At the end of June, Infinity Ward finally released the long-awaited mid-season update for both Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and the Warzone battle royale. The update added a slew of new content to both experiences, with most of the changes detailed in the long patch notes. However, the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare mid-season update also made some changes that weren't named in the patch notes, for one reason or another.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and Warzone players have taken notice of a number of surprise changes in the games since the mid-season update, though it's possible that there are more that have yet to be discovered. Some of these changes are subtle and don't make a big difference, but others potentially have huge implications for not only Modern Warfare, but the future of the Call of Duty franchise.
Here are all the secret changes made in the Modern Warfare and Warzone mid-season update.
Removal of "Okay" Gesture
After downloading the new update for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, players will notice that one of the gestures has been removed. The "okay" gesture is now gone from Modern Warfare and Warzone, with no official reason given as to why. However, even though Infinity Ward hasn't explicitly stated why the "okay" gesture was removed from Modern Warfare and Warzone, fans can make an educated guess based on current events in the world.
For those who may not have realized this, the "okay" gesture has been co-opted by white supremacists to be a white power symbol. This effort originated as a 4chan hoax, but it has since caught on with real-world white supremacists. It's likely that Infinity Ward removed the "okay" gesture as part of its crackdown on racism in its games, as people could potentially use it to troll others.
Longshot Distance Added to Killfeed
Call of Duty players may have noticed a big change made to the killfeed since downloading the new update. The killfeed in both Modern Warfare and Warzone has been tweaked so that it now shows players the distance of their longshot kills. This should make sniping especially satisfying, as it lets players know exactly how far they managed to land their kills.
Warzone Squad Member Names
Another subtle change players may have noticed is only apparent in the Warzone battle royale mode. The colors of the Warzone squad member names have been tweaked slightly, so that there is now a light blue color along with the purple, orange, and green.
Frank Woods Easter Egg
Call of Duty: Warzone has seemingly added a new easter egg that many fans think is referencing none other than Black Ops character Frank Woods. The easter egg comes in the form of a note that makes mention of the "spire box" and a mysterious prisoner. Leaked audio files and information from frequent Call of Duty franchise leakers have suggested that the "prisoner" in question is indeed Frank Woods, who will soon be coming to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and Warzone as a playable Operator.
The current theory is that Frank Woods will be coming to Modern Warfare and Warzone as part of the Season 5 update, expected to launch in early August. It's been said that Warzone will be used to reveal Call of Duty 2020, rumored to be a Black Ops reboot, so Woods' debut in the game makes sense. It will also go a long way in showing Call of Duty fans that Activision is serious about making Warzone a constant presence for the blockbuster franchise moving forward.
In the meantime, Call of Duty: Warzone players may want to keep an eye out while exploring Verdansk. Dataminers have previously found Black Ops series items like the RC-XD in the game files, so maybe there's even more that fans have yet to discover.
Counter-UAV
Yet another secret change made in the Warzone mid-season update is the introduction of Counter-UAVs in the battle royale. It's not entirely clear how exactly players can use Counter-UAVs in the game, but some have said it happens by having an entire squad trigger their UAVs at the same time. Counter-UAVs haven't been super-prevalent in the battle royale, but they have indeed happened, so more experimentation may be needed before fans fully understand how they're implemented.
Meanwhile, it's possible Counter-UAVs will be added to the Warzone Buy Stations at some point in the future, or be something that players can find lying around the battle royale map. It seems weird to make it so most Warzone players wouldn't even be aware of its existence, so maybe Counter-UAVs will get a higher profile later on.
There's plenty more for Call of Duty fans to look forward to in both Modern Warfare and Warzone. Modern Warfare Season 5 is expected to start in August, and it will likely bring with it plenty of new maps, game modes, and more. It's also quite likely that future updates for Modern Warfare and Warzone will continue to make secret changes to the games that aren't mentioned in the patch notes, so fans should keep that in mind as well.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare is out now for PC, PS4, and Xbox One.