Highlights
- The possibility of Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 featuring Zombies has been hinted at by reports and leaks, exciting fans.
- Fans hope for round-based maps and objectives to be included at launch, as they are a staple of the Zombies experience.
- Potential for a Warzone/DMZ Zombies mode that maintains the game's elements with looting and extraction while introducing fast and intimidating zombies.
Given the reports of the Call of Duty Vanguard team Sledgehammer returning this time for Modern Warfare 3 (2023), it has further hinted at the possibility of the Modern Warfare franchise featuring the classic Zombies mode for the first time. While there is no official confirmation of its existence, Sledgehammer's previous release of Vanguard shipped with Zombies. In addition, numerous leaks of its return have been enough to excite fans.
While it is still very possible for this to come at a later date rather than at launch, or not exist whatsoever, it does not excuse the fact that there are so many different ways the beloved mode can be implemented within the next entry of the Modern Warfare series.
5 Raid Zombies Mode
As many fans familiar with the Modern Warfare series will know, each installment has its own unique set of co-op missions that players can complete, whether these are raids or survival modes. This was replicated with Modern Warfare 2 (2022), with new raids coming every new season. With the template already in place from the development of Modern Warfare 2 (2022), the possibility for a raid that is centered around zombies is very much within reach.
With the likelihood of fellow Call of Duty development teams contributing to work on Modern Warfare 3 (2023), fans are confident that the introduction of Zombies to the Modern Warfare series will retain the essence and high success of Black Ops if Treyarch is involved.
4 Outbreak (Treyarch)
Speaking of Treyarch, the release of Black Ops Cold War was released with a high level of positivity and feedback from fans, particularly with its Zombies mode, and still maintains a high player count. For fans who were anticipating a large-scale map for Zombies, almost similar to the size of Warzone, Cold War was the first to adhere to this and arguably stands as one of the best changes to the classic mode.
With the help of Treyarch, Sledgehammer could create a unique Outbreak experience for Modern Warfare fans to enjoy, and this will more than likely maintain the player count for years to come depending on how well this is executed. With the poor reception to Vanguard's Zombies mode, fans will be hoping that Treyarch and Sledgehammer can take Call of Duty Zombies back to high form.
3 Round Based Zombies
Aside from Outbreak and all the additional content that has been added to Zombies through multiple entries in the franchise, there is arguably nothing more that fans love than the classic round-based maps. With Call of Duty Vanguard, fans were very disappointed to see the objective type's omission from Zombies at launch, which was later changed when added through a season update.
If the Zombies mode truly is making an appearance in Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 (2023), then Sledgehammer and any other contributing developers must ensure that round-based maps and objectives are ready to go at launch, rather than coming as an addition later down the game's lifespan. For many veteran Call of Duty players, round-based maps are the staple of Zombies, so this should take the highest level of priority.
2 Warzone/DMZ Zombies Mode
While the aforementioned Outbreak addition could stand as its own Warzone-like mode, it would be interesting to see how a new entry for Modern Warfare packaged with Zombies would affect Warzone. Given Infinity Ward's addition of the DMZ mode, which pits players against other players all while facing off against tough AI, this is a perfect template for a Zombies introduction within this mode, improving upon Warzone's previous limited-time mode.
It would be important to maintain many of the game's elements with its looting and extraction priorities, but placing zombies in the mix that are far more fast and intimidating than ever before, would create a unique experience for players. With modes such as Infected, Sledgehammer could adhere to the first Warzone title, specifically its 'Rebirth of the Dead' on Rebirth Island, allowing players to become zombies and hunt down other players aggressively, and make it a permanent addition.
1 PvP/New Infected Mode For Zombies
Despite the current Infected modes in all Call of Duty titles technically standing as Zombies modes, Modern Warfare 3 (2023) could revamp this. Aside from its Multiplayer mode, this could be reinvented within Zombies by setting up the same PvP format that fans are familiar with, but both survivors and zombies have access to different abilities or perks that can be upgraded through each round.
While this would differ from the usual round-based system including Outbreak's format with exfils, Sledgehammer could introduce a points system that tallies over numerous rounds, with an exfil opportunity or something similar given to those with the most points after a certain amount of rounds. This could be tarnished by the opposing team attempting to stop others from fleeing, changing the experience entirely. Acknowledging fans' request for Zombies to be featured in Modern Warfare 3 (2023), it would be a nice touch if developers could create a new objective for the mode, introducing a fresh take.
Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 is set to release on November 10, 2023 on PS5, PS4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.