Black Ops Cold War weapons will not be added to Warzone on day one

Update (09/11/2020 – 6:45 PM PT): After a few days of confusion, Activision has confirmed that Black Ops Cold War weapons will not be coming to Warzone at launch after all.

“At launch, Cold War Operators will be able to be used in Warzone beginning on November 13th,” Activision said in a statement provided to CharlieIntel. “Cold War weapons will be available for use in Warzone beginning at Season 1’s Launch on December 10th. We apologize for any confusion.”

December 10 was the original date locked in for Black Ops Cold War weapons in Warzone anyways, so the recent Message of the Day can be brushed aside. Expect to see these weapons joining the battle royale at the beginning of Season One as originally planned. The original story can be found below.

Some confusion was stirred up in the Call of Duty community after a new Message of the Day claimed that Black Ops Cold War’s weapons would be available in Warzone right when the 2020 title launches on November 13.

One of the biggest topics of conversation in the leadup to the release of Black Ops Cold War was about how it will integrate with Warzone, which Treyarch explained to some extent in one of their recent blog posts.

In the announcement, the developers said that the integration wouldn’t take place until the new game’s first season kicks off on December 10: “At the start of Season One expect every weapon from Modern Warfare and new weapons from Black Ops Cold War to be accessible in Warzone, including Blueprints and camo variants.”

However, a new Message of the Day popped up in Modern Warfare and Warzone on November 8 stating that “any weapons unlocked in Black Ops Cold War and Modern Warfare” could be used in Warzone starting on November 13, which is when BOCW is set to release worldwide.

Understandably, this has caused many players to be confused because it had been initially believed that the BOCW arsenal wouldn’t be introduced in Warzone until Season 1, which obviously contradicts the MOTD from Activision.

What does this mean?

The likeliest reality is that BOCW weapons will indeed be available in Warzone right on November 13, and any new guns released in Season 1 will then be added to the battle royale at that time.

However, the wording that Activision used in the MOTD is also important to consider; the fact that they specifically mentioned “weapons unlocked in Black Ops Cold War” could mean that only those who purchase the new game and unlock guns in the multiplayer can use them in their loadouts for Warzone.

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In that scenario, those who continue to play Warzone without purchasing BOCW will not have access to the new arsenal until the integration takes place at the start of Season 1, after which they can level up using either Warzone or Modern Warfare to finally unlock the new guns.

Remember, cross-progression between the three games won’t kick in until Season 1 either, which means that even if the options for new guns are in Warzone, without multiplayer, players will have no way to level up and unlock any not available right away.

Loadouts combine both games’ guns?

The second line of the MOTD is also something that’s worth noting: “Mix and match Weapons and Blueprints to create your ideal loadout.”

What this appears to be saying is that players may be able to create Warzone loadouts featuring guns from both Black Ops Cold War and Modern Warfare. We already know that both games’ arsenals will be available in the BR at some point, but this could mean that players will be able to use weapons from both titles in a single class.

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Thus, if the scenario described above ends up being the case, then fans who don’t purchase BOCW would likewise not be able to create such classes until Season 1.

This news also explains why there was a massive, unannounced patch that players were prompted to install in Modern Warfare and Warzone, one which won’t be going live until later this week.

It’s very likely that this update is to prepare the battle royale for the sudden influx of new content, including BOCW weapons and Operators, especially now that we know they’re going to be available right on day one.

That’s all we can currently deduce from this new Message of the Day. Of course, all of this is speculation and nothing will be 100% certain until the game releases and/or any other official announcements are posted. As always, we’ll continue to bring you the latest details as more info about this topic becomes available.