The Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 'Rank Up XP' promotion spotted by Forbes will put codes on bottles of Mountain Dew and packets of Doritos crisps that give players double XP time in-game.

So when you take a headshot from a high level sniper rifle, you won't be able to tell if they've played more of the game guzzled a truckload of potato chips. Perhaps the guy heading a server with every unlock is quite good at Call of Duty, or he's just consumed more litres of luminous energy drink than you.

There's apparently no limit to the lengths marketers are prepared to go to shift a big new game, but cheapening your entire unlock and experience system for the sake of a drinks promotion crosses a line we didn't even know existed.

Where will this end? They should rename the series Call of Dewty and replace all of the grenades with exploding cans of soft drink. Claymores can be packets of Doritos that explode when enemies approach, shredding them with a cloud of tasty nacho shrapnel. Then they'll see a kill cam replay of their maizy death, sponsored by Pepsi, of course.

 
Call of Duty: Black Ops Rezurrection is out this Thursday, bringing us the mad new zombie map, Moon, and four other remastered zombie survival missions from Call of Duty: World at War. Yes, it's yet another Call of Duty: Black Ops map pack, but this may well be the best of the bunch. The zombie maps have consistently been the best part of the rest of the DLC, with brand new enemies and some memorable weapons. The Moon map will have its own selection of mad weaponry, including moon grenades. See them action in the truly disgusting new Rezurrection trailer above. Everyone will earn double XP this weekend in Black Ops to celebrate the last bit of CoD DLC before Modern Warfare 3 arrives. But will it be worth $14.99 / £11:49? Hmmm.

 
I've put up this trailer again, because words alone can barely describe the madness of the Moon map in the upcoming Call of Duty: Black Ops Rezurrection map pack, otherwise known as CODBLOR. It's been out for three weeks already on the Xbox, but Joystiq note that it will finally make it to our machines next week, on Thursday September 22.

As well as the Moon map, Rezurrection contains four other zombie survival arenas ported over from World at War. It will cost (gasp) $14.99 / £11:49. At least you're paying for the zombies mode. Who would have thought the most entertaining bit of a Call of Duty game would be a zombie mode? I remember riding across the desert to storm the gun batteries of El Alamein way back in Call of Duty 2. Those were the days...

To celebrate the release of the new map pack, there will also be a double XP weekend following Rezurrection's release. Woot!

Infinity Ward creative strategist, Robert Bowling has been answering questions on Twitter in the aftermath of the Call of Duty XP event that happened over the course of the weekend. Dedicated Servers for Modern Warfare 3 have already been confirmed, but Bowling also mentions that LAN play will be possible, which certainly wasn't a given, considering how Modern Warfare 3 will tie in heavily with Activision's online Call of Duty Elite service.

"Yes, #MW3 has LAN," Bowling tweets, "along with detailed class restriction control + default class creation option."

The class restriction control will give LAN gamers the ability to "restrict any weapon, equipment, perk, deathstreak, secondary, attachment, ANYTHING from being used when setting up game," Bowling adds.

In response to Twitter questions asking about PC specific support, Bowling says that he's been "working on that goal for a long time. Dedicated Servers, Public Server Files, & giving control back to the player. #MW3 PC"

He also drops a few more facts. Modern Warfare 3 will get its own updated version of the theatre mode that made its debut in Call of Duty: Black Ops. That'll let players cut their own movies and upload them to Call of Duty Elite. At Call of Duty XP, Infinity Ward revealed that Call of Duty Elite subscribers would get more online storage space for their films.

Finally, as expected, there won't be any zombies in Modern Warfare 3. The popular zombies mode has been a feature of Treyarch's entries in the Call of Duty series. "although we do have a very different style of co-op in our new infinite wave based Spec Ops Survival mode," tweets Bowling. You can see footage of the Spec Ops mode in action in the recent Spec Ops trailer.

 
The latest trailer for Modern Warfare 3 shows more mutiplayer violence and some new toys, like a deployable anti-air battery that can take down airborne attackers, which should hopefully even things up when the best players start unleashing Modern Warfare 3's most devastating kill streaks. Also shown, the familiar XP rewards. Payback! Buzzkill! One shot kill! First blood! Headshot! What do you think of pop-up XP numbers and shot awards satisfying and addictive, or a recurring nuisance?

At the keynote address at this weekend's Call of Duty XP event, Activision revealed the price of the premium subscription for the upcoming Call of Duty Elite service. It'll cost £34.99 / $49.99 a year, and give subscribers access to all of Modern Warfare 3's map packs early as part of the price. Premium players will also be able to enter competitions to win real world prizes and watch pro-commentated match reports and strategy videos.

Subscribers will also have access to Elite TV. This will deliver a series of video features including "Noob Tube," in which Arrested Development stars Will Arnett and Jason Bateman will narrate community-nominated footage, and live action series Friday Night Fights, headed up by producers Ridley and Tony Scott. According to Activision CEO Eric Hirshberg, this will involve getting “real life rivals together in multiplayer to battle it out COD style.” Policemen will fight firemen, Democrats will fight Republicans, Call of Duty fans will fights Battlefield fans. Granted, the last contest wasn't announced, but it'd be fun to watch.

Call of Duty Elite's free features include the option to tailor your load-out when away from your PC using an iOS/ Android app. Free members will also be able to create custom leaderboards, keep track of their game stats, upload videos, create clans and even join up with friends using Facebook. Elite is set to launch alongside Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 on November 8.

Wondering what the Call of Duty XP event was actually like? Will Porter was there, taking in the sights. Read about his impressions of the show in our Call of Duty XP live dispatch.

Howard Hughes built the first hangar entirely out of wood in 1943, convinced that structures made of metal were intrinsically unhygenic. In the cavernous interior next door, rumour has it, last week they were filming Batman. Today, right now, Infinity Ward Creative Strategist Robert Bowling is in the central hall and playing to a home crowd.

Walking from one end of the hangar would take at least five minutes – it’s a vast space the size and shape of a landing strip you’d usually expect deep inside the Battlestar Galactica. Today, however, you’re not walking anywhere. The hall is packed with bodies – some with fists raised, others with unfurled hands alternately moving between forehead and open mouth.


“No One Man Army! No game-ending nuke!” iterates Bowling on-stage wearing his trademark cargo shorts as cheers reverberate around the building. “No shotguns as secondaries!” he underlines to a white noise of whooping. Then, after a fraction of a pause, he says “Definitely no Commando perk!” The room pretty much explodes. Somewhere in maniac heaven Howard Hughes worries about the bacteria simultaneously released by so many sweaty, excited bodies in such close proximity…



Call of Duty XP is a fascinating creation. It’s a fan convention, a COD celebration and a marketing feat all in one – and it shines a light on a community as vast and cavernous as the building that currently holds them. Later on as you tread the hangar-floor you have to wind your way past countless fleshy bodies standing stock-still on the temporary carpet staring at screens overhead as if they’re decoding the Matrix. Meanwhile commentators with their caps on backwards stalk between 360 pods excitedly yelping the progress of teams as they compete for a million dollar prize-pot – there are dramatic comebacks and there are dismal defeats. I struggle to follow the games, but it’s clear that heroes will be made today. And that most competitors will go home wondering just what could have been.

A steady stream of gamers, once they’ve had their fill of watching the Juggernaut Sumo or showed off their Black Ops capabilities, exit through the gift shop and out into the Californian sun. It’s quite fun to stand by the US Army Veterans van and watch them emerge – everyone has at least two seconds where they unconsciously perfectly recreate the motions of Christopher Lee in a climactic Dracula scene.



Out here it’s dusty and, fittingly for Call of Duty, a disused air field. If you’re a child of the British early nineties you’ll understand when I say that the scene looks like what Challenge Anneka would come up with if asked to build a violent Disneyland in forty eight hours. It’s arid and at first glance is oddly threadbare, but look past the masses queuing for a pricey slab of meat from the lovingly-recreated Burgertown and there’s some quite phenomenal fan material here.

Overhead a zip-wire carries the occasional screaming man down to earth, while his long-suffering girlfriend takes a photo from the most dramatic angle she can find. Behind her, and behind walls of nets, is a perfect recreation of MW2’s Scrapyard level where teams of punters spray each other with paintballs while the familiar soundbites of COD battle blare out over loudspeakers.



It was here that, yesterday, that several proud journalists strutted out into battle – only to be unexpectedly faced by an opposing team entirely comprised of US Marines. The predictable Kill/Death ratio told only half the story – throughout this one-sided bout the only direct hits made by the US military were either direct to the head or to the neck. It was the sort of day that made you glad you’re not an Afghan goat-herder.

For every activity an XP punter takes part in, as is the way of COD, he is rewarded – this time with a patch that either their mother, some helpful people in the gift shop or the aforementioned long-suffering girlfriend can attach to camo-gear, flak-jacket or pyjamas. It’s this badge of honour that the people queuing for three hours for a paintball mosh in the recreated MW2 training pit are after – though sadly there are no actors pretending to be NPCs playing basketball outside, or shooting the shit with you upon entry.



Call of Duty XP is genuinely remarkable – a window into the soul of a franchise that’s frequently accused of being constructed without one. It’s strange to stand amongst it all and realise that here there is no cynicism, no Acti-hate or torrid internet opinion. There’s just a shared love of this monolithic gaming franchise, and for the outsider it feels as refreshing as for the attendees it is life-affirming.

I share a cab-ride back to the hotel with a wheezy man from Detroit. We discuss quick-scoping and noob-tubing for a while, or at least he does his best to discuss them at me. I ask him what his plans are for the evening. “I’m just gonna go up to my room.” he explains. “Gonna play some Black Ops…” It’s at this point I realise that I’ve seen everything.

The PC was nowhere to be seen at last night’s press preview of Modern Warfare 3’s multiplayer – tricksy Uncle Microsoft’s clever placement of a dollar-stuffed envelope behind the U-bend in the Activision executive toilet paid off yet again. No PC, no PS3, just rampant 360 love.

The PC was to be seen however, very occasionally, slightly off-centre in the hearts of Infinity Ward – who again reiterated a renewed dedication to dedicated servers, despite company policy seemingly being to steer clear of any boast or exploration of MW3’s technical prowess. Eager to distract attention from an elephant in the room tattooed with ‘Battlefield 3’ on its flank and ‘Frostbite 2’ along the trunk, the order of the day was refinement and intelligent growth of gameplay systems rather than conspicuously absent technological wonderment.




Modern Warfare 3’s multiplayer update is one of balance, consideration and intelligent rechanneling of existing systems. There is no revolution here, but that doesn’t mean familiar and – some might think – sacrosanct mainstays haven’t been up-ended, divided, multiplied or simply been given their marching orders.

One Man Army and its cheeky mid-game class swap? Out. Those epic Last Stand pistol shots from the floor? Gone. Shotguns as secondary weapons? Game-ending Nukes? Goodbye and good luck. That bloody awful Commando perk that gave a soldier’s knife arm the reach of an orang-utan? Let’s pretend that never happened…

Perhaps the biggest change comes through a Kill Streak shuffle. With hindsight the totting up of kills without dying providing explosive rewards only truly worked well in TDM – exotic modes where massacres didn’t necessarily mean good teamplay never quite gelled with the system. Weaker players would continually die streakless through the bombardment of others, and objective grabs simply didn’t always require multiple vanquished enemies.

Points towards death-machine rewards can now come from capturing objectives, flags and good teamplay, then, rather than simple examples of man’s inhumanity to man. What’s more rewards are now all subdivided into three potential Strike Packages: the streaks for each of which are built up differently. Assault will be familiar – you build a streak of kills without dying, and earn your chosen offensive rewards. Beyond this, the ways you earn your pocket money gets a little more unfamiliar…



Choose the Support Strike Package and you won’t lose the points you’ve amassed when you’re inevitably riddled with bullets – meaning that you can happily run into the danger-zone for the benefit of your team. Support Strike rewards are those that benefit your whole side – UAV, SAM turrets, Recon and the like – meaning that Objective-based game modes will have far less lone wolves operating with their growing killstreak arsenal in mind and not necessarily the team’s well-being.

Well. Kind of. Those with truly astounding skill may well plump for the Specialist Strike Package – which ropes you off from the rest of your team, denying you all those wonderful toys, but showers you with a chosen order of perks as you murder your way through the map. Get a streak of eight points and you’ll get every perk available, but take a bullet and you’ll drop to the foot of the ladder. Meanwhile, of course, your team-mates will be running around earning strafe runs of attack helicopters, controllable heli-drones, turrets that take out incoming missile-fire, drops of juggernaut armour, bomb-disposal robots draped with machine-guns and countless other new streak bonuses – so the cards are very much stacked against you.



I took to the streets of Paris, a German shopping centre and a fictional underground stop called Middleton Station (other COD-english stations IW have dreamt up include Wrong Shoes St. and Felafel Lane) and can report these systems work, and work well. One of MW3’s new game mode’s, it seems, will be oddly familiar if you’ve been around the block in terms of Quake and UT mods – as indeed will the mutator-esque game mode creator that will come with the package.

Kill Confirm sees dog-tags fall from crumpled bodies as you take them down. Collect the tags and you confirm the kill and earn your side an extra 50 points - collect the tags of a fallen ally and you deny your rivals those same points. With kill-stealing avoided by a generous donation for both parties if someone else collects your prey’s tag (and a sudden urge to throw grenades wherever you see your buddies fall) it’s a neat twist on TDM that’ll certainly go towards broadening the casual play-list.



After the ‘buy everything, try everything’ ethos of Black Ops MW3 is also, thankfully, rewarding specialisation – going so far as levelling up your weapons the more you use them; at intervals letting you improve their kick, range, number of attachments, stability and the like. Add into this a selection of bonuses you can select when you prestige, a far higher top-level and unlocks of challenge-sets and certain perks far extremely late into the levelling progression and you start to realise that this is very much a MP update built to satisfy MW3s legions of dedicated acolytes. Activision are tying their aficionados closer to the war machine than ever before.

Call of Duty Elite is clearly the dual assault in this particular pincer movement – its premium service now confirmed as a $5 per month affair that over time will provide twenty smaller care packages of DLC (that’ll be stacked together in the now familiar, later and pricier bundles for non-premium users) alongside ranked clan support, refereed competitions with real prizes, expert strategy analysis and weekly videos made by (people who work for) Ridley Scott and comedy-types Will Arnett and Jason Bateman.



Facebook integration (so now you can play Search and Destroy with that girl you used to fancy from College!), grouping, stat-whoring, heat-map playback and the ability to fiddle with your load-out on an app during your daily commute are all free, however, which even the most seasoned of Acti-sceptics will have trouble in sneering at whole-heartedly.

For all its bluster, silliness and exploding helicopters – the systems that lie deep within Call of Duty are complicated and occasionally tangled affairs. Modern Warfare 3 multiplayer is very much Infinity Ward (and friends) getting their house in order – streamlining, affording for different play-styles, smiling on players of mixed abilities and generally making their game a more pleasant (if slightly more complicated) place to point loaded guns at people. It is not a revolution in multiplayer, nor is it the PC-love haven that is Battlefield 3, but it is nevertheless a well-thought iteration designed to ensure that the COD Empire’s world domination will endure throughout the ages. Look upon its works, ye mighty, and despair…

Activision Blizzard have sold 18 million Call of Duty: Black Ops map packs report Gamasutra. The numbers, along the fact that Black Ops has sold 23 million copies were revealed during an 'Analyst day' conference call. The figures far exceed those of Modern Warfare 2 (11 million map packs, 19 million games sold) and World at War (9 million map packs, 9 million game sales).

These results mean that, between DLC and the initial cost of the game, the average player has spent $76 on Black Ops. In our Call of Duty: Black Ops First Strike review we felt that Black Ops map packs were too expensive, what do you think?

 
A new Modern Warfare 3 trailer has emerged from the Call of Duty XP event that took place in LA over the weekend. Amid the running, gunning and exploding, four character load-outs are show some of Modern Warfare 3's perks, weapons and kill streak rewards. New toys include a cruel, leaping anti-personnel mine called the Bouncing Betty, and a tripod mounted device that can destroy incoming rockets. You'll find freeze frames of each load-out below.