The best MW4 ISO Nightshade builds are largely about finding a versatile setup, which makes it a powerful option in DMZ and similarly broad encounters. At the same time, there are options to build it for smaller multiplayer maps, with a focus on ADS and mobility that allows you to quick-draw and tear through opponents. No matter which you want to know, here's how to make the best ISO Nightshade build in MW4, and what you need to know about the best attachments.

See if the ISO made it onto our list of the best MW4 guns, and what else is a strong contender for the meta.

ISO Nightshade versatile build

• Barrel: ZLR Carbon-900 Long Barrel
• Muzzle: XRK Herder 40 Tactical Silencer
• Laser: Schlager Visiv-5 Bright ADS Laser
• Underbarrel: FSS TAC90 Angled Short Grip
• Rear Grip: Demo STP-1 Tactical Grip

This is the best build for the Nightshade and one that really comes into its own in the DMZ, as it showcases a combination of control and damage. The Nightshade's great downside has always been its damage output, so for the best chance you need to turn it into a laser beam with a strong ADS, ensuring that you fire first and that you can draw a dot on the enemy's head with maximum efficiency. The only compromise here on that is the ZLR Carbon-900 Long Barrel, which boosts the damage output at the cost of that ADS power, but it's worth it.

Ultimately this is a weapon that sits in the middle of all your needs. The Demo STP-1 Tactical Grip and the FSS TAC90 are both there to improve the ADS and control of the gun, as is the Schlager laser, an attachment so good it remains a staple of the meta on pretty much any weapon you can find.

ISO Nightshade Mobility build

• Barrel: RT Outride-X 8" Light Barrel
• Muzzle: Demo Ironshade Light Silencer
• Laser: Schlager Visiv-5 Bright ADS Laser
• Stock: EXP G2-44 Tactical Stock
• Rear Grip: Demo STP-1 Tactical Grip

This multiplayer-focused build is all about ADS and firing first in every encounter, made for incredibly short-range conflict and lots of sprinting. The RT Outride-X 8" Light Barrel, the Schlager Laser and pretty much everything else are all designed to draw rapidly from a sprint and fire on the opponent, before quickly moving on. It's a very risky play, but for those who know how to maintain this pace of run-and-gun, it's an effective high-risk-high-reward strategy.

If you're interested in mastering SMGs, check out the best MW4 Vel 46 builds, or find out how to become an expert marksman with our list of the best MW4 Mosin Nagant builds.

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If you're after more 2XP Tokens in MW4, there are a few ways to collect them quickly. Whether you're trying to level up your current weapon fast, prestige your character, or unlock your favorite gear, MW4 Double XP Tokens get you there faster, and now active XP tokens finally pause outside of matches, there even more reason to use them up - especially those you've stashed away from previous games.

How to get MW4 Double XP Tokens

There are a few reliable ways to obtain 2XP Tokens in MW4:

• Commercial promotions (e.g. Monster Energy)
• Complete campaign missions
• Level up your Battle Pass (after Season 1 release date)
• Participate in events
• Black Ops 7 and Warzone carry forward scheme

As always, there's an ongoing partnership between Call of Duty and Monster Energy, and until Wednesday, March 31, 2027, you can upload tab codes from participating Monster Energy products to unlock 2XP Tokens and other in-game rewards.

Naturally, there will also be plenty of 2XP tokens on offer once the Battle Pass opens up on the MW4 Season 1 release date, whether you follow the free pass or unlock all rewards. This is one of the best ways to consistently earn more MW4 Double XP Tokens as the Battle Pass refreshes each season, but participating in events, like the Boot Camp limited-time event, also brings in plenty of fresh tokens.

For something more finite, be sure to complete the following Modern Warfare 4 campaign missions, as they also reward players with 2XP Tokens:

• Mission 3: Following Orders
  • Double XP Token
• Mission 9: Survivors
  • Double XP Token
• Mission 11: Defection
  • Double Weapon XP Token
• Mission 13: Escape
  • Double Weapon XP Token
• Mission 15: Decapitation
  • Double XP Token

Finally, you'll also carry forward all unused tokens from BO7 and Warzone, including Battle Pass tokens once Season 1 begins.

So there are plenty of ways to earn Double XP Tokens and, with MW4 Double XP weekends taking place regularly, you'll be able to level up your weapons and Battle Pass, and prestige your profile, in no time.

While you're levelling up your best MW4 weapons, you'll also be on your way to collecting some of the MW4 mastery camos, too, so keep an eye on what's required and your current progress.

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The best MW4 Mosin Nagant builds will vary depending on whether you're trying for sniping and range, for quickscoping, or want a versatile build that allows a mixture of strategies. Things get even more complex when you're considering whether you want to be prepared for the high octane multiplayer experience or for the slower, more complex DMZ experience. Fortunately, no matter your needs, I've got a full range of builds for the Mosin Nagant below, so you know the best attachments for it in Modern Warfare 4 and what they lean towards.

For more info on deadly loadouts, check out our list of the best MW4 guns!

Mosin Nagant all-rounder build

• Barrel: 762 Dozor Light Barrel
• Muzzle: 330TC2 Gridlock Light Silencer
• Laser: XRK Clutch-LS Dim ADS Laser
• Bolt: TV-Light 7- Light Bolt
• Stock: Lockwood Eagle Assault Stock

Great for both multiplayer and DMZ alike, this all rounder build has good enough ADS to make quickscoping viable, but can work at mid range too (though not long range owing to the lack of scope). The Light Silencer and Barrel are designed to prioritize scope scoping a little more than anything else, but if you want, try swapping either of them out for a Heavy Silencer and Barrel to lean it more in the direction of long-range sniping.

Mosin Nagant Sniper build

• Barrel: Mosin K025 Long Barrel
• Muzzle: FTAC Silent Recon Heavy Silencer
• Optic: GL K230 4X Scope
• Stock: Lockwood Eagle Assault Stock
• Magazine: 10 Round Mag

More suited for DMZ than multiplayer, this pushes the Mosin Nagant towards a long-range build designed to pick targets off at a healthy distance, with the FTAC Silent Recon Silencer preventing you from being easily found. Meanwhile, the Long Barrel and 10 Round Mag are there to ensure that you can do as much damage as possible with your first round, at which point it's probably time to relocate while you reload.

The big interchangeable factor here is the GL K230 scope, which is by no means an essential part of the build. I find that a 4X magnification is a good compromise between all kinds of range of combat, as if you go any higher, you might struggle to shoot at enemies who have closed the distance too much. Still, feel free to play with your options and see what feels best.

Mosin Nagant quickscope build

• Barrel: Mosin S762 Short Barrel
• Laser: Schlager VISIV-5 Bright ADS Laser
• Bolt: TV-Light 7- Light Bolt
• Optic: SZ SRE-7 Reflex
• Stock: No Stock

This atrocity of a build for the Mosin Nagant turns it into a short-range quickscoping machine, based mainly around the Short Barrel and the Light Bolt. This is a build made for short-to-mid range, bumping up the ADS to hit players hard, but not taking away from the gun's damage in the process. If you want, you can always try tweaking the specific optic - I found that the SZ SRE-7 Reflex was good enough for purpose, but like on the previous build, there's potential to tweak according to taste.

Looking for more guides on customizing your weapons? Get the deadliest AR with the best MW4 Han 86 build, find an alternative marksman build with the best MW4 Oris 8.6 build, or set yourselves up with a deadly shotgun via the best MW4 Rezi 12 build.

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Wardogs CEO Joe Brammer has defended the long hours his team had to put into the early access release of its FPS hit, declaring the anti-crunch attitude of some other developers as "Californian bullshit."

Speaking to Edge, Brammer explains the some of his philosophy behind the high standards of recruitment Wardogs studio Bulkhead has adopted. In the past, Brammer has said that the Wardgos team checks the Steam accounts of applicants to see if they're genuinely passionate about FPS games. "We liked how talent-driven the industry used to be," Brammer says. "And then it started to be about 'everybody should be able to get a job in games.' We don't really think like that."

Brammer thinks "the floodgates opened" for games industry hiring, "but now they're closing again, and there might be some benefit to saying to people: 'you have to be fucking good to be here, and you have to prove your worth.'"

Some of that involves working late hours, but Brammer argues that's sometimes a necessary evil. "Our team doesn't love working late, but they do work late and we do crunch. What we're saying is that sometimes, yes, life is more important. But sometimes, when you're on the eve of releasing a game that keeps you all employed, work's more important."

Brammer's philosophy stems from his own family. "My mum was a teacher and a headteacher at a school," he says. "I've never seen someone do so much crunch for barely any money. And so when game devs are like 'I don't want to work overtime for my 100K salary'? Fuck. Off. Respectfully, it's Californian bullshit."

Known for being pretty direct in his communication, Brammer has also told his players not to expect much from the team over the coming weeks. Ahead of a month-long break in December to celebrate Wardog's early access success, he told fans to "go play GTA 6" because "we need to detox" and said that he wants "to make sure players know they can fuck off" for a month while Bulkhead takes a break.

Wardogs is getting loadouts, CEO confirms, but the devs want you to "keep trying different weapons rather than settling on one setup."

A total of 3,200 jobs will be cut at Xbox by the end of this fiscal year as part of an extensive restructuring. One of the casualties already is id Software, which has lost somewhere in the region of half its staff. That said, if you ask current leadership, everything at the Doom and Quake studio is fine and dandy at the moment.

Marty Stratton, studio co-director of id Software, commented on how the company's been doing since the layoffs hit over the summer during a preview event for Doom: The Dark Ages DLC. "We're doing great," he says, per IGN.

"Not to handwave the [layoffs] away," he adds. "Everybody knows we had about half of our studio exit as part of that. But there was a very deliberate effort to make sure that we were incredibly viable coming out of that across everything we do, across game development and technology department."

Being down half your team is pretty significant. Reportedly, id Tech itself, the studio's in-house engine, is now being managed by exactly one whole person. While that's certainly viable financially, I'm not sure how structurally sound that is long-term.

Stratton goes on. "We're working more closely with MachineGames than ever," he states. "We've always had a very close partnership with them, but I think we're at a point with technology development that both teams are incredibly talented and have incredibly talented engineers and we're really on an amazing path that had started pre-[layoffs]."

A question mark has loomed over MachineGames since the release of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle. The prevailing rumor is Wolfenstein 3, and given the general push toward established IP Xbox has been making amid all the redundancies, that seems a safe bet.

But what the collaboration between the two companies looks like, and where that leaves the next Doom, are bigger questions. "We'd kicked this off earlier this year. We're really excited about that," Stratton adds. "We're both really really bullish on what we have ahead."

Doom's John Romero confirms his new FPS is saved after Xbox abandoned it, new publisher deal helps studio re-hire 10 laid off staff

The best Rezi 12 builds in MW4 are all about doubling down on the classic strengths of a shotgun: namely the ability to end a foe with a single close-range blast, not bothering too much with accuracy and instead running around cutting through opponents. The Rezi 12 is currently the best shotgun in Modern Warfare 4, and if you make the right sort of build, you can turn it into an absolute killing machine.

For more info on deadly loadouts, check out our list of the best MW4 guns!

Rezi 12 Apex build

• Barrel: ZLR Rogue 90 25" Heavy Long Barrel
• Muzzle: EXP Firelite 12 Heavy Silencer
• Laser: QFL - S4.5 Bright Hip Laser
• Stock: No Stock
• Grip: SA B40 Assault Grip
• Apex: Rezi 12 Enforcer

Though I've played with a few Rezi builds, this one remains easily the best one in my mind, one based around hipfiring with the Apex Enforcer mod, allowing for explosive slugs and pump-action cycling. This is a build for close-quarters encounters, moving rapidly, and hip-firing. The Heavy Silencer and Heavy Long Barrel are here to ensure maximum impact and effectively guarantee that any shot from the torso up will kill the opponents you encounter.

Meanwhile, the stock (or lack thereof), Assault Grip and Laser are all here to maximize hip fire accuracy and ease of use. This is a build where you fire the moment you see an enemy in close range, and works well as a secondary weapon in an assault loadout, with an AR as your primary.

Looking for more weapon builds? Check out the best options for the MW4 Oris 8.6 build, the MW4 M4 build, and the MW4 Han 86 build.

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The Wardogs team is planning to take a long break to celebrate the success of its early access release, and CEO Joe Brammer knows that it'll probably be fine because players will have plenty to occupy them – in the form of GTA 6.

Speaking to Edge Magazine, Brammer explains that the team has worked hard to earn the right to play hard. "Everyone has done something that's not in their job description. Everyone wears multiple hats, because they can see the path to success with the product."

With the early access launch of Wardogs in the rear-view, the entirety of developer Bulkhead Studios will be taking an extended break, with leave stretching throughout the entire month of December. It's a bold strategy, but one that Brammer is quick to double-down on.

"We're going to make sure players know they can fuck off in December," he says, suggesting the team does have some idea of the backlog of bug reports and balance complaints that could be waiting for them come January. The hope, clearly, is that those players will be too distracted by something else to be blasting the Bulkhead forums: "Go play GTA 6, we need to detox," Brammer says.

With most games wondering how they'll hope to hold onto their audiences once Rockstar drops its nuke – and Fortnite offering near-unlimited freebies to certain lucky players – it's almost refreshing to see a team unapologetically accepting that its fans will have something else on their minds, and hoping that they'll come back once they're finished with Leonida.

Elsewhere in Edge 430, check out our Grand Theft Auto VI exclusive – The state that never sleeps

The best Oris 8.6 build in MW4 is usually based around versatile mid-combat use, allowing you to quick-scope and drop opponents either in multiplayer or in DMZ. If you bought the deluxe edition of Modern Warfare 4 you'll have access to the Volt Edge blueprint for this powerful marksman rifle, and if you build it up further it can raise to the level of one of the best MW4 guns. Below I'll take you through all the best Oris builds so you can create a strong loadout, both for general sniping and for quick-scoping power.

Oris 8.6 quickscope build

• Muzzle: ZLR Cold Echo
• Barrel: EXP Crosstac 22
• Laser: Schlager Visiv-5
• Bolt: Lightfire-5 Quick Bolt
• Stock: No stock

If you're a slightly insufferable player who wants to treat a sniper rifle like it's a sidearm, this is the build for you. Based around ADS draw speed, fire rate, and control, this is a quick-scope build that allows you to run around the battlefield and rapidly pull the Oris out in a flash to land a quick headshot. Mouse and keyboard players in particular will really be able to point and click their way to strong killstreaks.

Everything here is all about matching that quickscope power. The balance is increasing ADS and damage as much as possible - you want to hit the target quickly, and guarantee the best chance of a one hit KO, which you should be able to do with any shot to the upper body.

Oris 8.6 mid-range build

• Muzzle: EXP Undertow Gen.2
• Barrel: EXP Crosstac 22
• Laser: XRK Clutch-LS
• Optic: Cronen R808
• Rear Grip: Bruen R7-TC Grip

This Oris 8.6 mid-range build requires you to have maxed the gun's level out (the Undertow Muzzle is the last thing you'll unlock), but it's worth it. This is a build made for as many situations and playstyles as possible, with the Cronen scope offering a 4x Magnification. You'll generally be using it for mid-range sniping as a result, but it can work very well as a quick-scoper in a pinch, with attachments like the XRK laser boosting ADS speed for such events (and they will happen before long).

Of the two builds, this is definitely the one better suited to the DMZ, setting up on rooftops or at a safe distance and picking off NPCs where you can, or taking down enemy operators before they're able to get closer.

Looking for more weapon builds? Check out the best options for the MW4 Vel 46 build, the MW4 M4 build, and the MW4 Han 86 build.

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Non-Milsim Content in MW4 is a new kind of warning label that players can find attached to multiplayer game modes like Possession, but what does it actually mean for something in COD to be Milsim Content or not? If your familiarity with Call of Duty games and military shooters is more casual, you might not be familiar with this term, but here's what you can expect when it comes up in MW4 multiplayer.

What does Non-Milsim Content in MW4 mean?

Non-Milsim Content in MW4 is a warning label on certain game modes in multiplayer, and what it basically means is that this particular game mode isn't going to be very realistic to military combat. Whether that's a good thing or a bad thing is up to you.

Milsim is a gaming term that's shorthand for "Military Simulation", a reference to Call of Duty's declared genre, as well as similar games in the industry like Battlefield. Obviously you can argue about how realistic they actually are, but in this case the label "Non Milsim Content" is tied to multiplayer modes that specifically aren't interested in anything like actual realism. For example, the limited time Halloween "Possession" mode allows you to leap into the bodies of enemies you kill and control them, which clearly isn't grounded in any sort of realism.

You can still bring your own guns into Possession, even if there's a risk of them being commandeered by the enemy. To make sure you're as deadly as possible in any mode, check out the best MW4 Vel 46 build, the best MW4 M4 build, and the ultimate MW4 Han 86 build, to pick some of the game's most popular weapons!

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The Overwatch universe is practically bursting with potential for interesting stories and cool action set pieces, perhaps ones featuring a giant talking gorilla of some kind. Game director Aaron Keller isn't ruling out the possibility of more PvE content in the future, but trying to make another full campaign is a bigger ask.

Once upon a time, Overwatch 2 was supposed to launch with an in-depth, story-driven, co-op campaign set in the Overwatch universe. Blizzard Entertainment planned to have players upgrade and modify their favorite heroes over the course of the story mode, which was promising to dramatically move the game's world forward in ways that animated shorts couldn't.

Overwatch 2's campaign was eventually canceled and replaced with shorter, simpler, infrequent PvE missions that were also discontinued before the hero shooter's resurgence earlier this year.

Asked about the possible return of story missions while speaking to the press, Aaron Keller said previously released PvE events drove a lot of interest that quickly died down. "When you look at the campaign that we ran, I think that while there was a lot of excitement there, and it did drive the story forward, it didn't really get played the way that we wanted it to." (Thanks, TheGamer.)

PvE missions typically require hefty development resources too, the director explained, which were maybe better spent on cinematics and other narrative formats that can move the story forward without soaking up considerable dev time.

Still, it's not completely over for fans. "I would never discount it," Keller said while speaking about the potential return of playable narrative missions. Smaller experiences that don't impact the main competitive game too much seem like they'll have a better chance, at least.

As for another full campaign - like the one Blizzard tried to make and then scrapped - Keller explained it would be too big an undertaking that would probably require a totally separate team to make "a whole new game."

The Overwatch universe has so many fun characters and cool lore tidbits, I'd happily settle for an animated series instead. Blizzard's president previously teased Warcraft and Overwatch adaptations, too.

Overwatch devs know removing Sombra's Hack ability will "upset" players, but insist the reworked support hero will "be better for the game"

Responding to fears that Marathon's future will dictate Destiny support, Bungie product head Josh Deane encourages players to support only the games they enjoy.

In a lengthy blog post sharing hopes for a "new forever Destiny" and "Destiny 'Legacy'" project, Deane noted that, "we will all tell you that nothing can help bridge us into [the] future more than for Marathon to rapidly evolve and become sustainable."

On the heels of some heady talk of business plans, milestones, and project progress bars, some readers interpreted this as a sign that the health of Destiny 2 hinges on the state of Marathon. While it's surely true that greater success for Marathon would put Bungie in a healthier spot as a business, Deane stresses, in a series of tweets, that "in no way is the Destiny plan contingent upon Marathon."

"I understand my intent is being mistranslated here and that’s on me," he says of his Marathon comments. "Play what inspires you, whatever it is. Mainly hoping we can accomplish our goals in both lanes with a stronger relationship with our entire community!"

"Just looking to serve players that love both/either worlds while we build the future," a separate reply adds. "But definitely not asking players to support x to get y, and not building the plan that way. Just personally believe that there is an empowering force for that future if there is shared encouragement, and respect, as a Bungie community!"

Two additional replies narrow the focus. "Don’t buy Marathon as a donation or offer anything else," Deane says. "It’s our job to show up for you."

"Only buy or play a thing that inspires you from us / you think is cool!" he reiterates. "We will find our way back home with Destiny."

Now-former Marathon game director Joe Ziegler, another in a string of high-profile departures, previously told us that Marathon was never meant to replace Destiny 2, nor did the two games necessarily have a lot of overlap in player appeal. In urgent efforts to bolt on a compelling PvE mode, Bungie's actively injecting a little bit more Destiny into Marathon today.

In September, Bungie acknowledged that Marathon "did not reach as many players as we had hoped." The game's active user base has collapsed since launch – down from a peak of 88,000 on Steam to a daily average in the range of 2,000 or 3,000. Some decline is expected for any live game post-launch, but Marathon is definitely struggling, and it has been for months with seasonal updates failing to rekindle the game.

The player response echoes a feedback loop also seen in Destiny 2 PvP: as lower-skill or casual players leave Marathon, lobbies become more grueling, queue times get longer, and getting into the game or making meaningful progress becomes more difficult with hardcore veterans pouncing on any fresh meat. Marathon's unflinchingly harsh design philosophy already turned some people away at the door, and this spiral only made things worse. But the game's problems, like offering compelling reasons to redo seasonal progression after mandatory wipes, run deeper.

Some people learned to love the pain, of course, as Andy does in our Marathon review. I also put 130 hours into the game in what now feels like a cough syrup fever dream. But after many costly years in development, Bungie's going to need more than a small group of sickos to keep Marathon alive. So even if the two games are decoupled, the future of Destiny and Marathon remains uncertain.

New Bungie leaders insist they are fixing the studio despite Destiny 2 layoffs, tell players to "keep us accountable"

id Software co-founder John Romero says that his studio's axed Xbox title has a new publisher, with a smaller staff reworking the game's scope.

Romero Games announced that it was working on an "all-new FPS with an original, new IP" back in 2022. But in the summer of 2025, in the wake of what has become yearly layoffs at Xbox, the project was seemingly cancelled. It became clear after the announcement that the game's unannounced publisher had been Xbox, and Romero Games was put at risk of shutdown in the wake of more Microsoft cuts.

Now, over a year later, Romero has updated VGC on the studio's current standing. He says that the studio kept on staff "as long as we could, trying to find funding to finish the game." But eventually, the studio was forced to "do redundancy and then figure out what we're going to do with a super-small team."

The team of 110 people went down to five at one point, but Romero says that the FPS title has a new publisher, and that the studio has "brought 10 people back." The returning devs were "the leads of the different sub-teams that we had." The game is being redesigned in accordance with the smaller team.

"We don't need to be bigger than that, the game is scoped for a team that's that size and we're just super happy," Romero explains. As far as the original plans, he says, "We're not getting that game to the end. That game we can't get to the end, because it's a 110-person game. So this is a complete redesign of a totally different game, but it uses a lot of the work that we had in the previous games."

However, Romero notes "we've moved a bunch of stuff over to the new game, which got us a big head-start, starting with really great art, cool weapons, all that kind of stuff." As for the new publisher, Romero notes that he's unable to reveal what it is, but notes it's pretty hands off.

"The publisher we're with right now has zero creative goals for this game. They're like 'you make what you want, we're publishing it, we're not going to tell you what to make'. That's the perfect deal, you know?"

Doom creator John Romero praises the devs who carried on id Software's legacy as Microsoft reportedly lays off half of the studio: "The last few games showed real care, skill, and respect"

Looking at SMGs, the best VEL 46 loadout is tricky to figure out, as it’ll depend on your tastes and intended use. Players favour assault rifles and SMGs overall as the best guns in MW4, and they’re not wrong to do so. In close-quarter and mid-range engagements in particular there's a clear advantage to using fast firing Vel 46, so I've cooked three builds that adapt to different styles - a run and gun option as well as something for mid range and long range, as much as you can push an SMG at least.

VEL 46 run-and-gun build

• Muzzle: FSS Crackdown Heavy Silencer
• Laser: QFL-S4.5 Bright Hip Laser
• Underbarrel: V46 Vert-Tac Vertical Grip
• Magazine: 60-Round Drum
• Stock: Exp U-Turn Stock

You mainly want two things from a killer close-range SMG build, and that’s mobility, silence, and plenty of bullets per mag to burn through. This VEL 46 run-and-gun build takes care of all that.

First, put the FSS Crackdown Heavy Silencer on it for extra damage at range, accuracy, and help with staying silent while infiltrating enemy territory. Then, go with the QFL-S4.5 Bright Hip Laser for good accuracy while running around and without an optic attachment. Finally, the build comes together when you mix of the V46 Vert-Tac Vertical Grip, 60-Round Drum magazine, and Exp U-Turn Stock for mobility and extra hipfire recoil handling.

VEL 46 mid-range build

• Barrel: RV-B V2 Light Barrel
• Laser: XRK Clutch-LS Dim ADS Laser
• Stock: VEL 46 Extended Tactical Stock
• Optic: VLK Trimmer Reflex
• Rear Grip: LM Combat Grip

The best VEL 46 mid range loadout doesn’t magically turn the SMG into an assault rifle, but it’s a fantastic all-around performer that doesn’t sacrifice the high mobility the weapon class is known for. With the RV-B V2 Light Barrel and XRK Clutch-LS Dim ADS Laser, quick and snappy ADS aiming is preserved, as we’re not going with hipfire as our main target again.

When it comes to the optic slot, any x1 or x2 option works, but the VLK Trimmer Reflex is a good fit for SMGs that doesn’t take up much space. Finally, to keep this build nimble and ADS-oriented, put the VEL 46 Extended Tactical Stock and LM Combat Grip on it.

Best VEL 46 long-range build

• Barrel: VB-46 Series 11 Long Barrel
• Muzzle: FSS Crackdown Heavy Silencer
• Underbarrel: FSS Tac90 Angled Short Grip
• Optic: Cronen R808
• Stock: EXP Lockdown Heavy Short Stock

Turning this SMG into a long-range weapon might sound like a bad idea on paper, but don’t underestimate what the best VEL 46 long-range build can do. Even if I favour damage at long range and accuracy while ADSing, it remains extremely reliable in close encounters.

For the optic slot, we recommend the Cronen R808, as you don’t want to engage with faraway opponents and x4 is more than enough for this weapon. Then, we’ve gone with the VB-46 Series 11 Long Barrel, FSS Crackdown Heavy Silencer (too good to pass up), FSS Tac90 Angled Short Grip, and EXP Lockdown Heavy Short Stock for mix of strong long-range performance, ADS accuracy, and even decent hipfire. This bad boy will make you forget about ARs if you know how to use it.

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Activision has confirmed that it will be removing real-life news footage of the 2022 crush in Itaewon from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 following backlash.

On October 29, 2022, a crowd crush happened in the Itaewon neighborhood of Seoul, South Korea during Halloween festivities which drew over 100,000 people to the area. This crush resulted in the deaths of 160 people, and a further 196 people were injured during the event marking one of the deadliest disasters in the country's history.

Almost exactly four years on from the incident, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 has caused controversy by including a video of rescue efforts following the event as part of an in-universe news report at the end of the game's first mission. The footage contains people performing CPR, bodybags lining the streets and people being wheeled on a stretcher.

The bereaved families issued a statement earlier this week (via BBC News), saying, "We cannot help but be appalled that the chaotic and desperate scene, in which many citizens at the site performed CPR to save one another and victims lay on the freezing street, was used as it was to create a scene in a game." It adds, "Using such an event as material for a game made for entertainment is in itself highly inappropriate and senseless," and continues, "If the game developer has even a minimum of courtesy and empathy towards the victims, it should take corrective action without delay."

In a statement to BBC News, Activision confirms the use of the real-life footage, saying it was used "to establish the game's fictional narrative" but insists that the inclusion was "not intended to reference or trivialise the Itaewon disaster or any other real-world tragedy in any way, shape or form." Activision offers condolences to the families and victims of the incident and confirms the footage will be removed from Modern Warfare 4.

Activision and Infinity Ward have previously caused controversy by referencing real-life events in their games. 2019's Modern Warfare reboot was accused of attempting to rewrite history after having the US-led attacks on a highway between Kuwait and Iraq in 1991, dubbed the Highway of Death – which is the name it is referenced by in-game – mentioned as a Russian attack.

The 10.29 Itaewon Disaster Bereaved Families Association told the BBC that the group welcomed Activision's decision, but that the publisher has not reached out with a direct apology.

The best M4 loadout can take many shapes, and I'm of the opinion there’s no definitive answer. It all depends on how you play, and what kind of game mode you're playing in. Despite heated debates about which MW4 assault rifle is the best, I have a soft spot for the M4, one of the most iconic modern weapons, a Modern Warfare series mainstay and one best MW 4 guns if you tune it right.

I've got a few options here from a run and gun build to mid and long range builds. Scroll down to see my suggestions.

M4 run-and-gun build

• Muzzle: FSS IS300 Heavy Silencer
• Laser: Bruen 22-LPW Bright Hip Laser
• Vertical Grip: GW Domi-9 Short Grip
• Magazine: 60-Round Drum
• Stock: No Stock

There’s something uniquely cool about turning an assault rifle into an oversized “tommy gun”, and the best M4 close-quarters loadout I’ve cooked does exactly that while also keeping it silent with the FSS IS300 Heavy Silencer (you can go loud if you want, though).

The three key attachments here are the Bruen 22-LPW Bright Hip Laser, the GW Domi-9 Vertical Short Grip, and the 60-Round Drum mag. This combo essentially turns it into a highly mobile weapon with good range, better hipfire accuracy, and even decent mobility. Finally, lose the optic slot and select No Stock for a nimbler build that can clear an entire room in a few seconds.

M4 mid-range build

• Barrel: 11.5” Shortline Light Short Barrel
• Laser: SZ Gen.6 PEQ Bright ADS Laser
• Vertical Grip: FSS Fireline Angled Grip
• Optic: SZ Helios Holo
• Rear Grip: ZLR Phase Skeleton Grip

This balanced M4 mid range loadout keeps the class mobile, accurate, and lethal in all sorts of gunfights, though it might fall a bit short in long-range shootouts. My main goal was to improve mobility and ADS speed, and the SZ Gen.6 PEQ laser, 11.5” Shortline light short barrel, FSS Fireline angled grip, and ZLR Phase Skeleton Grip all take care of that.

You can do what you want with the optic slot, but make sure it doesn’t lower the ADS speed. At most, you’ll need a zoom level of around x2, so we went with the SZ Helios Holo, which just works really well with most guns in the game.

M4 long-range build

• Barrel: 18” LE Crosswind Long Barrel
• Muzzle: FSS IS300 Heavy Silencer
• Ammunition: 5.56 NATO High Velocity
• Optic: Cronen R808
• Rear Grip: Schlager STB Sniper Grip

This M4 long-range loadout is all about building a silent weapon that can beam enemies from afar. I’ve gone with the FSS IS300 Heavy Silencer again; it’s just too good to ignore. What makes the build come together is the mix of the 18” LE Crosswind Long Barrel (much better range), the Schlager STB Sniper Grip for better accuracy when standing still or moving slow, and the 5.56 NATO High Velocity ammo to make those bullets fly faster.

Different players might prefer different sniper scopes or long-range sights, but we’re faithful to the Cronen R808, which is just visually clean and provides a x4 zoom that feels like more than enough for a tuned-up AR.

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With Assault rifles continuing to dominate alongside SMGs in Warfare 4, a good Han 86 loadout will go a long way. Despite being the starting AR it's a reliable MW4 weapon worth investing in. The best Han 86 loadout will depend on what your playstyle, so I've got you covered with three Han 86 builds for very different situations, including a run-and-gun build, a mid-range and a long range build.

Han 86 run-and-gun build

• Barrel: Han 86 Silenced 413mm
• Laser: QFL-S4.5 Bright Hip Laser
• Vertical Grip: Mire-50 Tac Grip
• Magazine: 60-Round Drum
• Stock: FR4 Retractable Stock

This Han 86 close range loadout involves turning it into a beefy SMG of sorts. First of all, you’ll want the Han 86 Silenced 413mm barrel to preserve damage while staying to stay as quiet as possible as you push into enemy territory. The 60-round drum magazine ensures you don’t run out of gas when several opponents are in front of you.

Finally, we looked for laser, vertical grip, and tactical stock picks that ensure a high level of mobility and hipfire accuracy, though it could theoretically be turned into a more balanced close-range build too. Just don’t waste an attachment slot on an optic here.

Han 86 mid-range build

• Barrel: SA K556 16” Light Barrel
• Laser: XRK Clutch-LS Dim ADS Laser
• Vertical Grip: Mire-50 Tac Grip
• Optic: SZ Helios Holo
• Rear Grip: XRK Justice II Grip

This Han 86 balanced loadout is all about quick and snappy aim with decent range and good handling for reliable performance in all sorts of firefights. The SA K556 16” Light Barrel, XRK Clutch-LS Dim ADS Laser, and XRK Justice II Grip help make the ADS time as fast as possible.

Meanwhile, the Mire-50 Tac Grip ensures recoil isn’t too much, and while you can go with another holo sight, I'm quite fond of the SZ Helios because of its zoom level and clean visuals.

Han 86 long-range build

• Barrel: Hanbit Lightning-7 Heavy Long Barrel
• Muzzle: ZLR Reverb90
• Ammunition: 5.56 NATO High Velocity
• Optic: Cronen R808
• Rear Grip: Hanbit H86 Grip

The goal behind this Han 86 long-range loadout is turning it into a highly accurate AR, perfect for holding down positions without sacrificing its mid-range strengths. The ZLR Reverb90 and Hanbit Lightning-7 Heavy Long Barrel ensure it has high long-range damage without being too hard to control. We also put the Cronen R808 on it for long-range engagements, as anything above a 4x scope feels silly on an AR; it produces a small sniper glint, but you’re not playing sneaky with this build anyway.

Lastly, 5.56 NATO High Velocity ammo ensures the bullets are as fast as they can be. The Hanbit H86 Grip may not feel like a must here, but we’ve found it also helps with accuracy.

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The latest Call of Duty instalment has kicked off to a good start with players enjoying the updated DMZ mode, embarking on a new campaign, and arguing over TTK and SBMM, of course. We always want more, though, so if you - like me - are counting down to the release of MW4 Season 1, here's everything you need to know.

For the first half of Season 1, there are confirmed additions for DMZ and multiplayer, including new modes and events, new multiplayer maps, and a new location to visit in DMZ. So, for more details, here's the MW4 Season 1 roadmap so far. The new season of Warzone also arrives on the same day, so I've got the details for that below as well.

Warzone and MW4 Season 1 release date

The MW4 Season 1 release date is Friday, November 6, 2026, at 12AM ET / 5AM GMT, which is 9PM PT on Thursday, November 5, which is also when Warzone Season 1 drops.

This will be the first time that the latest game's Battle Pass becomes available, and, as such, there will be plenty of new weapons, blueprints, attachments, and operator skins to unlock. Of course there will also be new maps, modes, and events added as the season progresses, too. Here's the lowdown so far.

Don't forget that this is all only half the season as we barrel towards Season 1 Reloaded, and anything here that is labelled as 'in-season' is set to arrive after the Season 1 release date but before mid-season.

Season 1 content

This is all coming to MW4 in Season 1, for players of multiplayer, DMZ, and Warzone:

• New weapons and attachments
  • CSG-35 SMG (Battle Pass reward)
  • Cronen Osprey AR (Battle Pass reward)
  • Jak 12 shotgun (in-season, event reward)
  • ZLR Talonhawk melee weapon (in-season, event reward)
  • Hyeon Auto Apex attachment (in-season, event reward)
  • Kastov 545 Apex attachment (in-season, event reward)
  • M16 Burst attachment (in-season, event reward)
• New Operators
  • Blix (Battle Pass reward)
  • Zero (Blackcell reward)

Across both multiplayer and DMZ, we'll see the addition of a few new weapons, APEX attachments, blueprints, operators, and more thanks to the game's first Battle Pass and this season's events, including Wager Watch. The one I'm looking forward to most is perhaps the new ZLR Talonhawk melee weapon, which appears as though it should give a bit more range than my trusty knife.

Some of these new guns may even find their way into our list of the best MW4 weapons, so keep an eye on it once the season launches.

As Warzone becomes integrated with Modern Warfare 4, these weapons also become available in the free-to-play battle royale. As ever, you'll be able to access the new battle pass via Warzone if that's the only game you play, and you can play entirely for free by collecting just the free rewards, but keep in mind that that probably won't include all the weapons above.

New multiplayer content

Here's everything we know is coming to MW4 multiplayer in Season 1 so far:

• New multiplayer maps
  • Backstab (new)
  • Canyon (new)
  • Shoot House (returning)
  • Overflow (new, in-season)
  • Ministry (new, in-season)
  • and more...
• New multiplayer modes
  • Gauntlet 1v1
  • Dropzone
  • Grind
• New static Kill Block combo
• Wager Watch event

As ever, there's a lot of new content coming to multiplayer in Season 1, including some brand-new maps and a returning favorite from Modern Warfare 2 and 3: Shoot House. Perhaps the most interesting addition, though, is the Gauntlet 1v1 mode, which sees the Gauntlet 6v6 mode return from BO7, only this time in a thrilling 1v1 setup, presumably with much smaller maps.

New DMZ content

Here's what we know is coming to MW4 DMZ in Season 1 so far:

• New location
  • X01
• New boss threats
  • Tae-Hyun AKA 'Knuckle'
  • Chol-Min AKA 'The Wrench'
  • and more...
• Deep vault
• Additions to the 3D Printer
• Vendor (Blackcell only)

It may not seem like it, but there's a lot to get to grips with here, as a bunch of new navigation comes to the DMZ Forward Operating Base in the form of a vendor for Blackcell owners; Boss Boards, for keeping an eye on new bosses and any intel on them; a 3D printer, the use for which is still redacted at this point; and other ways to sort and perfect your loadout.

There are also new bosses and the new X01 location, which is teeming with incredibly tough opponents.

Season 1 brings even more chances to try and get that impressive MW4 Nuke killstreak, as well as the coolest MW4 mastery camos.

New Warzone content

While some of the content above, including weapons and operators, crosses over into Warzone, there's of course a load of new content coming exclusively to Warzone Season 1. Here's just a snapshot of what's on the way:

• New battle royale map: Hajin
• New Resurgence map: Zodiac
• Verdansk returns in-season
• Rebirth Island returns in-season
• Weather scenarios
• Interactable objects
• Rally Point mode
• Elite Perks
• Grabber Drone
• Zipline Launcher
• and more!

Warzone is getting perhaps one of its biggest overhauls yet with Season 1 as another brand-new main map is revealed, straight out of the MW4 campaign. That's not all, as there are new items, a new mode, a new resurgence map, and the feature I'm most excited about: weather scenarios.

If you're a big fan of Verdansk, as I know so many are, then fear not, as the fan-favorite map returns once again during the first half of Warzone Season 1, as does Rebirth Island. But who knows, the stunning Hajin could be your new favorite by then.

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Bungie is preparing a new franchise roadmap for Destiny following the end of Destiny 2 updates, including a "Destiny 'Legacy'" project and what appears to be a new installment for the IP. Importantly, "new updates" tied to a "celebration in Destiny 2" have also been teased. The only problem is that there's no guarantee any of it will actually happen.

In a lengthy and long-awaited blog post, longtime Destiny community manager Dylan Gafner (dmg04) speaks to new product head Josh Deane, who previously promised that Bungie is "not done with Destiny" and announced the ongoing unvaulting process.

Deane describes players' responses to Destiny 2's abrupt end. "You all didn’t just rage; you showed up," he says. "You shared your stories about your memories in Destiny, what the world meant to you and made sure to petition how disastrous it would be to walk away from this amazing universe. It inspired everyone."

But what is Bungie actually working on? The unvaulting process is in pre-production, Bungie says, sharing a new "progress bar" that stretches into early 2028. That's the earliest we can currently expect material changes to Destiny 2's content vault.

Unvaulting pre-production is expected to last until January or February 2027, and "from that point," it's expected to take another year "to fully complete the porting process" for old content. It's unclear at what rate any content may be unvaulted between that early 2027 and early 2028 window.

The unvaulting content list is shared in groups in order of priority. The "first pass" covers:

• Red War, Forsaken, Curse of Osiris, and Warmind campaigns
• Strikes from the above releases
• Raids, and Raid Lairs from the above releases
• Menagerie Activity with reprised rewards

Additionally, Bungie is looking at "stretch goals at unvaulting launch or after" the initial rollout. This includes:

• Free Roam Destinations (Public Events, Lost Sectors, Escalation Protocol, etc.)
• Seasonal Activities from Sundial (Season 9) to The Coil (Season 23)
• Raid and Raid Lair Weapon updates
• PvP Maps

Finally, Bungie spells out the content that it "currently does not have a path to update either for technical and/or strategic reasons." These are, in essence, the pipe dream unvaulting targets which we'll likely never see. Those are:

• Updated New Light Experience
• Seasonal Story Missions
• Gambit Map (Kell's Grave)
• Seasonal Hubs (e.g., Eliksni Quarter)

This time, Bungie is also looking beyond Destiny 2's past, but only in an incubation or pre-pre-production capacity for now. "I don’t see that wholeness intent just as unvaulting content; it means restoring Destiny’s past, present, and future, but let’s start with unvaulting," Deane says.

To that end, Bungie shares yet another roadmap, this time looking at the Destiny IP as a whole. "These are our anchors to look for and what will become future progress bars when we’re successful," Deane explains.

"Similar to June, when we aligned our initial greenlight with Destiny 2 unvaulting and fully greenlit the project in September, we’ve also aligned a new vision and plans for Destiny all up that we are actively working on making a reality," he adds.

However, the pillars of this vision are still in an "incubation, validation process." Only after Bungie clears that will it "have earned the right to make the announcements you all deserve," says Deane. "And if not, exile. I'll be a good high school football coach somewhere."

A "Destiny 2 'Celebration'" is expected to come with a February progress bar. "We believe we need to have a celebration in Destiny 2, beyond Monument of Triumph, for the community that provides new updates for you all to enjoy. More details to come!" Deane says. The magic words here are "new updates," as that's what Destiny 2 really lost with the end of active development (that and, more importantly, tons of Bungie devs).

Arguably more exciting is the promise of an unspecified "Destiny 'Legacy'" project. Get your Destiny 1 content rumor mill warmed up, because Deane says, "Our epic journey started over a decade ago, and the whole experience needs to be served to you all where you play today. Expect more information when we come back to you all early next year."

Most importantly, perhaps, Bungie pencils in "Redacted [TBD]," seemingly some sort of project launch. "Launch Ventrilo Message: ‘We’re back,'" the post teases.

"I think before we close it’s important to know that this is a true reset moment for Bungie, Marathon, and Destiny," Deane reiterates. "We also know time isn’t our friend; we’re playing from behind with the cards we have and I’m sure we’ll have to take more punches and make some hard decisions along the way."

This is the clearest Bungie's plan has looked in months, but do not light the fireworks just yet. Early 2028 is all we can look toward right now, and that's just for the restoration of old content.

These celebration, legacy, and mystery Destiny projects may never go beyond blog posts and whiteboards, and the next major strategic update from Bungie won't come until February 2027 either. Bungie also has Marathon to worry about, which will receive more focused communications soon.

The focus is nailing down "how we get to our end game, a new, forever Destiny, while rebuilding a relationship with a vibrant community along the way."

"We are aligned and are building a new future for Destiny," Deane says. He adds, "We're not going to forget the mistakes of the past, but it's time to learn from them and unify as one Bungie community. For us, the majority of our Bungie team is legacy Destiny, and we will all tell you that nothing can help bridge us into [the] future more than for Marathon to rapidly evolve and become sustainable."

Bungie admits Marathon "did not reach as many players as we had hoped," shares plans to evolve the game for "a sustainable future" while committing to Destiny

Infinity Ward has nerfed the controversial Possum ability in Modern Warfare 4 because people were using it for nefarious means too often.

Modern Warfare 4 has had a heavy focus on its DMZ mode, with Infinity Ward already tackling one of the biggest complaints about the mode on launch day: people hogging the UAV towers. However, another major community complaint about the mode has been down to one specific perk.

True to its name, the Possum perk lets players play dead after being downed in DMZ mode. However, many used this to get taken out only to immediately get back up and defeat the person who took them down, rather than just give themselves another chance to survive the game.

In the latest patch notes for Modern Warfare 4, Infinity Ward acknowledged the complaints with a statement about the perk: "The intention for Possum is to give a high-level operator a second chance. With the current iteration, Possum was being used as a combat mechanic instead of a survival mechanic."

Alongside this statement are the details of the perk's change, which now will disallow players from activating Possum while the team that killed them is nearby, or if the team is hanging out there for a long time, until 4 minutes pass.

The statement continues, "These tweaks are meant to prevent players from getting right back into the fight which they had just lost." Infinity Ward added, "We will be watching the use of Possum with this change to see if it has the desired effect," and that the range and duration of the new change can be returned going forward.

Check out our Modern Warfare 4 review here!

Obtaining the MW4 Nuke killstreak is one of the game's more challenging goals, as it has been in series games before this one. It's a great way to show off your skills to both your team and opponents, and each year the hardiest of players fight to get the world's first nuke.

While that claim may have long gone for 2026's Modern Warfare 4, you can still work towards getting unlocking the nuke killstreak yourself, and the first step to that is knowing the conditions you actually have to meet. This killstreak cannot be unlocked by reaching any level and can never be equipped to your class. Instead, it can only ever be obtained by meeting certain match killstreak requirements, as you'll see below.

How to get the Nuke killstreak in MW4

To get the Nuke killstreak in MW4 2026, you need to get a 30 kills in a row without dying. You can die in the match, but your streak will start back at zero each time you do, and killstreak kills do not count, so you'll want to equip the best MW4 weapons you can.

This means that any kills you might get with the Wheelson, Heavy Artillery, or Gunship, for example, do not count towards your nuke - only those achieved with your primary or secondary weapon, melee weapon, or lethal throwables qualify. Get 30 of those in a row without dying though, and you'll get a notification on the middle of your screen that you can trigger the nuke.

To launch your Nuke, you might find you have to wait a few moments. Then press '4' on keyboard on right on your D-pad on any controller. You don't have to launch the Nuke right away, so you may as well see how many more kills you can get in first.

The nuke can be obtained in all multiplayer modes that allow for 30 or more kills in a row, so the likes of Search and Destroy aren't included.

If you can do this, then you're also well on your way to getting some of the best mastery camos in MW4 too, which is another great way to show off your skill.

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Weapon manuals in MW4 DMZ are some of the most important loot items you can find, as these are blueprints that effectively allow you to craft and buy new weapons from the gunsmith back in your base. Effectively, finding manuals for your guns means that you'll have an increasingly large pool of weapons to build and craft while at your base, but finding manuals isn't easy to do. If you want help, then here are the best Weapon Manual locations to farm.

Where to find Weapon Manuals in Modern Warfare 4 DMZ

While nowhere in MW4 DMZ is guaranteed to have a Weapon Manual (you're playing against the odds in a constant game of randomization) there are certain locations and containers that have a higher chance of dropping weapon manuals. For the best chance, you should examine the following when in DMZ:

• Military Containers. These include military style crates and lockers, basically anything associated with the army. As you might expect, you can find these more frequently in compound and military areas.
• Safes. These appear in all kinds of areas, though infrequently. Unlike other types of containers, they take longer to open, as your Operator has to hack them. Check the image above for an example of what safes in MW4 look like.
• Weapons lockers and armories. These rooms reliably require keys to open and are found all around the map. Keys are found randomly or as mission rewards. Read their description to find the locked room they open.
• Police Stations. Many have reported having good luck finding manuals in the MW4 DMZ Police Stations, of which there are 5 around the map. Check out our guide on where those are.
• Red and Yellow Zones. Though higher danger, these map areas also tend to have better loot as a result, especially if you can brave the nuclear reactor in the Northeast of the map.

Keep in mind that weapon manuals can be found anywhere, you just have a better chance of finding them in the locations marked above. I discovered one inside a discarded jacket on the train that circles the map!

Once you have a manual, you need to safely extract with it in your inventory. Once you're back in your base, it will automatically be converted to a weapon recipe (it only works for the player that's holding it, not everybody in your squad).

Once converted, you'll be able to buy that weapon from the Gunsmith permanently, though it will cost you money nonetheless, with that cost increasing depending on how many attachments and additional elements you choose to craft it with.

If you're on a crafting kick, make sure you know where to find the MW4 DMZ comms modules and MW4 DMZ power regulators!

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The comms module in MW4 DMZ is a piece of epic loot that’s given players a headache, as it’s hard to find randomly during missions and is required to unlock the ‘Uncommon Ingredient Printing’ upgrade. The good news is that several locations can provide the epic drops that you’re looking for, and they’re not particularly well-guarded ones.

Best comms module location in DMZ

Comms modules are found inside computers (regular ones) typically located on the top floor of buildings occupied by NK forces, who have turned them into improvised bases of sorts.

Deadtown is your safest bet, as it’s a low-danger area that’s easy to navigate and clear even if you’re going solo. It must be noted you’re looking for the taller buildings closer to the river, and not the more “regular town” zone near them. I’ve marked the location in the screenshot above. But here’s the type of building that we need to get into:

Once inside these buildings – which are hard to miss due to the massive power cables on the outside and inside – make your way to the top floors and look for computers to loot. As you can see in the screenshot below, the epic-rarity comms module isn’t guaranteed, but there are more than enough PCs to loot in the area.

How to craft comms modules in DMZ

You can also craft comms modules in DMZ after unlocking the ‘Epic Ingredient Printing’ upgrade, which requires 100K in cash, 10 binding catalysts, 10 printed circuit boards, and 5 military composites. This isn’t easy early on, but it’s the best farming option when you level up and have bigger fish to fry.

After doing so, the comms module can be crafted repeatedly with the 3D printer for 100 electronics and 3 CPUs (also found in computers).

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The Welcome to Paradise quest in Cyberpunk 2077 has players follow a guided tour around the city in order to track down a revolutionary called Haze, all at the request of her concerned sister Aera. This takes you through a variety of locations with a recording of Night City founder Richard Night explaining a skewed history of the metropolis, and Haze providing her own contrary take against him. If you want to find out how to start the quest and what rewards there might be, here's what you need to know.

Want some more help with the 2.5 update? Find out how to dual wield in Cyberpunk 2077, or all the best Cyberpunk 2077 mods you can now get on console!

How to start the Welcome to Paradise quest in Cyberpunk 2077

To get the Welcome to Paradise quest, all you need to do is complete the Heist mission and reach 15 Street Cred. On having done this, after some time you'll get a message from a new character called Aera who will ask you to find her sister Haze, who's stolen some sort of chip from somebody and hasn't been seen since. If you accept this minor job, you'll be able to play it through whenever you're ready.

Full walkthrough for Welcome to Paradise in Cyberpunk 2077

Much of the Welcome to Paradise quest is very straightforward - going to marked locations and interacting with terminals - but there's a few points where it can get tricky. We'll take you through the whole thing below and mark out the areas that involve more challenge, so you're ready for everything.

1. After getting the call, head to the marked location in Kabuki. Scan for the metal sheet to the East that covers the sewer pipe (shown above) and pull it away to reveal a Shard called "NC Revitalization Project - Identity Cache". Slot it to start the guided tour program.
2. Head to the Night Corporation Tower and listen to the first step of the guided tour, including the drone tour, then do the same thing at the Memorial Park, Arasaka Memorial, and City Hall.

3. The next tour step is the Biotechnica Flats, though some people will be obstructing the way to the terminal (you can move them non-violently with a 17 Body Dialogue Check).
4. Head to the NCART station for another tour. Afterwards, go into your inventory and decrypt the shard for new information (see below).

5. The next stop at the Dam is blocked off by 6th Street Enemies who you'll need to clear out (they're easy to ambush from above if you fast travel to the nearest location).
6. Head to the Medical Center back in the city. This time Haze will tell you that she's being trailed by a car. Open the Shard you decrypted in stage 4 again to find out more about the car and figure out who's following her.

7. Head to Kabuki for the final leg of the tour and the last of Richard Night. Haze will drop a clue that mentions a bridge nearby.
8. Head to the marked location, and look at the beach below you and to the right to see several Militech soldiers (see below).
9. Defeat the soldiers and you'll discover Haze's body, along with a Shard containing evidence of her killer. At this point you need to meet with Aera again to conclude the quest and tell her what you've discovered.

Should you give Aera the Shard?

There's no difference in reward depending on whether you give Aera the Shard or not, as you'll get 1,050 EDs, and the same XP and Street Cred bonuses either way. All it changes is your final interaction with her:

• If you give Aera the Shard: She's grateful for your help, but obviously angered at Haze's death and clearly plotting some sort of revenge, or at least to carry on her sister's crusade in some way.
• If you don't give Aera the Shard: She's angry at you for not giving her the ammunition she needs to hurt Haze's murderers, but the implication is that it keeps her safer not to have such explosive information on her.

There doesn't appear to be any follow-up to this quest later on, such as a moment where we discover that Aera successfully struck a blow against Night Corp or was killed in her quest for vengeance.

To unlock Witcher themed gear and even a fantasy sword, check out how to complete the Cyberpunk 2077 Ariadne side quest, or get loot linked to the Edgerunners show in the Cyberpunk 2077 Clampdown quest!

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The power regulator in DMZ is a tricky thing to find. As an epic ingredient, its rarity is relatively high, and you aren’t even guaranteed drops in the correct locations, but below I'll show you where I've had more luck finding it than anywhere else. And, if you want to make advanced gear and equipment like night vision googles and railgun sentries, you're going to need to find a few.

Best power regulator location in DMZ

Though it’s been reported power regulators can also spawn in other heavily guarded spots of the DMZ map, your best bet is to go into the Haneul Nuclear Reactor, as marked above.

This is a high-risk/level zone full of armoured NPC enemies on top of the expected high levels of radiation, so it’s highly encouraged that you gear up accordingly and bring hazmat suits, gas masks, and radiation blockers to make the incursion easier.

That said, you can also rush into the ruined buildings and reactors to look for red containers (though power regulators can also spawn in other ones) and get out before the radiation becomes too much to endure. Again, the power regulator is a randomised piece of epic loot, so there are no guaranteed drops or specific containers, but I can tell you this is the best power regulator farming location I’ve found so far.

How to craft power regulators in DMZ

Alternatively, there’s a way to make power regulators without leaving the safety of the base of operations. DMZ players “only” need to grind towards the ‘Epic Ingredient Printing’ upgrade, which requires 100K in cash, 10 binding catalysts, 10 printed circuit boards, and 5 military composites. This may take a good while, so it’s not a simple early-game objective, but we’d say it’s worth investing in to make late-game grinds a bit softer.

After doing so, the power regulator can be crafted repeatedly with the 3D printer for 100 electronics and 3 printed circuit boards.

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Radio towers in MW4 DMZ are found all over the map, and one of the earliest missions tasks you with placing transmitters on top of two different radio towers. This is part of the ‘Underground’ chapter, which eventually asks you to complete the ‘Triangulation’ order in Call of Duty. It’s an easy one, but here’s what you should look for.

Radio tower locations in DMZ

There are several radio towers in the MW4 DMZ map, and they’re typically unguarded (unless you run into random patrols), so it’s just a matter of spotting the nearest ones so you don’t have to trek across the map to complete the ‘Triangulation’ order.

The map above has three different ones marked in a part of the map that’s not, at least based on my experience, very dangerous. You’re free to look for other ones, but these three are close to each other and easy to reach regardless of your starting location. You can see them from afar, and they’re hard to miss.

How to place transmitters on radio towers in DMZ

The game doesn’t explain how to actually use the transmitters on the towers very well, but it’s a simple process. First, just approach a radio tower of your choice and climb up. Make sure to face the correct side of the ladder.

Keep climbing until you can’t go any higher. At this point, face one of the metal poles that define the structure of the tower at the top. A prompt will allow you to place a transmitter, and a “transmitter” item isn’t required. Repeat this on a different tower to place the second transmitter.

After placing two transmitters on two different towers, you’ll need to head over to the top of La Grand Vie in Songdo Wharf (use the map), a named location to the east of Hajin, and do this one more time.

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Ariadne in Cyberpunk 2077 will call you out of nowhere with the offer to become a brand ambassador for some clothing she's sent you, but it's not clear exactly what she wants and what she's hoping to get from out, nor how to progress with this secret quest. In fact, what you need to do is incredibly easy, and if you can do it, you'll get some money and some Witcher themed gear to wear around Cyberpunk 2077 as a reward!

Want some more help with the 2.5 update? Find out how to dual wield in Cyberpunk 2077, or all the best Cyberpunk 2077 mods you can now get on console!

What to do for Ariadne in Cyberpunk 2077

After Ariadne messages you in Cyberpunk 2077 to become a brand ambassador, all you need to do to complete her request is the following:

1. Head back to V's original apartment in Megabuilding H10.
2. By the front door, as you go in, you should see a new crate on the left (see above).
3. Inside are three pieces of clothing and two weapons. Equip all three pieces of clothing, including the sunglasses!
4. Once all the clothing is equipped, open your message chain with Ariadne again, and there should now be an option to "Take Picture".
5. This will open photo mode, though you don't actually have to take a picture, it will act like you did.
6. Ariadne will thank you for the picture.
7. Later on, Ariadne will contact you again telling you that your sponsorship deal is over. However, she will also send you 4300 EDs, and tell you that you can keep the clothes.

This marks the end of this unlabelled quest, but what's more important is that the clothing and weapons inside the chest are all easter eggs and references to The Witcher series, the other major gaming franchise by CD Projekt Red.

The full list of items Ariadne gives you is as follows:

• Ursine Jacket (Outer Torso): This coat shares some aesthetic similarities to the Ursine armor from the Witcher series, which was associated with the School of the Bear.
• Ursine Pants (Legs): Same as above.
• The Professor's Spectacles (Face): In The Witcher 3 DLC "Hearts of Stone", Geralt could acquire an identical set of sunglasses with the same name, which themselves were an easter egg referencing the movie "Leon The Professional".
• Sihil (Sword): A blade that does extra damage to drones, mechs and robots, as well as enemies affected by quickhacks. This is a fantasy-style sword that references a blade with an identical name in the Witcher novels.
• Boar Carver (Knife): A fantasy-style dagger. In The Witcher games, Geralt uses a similar blade to carve trophies from his kills.

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The MW4 DMZ Police Stations are spread across the map, but if you can find their locations you can complete the Orders connected to them, as well as simply loot them for high value items. Police Stations have quickly become an easy point of reference in Modern Warfare 4 to get good loot, especially related to weapons and guns. If you want to know how to find them and loot them effectively, here's where to look, as well as how to get into the Police Armories.

For more help with the latest Call of Duty, check out all the MW4 DMZ best traits for your operators, or find out all the best weapons and guns in Modern Warfare 4!

Where to find all DMZ Police Stations in MW4

There are five Police Stations across the MW4 DMZ map, all shown above. They're easy enough to find, as they aren't hidden, and they are marked on the map by default with a sheriff Star symbol.

There's no major difference between the layout or contents of each of the DMZ police stations, though keep in mind that if you have an Armory key (see below) it will be specific to one station or another, described by its relation to major landmarks (such as "North of Wolves Stadium").

How to loot Police Stations and open the Armory

Police Stations are several floors (including a basement) with various randomized containers, similar to other buildings. However, what's of note is that there's an armory/evidence room in the basement of each building that holds high-level loot and requires a key to open. This room should be down the stairs on the right when you enter through the main doors.

Some have reported finding Armory keys within the Police Stations themselves (I have checked and have yet to be so lucky), but you can find them around the DMZ as random rare rewards, or through mission completion.

Still learning the particulars of MW4? if you've already got DMZ in front of you, find out how to uncover the Modern Warfare 4 Counting Room Vault location for an early source of great loot, or how to uncover the Modern Warfare 4 Dynamic Op Phone and complete the early challenges!

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Modern Warfare 4 has received a much-needed update to stop people from UAV-hogging during DMZ matches.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 is finally out today after what can – in the nicest way – be described as a unique launch rollout. Last week, players were able to access the game's campaign mode, and earlier this week, the DMZ mode became available to drop into. DMZ is Activision's take on the extraction shooter genre, letting 20 squads drop onto a massive map and play a dangerous version of Supermarket Sweep without the quizzing.

However, from what seemed like the moment DMZ launched, players found one element of it particularly frustrating. Namely, UAV towers are able to be taken over by players and expanded throughout a game, meaning that there are huge no-go zones unless you fancy being spotted the moment you walk in. This would cause a rush to UAV towers to get this benefit for yourself, with some going as far as to say this choice was a "mistake, and so oppressive you can't do anything."

This week Infinity Ward announced some new changes in a minor update for the game, with the magic words included "In DMZ, players can now steal back UAV Towers from enemy control." This change has naturally excited DMZ fans, with Call of Duty news account ModernWarzone saying the change was "so badly needed" and "Awesome to see that get fixed so quickly."

However, this was somewhat undercut about the other part of this update, which allows parties of four players to queue up into free-for-all bouts. Which, in theory, will allow squads to team up against everyone else in the all-for-one battlefields, with the replies to the update mostly consisting of players calling this change out.

Check out our Modern Warfare 4 review here!

The best traits in MW4 DMZ mode are all about making sure that your operator has the best skill possible. As you play you'll level up and earn new trait points, capping out at 18, which isn't nearly enough to fill all three skill trees. With that in mind, you need to be certain that you're picking the best traits possible and ensuring that you're ready for a variety of circumstances. With that in mind, I'll lay out the optimum build for traits in Modern Warfare 4 below, so you know exactly what to choose when the time comes.

What are the best traits in DMZ for Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4?

Here are the best traits in each skill tree in MW4 DMZ mode. If you're building up in each tree, make sure that you pick the traits mentioned below when given the option to do so.

• Warfighter
  • Equipment Professional: Slowly recharges equipped lethals and tacticals after use. Refills up to the max capacity of the slot.
  • Adrenaline Burst: Killing an enemy resets tactical sprint.
  • Possum: Allows a Self Revive into Last Stand from death, restoring health to maximum, once per match.
• Scout
  • Investor: Slightly increases cash amount extracted.
  • Auto Fill: Lethals and tacticals automatically replenish from Backpack.
  • UAV Upgrade: Increases the range and duration of UAVs. Also upgrades them to Advanced UAVs.
• Survivalist
  • Quick Knife: Replaces weapon bash melee attacks with knife attacks.
  • Metabolism: Slowly regenerate health lost via tourniquet.
  • Die Hard: Approaching an exfil while in Last Stand calls the exfil automatically. Also grants infinite bleed out time while in Last Stand.

These traits are largely based around universality and broad applicability in combat, as well as emphasizing those skills that are better in PvP than PvE (which tends to be tougher as a rule). I've also de-emphasized traits that increase reward yields and item stacking – not that there's anything wrong with those, but I think it's more important to survive missions than to risk your life on some small reward bonuses. After all, it doesn't matter if you have more loot than normal if you never make it home safely!

Operator Traits in Modern Warfare 4 DMZ explained

Traits in MW4 DMZ are skills that are unlocked when your Operator levels up. You'll get a trait point that can be invested in any of the three skill trees, granting that specific operator and character that skill, but only them! These don't apply to any other operators that you have unlocked.

Traits are picked from one of two or three options each time, and these choices are exclusive. For example, early in the Warfighter tree, you'll be able to pick between "Plate Pouch", "Bounty Hunter" and "Resupply". Whichever one you pick, it'll lock that Operator out of ever getting the other two, so pick carefully!

Operators can earn a total of 18 Traits before they max out, which is enough to completely work through two of the skill trees to the end. That restriction means that you have to think carefully about what you want to get, as you won't be able to get all of them.

If that operator is lost on a mission, you'll lose all progress you made with them. However, you can pay cash to rescue them. The amount of money it costs scales to their level – the more Traits they have, the more expensive it will be to bring them back.

Still learning the particulars of MW4? if you've already got DMZ in front of you, find out how to uncover the Modern Warfare 4 Counting Room Vault location for an early source of great loot, or how to uncover the Modern Warfare 4 Dynamic Op Phone and complete the early challenges!

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Half-Life 3 rumor vessel HLX has once again been mentioned, this time by a veteran Valve designer at an official presentation digging into game audio.

A post on the GamingLeaksAndRumours subreddit archives a recent talk from three Valve designers who attended the latest GameSoundCon, a convention dedicated to game audio and music.

Speaker Mike Morasky, a Valve composer and audio artist whose experience covers everything from Team Fortress 2 and the original Portal to Half-Life: Alyx, was joined by sound designers David Feise, a 17-year Valve veteran, and Carlye Nyte, a newer Valve hire with experience at Bungie and several other studios.

During the Q&A portion of a panel covering "Valve's Approach to an Open and Flexible Audio Engine," Morasky fielded a question about voice count. He brings up a group system within Valve's setup and how it folds into its HDR system.

"In fact, I think Deadlock has their own version of HDR," Morasky says, before casually adding, "HLX has its own version. So on and so forth."

In response, a barely audible Feise certainly seems to whisper "nice work" before cutting in. "Groups is its own one-hour talk, so come talk to us about that afterwards," Feise adds.

That sure is a Valve veteran saying "HLX" before seemingly being ribbed by his coworker. The jar of hopes for a new Half-Life game is so overstuffed that I hesitate to infer more than that, but it's hard not to read a little into this.

HLX has been rumored for years now, and Valve has actually mentioned it in passing before, but this might be the loudest and clearest nod yet. Heck, Morasky himself has hinted at its existence more than once: in a 2023 interview, he famously mentioned "both the Half-Life games" he's worked on before correcting that to "well, game." He's been at Valve for years, but for Half-Life, Morasky has actually only worked on Half-Life: Alyx officially, raising questions about that hastily corrected plural.

Morasky did, of course, stop short of promising an imminent new Half-Life game, but Valve sleuths have been hanging on three characters for years, so any mention of HLX will set tongues wagging. If people keep predicting an announcement from Valve every year, surely it will come true eventually.

Half-Life 3 "would register on a GDP level" as a Steam Machine launch title, but "Valve doesn't need a Half-Life-sized spectacle to sell hardware," analyst says.

In the early phases of Modern Warfare 4 DMZ you'll be told to collect a Dynamic Op Phone as part of the Payment Due orders, as well as earning $11,500 in cash from completing Dynamic Ops. Unfortunately, MW4 isn't particularly good at explaining what that means and what a Dynamic Op Phone is, but fortunately, I've found out the answer and can explain it to you below, as well as how to make the money you need.

How to collect a Dynamic Op Phone in Modern Warfare 4 DMZ mode

To collect a Dynamic Op phone in MW4 DMZ, you need to look on the map for the green radio-shaped icons, such as the one shown above. The actual symbol on each one will vary, but all of them count.

Follow the icon to its source to find a small radio/phone, which is the Dynamic Op phone. Interacting with it will trigger a small optional side mission that varies depending on the phone you've interacted with. You might have to hunt another player, kill an NPC target, or plant explosives somewhere. Either way, there'll be an icon to lead you to where you need to be.

To make the money, simply complete the quest. The amount of money earned will vary depending on the mission itself, but this goal to make $11,500 is one that will be done over multiple excursions and extractions, building up your earnings over time. Simply be patient.

For more info about the game, check out all the Modern Warfare 4 Mastery Camos, or find out the best weapons and guns in MW4! Or if you've already got DMZ in front of you, discover how to uncover the Modern Warfare 4 Counting Room Vault location for an early source of great loot!

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Is DMZ free to play? The return of the multiplayer mode in Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4 has been drawing a lot of attention, as part of the current trend of Extraction shooter gameplay, with many looking forward to this particular return to extraction combat. Call of Duty has also previously released certain modes for free, separately from the larger games that they're released with (such as Warzone) so there was always a chance that DMZ was going to be free to download and play. But is it?

Can you play Modern Warfare 4 DMZ for free?

No, you cannot play MW4 DMZ mode for free, you have to buy the full game of Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4, in which the multiplayer DMZ mode is part of the larger package.

The only thing that is marginally comparable is that players can download the individual files for DMZ mode without having to download the whole of MW4, but you still do have to buy it, sorry to say.

There's also been no indication from the development team or publishers that they plan to make DMZ free to play in the future, so don't get your hopes up thinking you can just wait out the clock until it's given to you. I'm not saying it can't happen, but right now there's no evidence to suggest it will, especially with the MW4 being largely well-received by critics and audiences so far.

For more info about the game, check out all the Modern Warfare 4 Mastery Camos, or find out the best weapons and guns in MW4! Or if you've already got DMZ in front of you, find out how to uncover the Modern Warfare 4 Counting Room Vault location for an early source of great loot!

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The Casino Counting Room Vault in the Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4 DMZ is something that players are told about after completing the Silent Ledger story mission, which rewards them with a Counting Room Vault Key that they can use… Only it's not clear exactly where to look to find it. Fortunately I've found the Casino Counting Room, and can show you exactly where you need to look to use this key and get the rewards.

Counting Room Vault location in Modern Warfare 4 DMZ

The Counting Room Vault is found on the ground floor of the Heavenly Luck Casino, the building where the "Silent Ledger" mission takes place. It's marked on the map above, but to find it yourself, do the following:

1. Enter the Casino by the main doors at the front.
2. Take an immediate right turn into the corridor with the cages inside.
3. Take the door going left before you enter the main slots area to enter a computer-filled security room.
4. At the end of this room is the Counting Room Vault (shown below), which will require the key to open (there is no other known method at time of writing).

The inside room will be full of loot, but be careful: with this being an area tied to one of the earliest missions in the game, and a well-known vault location, you're highly likely to have other players swarming the area, either to secure the same vault, to pick off those who are going for it, or simply doing the Silent Ledger mission itself.

For more info about the game, check out all the Modern Warfare 4 Mastery Camos, or find out the best weapons and guns in MW4!

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It's not even fully out yet and we have Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 patches. Of course, early access necessitates such things, especially when you're one of the biggest franchises in the industry, and on this occasion, the devs are looking at DMZ, Call of Duty's spin on an extraction shooter.

Those who pre-ordered Modern Warfare 4 have been playing the mode for a few days, and things need to be tightened up. Enemy AI is altered in a couple of cases where it's overreaching, in one instance where they could bowl players over while infilling, and in another where they can get into places they shouldn't while you're downed.

Both are quite annoying in motion, I'm sure. Some foibles around progression are ironed out as well. One problem involves players being told they earned a whopping zero experience after their first match - a slightly disappointing impression, to be sure. Now rectified, it seems.

Another issue is more specific, where only the person who actually killed a Commander gets the relevant experience for the 'King Slayer' calling card even if you're in a squad. That's just rude!

There are numerous smaller problems addressed, like visual issues and little mechanical wrinkles and such. Remember, this game isn't actually publicly out yet, so expect more of this in the coming days to make sure everyone's getting what Activision and Infinity Ward want out of the sequel.

A single campaign fix rounds out the patch notes. Progression was apparently being stifled during Counter Attack, specifically in the hotel part. All sorted now, it seems. I'm not sure I'd have noticed, to be honest, but that probably says more about me than anything else. This patch is available now, while the full game is out October 23.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 campaign launches to 94% positive Steam reviews, way ahead of Black Ops 7 and Modern Warfare 3

The campaign for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 is now available for those who pre-ordered, and PC players in particular seem pretty taken by it. The single-player mode has debuted to a strong rating on Steam, indicating this particular installment could be a big one for the franchise.

Although Modern Warfare 4 isn't fully out until this coming Friday, October 23, pre-orders come with early access to the campaign. During the beta, this was relegated to a single mission, but now you can knock out the whole thing if you'd like.

You'd think this would be a questionable move by Activision and Infinity Ward, but it might just be quite shrewd. If you go on the game's page on Steam, you can see the rating is currently riding extremely high.

At time of writing, Modern Warfare 4 is sitting at Very Positive on Valve's marketplace, based on 94% of reviews. That's a strong opening for any game, and it's especially good for Call of Duty.

We don't have hard data on the first weeks of many individual entries of the long-running FPS, but this definitely outdoes the initial feedback on Black Ops 7 and Modern Warfare 3. You can see charts of their reviews going back to launch weeks, and neither were anywhere close to that amount.

Whomever came up with the bold move to simply make the campaign part of the perks for being an early adopter, they were onto something. It helps that apparently Infinity Ward's made a good one, which includes 16 missions spread across several locations around the world. Call of Duty campaigns have tended to be a little forgettable over the last ten years or so, since the multiplayer modes and Warzone took prominence.

As someone who loves a good solo FPS, it pleases me to see that Modern Warfare 4 is bucking the trend. You can pre-order now if any kind of FOMO is setting in.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 narrative lead says Denis Villeneuve's Sicario is an influence "I'm always checking against," but John Wick "has some obvious presence" too

Rumors are picking up pace that Star Wars Battlefront 3 will soon enter development, though who will lead the project has apparently not yet been decided.

Chatter has been building since earlier this week, stemming from Giant Bomb's Jeff Grubb pointing to a report in an Electronic Gaming Monthly column claiming Disney has "big plans" for the Star Wars Battlefront series. Reportedly, Lucasfilm is looking for a development partner, and two studios are emerging as favorites: DICE, which wouldn't be surprising given their work on Battlefront 1 and 2; and Bungie, which would be surprising given what they have on currently. While Bungie is familiar with a galaxy far, far away, alongside turning Marathon around, the Halo creators have somewhat pivoted to calling it quits on Destiny.

Now, as is typical within media, you usually anticipate the next step by reaching out for comment and waiting for further reports to solidify what has been put out there. The latter is typically other reputable outlets or "insiders" with track records too good to ignore. What is less common, though, is the CEO of another studio throwing weight behind a claim. That's what happened here, with the boss of Wardogs developer Bulkhead, Joe Brammer, throwing in what he knows.

"DICE and from what I’ve heard Respawn are working on Battlefront 3," he says. "Not sure what that means for Battlefield."

And, as a bonus in case you're wondering, he does think "Star Wars Wardogs" sounds cool. Can't argue there.

While it does sound promising that something about Star Wars Battlefront 3 is at least being discussed, it's worth keeping a few things in mind. Nothing is confirmed, and chatter doesn't always lead somewhere.

The timing sure is something, though. It was only the other day that we reported that Lucasfilm, hot on the heels of Star Wars: Zero Company and Galactic Racer, said it will "continue to surprise folks" and is "more flexible" with the franchise. Whether that leads to something for Star Wars Battlefront 3, though, remains to be seen.

Here are the 10 best Star Wars games to play right now while you wait.

This hasn't been the strongest year for Bungie. On the back of ending updates for Destiny 2, the studio released Marathon to a more muted and mixed response than anyone would've liked. Layoffs followed, and an ex-lead from the FPS has given some insight into what it was like behind the scenes.

In an interview with PCGamer, Joe Zeigler, former game director on Marathon, discussed the challenges in getting the project over the line. "I found this project was - it had some areas where there were definitely some ideas about where we were going, but there were a lot of disagreements across the place," he says.

"So part of where I was advising was trying to bring those all together and be like, 'Hey, what is the cohesive place you want to go to? And how do we get there?'," he continues. "And then when we landed on that, I could help them drive that."

Zeigler initially joined the company in an advisory role before a leadership position at Marathon opened up. Coming from years directing League of Legends, he knows a thing or three about keeping a live-service game on track. As a big fan of the studio, dating back to Myst, he was eager to step into the infrastructure, and he notes that the company operates in two distinct lanes.

"I'll say this about Bungie, which I really like, and it's still very true about Bungie: it lives in two worlds," he states. "One is this world where there's a lot of legacy to live up to, which is a lot of pressure. But there's also this other side of it, which is that it's a very egoless company."

The team "are always looking for some way to improve, and the way they do that is, oftentimes, by bringing in people who are new to help them figure out what they are missing," he adds. Which is how he wound up working there for almost four years, exiting after Marathon came out.

Sadly, things are murky for Bungie at present. Marathon's not doing the expected business and Destiny 2's purely on support. Given the state of Xbox's restructuring right now, it's a case of seeing what happens in the years ahead. For now, Zeigler's working on an unannounced new project.

Bungie admits Marathon "did not reach as many players as we had hoped," shares plans to evolve the game for "a sustainable future" while committing to Destiny

The predecessor to Arc Raiders is bringing in some dynamic commentary through the power of AI. The Finals, the multiplayer FPS Embark Studios released before its mammoth extraction shooter, is introducing a way to recognize players in real time through in-game play-by-play.

The team revealed the feature in a short video, explaining the idea and how it'll work. Essentially, now Scott and June, the two voices you hear while playing The Finals, will start mentioning people's nicknames whenever they do something cool.

So, instead of just hearing, "And that's a good headshot," you'll get, "[Player] just scored a good headshot." A small, but noticeable change that can help make gameplay feel more exciting.

Initially, the list of ways you'll hear this will be relatively short, to help the devs test the technology in motion. "Keeping it narrow means we can curate what he actually says," Carl Strandberg, audio director on The Finals, explains. "Make sure it sounds good, and like the Scotty we all know and love."

This is all powered through AI, since the voice is essentially performing an automatic text-to-speech function. The commentary already uses this technology, and Embark took some flak when the fanbase learned about that a few years ago.

It appears the team on The Finals weren't deterred. I'm curious about how this goes down. In theory, it could be fun, but it seems likely it'll be switched off because players set up accounts with naughty words to hear them out loud.

It's disappointing to see Embark double down on gen-AI as well. I'm not convinced this is a necessary use of the technology, but I'm open to being proven wrong. It arrives in the Prime Time update on October 20.

Arc Raiders TV and movie adaptations can do what the game doesn't: "We feel like we have created a world that's fertile ground to tell all kinds of different stories"

Xbox's Halo franchise is now under the Activision umbrella, but a new report has shed light on some of the projects that were in development before the major internal shakeup.

Developer Halo Studios was essentially gutted as part of Xbox's sweeping restructure last month - only a small team remains to handle support for ongoing Halo games, events and an upcoming novel. The layoffs came only weeks after the studio shipped Halo: Campaign Evolved, a campaign-only remake of the series' very first game.

A new report from well-connected YouTuber HiddenXperia (below) now claims the studio were once working on a multiplayer game that was part battle royale, part extraction shooter, citing anonymous sources who were caught up in the mass layoffs at Halo Studios.

The game reportedly started life as the mysterious Project Tatanka, a pure battle royale game that was in production sometime during and after Halo Infinite's development. Tatanka was apparently set on a huge playable space that stitched together multiple recognizable Halo multiplayer maps.

It's claimed that Project Tatanka soon turned into Project Ekur, said to have been an extraction shooter where multiple squads would drop down onto Zeta Halo before the map would shrink like in most battle royales. HiddenXperia's sources say players could control either a UNSC Spartan or a Banished Brute (for the first time ever), and fight both player-controlled squads or the computer-controlled Flood (Halo's zombie faction) who would infect parts of the map. The Flood outbreak would also serve as a narrative bridge connecting to an eventual Halo 7. Players could supposedly choose to work together at times to fight a huge map boss - think Gears of War: E-Day's Invasion events.

Sometime during Halo: Campaign Evolved's development, it's claimed the studio wanted to instead build a more traditional Halo multiplayer game in Unreal Engine, which led to that interesting extraction shooter idea to fall by the wayside. Even that project was eventually scrapped, according to the report, as more devs had to move over to help Campaign Evolved's troubled production.

Veteran Halo lead has suggestions for how Activision could actually make "the greatest Halo game ever," and they include hiring "Bungie, Halo Studios, and other laid-off folks"

They don't make many games like Call of Duty anymore. Activision's yearly blockbuster has an obscene budget and you can feel the dollars that made Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 at work in every shootout, in every shuffle up and down a pipe, in every cutscene.

Firing guns feels incredible, movement is phenomenal. Traversal has had a big upgrade: it's not Omnimovement – getting around instead feels closer to that seen in 2022's Modern Warfare 2 but there's a level of responsiveness at all times, even when other shooters typically restrict. Often your character will do what you want, as soon as you tell them to do it, with plenty of control even when mantling or sliding.

Gunfights feel responsive, with weapons often being easy to handle, and the impact of every bullet that meets the mark feeling meaningful. Shoot an AI opponent in the leg and they'll fall over and crawl for cover, or roll onto their back and wait for death. Shoot a player and the now-familiar hit sound effects will pile on as you pile on the lead – the feedback helps to stay on target, and popping opponents is almost disturbingly satisfying.

You may not like the way every gun handles in Modern Warfare 4, but you will find a gun that works for you. These fluid and engaging gunfights are the basis of the entire game, a foundation that everything else layers on top. But this year, those layers are also sublime.

Taking to Task Force

The campaign starts with Wu-Tang Clan's C.R.E.A.M. is playing as you wander through the streets of Seoul. People are going about their day, the convenience stores are stocked, and the city feels alive. Then North Korean forces attack, and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 gets down to business. There's a real sense of place even if in classic Call of Duty fashion it's still incongruous, letting you stroll around the convenience store swinging haymakers at the crisps as everyone chatters around you.

It's the start to a campaign that feels authentic in the way that few franchises really manage to pull off. Call of Duty is one of them, when it's on form, and I'm happy to report that Modern Warfare 4 is one of The Good Ones: it looks superb, moves at a relentless pace, and manages to bring years worth of Modern Warfare storytelling to a satisfying conclusion. When special forces soldiers are free to draw the line, who's to decide what's right or wrong?

It manages to do this while simultaneously cleaning the decks of most of the lingering threads from the disappointing Modern Warfare 3 (which we called "underwhelming" in our Modern Warfare 3 review). A lot of this is achieved by killing off a whole bunch of beloved characters, often brutally and without warning. Several times after a shocking death the camera lingers on dead characters to show you they're really dead and won't be returning in some of the post-launch content or a much maligned sequel Infinity Ward isn't responsible for.

Filling the void left by these deaths are a heap of new characters that I quickly gel with. Big bad Mads Mikkelsen is a lot of fun, but the standout is Lanny Joon as Ko who gives a stellar performance. Elsewhere, I squeak with delight when I recognize the voice of Luke Tennie from Apple TV's Shrinking. Most of these characters are lightly sketched out, but you're moving at such a quick pace you won't notice. Exposition is delivered breathlessly as you push from firefight to firefight, whispered in the quiet moments as you scurry around hoovering up ammo and armor plates from vanquished foes.

It's one of the most morally challenging Call of Duty campaigns in recent years, as the game pushes you gleefully to do things that don't fit with the usually narrow worldview of the series. One level has you playing as a North Korean soldier terrorizing a small village as you look for a dissident. How brutal you want to be is up to you but it's an unflinching level, let down slightly by the fact you're scuffling around the place looking for collectibles.

Price to see you

John Price, now on the run after assassinating General Shepherd in Modern Warfare 3, has grown a full beard instead of his ridiculous mustache and has to reckon with his own morality. There a few tough moments here: beating someone to death in an alleyway, facing off against "good guys" during fights through the Parisian streets, and even shooting-to-kill at former squad mates. After years of Price being the most recognizable good guy in the Call of Duty series, he's kind of a dick here, but trying to square that is part of the point.

Modern Warfare 4 has made me struggle with my own morality too, because I really wish it would relax its stance against civilian casualties. It's not a late heel turn for me, but the fact that innocents are in the middle of most of the gunfights and just clipping one results in an instant game over while enemies are unbothered has my ghillies in a twist. Have you ever tried to fire an assault rifle in fully automatic while hanging from the passenger seat of a speeding car without hitting civilians? I have, and it's pretty difficult.

These moments are rare frustrations in Modern Warfare 4's campaign, which is otherwise packed full of some of the series' most bombastic sequences to date. Several of the game's most impressive moments come early, with one highlight seeing you stalk a target through a club before you end up having to blast your way out.

Stranded, meanwhile, will be in 'best campaign mission' debates for years. The mission is an expansive playground that has you dropping in with nothing but a pistol and slowly gathering gear as you roll around the North Korean countryside exploring points of interest on foot and slowly gather yourself an arsenal, before attacking the objectives as you wish.

This is followed up by an amphibious assault on Seoul that feels like a full circle moment for Call of Duty, looking back to its D-Day origins. Call of Duty's campaigns have always been at their best when you're pushing against something impossibly well-defended, whether that's the beaches of Normandy or the cityscape of Seoul.

Unfortunately, the execution here is a little shaky and emblematic of some of Modern Warfare 4's biggest problems: if you stray too far from your commander, you're instantly killed with a tooltip popping up to tell you to follow your squad leader to exit the beach safely. It happens again and again, and after the freedom of Stranded, there's a disconnect when you're strapped back into the rollercoaster's straight line.

It's a shame, as, when Modern Warfare 4's missions hit, I'm reminded why the series' campaigns remain so important in a genre increasingly measured by online success and hours streamed.

It might still be junk food – even if this is a higher quality than limp-burger-like Black Ops 7 or Modern Warfare 3's attempts – but there are glimpses here of how Infinity Ward's modern approach to a military thriller can still push further. If only they'd let me off the leash a little.

Run DMZ

DMZ, Modern Warfare 4's headline addition, puts freedom front and center. Evolving on the mode first introduced in Call of Duty Warzone 2.0, this is a full-blooded extraction shooter taking place in Hajin City, a huge map that stretches between North and South Korea. Hajin City doesn't feel like a real place in the same way as Escape From Tarkov's miserable arenas, but it is expansive and well designed, with impressive verticality.

There are a few standout spots which seem to be tied into story missions that you can approach too. In one, me and my group pull off a daring heist at a casino, while a more frustrating mission sees us attempting to raid a robotics lab full of robocanines. Both missions have raid-like mechanics, and these more scripted experiences feel like they add something a bit different to the traditional extraction shooter experience.

Playing in this pseudo PVE-environment, DMZ could be one of my favorite multiplayer games released this year. You gear up, you drop into the map and prowl around shooting enemies and hoovering up loot until you either achieve the mission you came here to do, get scared and head for an extract, or get brutally murdered by another group of players or the AI.

Progress is rewarding. While your operators will level and be reset as you prestige, everything that gives you XP will also unlock new stations at your FOB – a safe area where you can recuperate between matches, spending currency and crafting recipes to make yourself more powerful.

The rewards are generous, and the end result is that DMZ feels less like an extraction shooter and more like a roguelike, which does take the sting out of getting ganked. Warzone's meteoric rise saw a point when casual players got pushed out in favor of more experienced players, so it remains to be seen how DMZ will evolve in future.

The nature of extraction shooters is such that not everyone will be pushed towards the same climatic conflicts, but the Call of Duty audience tends to favor an aggressive playstyle, and I'd expect this to filter down into DMZ.

Class warfare

Less revolutionary, but no less impressive, is the game's multiplayer. At this point, Call of Duty's multiplayer mode is iterative, more akin to FIFA (erm, I mean, EA Sports FC). This suits everyone fine. There's a new collection of weapons to unlock and upgrade, camouflage to earn and an unending supply daydreaming, clueless players to blast your way through in the name of hitting that prestige button as many times as possible.

Modern Warfare 4 is the best arena shooter on the market right now in terms of how smooth it feels and how engaging it is to play. The arsenal of (fictional, unlicensed) weapons offers up a horde of good choices for a variety of playstyles. I even like the maps this year. Transit 213 feels like one of the franchise's best already, taking the Shipment ideals but updating it for the modern day.

Sadly, the big negatives are largely the same. Killstreaks remain an anti-fun device that rewards players for kill streaks at the expense of the rest of the lobby. I will rally against killstreaks to my dying breath, and I'm not convinced it's even particularly fun for the person that's awarded them. The other thing is that the player base is… not particularly engaged. It's not hard to walk up on players that aren't listening at all, or to play on a team that has no concept of how to pick up objectives at their very feet. People should feel free to play however they want – and it's bound to get sweatier as players drop off – but I can't shake the sense some teammates and enemies alike are second screening Family Guy Funny Moments compilations.

The bigger additions to Modern Warfare 4's multiplayer are hit and miss: I like Inflation, a 6v6 mode where killed players drop cash and you have to scoop it up similar to the game's existing Kill Confirmed mode. The twist is that the amount of cash you drop is a percentage of what you're currently carrying, and the winners are the team holding the most cash when the round times out. This has the fascinating impact that the better players are holding more cash and thus are worth more when you kill them, and suddenly there's a frantic back and forth, a game that isn't over until it's very much over.

Other new modes are a mixed bag. Collateral seems determined to take over the Valorant / Counter-Strike 2 niche, doing away with standard weapon names and perks and offering purchases like "Power Pistol" or "Semi Auto Rifle" for a round-based attack and defend mode. It's confusing primarily because Call of Duty already has a round-based attack and defend mode, Search and Destroy.

Except, here, regenerating health is turned off and in its place there's the overarching economy. This is one of the headline additions to Modern Warfare 4 and I can't help but feel like it's a naked attempt to bring the gameplay of Counter-Strike to console players.

Frontline, meanwhile, is like Team Deathmatch with fixed respawns, which is a miserable exercise in repeating the same kill corridors over and over. Ground War Outpost is equally annoying, with a flood of people shooting you from every treeline, sandbag, or tower. You can't escape combat, but the furious sound of being in a Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 firefight is so intense that you can't really relax into it in the same way as you can in something like Battlefield 6 or Wardogs.

But it doesn't matter. The multiplayer is phenomenal, and if the campaign is junk food, this is closer to an all-you-can-eat buffet inviting you to snack on what works for you and steer clear of the bits that don't. I have a sneaking feeling that I am getting too old for Call of Duty, a feeling Modern Warfare 4 has reinforced. But even if I'm not as fast at the game's multiplayer as I used to be. Even if some of the additions seem meaningless, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 is, surprisingly, one of the best games this year, and it's phenomenal fun. Isn't that supposed to be the whole point?

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 was reviewed on PC, with a code provided by the publisher.

Answer the call by checking out our best Call of Duty games and best FPS games rankings for more to play next!

It's that time of year again - the new Call of Duty is imminent. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 arrives in exactly one week, and in chatting to one of the key developers, we learned about the cinematic influences for this installment, which include a certain thriller by the director of the newest Dune movies.

When asked about his touchstones for the tone and feel of Modern Warfare 4, Jeff Negus, the game's narrative director, immediately points to one film. "Sicario is one that I'm always checking against," he explains to GamesRadar+.

"I go, one, would Sicario do this? And two, how would they, if they did?" he adds. "That's because it's such a present, visceral, grounded experience, one where the morality is gray and where you're trying to figure out like, man, am I doing the right thing? Let alone, is there the right thing here?"

Sicario definitely lives in a world without any easy answers. Directed by Denis Villeneuve, it's about an FBI task force's efforts to take down a brutal leader of the Mexican cartel, and the story covers America's part in the web of organized crime and trade of illicit substances across both the US and Mexico.

If you haven't watched it, I highly recommend you do. Modern Warfare 4's story concerns South Korea defending itself against encroaching forces from North Korea. Different context, but there's plenty of room to explore similar themes of geopolitical agendas, government interference, and simply what the best solution is in a terrible situation.

Negus names Black Hawk Down and Zero Dark Thirty as examples of "more military" type pictures that the team at Infinity Ward are drawing on. "John Wick has some obvious presence in this one too," he reveals. "The biggest trick wasn't necessarily to find a reference; it was to try to make those reference references feel cohesive, like they're all part of the same story."

You can verify the studio's efforts yourself come October 23. A good amount of time to watch all the features mentioned.

The next Call of Duty will be another brand new sub-franchise like Vanguard 5 years ago, Activision confirms

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 (2026) will not be on Xbox Game Pass at launch, which may came as a point of frustration to those COD fans who were hoping that the company's involvement with Microsoft would mean a day-one Game Pass availability. However, that doesn't mean that it's not coming at some point in the future, as I'll lay out the details below.

When will Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 be on Xbox Game Pass?

According to an official press release from the development team, Modern Warfare 4 is not going to be available on Xbox Game Pass until "Holiday 2027," roughly one year after its initial launch and release.

Further details about exactly when in the year that will be are currently not available, but either way players can expect a long wait if they're dependant on Game Pass and don't want to purchase a copy for themselves. MW4 will still be available to buy on Xbox from its initial launch date of October 23, 2026, but not on the Game Pass subscription service.

If you want an alternative until then, there are still a multitude of Call of Duty games currently available on Xbox Game Pass to download as part of the service, going all the way back to Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War from 2020.

Alternatively, if you're less brand-loyal and just want to find an online military shooter to experience with friends, Battlefield 6 is also available for free on Game Pass.

© GamesRadar+. Not to be reproduced without permission.

Sniper Arena codes give you a chance at rolling for some rare weapons in this Counter Strike-style game. For each weapon that you roll, you'll be able to view stats including how many exist in the game and how many you own, thus confirming your percentage ownership overall.

This might not matter on some of the more common guns, but since you can trade and sell weapons in the Roblox FPS, rarer gear is worth getting your hands on, so you'll want to unlock as many crates as possible to be in with a chance of rolling something good. With that in mind, redeem the latest Sniper Arena codes to boost your arsenal.

For more general rewards that can be used across all Roblox experiences, we've got the current Roblox promo codes covered too.

All Sniper Arena codes

These are the Sniper Arena codes you can redeem right now:

• FREELIKE6 - 1x Random Mystic Knife, 1x Dream Case latest!
• FREECASE - 1x Release Case

Usually, Sniper Arena codes award players with various cases, and sometimes you might get a random knife, glove, or other item. Almost every time, though, your actual reward will be random, so you'd better hope your luck is in when you redeem these promos.

How to redeem Sniper Arena codes

To redeem Sniper Arena codes, from the lobby, click on the Settings cog button in the top left-hand corner. Next, you'll see a large yellow Redeem Code button. Hit this, then enter a code from above into the redemption box. Finally, click Redeem to claim your rewards.

Sniper Arena codes are not case-sensitive, so you only need to concentrate on getting the spelling correct, but you can always just copy and paste from above to make sure you get it right.

Expired Sniper Arena codes

• FREELIKE5 - 1x Mystic Knife
• FREELIKE4
• FREELIKE3
• FREELIKE2
• FREELIKE1

Plenty of Sniper Arena codes have already expired, so you should redeem any valid codes as soon as you see them to avoid missing out on rewards. I'll move any invalid promos down here as soon as they expire so you aren't disappointed.

© GamesRadar+. Not to be reproduced without permission.

While Activision thought porting Call of Duty: Black Ops 1 and 2 to PS4 and PS5 would be a good move, even the developer's highest brass didn't expect it to work as well as it did. As such, the success is being studied and, hopefully, brought to modern CoD entries.

"We are definitely leaning into the nostalgia of playing with your friends," chief marketing officer Tyler Bahl tells The Game Business. "The Black Ops ports were huge successes. We thought they would do well; we didn’t think they would do that well.

"But you can see that pent-up demand of being able to get back to the good old days of playing with your friends on a Friday night and having fun. Modern Warfare 4 does that. We took a lot of learnings from [those ports] and are starting to apply them to not only this game, but future games."

The trend of shadow dropping games aside, the buzz around the Black Ops 1 and 2 ports was positive earlier this year. According to analysts, they were regular chart toppers and even provided lessons to other remakes and remasters, like Halo.

While Activision hasn't released the numbers, around the same time, the developers shifted Black Ops 7's matchmaking to more closely resemble that of its successful predecessors.

Moving forward, it seems to be all in the spirit of change the Call of Duty series needs, with sales steadily dipping over the years to the point that the latest Battlefield reigned supreme as the best-selling shooter of 2026, something the developers of CoD haven't had to face for a long ol' time.

"Where we go with future games, we have to innovate," Bahl says. "What we heard from the audience is they want new or better or different. The landscape is changing right under our feet.

"You’re seeing new games being built overnight, and you’re seeing tastes change and how people want to play."

Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake doesn't even rate against GTA 6 and Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4 as the "biggest games of the year," Activision exec says.

Activision's yearly Call of Duty releases have been sequels in established sub-franchises for a few years now, with the 2026 release being a new Modern Warfare 4. But next year's tentpole release will be different, Activision says, admitting the series needs the kind of "tonal shift" it hasn't had since 2021's Call of Duty: Vanguard.

Talking to The Game Business, Call of Duty's marketing lead, Tyler Bahl, confirms next year's Call of Duty will be a "new sub-franchise" like Vanguard. This is in response to feedback from players who want something fresh and new from the prolific FPS series.

"It was not something that our community was looking for," says Bahl, referring to the string of Modern Warfare and Black Ops games. "They wanted something fresh, and even though there were different time settings, and ways to play the game with new features, that tonal shift is something that they were looking for.

"So, we've already stated that a future title is going to be a new sub-franchise and we've already laid the groundwork. But we're really excited about Modern Warfare 4, and that addresses some of that feedback."

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 is releasing on PS5, Xbox Series X, PC, and – for the first time on a Nintendo platform since Call of Duty: Ghosts in 2013 – Nintendo Switch 2 on October 23. We've yet to see what Bahl means when he says it addresses feedback from players wanting new experiences, but the campaign centers around the Korean Peninsula and the threat of a full-scale invasion that could lead to global destabilization. Other confirmed campaign locations include New York, Paris, and Mumbai.

Previously, multiplayer technical designer Jack Hoppus said Modern Warfare 4 should feel "ripped from the headlines" with a "boots on the ground" lens.

Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake doesn't even rate against GTA 6 and Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4 as the "biggest games of the year," Activision exec says

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake is generating a massive amount of buzz, but given the proximity of its November 5 release date to the launch of GTA 6. it's difficult not to compare the games. But according to Tyler Bahl, Activision's chief marketing officer, GTA and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 make up the real one-two punch of 2026.

"Well, no offense to Zelda, but I think these are the two biggest games of the year," Bahl tells The Game Business. There's no denying that GTA 6 is the biggest game of the year, but how do Zelda and Call of Duty compare?

Mat Piscatella of analyst group Circana notes that purchase intent for Modern Warfare 4 is sitting around 15%, meaning that the group figures about 15% of console and PC players in the US intend to pick up the game. For the Ocarina of Time remake, purchase intent is 10.4%, but remember – that's across all PC and console players, and the game is a Switch 2 exclusive.

"On a per potential player rate, the intent on Ocarina is far higher," Piscatella says.

Call of Duty remains a juggernaut, but it's one whose stature has certainly diminished over the years, and new releases don't carry the same weight they once did. Purchase intent on Modern Warfare 4 is down from Black Ops 7 last year, which in turn was considered enough of a disappointment to completely derail Xbox's Game Pass strategy.

So yes, Call of Duty is likely going to be bigger than Zelda. But if Modern Warfare 4 and Ocarina of Time are heavyweight boxers, then GTA 6 is Godzilla – a monster so massive that every other game is an ant by comparison. It doesn't matter if you're a little bigger than the other guy when you're both facing down a literal behemoth.

Even so, Bahl sees GTA 6's launch as a potential positive for Call of Duty. "I think, in a lot of ways, more people coming into the dashboards, more people taking the dust off their Xbox or PlayStation and starting to play again and loading up that experience is going to be more eyeballs for us," he says.

These are the best Call of Duty games.

Wardogs players, your wishes have been answered: you're getting your precious loadouts, even if the developers really don't like what you're probably going to do with them.

In a detailed reply to a Reddit user imploring developer Bulkhead to add custom loadouts to Wardogs, the company's CEO, Joe Brammer, confirms that the feature is coming and explains why it's taking so long. The TLDR is that the developers specifically opted out of loadouts to force players to experiment with their kits, which impedes public testing. For that reason, Bulkhead is holding off on adding loadouts until they feel everything's been put through its paces.

"Internally, we deliberately never gave the team loadouts," says Brammer. "If we had, everyone would have gravitated to their favourite setup and only ever tested with that. Withholding them forced the team to play with everything, which meant far more of the game got properly tested. The same thinking applies to players right now."

An issue with Wardogs' rebuy feature, which lets you quickly buy the same gear you used before you died, also informed Bulkhead's thinking on loadouts. As Brammer explains, during pre-alpha testing, the rebuy button appeared as a pop-up, and players were quick to use the feature even if they were repeatedly getting their asses kicked. "We’d expected them to go hunting for better weapons, and they didn’t," says Brammer. "They kept getting beaten, and a lot of them put the game down quickly.

"So we removed rebuy for a few tests, and lo and behold, feedback from new players got much more positive. We could see their unlock paths working as intended and sentiment improved." The rebuy feature hasn't been removed, but it's now been moved to "a less prominent button in the bottom left."

As Brammer explains, all of this led Bulkhead to the decision to delay Wardogs loadouts so that everyone had time to experiment with their kits before deciding on a familiar loadout. Brammer says that when loadouts are introduced – and the timing on that hasn't been confirmed – "they'll be something you unlock with in game cash through the meta game, a way to spend what you've earned on a smoother experience.

"Buy as many as you like, or none at all," he says. "Right now it's really important to us that players keep trying different weapons rather than settling on one setup, just as we needed our own team to, because otherwise it would heavily skew the balance data we rely on."

As commenters are quick to point out, not having a loadout option doesn't stop players from simply setting up the builds they like manually and continuing not to experiment with different weapons, and that adding loadouts would only streamline that process, but Bulkhead is definitely making decisions based on data that isn't publicly available. Regardless, for now Wardogs players can at least look forward to the option to remove another obstacle in between rounds of pew-pewing.

Steam hits new all-time high of over 43 million concurrent users just 7 months after its last record as Wardogs and Deadlock surge in popularity

Metro 2039 pre-orders are live and already flying off the shelves. You're in luck if you're simply securing a Standard Edition, but that bumper pack Collector's Edition is mostly out of stock today.

I say mostly because, depending on where you are you might get lucky here. Very in the UK, for example, still has these merch bundles up for grabs. Things are still moving fast here, though, so if you spot stock live it's worth jumping on sooner rather than later.

Metro 2039 pre-orders also have a middle child, a $109.99 / £94.99 Deluxe Edition packing an extra story DLC, digital and physical (hardback) art books, a digital soundtrack, and an exclusive steelbook. Even this one is running low in stock across the pond, but thankfully the US still has plenty of PS5 and Xbox availability.

The next instalment lands on February 4, 2027 and you'll find all the latest Metro 2039 pre-orders just below.

Pre-order Metro 2039 in the US

Pre-order Metro 2039 in the UK

Metro 2039 Collector's Edition pre-orders

We're also sorting out your GTA 6 pre-orders and finding the best Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time pre-orders on the shelves as well.

Tributes are pouring in for Duke Nukem and Sin level designer Richard 'Levelord' Gray, who passed away on October 12, 2026, aged 68.

Gray got his start making modded levels for Doom, making his official game development debut as a designer for fellow FPS Duke Nukem 3D, before going on to design levels for the likes of Quake, Half-Life: Opposing Force, and Counter-Strike: Condition Zero, as well as being a primary designer on Sin. His talent for level design had him dubbed 'Levelord,' with him being known to leave easter eggs hidden in maps, such as the "You're not supposed to be here – Levelord" message found in a number of his maps for players keen to explore.

Apogee founder Scott Miller recalls, "Richard was a stellar talent who joined the game industry in his 40's when Apogee hired him to join the Duke 3D team," calling him "a relentless hard worker, a fun teammate, and an overall great human." Longtime 3D Realms community manager Joe Siegler says he "was like the friend to everyone" and that "I had a great fortune to work with him directly for a couple of years."

3D Realms co-founder George Broussard adds, "Richard was a unique character. He didn't like a lot of feedback and meddling in his levels and he had a strong vision for them. This often caused some friction on the team but the results spoke for themselves." He adds, "Richard was always happy and smiling around the office and well liked by everyone."

Doom co-creator John Romero also pays tribute to Gray, saying "He was full of life, a gentle soul, and an excellent level designer. He was called 'Levelord' for a reason." Romero praises episodes two and three of Duke Nukem 3D, saying they "had such distinctive designs."

PC Gamer reports that Gears of War creator Cliff Bleszinski paid tribute to Gray on his private Twitter account, saying, "RIP Richard 'Levelord' Gray. You broke the mold, fella. Guy paved the way for so many level/environment designers."

Meanwhile, Slipgate Ironworks founder Frederik Schreiber calls him "without a doubt, one of the kindest people I've ever met in the games industry. Incredibly humble, remarkably intelligent, endlessly creative, and always a pleasure to be around," adding that despite his influential career, "he never carried himself as anything other than a genuinely good human being."

Destiny preservationists have managed to bring the original game to PC with plentiful bells and whistles, and it's caught the attention of Bungie boss Josh Deane.

YouTube user Flummoxed posted a 4K, 105 FOV, 60+ FPS demonstration of Destiny 1 running on PC with mostly correct behaviors. When it was picked up on Twitter by DestinyNostalgia, Deane shared the post, writing, "Seems like a pretty game, wonder if it will do well…"

With new Bungie leadership promising to stay committed to Destiny as they work to restore cut Destiny 2 content (but not, crucially, make any new content for it), some fans have interpreted Deane's words as a potential sign of things to come, or are at least willing to pin their hopes on it. The usual hype merchants, like YouTuber Aztecross, have unsurprisingly taken this inch for a mile.

Will Bungie revisit Destiny 1 in some form? With the studio down hundreds of developers, racing to prop up Marathon, and barely keeping the lights on in Destiny 2, I very much doubt it, and it would take more than a pithy tweet to convince me otherwise.

On Bluesky, aknumbers, lead developer of this D1 project, reacted to Deane's response, calling it "post 2 in my series 'is the funniest possible thing about to happen.'" Bungie reviving D1 while D2 dies would, indeed, be something to see.

What's undeniably significant is that Deane, head of product at Bungie as well as Marathon general manager, shared this D1 project at all without a cease and desist in tow.

The GitLab hub for this project – specifically, its Claude explainer – notes that it is "a preservation project on owned media. The goal is to keep a game that depended on retired online services playable, by writing a server that answers what the client asks for. The work is: observe what the client needs, build it, serve it, verify it."

"No game, patch or firmware assets are included or redistributed; the repository contains only original code and clean-room protocol documentation, kept deliberately separate from copyrighted content," the GitLab hub adds, distinguishing this D1 from some of the projects in today's vibe-coded recomp boom that have ended up in the iron sights of legal teams or other developers. This is hitched to the emulator shadPS4, but it is not a readily distributable copy of Destiny, which actually works in its favor.

Bloodborne PC port with full multiplayer can't get FromSoftware fans to vibe with vibe coding: "I will just use the emulator made by humans."