Modern Warfare II’ In Season 1

Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare II is about to get its first season of new content alongside the launch of the free-to-play Warzone 2.0. Tons of new stuff is on the way, and not a moment too soon.

Modern Warfare II released with a number of maps—some better and some worse—it didn’t release with that many. There were supposed to be eleven total, but Valderas Museum was pulled before launch. It’s possible that Breenbergh Hotel will also be pulled since it’s modeled after a real world hotel (just like the museum). I have lots to say about all of these maps, but we’ll save that for a different post.

There are also Ground War maps, all of which are pieces of the larger Warzone map, but I don’t really like Ground War all that much, so my focus is on the smaller 6v6 maps.

In any case, one of the best additions coming to Season 1 will be two “new” 6v6 multiplayer maps. I use scare quotes here because neither map is new, but both are new to this game. The new maps are:

Shoot House (Launch)

Shoot House was created for Modern Warfare (2019) and is a smaller, three-lane map that immediately became one of the most popular maps in that game. It’s rectangular but not too long. It features a right and left lane that provide a ton of cover. The middle lane is open for sniping, but can still be navigated if you’re quick, with some cover in the very center. There are some indoor areas on both sides of the map, but by and large this is an outdoor map, leaving most Killstreak options on the table. Here’s an overhead view of the 2019 map:

This map works great for pretty much every mode, though it’s just a tiny bit too big for proper Gunfight (though Modern Warfare II tragically does not have Gunfight yet). Search & Destroy, TDM, Domination, Hardpoint, etc. all work great on this map and it’s going to be a welcome addition to Modern Warfare II, which continues Infinity Ward’s long-running tradition of releasing too many big 6v6 maps at launch. The game absolutely needs three or four more Shoot House (or thereabouts) sized maps.

Shipment (In-Season)

Shipment is to Modern Warfare what Nuketown is to Black Ops. This is a very small map, small enough for Gunfight matches (here I go again, talking about Gunfight . . . ) and still somehow lots of chaotic fun in full 6v6 matches.

Many different iterations of this map have been made over the years since it launched with Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 over a decade ago. It was in Modern Warfare 2019 and even last year’s Vanguard.

This version is a little bit different. Instead of being a yard of shipping containers, it takes place on an actual cargo ship, with dark, stormy seas all around its edges. Judging by the above image, it’s still roughly the same shape as previous entries, but with a few slight modifications.

This is one of the most hectic multiplayer maps you can play and I’m definitely excited to level up some guns on this one, as you can get a ton of XP in these fast, high-kill matches (perfect for leveling instruments of destruction like rocket launchers and LMGs, or point blank and melee kills). Mayhem. Pure mayhem.

Between these two maps we’ll finally have an alternative to Farm 18 for small maps. Mercados Las Almas is close to Shoot House in size, but I think still a bit bigger.

Modern Warfare II and Warzone 2.0 Season 1 launches on November 16th. I’ll have lots more coverage of the upcoming season and free-to-play battle royale game here on this blog.