MODERN WARFARE 3 SEASON 3 GAMEPLAY, CONTENT AND DOWNLOAD

MW3 & Warzone Season 3 begins on April 3rd, at 9am PT, 11am CT, 12pm EST. In-Game timers confirms Modern Warfare III Season 3 begins early April for Multiplayer, Warzone and Zombies. Season 3 for Warzone and MW3 will be a heavily anticipated content drop, featuring Rebirth Island, NEW Zombies updates, more weapons and more! Here’s Everything you need to know about Early Gameplay, Content and the Download for MWIII & Warzone Season 3:

MW3 SEASON 3 START TIMES & DOWNLOAD

According to the in game battlepass timer, MW3 Season 3 is scheduled to launch on April 3rd. So far, Modern Warfare III has been on track with every new seasonal drop, without any delays to the beginning or middle of any season. If April 3rd does stick, then expect all content to become playable at 9am PT, 11am CT, and 12pm EST.

As we’ve seen with previous seasonal updates, the preload for new content should become available first on Playstation and Battlenet around two days before the season begins. Around April 1st or April 2nd is when players should be able to download any necessary updates to prepare for Season 3.

MW3 SEASON 3 FILE SIZE & PRELOAD

Judging from the download size of previous MW3 Seasons, the file should be approximately 16-30GB in size, which is subject to change. While Warzone is receiving a new resurgence map, MW3 Zombies is also expected to receive an extremely large amount of content which may increase the file size.

During the last few seasons of MW2, larger than usual title updates ended up decreasing the overall game size in exchange for needing to download 20-40GB of data for the new content. It’s likely that future MW3 seasons will have significantly smoother download windows than MW2 did.

NEW BATTLE PASS AND BLACKCELL

Players will receive a new Battle Pass and BlackCell offering in Season 3 that will be available in MW3, Warzone, and Warzone Mobile:

“The BlackCell offering for Season 3 grants you an extensive collection of digitized and animated Operator Skins in shimmering gold with vertical glyph streams, plated tattoo work, golden glitch-wear masks, black fabric, and vivid teal blue accent accoutrements! A variety of finely crafted premium items are yours, with full access to the Season 3 Battle Pass. BlackCell owners can enter the Season 3 Battle Map through the exclusive BlackCell Sector, instantly unlocking 20 Battle Token Tier Skips to quickly unlock items across the adjacent Sectors.”

Call of Duty Blog

If you want to learn more about the Season 3 Battle Pass, check out our article here!

NEW WEAPONS

Season 3 of MW3 will bring NEW weapons usable in MW3, Warzone, Zombies, and Warzone Mobile! Here’s the new weapons players are getting at launch AND in-season:

FJX HORUS SMG (LAUNCH – BATTLE PASS SECTOR 8)

“An ultra-compact SMG with best-in-class CQC damage and mobility.”

Call of Duty Blog

MORS SNIPER RIFLE (LAUNCH – BATTLE PASS SECTOR 4)

“This single-load railgun delivers a high-damage payload with excellent velocity and penetration.”

Call of Duty Blog

The MORS will NOT be available in Warzone Mobile at the launch of Season 3, but will come at a later date.

GLADIATOR MELEE (LAUNCH – BATTLE PASS SECTOR 15)

“A compact, concealable punch knife that was initially used by gamblers and politicians.”

Call of Duty Blog

BAL-27 ASSAULT RIFLE (MID-SEASON)

“A bullpup prototype weapon designed to increase fire rate over time while the trigger is squeezed. The first 4 shots are slower to fire but highly accurate.”

Call of Duty Blog

If you look at the Bal-27 closely, you can see the ATLAS Corporation logo, meaning the ATLAS Corporation is officially in the current canon!

NEW AFTERMARKET PARTS

There are tons of new Aftermarket Parts for MW3 and (for the first time) MW2 weapons that seem to be REALLY solid in Season 3:

• JAK Cutthroat (Weekly Challenge Unlock)
  • Compatibility: MCW (MWIII), MTZ (MWIII), M4 (MWII) (Assault Rifle), and AMR9 (MWIII) (Submachine Gun) Platforms
    • This 3D-printed stock provides an unrivaled combination of speed and stability while aiming down sights.
• JAK Revenger Kit (Weekly Challenge Unlock)
  • Compatibility: BP50 (MWIII) (Assault Rifle)
    • This conversion kit turns the BP50 into a CQC legend. A 9mm caliber conversion with shortened receiver and high-capacity magazine.
• JAK Jawbreaker (Weekly Challenge Unlock)
  • Compatibility: KV Broadside (MWII) (Shotgun)
    • Converts this Shotgun into a hard-hitting, automatic Battle Rifle.
• JAK Shadow Titan Kit (Weekly Challenge Unlock)
  • Compatibility: Bruen Mk9 (MWIII) (Light Machine Gun)
    • Converts the Bruen Mk9 into a compact and integrally suppressed light support weapon chambered in 300 blackout.
• JAK Patriot (Weekly Challenge Unlock)
  • Compatibility: M16 (MWII) (Assault Rifle)
    • Converts the M16 into a fully automatic rifle with a heavy ported barrel built to provide superior recoil control and firing aim stability.
• Wardens (Weekly Challenge Unlock)
  • Compatibility: Lockwood Mk2 (MWII) (Marksman Rifle)
    • Relive the glory days, stir up the hornet’s nest, and take down your enemies, leaving no loose ends with these museum-worthy akimbo lever-action Shotguns.
• JAK Atlas Kit (Weekly Challenge Unlock)
  • Compatibility: AMR9 (MWIII) (Submachine Gun)
    • Converts the AMR9 into an extremely lethal and accurate 5-round burst carbine chambered in 556.
• Photonic Charge Barrel ([[REDACTED]] Unlock)
  • Compatibility: MORS (MWIII) (Sniper Rifle)
    • This hyper-advanced barrel is more than simply a barrel. Holding the trigger charges the rifle and releasing fires a single, high-power energy projectile.

MULTIPLAYER CONTENT

Season 3 of MW3 has given players tons of core maps for Multiplayer! SIX 6v6 Core Maps are coming to MW3 in Season 3:

6 STAR (LAUNCH) | 6V6 CORE

EMERGENCY (LAUNCH) | 6V6 CORE

GROWHOUSE (LAUNCH) | 6V6 CORE

TANKED (LAUNCH) | 6V6 CORE

CHECKPOINT (MID-SEASON) | 6V6 CORE

GRIME (MID-SEASON) | 6V6 CORE

NEW GAME MODES

Players will also receive FIVE game modes during Season 3:

• CAPTURE THE FLAG
  • Both teams will need to steal the enemy flag and return it to their base. If your flag is taken while you have the enemy flag, one team will have to recapture their flag before taking the opposing flag.
• ONE IN THE CHAMBER
  • Free-for-all match where everyone has one bullet in the chamber that can one shot kill anyone. If you miss, you need to melee to get a bullet back (can stack bullets this way).
• MINEFIELD
  • Matches of Kill Confirmed, Domination, and Hardpoint where when you kill an enemy, they drop a Proximity Mine at their corpse.
• ESCORT
  • One team must escort a Payload to it’s destination while one team attacks the other and tries to stop the Payload.
• VORTEX VIR.RUS MAINFRAME
  • New Vortex Playlist that features all Vortex maps and features new Arcade Mode where gameplay modifiers can affect your match.

NEW PERKS AND EQUIPMENT

Players are getting new perks and new equipment to use:

GUNSLINGER VEST (LAUNCH)

• Secondary Weapon specialist.
  • Weapon Slots: No Primary Slot, Secondary Weapon Slot (2)
  • Equipment Slots (4): Tactical (2), Lethal, Field Upgrade
  • Gear Slots (4): Gloves, Boots, Gear (2)
• The following benefits apply to Secondary Weapons only:
  • Refreshes stamina on kill.
  • Improved reload speed.
  • Reload while sprinting.
  • Increases weapon swap speed by a minimum of 40% (swap speed bonus differs between weapons).
  • Spawn with maximum Reserve Ammo.

MODULAR ASSAULT RIG (LAUNCH)

• Lethal and Tactical scavenger.
  • Equipment Slots (5): Tactical (2), Lethal (2), Field Upgrade
  • Gear Slots (3): Gloves, Boots, Gear
  • Start with maximum Reserve Ammo. Resupply Lethals and Tacticals from dead players.

COMPRESSION CARRIER (LAUNCH)

• Assisted healing and gas protection.
  • Equipment Slots (1): Lethal
  • Gear Slots (3): Gloves, Boots, Gear
  • Immediately regenerate health after a kill or objective capture. Reduced effects from gas grenades.

REINFORCED BOOTS (LAUNCH)

• Immune to movement reduction effects.

HIGH-GAIN ANTENNA (LAUNCH)

• The minimap is zoomed out for you and nearby allies.
• Enemies remain on radar longer for you and nearby allies if a nearby ally has the CCT Comms Vest Perk.
• See nearby ally radar pings from Intel Jacker and compass indicators from nearby ally Signal Jammers.

EMD MINE (MID-SEASON)

• Proximity-triggered mine that sticks to surfaces. Once triggered, the mine shoots out tracker devices that reveal the enemy location and direction until removed.

ENHANCED VISION GOGGLES [EVG] (MID-SEASON)

• Toggle between normal vision and enhanced vision with integrated target highlighting. Has limited battery.

WARZONE CONTENT

Rebirth Island gets a MASSIVE spotlight for it’s long-awaited return!

NEW GAME MODES AND PUBLIC EVENTS

Warzone will be getting BOTH NEW game modes and public events in Season 3:

• MODE: WARZONE BOOTCAMP (LAUNCH)
  • Urizkstan BR match with 20 real players and 24 bots for those new to the game, or who need to learn the skill gap.
• MODE: REBIRTH RESURGENCE (LAUNCH)
  • Resurgence on the map that started it all… Rebirth Island.
• MODE: REBIRTH RESURGENCE LOADED (MID-SEASON)
  • Resurgence on Rebirth, but when you die you change to one of your other loadouts. You will also spawn into the match with your favorite loadout.
• MODE: REBIRTH LOCKDOWN (MID-SEASON)
  • The Lockdown mode from Vondel, but it’s now on Rebirth! Squads will need to capture hardpoints around the map.
• MODE: REBIRTH INFIL STRIKES (IN-SEASON)
  • POIs in Rebirth (Lighthouse, Prison, Water Tower) are destroyed prior to infil meaning you’ll have to learn a new way to play Rebirth in this game mode.
• PUBLIC EVENT: GULAG: CLIMB AND PUNISHMENT (LAUNCH)
  • Two ladders will spawn when this event occurs in the gulag. It’s up to you and your enemy whether or not both of you will escape, or only one. Hopefully, players will NOT kill each other when this event happens.
• PUBLIC EVENT: HEAVY ARMOR (MID-SEASON)
  • Prior to infil, there’s a chance this event will happen which gives every player an extra armor plate for the rest of the match. Stacks with Tempered Plate Carrier.

NEW CONTRACTS

Firstly, there are new contracts for Rebirth Island ONLY:

SPY DRONES

Once activated, an area on Rebirth will have Spy Drones overhead you’ll have to destroy. Rewards could be:

• Armor Plates
• Redeploy Drones
• Advanced UAV

Enemy operators can steal these rewards if they get there before you, so be quick!

RESURGENCE CHAMPION’S QUEST

Finally, resurgence is getting it’s own Champion’s Quest. This time, it’s on Rebirth Island…

This is going to be the sweatiest and possible hardest champions quest yet. Lock in, bring the best squad, and prepare for domination. You can earn:

• Animated Calling Card
• Charm
• Sticker
• Weapon Camo
• Operator Skin

NEW EQUIPMENT

There will be new Equipment for players to try out in Season 3 of Warzone ONLY on Rebirth Island:

• FIELD UPGRADE: SQUAD RAGE (LAUNCH)
  • Battle Rage, but when activated there’s an area of effect that can allow your squad to access your Battle Rage benefits as long as they stay in the zone.
• FIELD UPGRADE: UTILITY BOX (MID-SEASON)
  • Supply box that gives you both ammo and armor!
• KILLSTREAK: FORESIGHT
  • Killstreak you can either purchase from a Buy Station or pick up off the ground that allows you to see EVERY future gas circle!
• PERK PACKAGE: SPECIALIST
  • Gives you every applicable perk in Warzone and even stays after picking your loadout for the remainder of the match.

Here’s every perk Specialist will give you:

• Perk Slots 1 and 2 (all Perks active): Battle Hardened, Double Time, E.O.D., Focus, Irradiated, Mechanic, Mountaineer, Scavenger, Shrapnel, Sleight of Hand, Spotter, Strong Arm.
• Perk Slot 3 (all Perks active): Cold-Blooded, Escapist, Payout, Primed, Quick Fix, Resupply, Stalker, Survivor, Tempered, Tracker.
• Perk Slot 4 (all Perks active): Birdseye, Combat Scout, Flex, Ghost, High Alert, Resolute, Shrouded.

NEW FEATURES

There will be new features on Rebirth Island that add some fun extras to do while playing:

BIOMETRICS SCANNER (LAUNCH)

This feature allows you to check your statistics in-game of which also gives you specific rewards based on your identity. Each player will have a keycard that can vary in rarity when you scan your keycard:

• Bronze (common)
• Silver (relatively common)
• Gold (uncommon)
• Platinum (rare)
• Polyatomic (very rare)
• Orion (incredibly rare)

“The percentage chance of receiving a specific rarity is [[REDACTED]], but your chances improve if a squadmate is close by during a scan, or if you repeat the scanning process the next in-real-life (IRL) day.”

Call of Duty Blog

If you loot an enemy’s keycard, you can take their rarity keycard to a Buy Station and trade it in for a variety of rewards:

• Bronze: Random ammunition, Cash ($), Armor Plates, Lethals, and Tacticals.
• Silver: Random ammunition, Cash ($$), Armor Plates, Lethals, Tacticals, Perk Package.
• Gold: Random ammunition, Cash ($$$), Armor Plates, Lethals, Tacticals, Perk Package, Armored Vest, Field Upgrade.
• Platinum: Random ammunition, Cash ($$$$), Armor Plates, Lethals, Tacticals, Perk Package, Armored Vest, Field Upgrade, Killstreak.
• Polyatomic: [[REDACTED]] free equipment selects at the Buy Station, [[CLASSIFIED]] Weapon.
• Orion: [[REDACTED]] free equipment selects at the Buy Station, [[CLASSIFIED]] Weapons, additional [[RECACTED]].

There will also be additional rewards if you KEEP RETURNING to the scanner each game (including a camo and a “Most Secret” communication). Possible Easter Eggs with this feature!

VARIABLE TIME OF DAY (IN-SEASON)

Rebirth Island will have different times of day as Season 3 progresses. You could either play in bright midday, sunset, or a foggy atmosphere! According to the Blog, there will be unique items that spawn during these events to help squads out!

SMART DISPLAYS (LAUNCH)

Similar to the banners in Apex Legends, these Smart Displays can show Konni Propaganda, the highest kill leader, or players with high rarity keycards! Check these out when you find one so you know who to hunt down, or who to avoid entirely.

SQUAD ASSEMBLE AND SQUAD PLAY BONUS (LAUNCH)

This feature is present in both Resurgence and Battle Royale. This allows squads to earn extra rewards if they land with their squadmates! The rewards include:

• Mark the Landing Destination: Each squad member receives XP if any teammate pings the location where you land before the first squad member touches the ground.
• Full Squad Landing (Quads, Trios): Land as a full squad for a sizeable XP and Cash bonus, as well as a Supply UAV.
• Majority Squad Landing (Quads, Trios): Land with two other members (Quads) or one other member (Trios) for a reasonably XP and Cash bonus, as well as a Supply UAV.
• Half Squad or Duo Squad Landing (Quads, Duos): Land with one other teammate (Quads) or land with your teammate (Duos) and both of you receive a modest XP and Cash bonus.

You may see something in the image and the rewards talking about “Half or Majority Squad Landing”. These are specific radii that show you where to land to get these rewards. They show up after the first member lands on the map:

• Full Squad Landing (Quads): All four Operators’ landing radii overlap with at least one other.
• Full Squad Landing (Trios): All three Operators’ landing radii overlap with at least one other.
• Two Half Squad Landing (Quads): Two pairs of Operators land separately, with each pair’s landing radius overlapping.
• Majority Squad Landing (Quads): Three of the four Operators land with overlapping radii, and one Operator lands separately.
• Majority Squad Landing (Trios): Two of the three Operators land with overlapping radii, and one Operator lands separately.
• Duo Squad Landing (Duos): For Duos, both squadmates need to land with their radii overlapping.

WEAPON TRADE STATION (IN-SEASON)

Returning feature that allows players to trade weapons for more loot:

• Common Weapon (Gray): 0 or 1 Attachment
• Uncommon Weapon (Green): 2 Attachments
• Rare Weapon (Blue): 3 Attachments
• Epic Weapon (Purple): 4 Attachments
• Legendary Weapon (Orange): 5 Attachments
• Ultra Weapon (Orange): 5+ Attachments

You can earn Gas Masks, Money, or even the Specialist Perk Package if you’re lucky!

UNSUBSTAINED INTEL (LAUNCH)

This is a Easter Egg of sorts for you and your squad to discover on Rebirth Island. It seems Makarov has been up to no good on the island like phones, keycards, and a goodwill and trust codenamed “Exe.”

BUNKER ENTRANCES (IN-SEASON)

On Urzikstan ONLY, you and your squad can open bunkers and possibly earn more rewards by exploring such places. It’s possible we may get an Easter Egg similar to the “Bunker #11 Easter Egg” from Verdansk!

NEW EVENTS

There will be new events in Season 3 that will run from the launch on April 3rd until Season 3 Reloaded:

• EVENT: Godzilla x Kong: Battle for Hollow Earth – Launch: April 3 to 10
  • Discover the mysterious power of the Monsterverse’s mightiest Titans. Earn XP to unlock exceptional rewards. Equip the Godzilla, Kong, Shimo, or Skar King Operator Skins for a boost.
• EVENT: Blaze Up (MWIII) – Launch Window
  • How high are you? Er, I mean, Hi! How are you? Complete event challenges for exclusively dank rewards. Warning: Event may cause the munchies.
• EVENT: High Trip (WZ) – Launch Window
  • Jump into this limited-time event and get ready for some heightened fights. Collect gummies to sharpen your senses and smoke out the competition.
• EVENT: Vortex: Vi.Rus Mainframe (MWIII, WZ) – In-Season:
  • It’s not a system error: Vi.Rus has made his way into the Vortex. Earn XP to unlock rewards. Equip the Bacillus Skin from the Tracer Pack: Horsemen: Vi.Rus Ultra Skin for a boost.

NEW PRESTIGE CHALLENGES

There will be new Prestige Challenges and Level Cap for MW3, Warzone, and Warzone Mobile:

Prestige 10: Unlocked at Rank 500

• Emblem Reward
• MP: Four Tiered Calling Card Challenges, one Prestige 10 Mastery Calling Card Challenge.
• MWZ: Four Tiered Calling Card Challenges, one Prestige 10 Mastery Calling Card Challenge.

Prestige 11: Unlocked at Rank 550

• Emblem Reward
• MP: Four Tiered Calling Card Challenges, one Prestige 11 Mastery Calling Card Challenge.
• MWZ: Four Tiered Calling Card Challenges, one Prestige 11 Mastery Calling Card Challenge.

Prestige 12: Unlocked at Rank 600

• Emblem Reward
• MP: Four Tiered Calling Card Challenges, one Prestige 12 Mastery Calling Card Challenge.
• MWZ: Four Tiered Calling Card Challenges, one Prestige 12 Mastery Calling Card Challenge.

Prestige 13: Unlocked at Rank 650 and the level cap until the end of Season 3.

• Emblem Reward
• MP: Four Tiered Calling Card Challenges, one Prestige 13 Mastery Calling Card Challenge.
• MWZ: Four Tiered Calling Card Challenges, one Prestige 13 Mastery Calling Card Challenge.
• Blueprint Reward: “Supreme Killer” Blueprint for the Holger 556 AR. Prove your Prestige with this Blueprint that favors enhanced range and recoil control and comes with four Attachments.

FREE TRIAL WEEK

There will be a Free Trial week that will allow players to try MW3 Season 3 on April 4th – April 8th! Make sure you hop in and play if you don’t own MW3!

THE END

Checkout this video for an in-depth breakdown of everything that’s known so far about MW3 Season 3:

Stay connected with any new updates on MW3 Zombies as they release on our Twitter, and our YouTube Channel!