Modern Warfare 2’s ‘Hardcore’ Multiplayer Will Not Arrive Until November 16th!

Having spent a good solid weekend playing Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2, and specifically the online multiplayer, so far my overall opinion of the game is mostly good. Yes, it has its problems for sure. Most notable among them is the game seemingly wanting to crash at any given opportunity (and this, perhaps surprisingly, isn’t an issue solely related to the PC version).

If there is one main grumble I have about it so far, however, it’s the fact that the multiplayer doesn’t yet have a ‘hardcore’ mode. – Now, given that this has been a staple of nearly every single prior COD title, its lack of inclusion (so far) has clearly raised more than a few questions. And, not to mention frustration from those (like me) who hate the bullet sponge aspect of ‘softcore’.

So, with this in mind, is Modern Warfare 2 actually getting hardcore? Well, the good news is yes, but for reasons which remain more than a little unclear, Activision has said that it’s not actually going to arrive until November 16th!

Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 – No Hardcore (Yet)

Following an update to their official blog post (likely off the back of getting thousands of support listings from players on the matter), Activision has confirmed that ‘hardcore’ (now called ‘Tier 1’) will not be arriving until November 16th. A date which, incidentally, will see it coincide with the launch of both the start of their Season 1 battle pass as well as Warzone 2.0.

It does, however, beg the question as to why Modern Warfare 2 doesn’t have ‘hardcore’ ready to go on right now! – In terms of the mechanics of the mode, it’s very simple. Team damage is on. You only have a mini-map when a UAV (or similar) is activated. Guns are actually lethal (because you have much less health). And more so, hiding behind a crate for 3-4 seconds doesn’t magically heal your various bullet wounds!

Applying this surely can’t be that difficult, yet, for the moment, it’s not there!

Left Scratching My Head!

The lack of hardcore has prominently spoiled my early experience of Modern Warfare 2 and also for the group of friends I play it with. We’ve been playing ‘hardcore’ since Cold War since it felt like the softcore mode just allowed for too many instances of ‘shoot first, die first’.

The problem with ‘softcore’ is that it places way too much emphasis on the ‘meta’ build. It’s not about playing well, it’s about having the best setup for your gun (and identifying which guns are the best). And this wouldn’t be so bad if you had access to all the various unlocks right from the start, but you don’t. – Put simply, the early game grind is palpable and makes you, quite rightly, feel very aggrieved that while you might be playing better and smarter, and even getting your shots off first, someone with more hours in the game (and a better weapon) can quickly turn on you and down you in seconds.

Why Modern Warfare 2 doesn’t have hardcore right now is truly a mystery to me. While Activision doesn’t seem to want to give us a clear answer as to why not, however, all I know for a fact is that the next two weeks are going to feel like more than a little slog than I’d hoped for!

What do you think? – Let us know in the comments!