across the board to improve the combat experience. Depending on the class and weapon, our targets for these reductions range from 30% to 75%. Players will notice far more stability while turning, moving, changing stances, and firing, especially while ADS. We are committed to continually improving Black Ops 6 gunplay with a focus on balanced and rewarding gameplay while maintaining the unique characteristics of each weapon.

» Aiming Idle Sway «

• Aiming Idle Sway Delay on all weapons is now 2.2s
• Aiming Idle Sway Delay on Sniper Rifles now fully removes Idle Sway, rather than reducing by 50%
• Target Laser now improves Aiming Idle Sway Delay to 2.9s on all weapons

Aiming Idle Sway Delay is a mechanic that scales a weapon's idle sway when first entering ADS, so the initial point of aim matches the crosshair positioning. These values are now improved and consistent across all weapon classes. Sniper Rifles, which previously only scaled initial idle sway by 50%, now provide a complete reduction. As always we will be keeping a close eye on sniper balance after this change.

• Fixed an issue preventing the Battle Royale Top 250 leaderboard from populating correctly.

• Fixed an issue preventing the Grenadier Perk from slowing enemies hit by explosive damage.

• Fixed an issue causing players to get stuck in a “Loading player stats” loop when launching Warzone.

• Controller Stick Sensitivity
  • The controller stick sensitivity sliders system changed from a 1-20 scale to a 0.10-4.00. This will give players finer control over their sensitivity values and more transparency on the effect of their changes. Previously set sensitivity settings will be maintained. 

For information about upcoming Playlists, please check out the dedicated Warzone Trello Board.

This year features a tighter ecosystem of weapons to choose from, particularly those only from Black Ops 6. This enables a finer look at a balanced ecosystem and allows us to be more responsive to competitive issues. 

Any Global Weapon Build you create in Ranked Play can easily be used across Loadouts in Multiplayer, Zombies, and Call of Duty: Warzone – just like any other Weapon Build in Black Ops 6. Conversely, you can bring any Builds you’ve created outside Ranked Play into Ranked (restrictions permitting).

The 1-50 Rank and Skill Division system from previous versions of Ranked Play has been streamlined to focus on what matters most in Warzone Ranked Play: Skill.

• In Warzone, your Rank now represents what was previously your Skill Division and Tier.
• The Progressive Rank and Victory Stars system has been removed to focus entirely on skill and simplify the experience.
• All players begin their first Competitive Season at Bronze I Rank with 0 SR (Skill Rating).

How SR Works:

• Gain SR by winning matches and eliminating players.
• For players above Silver Rank, a deployment fee is paid upfront.
• There is no SR penalty for deaths.
• Both individual and team performance impact how much SR you gain or lose per match.
• New this year: SR gained from eliminations depends on the rank difference (delta) between you and the eliminated player, as well as the number of teams remaining.

Players progress through eight Ranks by reaching SR milestones. All Ranks (except Iridescent) have three tiers to progress through as well: Tier I, Tier II, and Tier III. Each Rank will feature a unique icon and color scheme, along with your Tier displayed in the center of the Rank icon.

The End-of-Season SR Setback has been adjusted to reduce the impact for players early in their Rank journey.

New this year, Eliminations now factor in the difference in skill between you and the victim. This more accurately rewards overcoming a high ranked player, and lessens the impact if the skill delta is too wide (via players being brought into a match with friends, or otherwise).

This skill delta reward changes depending on if they are + / - 3 ranks from your own. 

These points form the base SR you’ll obtain from an elimination. With an additional amount granted depending on teams remaining:

Ranked Play offers a variety of valuable rewards that can be earned exclusively through gameplay. These rewards let you showcase your skill across all game modes.
 

» Ways to Earn Rewards «

• Top Placement Challenges
  • Available at launch and earnable in any season.
  • Complete top placement milestones throughout your Ranked Play career to unlock exclusive rewards.

• Rank Operator Skins
  • Available at launch and earnable in any season.
  • A Ranked Competitor Skin is awarded immediately upon making top placement in 10 matches over your Ranked Play career.
  • Gold through Iridescent Rank Operator Skins are awarded immediately upon reaching the respective Rank.
  • Top 250 Rewards are awarded at the end of the Season.

• Season Rewards
  • Introduced at the start of each Season and only available during that Season.
  • Includes:
    • Season Win & Elimination Challenges.
    • Gold through Iridescent Rank Rewards, awarded immediately.
    • Top 250 Rank Rewards, awarded at the end of the Season.

• “Flex” Reward Items
  • Seasonal rewards that change with each new season.
  • In Season 01, players earn:
    • An Emblem, Calling Card, and Large Decal representing their highest attained Rank starting in Silver.
    • Future Seasons will introduce new types of “Flex” Rank Reward items.

This structured reward system ensures that players are constantly rewarded for their efforts while keeping seasonal content fresh and exciting. Keep climbing the ranks and completing challenges to unlock these unique prizes!

» Party Skill Restrictions « 

• Full parties of three can now play together in Ranked Play, regardless of individual Ranks. Skill Matchmaking will be based on the highest Rank in the party.
• Party Skill Restrictions for two- or three-player parties are as follows:
  • Bronze - Platinum: No restrictions.
  • Diamond: Can party within 2 Ranks.
  • Iridescent (including Top 250) & Crimson: Can party within 1 Rank.

» Hot Streaks «

• Win three Ranked Play games in a row within a short period to earn Victory Streak Flames. These flames will appear behind your Rank Icon in the lobby and in-game.
• Extend your win streak to enhance the flames. Victory Streak Flames expire after a loss or if you go 72 hours without playing a Ranked Play match.
• More Hot Streak levels have been added in Black Ops 6. Go on a roll to see how high you can climb and show the competition that the heat is on. Stay spicy!

» Social Profile «

• Rank Play icons will be added to your Social profile, showcasing your Ranked Play Rank wherever your profile is viewed across Black Ops 6 and Warzone.

• Server Performance Enhancements
  • We've implemented several updates designed to boost server performance, ensuring a smoother and more reliable experience.

• XM4 3-Round Burst Mod Conversion (In-Season)
  • Convert the XM4 Assault Rifle’s primary firing mode into a three-round burst, conserving ammo and supporting a steadier aim through sustained combat.
  • Acquirable via Event Reward

• Kompakt 92 3-Round Burst Mod Conversion (In-Season)
  • Add some control to the rapid-fire Kompakt 92 SMG with a three-round burst primary firing mode. Each burst cycles quickly to the next, allowing you to still pump out damage when it’s needed most.
  • Acquirable via Event Reward

» Assault Rifles «

We want ARs to remain competitive long range options, so we are increasing the velocity of all Black Ops 6 ARs to help with engagements at range. Along with buffing some ARs damage ranges that were underperforming. We will continue to evaluate and adjust as needed.

» Submachine Guns «

• All Black Ops 6 SMGs have had their reload speeds increased by 10%

• Reduced reverb effect volume on Urzikstan.

» Perks «

• Fixed an issue with Custom Perk Packs where the pack was named “Custom” when it should be named “Custom Perk Pack”.

• Fixed an issue with Custom Perk Packs where the pack was showing as “legendary” rarity when it should show as “Loadout” rarity.

• Fixed an issue with Scavenger description where it did not call out that it provides cash.
  • The perk will provide 1500 cash from the packs that drop from enemies.

• Fixed an issue with Grenadier description where it made reference to players “removing shrapnel”. 
  • The perk applies a debuff when enemies are damaged by explosives but they are not expected to remove shrapnel.

• Fixed an issue with Quick Fix where inserting an armor plate, downing a player, or eliminating a player would not trigger health regen.

• Fixed an issue where the default perk “Quick Swap” was not being applied in Pre-match. This is still applied correctly in a regular match. 

• Fixed an issue causing the Specialist perk package to be discounted 30% instead of 50% during a Fire Sale.

» Field Upgrades «

• Fixed an issue with the Deployable Buy Station Field Upgrade that showed the incorrect icons in some situations.

• Fixed an issue preventing the Loadout Drop Field Upgrade icon from appearing in the lower right hand of the screen when players have one equipped.

» Camos «

• Fixed an issue with challenges that required tracking kills while under an enemy UAV. 
  • Previously, this only tracked if a player eliminated the enemy who initially activated the UAV, which was not the intended functionality. This affected the Unique Camos for the Tanto, the Bat, and the XM4, as well as the Prestige 10 Calling Card Challenge, "Going Loud." Now, it correctly tracks eliminations on any player while the attacker is under a UAV activated by any enemy player. After all, the only thing better than taking down enemy operators is doing it while you're on everyone's radar.

» Firing Range «

• Fixed issue that caused firing range dummies to not trigger armor break sounds when being hit with a headshot as the armor breaks.

• Fixed issue that unintentionally caused snipers to not one-shot headshot in some scenarios in the firing range.

• Fixed issue that prevented movable dummy from properly moving to the intended weapon damage ranges.

» Gulag «

• Fixed an issue causing players to appear to take damage when entering the Gulag.

• Fixed an issue causing Gulag events to spawn more cash than intended.

» Other «

• Fixed an issue where players would receive incorrect hitmarker visual feedback when viewing killcams.

• Fixed an issue that unintentionally made players swap the wrong gun when switching weapons and picking up a weapon at the same time.

• Fixed an issue preventing players from leaving the match during exfil.

• Fixed an issue causing players to get stuck in a plating animation.

• Fixed an issue where players would not be able to use multiple UAVs. 

• Fixed an issue where the buy station was showing the incorrect icon.

• Fixed an issue allowing players to duplicate payouts completing the Signal Intelligence contract.

• Fixed an issue with the Ammo Depot Cache’s missing on Rebirth Island.

• Fixed issue that prevented players from properly attaching mid air to long ziplines in Urzikstan.

• Fixed numerous descriptions on weapon attachments in the gunsmith after the muzzle and underbarrel refactor.

• Fixed an issue where the icon for certain public events were flashing repeatedly

• Fixed an issue where the Score Feed would persist on the HUD through death and respawn. 

• Fixed an issue where the attachment swap pop-up will show incorrectly under certain conditions.

• Fixed an issue where the “Airspace is too Crowded” message and information would not display correctly when using certain Killstreaks. 

• Fixed an issue where Tutorial messages and popups would appear even when disabled. 

• Fixed missing sound when your Squad is wiped.

• Fixed an issue with the Plunder scoreboard causing the Cash Banked to display incorrectly.

• Fixed an issue that prevented a player from shooting after opening a Loadout Crate when they were previously eliminated from going out of bounds.

• Fixed an issue causing the Bounty Contest widget to flash and play sound repeatedly. 

After reviewing internal data, we’ve made the decision to slightly adjust the player count on Area 99, our newest Resurgence map.
 

The updated player counts are as follows:
 

• Quads: 44 → 40 
• Trios: 45 → 42 
• Duos: 44 → 40 
• Solos: 45 → 40
   

These changes aim to improve the overall pacing of each match and reduce the frequency of third-party interruptions during engagements. We hope to reduce friction by striking a better balance between action and player agency, allowing players the all-important time to loot up - and get their Loadout.
 

In the meantime, we’ll continue monitoring feedback and data to make further adjustments if needed.
 

We look forward to sharing more about upcoming Warzone updates soon. 

• Rebirth Island will be re-enabled in the Warzone playlist later this morning. 

Thank you for your patience these last few days as we've worked to bring Rebirth Island back to the Warzone playlist! We wanted to take the necessary time to address key issues and make improvements to ensure the best possible experience. 

• Armory 
  • The Warzone Armory will be re-enabled later today. 
    

• XP Balancing 
  • Increased player XP in Battle Royale and Plunder
  • Increased Weapon XP in Plunder and Resurgence

We’ve made several adjustments to Player and Weapon XP in order to bring earn rates across different modes closer together. 

• Stim Shot 
  • The speed boost duration has been increased from 1 second to 3. 

Upon the launch of Warzone, we identified a critical issue and, in response, temporarily reduced both the speed increase and the duration of Stim Shots while we worked on a solution. Our goal is to offer a meaningful speed boost with a clear upper limit, to ensure balanced and consistent combat encounters. As it stands, both Resolute and Stim Shot provide a 15% speed boost each, with their combined effect capping at 20%. This allows players to experiment with various combinations to reach the maximum impact. 

• Deployable Box Interaction Speed 
  • We’ve removed an unintentional delay that previously prevented players from interacting with the Armor/Munitions/Utility Box when initially deployed. 

• Fixed an issue on Area 99 that would cause players to hear Killstreaks from across the map. 

• Fixed an issue that would cause players to drop a weapon involuntarily while attempting to pick up a different weapon from the ground. 

• Fixed an issue that would prompt players to remove an Aftermarket Part from their weapon despite one not being currently equipped. 

• Fixed an issue that caused the STB 556 Assault Rifle body to disappear when equipping an underbarrel attachment. 

• Weapon Trade Stations 
  • Reduced the chances of receiving Specialist Perk Pack. 
  • Removed Care Package Killstreaks as a trade-in reward. 

• Movement
  • Reduced the minimum sprint time required to perform the following actions: dive-to-prone or slide.
  • Fixed an issue that could result in being unable to sprint when performing several actions within a short amount of time.

These changes apply to both Black Ops 6 and Warzone and should result in more responsive movements with fewer occurrences where players attempt to dive to prone or slide and instead crouch. We will continue to assess and identify areas for improved fluidity with omnimovement.

• Reload times for Black Ops 6 Assaults Rifles and Light Machine Guns are reduced by 10%. 

We’re taking passes at improving the flow and reducing downtime between gunfights, future updates will address other classes 

• Increased the number of available Custom Loadout slots from 10 to 12. 

• Fixed an issue that was causing Buy Stations to charge players an amount for items that did not align with the displayed purchase price. 

• Fixed an issue that caused PlayStation players to encounter a black screen when attempting to access Warzone via the What’s Hot row. 

• Fixed an issue that caused the AEK-973 Marksman Rifle found via ground loot to fire in full automatic. 

An all-new Battle Pass System grants you the opportunity to earn 100+ rewards, including free base weapons, numerous Weapon Blueprints, Equipment Skins, Operator Skins, and much more. There are three ways to obtain some or all of this content:

• Earn 20+ free rewards, including cosmetic content and base weapons.
• Purchase the premium Battle Pass and earn up to 1,100 COD Points as you progress through the Battle Pass Pages.
• Or purchase BlackCell for the ultimate seasonal experience, including a variety of molten hot Operator Skins, Weapon Blueprints, COD points, and other rewards.

For a full breakdown of the Season 01 Battle Pass and the breadth of content that it has to offer, check out the official blog here.

• Black Ops 6 and Warzone are optimized for PlayStation 5 Pro: 
  
  
  • Launch Features:
    • Using Sony's PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution Black Ops 6 supports a higher image quality when running at 4K and 60 Hz.
    • New PlayStation 5 Pro quality settings: higher quality shadows, ambient occlusion, reflections and screen space global illumination (unique to Quality Mode).
    • Players can also opt to play at 120 Hz for greater performance; on the PS5 Pro 120 Hz mode has the same image quality as the PlayStation 5 running at 60 FPS. 
       
  • With Season 01:
    • New variable refresh rate mode that with the allows our highest image quality mode to often exceed 60 Hz on compatible display devices (120 Hz VRR).

Season 01 introduces an extensive progression and Prestige system, with 55 levels of unlocks, 10 Prestige levels, and a final Prestige Mastery tier with 1,000 additional levels. Players unlock weapons, equipment, killstreaks, and perks through progression, with exclusive Calling Cards, animated "Dark Ops" cards, and 10 reticle unlocks per optic. Weapon camos include 9 Military Camos per weapon, 2 Special Camos sharable across modes, and 4 Mastery Camos, including animated designs like Gold Tiger and Abyss. Some rewards are exclusive to Black Ops 6 but can be earned retroactively.

For a deep dive on Progression in Call of Duty Black Ops 6, check out the dedicated blog here.

• Primary Weapon 
  • The Loadout inventory is returning to the classic Warzone experience where players can only equip one Primary weapon. 
  • There is a Wildcard detailed further below that allows for two Primary weapons to be equipped. 

• Self-Revive Auto Pickup 
  • While downed, players will now be able to automatically loot Self-Revive kits that are within close proximity. 

• Live Ping Duration 
  • The duration of live pings has been reduced from 3 seconds to 2 in order to bring more balance to a combat engagement. 

• Armor Plate Replacement Speed 
  • The speed at which players can replace broken or missing armor plates has been increased by 8% to match the fluidity of Black Ops 6 Omnimovement. 

• Abandon Timer 
  • The time players must wait to give up has been reduced from 5 seconds to 4 seconds due to the previous Interrogation mechanic being replaced. 

• Deaths Door 
  • The health at which players will enter the death’s door state has been reduced from 50% to 35%. 
  • The health at which the death’s door state will end has been reduced from 70% to 55%. 
  • This change is due to us wanting to enable Players to better hear and see their surroundings when under threat by an enemy. 

• Streamlined Inventory 
  • At the start of Season 01, we're streamlining the inventory system by removing the “Backpack” and returning to a classic inventory layout, organized by sections for cash, gas mask, armor plates, killstreaks, field upgrades, weapons, ammo and perks.  

Perks in Warzone are now streamlined, allowing players to choose three Perks (one from each color-coded slot) in the Loadouts Menu. Most Pick-3 Perks unlock as you level up but re-lock upon Prestiging. Black Ops 6 player levels carry over to Warzone, unlocking corresponding Perks. 

With the Black Ops 6 integration, we have adjusted a number of the Lethal and Tactical equipment to offer a new and fresh arsenal of choices.

• Maximum Deployed Equipment 
  • The maximum number of lethal and tactical equipment that can be planted at the same time has been increased to 3 up from 2. 
  • We aligned Warzone with the changes to Multiplayer. This enables some of the new traps to be better utilized and function better with other adjustments like the Munitions Vest and Bomb Squad. 

• Frag 
  • Outer damage decreased to 65 from 110. 
  • Middle damage increased to 170 from 155. 
  • Inner damage decreased to 260 from 275.
  • Frag Cooking Indicator Quality of Life 
    • Players will now notice a UI indicator to better determine the time remaining until a frag detonates.

• Semtex 
  • Explosion radius decreased to 5m from 6.5m. 
  • Outer damage decreased to 45 from 110. 
  • Inner damage decreased to 180 from 200. 

• Throwing Knife 
  • Damage decreased to 180 from 200. 

• Drill Charge 
  • Outer damage decreased to 39 from 110. 

• Molotov 
  • Burn stage damage was reduced to 10,15,25 from 15, 25, 30. 

• Smoke 
  • VFX updated to be at parity with Black Ops 6. 

• Experimental Gas 
  • Will now deal 10 damage per tick. 

• Snapshot Grenade 
  • Radius increased to 15m from 10m. 
  • Will now put a mark over a successfully “snapped” target which lasts for 5 seconds. 

Black Ops 6 weapons have a unique Warzone damage profile, which includes specific base damage, range, and location-based modifiers. 

We’ve adjusted several Black Ops 6 attachments to function differently in Warzone: 

• CHF Barrel 
  • For Assault Rifles, LMGs, DMRs, SMGs, and Pistols: This now grants an increased neck multiplier rather than a head multiplier. 
  • For Sniper Rifles and Shotguns: This now provides increased leg modifiers instead of arm modifiers. 

• Flip Magazine 
  • The magazine capacity penalty from Multiplayer has been removed. In Warzone, flip mags match the base weapon's ammo capacity. 

• Rapid Fire 
  • This attachment now applies a base damage penalty in Warzone, along with greater penalties to bullet velocity and range. 

A visual recoil reduction pass has been applied to Modern Warfare II weapons, enhancing their feel and control while shooting. 

Barrel and stock attachments from Modern Warfare II have also had their penalties reduced. Additionally, a significant balancing pass has been completed for underbarrel and muzzle attachments from both Modern Warfare II and III. All cons have been removed from these attachments, meaning they now only provide stat boosts, with each subcategory of underbarrels and muzzles functioning identically except for cosmetic differences. AMP attachments in these slots, however, retain their unique functionality and balancing. 

• Muzzle Enhancements 
  • Suppressors: Boost velocity and damage range. 
  • Comps: Improve recoil control. 
  • Flash Hiders: Increase damage range and firing aim stability. 
  • Breacher: Enhance melee damage and recoil control. 

• Underbarrel Enhancements 
  • Angled Grip: Increases hipfire and tacstance accuracy and aim walking steadiness. 
  • Handstop: Improves sprint-to-fire and ADS speed. 
  • Vert Grip: Enhances recoil control and firing aim stability. 

Furthermore, Modern Warfare II and III weapons now have corner-slicing functionality, adding an extra tactical edge.

Seamlessly access a custom weapon build you've created across Black Ops 6 Multiplayer, Zombies, and Warzone. This time-saving feature lets you adjust any Build or Blueprint in one game, with changes automatically applied wherever that weapon is equipped. To create a build, select a base weapon or Blueprint, add attachments and cosmetics in the Gunsmith, and return to the Custom Loadout screen to save it. The build, with all selected customizations, will then appear in other modes under the same weapon type.

• Sirin 9mm Special Weapon (In-Season) 
  • Fully automatic specialty weapon. Offers SMG characteristics as a secondary weapon. Slow rate of fire. 
  • Unlockable via Event Reward 

• Power Drill Melee Weapon (In-Season) 
  • Two-hit kill. Very short range. Very fast attack speed. 
  • Unlockable via Event Reward