With the launch of Season 3 this week, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and Warzone are set to undergo a significant change that could affect matchmaking queue times for the PC community. Activision has released the Season 3 patch notes, confirming a major update to regular Multiplayer by separating the settings for Multiplayer Ranked Play and Call of Duty: Warzone Ranked Play. Additionally, a new setting for Multiplayer-only Quickplay, Featured, and Party Games matches has been introduced.
Starting April 4, players will have three crossplay options for each setting (Multiplayer Ranked Play, Call of Duty: Warzone Ranked Play, and Multiplayer Unranked):
- On: Enables matchmaking with all gaming platforms when playing in the selected playlists.
- On (Consoles Only): Enables matchmaking only with other consoles when playing in selected playlists.
- Off: Restricts matchmaking to your current gaming platform only in selected playlists.
Activision has warned that selecting "On (Consoles Only)" may lead to longer matchmaking queue times, and choosing "Off" will definitely have a negative impact on queue times. The introduction of console-only crossplay in regular Multiplayer has raised concerns within the PC community, who fear it could result in longer wait times for matches. This apprehension stems from the prevalent issue of cheating in Call of Duty, which is more common on PC platforms. As a result, some console players opt to disable crossplay entirely to avoid potential cheaters from PC.
Reactions from the PC community have been vocal, with players like redditor exjr_ expressing frustration but understanding the rationale behind the change. "As a PC player…. hate this change but I get it," they said, hoping it wouldn't lead to longer queue times in the long run. Others, like @GKeepnclassy on X/Twitter, criticized the move, stating, "This is awful for PC players because this just killed PC. Terrible idea because now PC players that ARE NOT cheating are being penalized. This is bullshit."
The sentiment was echoed by @CBBMack, who noted, "My lobbies barely fill already to begin with on PC due to sbmm. This will without a doubt make it worse. Time to plug in the console I guess." Some players argue that Activision should focus on improving its anti-cheat measures rather than isolating PC players, as suggested by redditor MailConsistent1344: "Maybe they should fix their anti-cheat instead of isolating PC players."
Activision has indeed invested heavily in combating cheating in Call of Duty, with recent successes including the shutdown of Phantom Overlay and other cheat providers. However, the battle against cheating remains an ongoing challenge. With the launch of Season 3, Activision promises enhanced anti-cheat technology, which could potentially alleviate some of the PC community's concerns, especially with the anticipated return of Verdansk to Warzone.
Despite these changes, many within the Call of Duty community believe that the majority of casual console players might not even notice or utilize the new settings. As pointed out by Call of Duty YouTuber TheXclusiveAce, most players simply jump into unranked Multiplayer for casual fun without delving into settings or patch notes. TheXclusiveAce noted, "I see a lot of pushback with this change from PC players concerned that they won't be able to find games in lesser played modes or that matchmaking will take too long. To be clear, PC players will still be matchmaking with the largest pool of the playerbase since that majority of players won't even notice this setting exists so they'll stick to the default or even if they are aware of it, many will choose to leave it on."
He further emphasized that the choice to enable console-only crossplay would primarily affect those who opt for it, saying, "If anything, it's the players that decide to turn console-only crossplay on that will be limiting their matchmaking pool but that's a choice that's now in their hands for the first time in Pubs and it's a tradeoff that many of us will be happy to make."
As Season 3 approaches for Black Ops 6 and Warzone, it remains to be seen how these changes will impact the gaming experience and whether they will significantly alter the ongoing fight against cheating in the Call of Duty community.
