Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Promises No Loot Boxes, Explains Earnable Battle Pass System

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare has been met with extremely positive feedback following its beta and early-on previews. With loot boxes being so prevelant, including other Call of Duty titles, Activision is making it clear that Modern Warfare won’t have any loot boxes and that the Battle Pass system isn’t what people think. 

To clarify the game’s economy, the studio behind the upcoming shooter took to the game’s blog to clear up a few concerns. According to the most recent blog post: 

: 

• We are introducing a new Battle Pass system, not a loot box system.
• All functional content that has an impact on game balance, such as base weapons and attachments, can be unlocked simply by playing the game.
• The new Battle Pass system will allow players to see the content that they are earning or buying.  Battle Passes will launch timed to new, post-launch live seasons, so you can unlock cool new Modern Warfare-themed content that matches each season.
• With the new Battle Pass system, players will be able to earn COD Points by playing the game. 
• There will be both a Free Stream and a Premium Stream of content in the Battle Pass System in Modern Warfare. New base weapons will be earned through gameplay, simply by playing Modern Warfare. Functional attachments for base weapons can be unlocked through gameplay as well just like in the game’s Beta.
• The Battle Pass and the In-Game Store will feature a variety of cosmetic content that does not impact game balance.

The team added, “The Battle Pass System for Modern Warfare will not launch when the game releases on October 25th. Here’s why: First and foremost, we are all focused on making the Day One experience awesome. Second, it’s important to us that everyone who is playing Modern Warfare has the chance to work their way through the new game and unlock all the rewards that are waiting for you. We expect to launch this system for Modern Warfare later this year.” 

Some players have brought up their concerns that the economy will evolve post-launch to revert back to borderline pay-to-win practices (or for intricate content being locked behind pay walls), and this is something that Activision knows will take action, not words, to prove: “We recognize this will take time to fully demonstrate. Please know we are committed to delivering a fair system guided by the principles we’ve outlined here, and will continue to monitor feedback and player engagement to help us achieve that goal.”

You can learn even more about Call of Duty: Modern Warfare with our previous breakdown here before it arrives on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC on October 25th.