Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 is set to be a title of many firsts, being the first game in the franchise to be headed by Sledgehammer Games, as well as the first to provide its own take on the iconic Zombies gameplay of the wider IP. The release's Zombies mode is smartly in the hands of Treyarch, which has a lengthy and well-respected history with the survival horror experience.
With a lot of pre-release attention being placed on the campaign and core multiplayer of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, many fans may be in the dark about how Zombies will appear in the game. Enough information is currently available to provide a good overview of MW3's Zombies experience, which is set to be quite a departure from the classic modes of much older CoD titles.
Everything To Know About Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3's Zombies Mode
With Treyarch first introducing and popularizing Zombies in Call of Duty, it is good news that the studio is at the helm of the mode's appearance in Modern Warfare 3. Immediately, fans should gear themselves up for an experience away from the classic round-based gameplay of past Zombies iterations, with MW3's mode being set to adopt the same Outbreak Zombies framework of 2021's Cold War.
The Outbreak Zombies formula is quite controversial due to its deviation from the norm, taking place in much more open maps and giving the player a range of objectives to complete to progress to other locations. Outbreak has a lot in common with the short-lived Extinction mode of Call of Duty: Ghosts, but still possesses a lot of core Zombies features like Perks and Pack-A-Punch. Outbreak also features a range of enemy types and even vehicles, showing just how expansive the experience is compared to the original iterations of Zombies.
Modern Warfare 3's take on Outbreak Zombies will feature its own unique map, which is rumored to be the largest in CoD history, and it will likely feature a brand-new cast of Zombies characters hoping to rival the likes of Richtofen and Dempsey. Given the realm-bending nature of Zombies' complex storylines, MW3's mode could even choose to have the classic Zombies cast interact with the likes of Soap and Captain Price. If it did, this would be a defining moment for the Black Ops and Modern Warfare franchises, and it would be a great in-game representation of the multi-studio approach that MW3 has taken in its development.
Regardless, some leaks suggest that the mode will carry forward the Dark Aether storyline of recent Zombies experiences, perhaps necessitating the return of past Zombies characters over the members of Task Force 141. The large size means the game will play very different, but continuing the story is also a safe choice for the title, assuming this leak is true.
One of the most interesting elements of MW3's Zombies is that it may potentially break away from the mode's usual four-person formula. Instead, leaks suggest that Modern Warfare 3's Outbreak Zombies will feature multiple squads in the same map, who will work together to progress and complete objectives. If these leaks are valid, then players should expect MW3's Zombies to lean heavily into the open gameplay style of Warzone, with players bumping into other squads in their fight for survival.
A lot more is expected to be revealed about Modern Warfare 3's Outbreak Zombies in October's Call of Duty: Next event, such as its map and characters. While this will help iron out some details, players should still expect the mode to be a large-scale open experience heavily tied to Warzone, which will follow Cold War's Outbreak footsteps but with an ambitiously increased player count.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 launches on November 10 for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.