Call of Duty is one of the most successful video game sagas of all time, with the latest entry continuing that trend. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 debuted on October 28 last year, quickly surpassed the $1 billion barrier, and became one of the most successful video game releases of 2022 in the United States.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2's long-awaited Season 2 update did not arrive on the originally announced date, as it was delayed due to the desire to address players’ feedback. Unfortunately, one thing from fans' lengthy wish lists was not addressed in the first half of the season, and that is the implementation of more original 6v6 maps. In fact, players have not seen a 6v6 map that is not a remaster released in over 120 days, which is a startling amount of time. While the drought will soon be over, it does highlight an ongoing issue with the series.
Modern Warfare 2 Has Not Released Any New Original 6v6 Map Since Release
When Modern Warfare 2 Season 2 arrived a few weeks ago, it added two "new" maps to the roster: Dome and Valderas Museum. However, fans took issue with Activision calling these new maps, as they come from older entries in the series. Dome is a new version of an original map that already appeared in other installments of the series. It was originally released in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, and later it could be played again in Call of Duty: Ghosts as a remake under the name of Unearthed.
And, on the other hand, Valderas Museum was already available to play in the beta version of Modern Warfare 2, but it was mysteriously removed on the game's launch day. This map, located in Spain, proved quite controversial, with many players complaining that it was too large for 6v6 gameplay and had too many open lines of sight.
Some fans have speculated that the absence of the map had something to do with its striking resemblance to the Getty Museum in Los Angeles. They say that both the exterior and interior appearance was taken by Infinity Ward without the permission of the museum's management, which caused them to remove the map as the company did not want to get involved in legal issues over copyright.
Either way, Modern Warfare 2 fans have pointed out that the title suffers from a lack of content compared to the free-to-play battle royale Warzone 2 and even its DMZ mode. In fact, Activision has not released any original 6v6 maps for Modern Warfare 2 in the many months that have passed since its launch in October last year. Season 1 added fan-favorite maps, Shoot House and Shipment, but the former was playable in Modern Warfare 2019 and the latter is found in many Call of Duty games.
Fortunately, things could finally be turning around, as the launch of Season 3 Reloaded on March 15 will bring the first original post-launch 6v6 map to the game. Hopefully, the snowy Himmelmatt Expo will be worth the wait. Perhaps Season 3 will prove more fruitful and bring multiple original maps, but overall, Modern Warfare 2's first few Seasons should be a lesson when crafting future Call of Duty games. While remasters are welcome, they should never completely overshadow original content.
Call Of Duty 2023 Could Be More of the Same
While it has been suggested that there may not be a new physical installment in the Call of Duty series this year, for the first time in decades, Activision has been emphatic in clarifying that there will be a new premium game, which is expected to be a kind of expansion for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 developed by Sledgehammer Games. Apparently, it will inherit all the maps and game modes from the current multiplayer, and it will add a handful of new content, including a fresh campaign, to justify its price tag. Therefore, Activision will not market it as DLC, but as a full-priced installment.
For better or worse, this expansion-like game is also rumored to feature all the maps from 2009's Modern Warfare 2. Considering that 2022's MW2 has already relied too much on remakes, this feels a lot less exciting than it should. Maps like Highrise and Terminal may be beloved, but they too are old, and the current game is in need of some truly new content. While 2024's release is apparently set to be a Persian Gulf War-inspired Call of Duty, developed by Treyarch, it seems like remasters could dominate the multiplayer map pools for the next few years.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is available on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.