PC Players 'Penalized' by Console-Only Crossplay in Call of Duty

As the highly anticipated Season 3 arrives, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and Warzone undergo a major transformation affecting multiplayer experiences. Among the changes, Activision has introduced a new system separating Multiplayer Ranked Play from Call of Duty: Warzone Ranked Play, while also adding a dedicated Multiplayer-only setting for Quickplay, Featured, and Party Games matches. This update introduces crossplay options across three distinct settings: Multiplayer Ranked Play, Call of Duty: Warzone Ranked Play, and Multiplayer Unranked. These options allow players to enable or restrict matchmaking based on platform preferences when Season 3 launches on April 4.

The available crossplay choices include:

• On: Matches players across all platforms.
• On (Consoles Only): Limits matchmaking to console players only.
• Off: Restricts matchmaking to players on the same platform.

Activision warned that selecting On (Consoles Only) could lead to longer matchmaking queues, while choosing Off will significantly impact queue times. This console-exclusive crossplay option has sparked concerns among the PC community, fearing it could worsen already slow queue times in regular Multiplayer.

Historically, Call of Duty has faced issues with cheating, particularly on PC. Activision has been investing heavily in combating cheats, achieving notable success recently, such as Phantom Overlay shutting down and multiple cheat providers being taken down prior to the return of Verdansk in Warzone. Despite these efforts, the battle against cheating remains challenging.

Many PC players argue that Activision should prioritize improving anti-cheat measures rather than isolating PC players. However, TheXclusiveAce, a prominent Call of Duty YouTuber, highlighted that the majority of console players are unlikely to notice or utilize these new settings. As a result, PC players will likely continue to matchmake with the largest player pool, leaving the decision to limit matchmaking pools to those who consciously opt for console-only crossplay.

Season 3 promises to be a pivotal moment as Activision balances its fight against cheats with enhancing gameplay experiences. Stay tuned to see how these changes shape the future of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and Warzone.