MW3 season 2 patch notes: New guns, new maps, The Walking Dead, and more

Multiplayer fans are eating good.

MW3 season 2 key art
Image via Activision

The Walking Dead is invading Call of Duty, but that’s not all: Season two of Modern Warfare 3 is chock full of new content.

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Whether you want more maps, more weapons, more Prestige levels, a new perk, or other content, MW3 likely has something for everyone. There’s even a new Ranked Play season and a bunch of new events to play, so strap in and get ready for a fun couple of months of CoD.

Here’s everything that’s being added and changed in MW3 season two’s patch notes.

MW3 season 2 patch notes

MW3 season two roadmap
A lot of content this season. Image via Activision

Here’s everything that’s coming in MW3’s season two update, which goes live on Feb. 7 at 11am CT.

Weapon balancing

Laswell and another operator team up in MW3
Squad up again. Image via Activision

A slew of weapon balance changes have been announced across the board for weapons in MW3, including some nerfs to popular guns like the MCW and Holger 556, and a big nerf to shotguns in general. The strong JAK BFB muzzle has also been nerfed, and several MW2 guns got buffed again.

Changes have also been made to Aiming Idle Sway and Hipfire Crosshair Sway, as shown in the video below. Sledgehammer says it’s “to improve the precision and responsiveness of aiming, particularly while using a mouse.”

For the full list of weapon changes, check out the full MW3 multiplayer patch notes.

Health regeneration buff

Health regeneration is changing in MW3 multiplayer in season two. There’s been a buff to both the health regen delay (three seconds, down from four) and health regeneration rate (up to 75 health per second, from 40) “to better match the pace of gameplay,” according to the patch notes.

Ranked Play changes

Some changes are abound for the Call of Duty League, and so, too, for Ranked Play. Rio has been added for Search and Destroy and Hardpoint, where Skidrow and Terminal have been removed, respectively.

Other changes include new weapons being banned, and the full notes can be seen here.

New weapons

Sword melee weapon in MW3
Slice and dice. Image via Activision

Four new weapons are coming to MW3 in season two, including the BP50 assault rifle (battle pass), RAM-9 SMG (battle pass), SOA Subverter battle rifle (weekly challenge), and Soulrender melee weapon sword (acquisition method TBA).

New perk: Ninja Vest

Ninja Vest in MW3
Play very sneaky-beaky like. Image via Activision

An all-new perk is joining MW3 multiplayer, the Ninja Vest, allowing players another different kind of playstyle.

  • Equipment Slots: Tactical, Lethal, Field Upgrade
  • Gear Slots: Gloves, Boots, Gear
  • “Eliminate footstep sounds. Immune to movement reduction effects. Bonus Shuriken and Throwing Knife ammo. Resupply Shuriken and Throwing Knives every 25 seconds.”
  • Duplicate effects do not stack. If equipped with Covert Sneakers, gain the effect of Running Sneakers.

New multiplayer maps

Ghost and other operators on a new MW3 map in season two, Stash House.
Another tiny map. Let’s go. Image via Activision

Three new six-vs-six maps (Departures, Stash House, Vista) join two remixed ones (Terminal remix “Airborne” and Skidrow remix “Skidgrow”), a CoD: Vanguard remake (Das Haus), and an all-new War mode map (Operation Tin Man) to offer a slew of new locales for players to fight on.

Stash House (“Shipment-sized”) and Vista (“Shoot House-sized”) will add even more variety to the small map pool, as will Das Haus. But Departures is described as “bigger than Terminal.” The remixes will be in the new Hordepoint mode and Vortex when it returns in-season.

New Ranked Play season and rewards

MW3 Ranked Play season 2 camos
Rank up and camo up. Image via Activision

All-new rewards are available in Ranked Play season two, including special weapon camos for each Skill Division reached, along with weapons, and calling cards depending on where you finish.

  • Bronze: “MW3 Season 2 Bronze” emblem
  • Silver: “MW3 Season 2 Silver” emblem
  • Gold: “MW3 Season 2 Gold” animated emblem and weapon camo
  • Platinum: “MW3 Season 2 Platinum” animated emblem and weapon camo
  • Diamond: “MW3 Season 2 Diamond” animated emblem and weapon camo
  • Crimson: “MW3 Season 2 Crimson” animated emblem and weapon camo
  • Iridescent: “MW3 Season 2 Iridescent” animated calling card, emblem, and weapon camo
  • End Season 2 in Top 250: “MW3 Season 2 Top 250” animated calling card, emblem, and weapon camo
  • End Season 2 number one overall: “MW3 Season #1 Overall” animated calling Card and emblem

New Prestige levels

MW3 season 2 Prestige rewards and levels
It’s a lengthy grind, so bring double XP. Image via Activision

A set of new rewards await those who rank up in season two, all the way up to the new max level of 450.

New game modes

A slew of new modes will join MW3 throughout the season at each weekly reset.

Hordepoint mode in MW3
Look out! Image via Activision

Hordepoint

As if Hardpoint wasn’t enough, this variant adds zombies to the mix. Watch your back.

Juggermosh

This wild playlist includes Domination, Kill Confirmed, and Hardpoint where every player is a Juggernaut. Yeah, it’s gonna be silly.

Snipers Only

Snipers only MW3 playlist
Time to see who’s the best sniper. Image via Activision

Time to show off those sniping skills. All weapons besides snipers are banned, including lethals and tacticals, so it’s all about who can snipe the best.

Team Gun Game

This takes the traditional free-for-all mode and puts a twist on it. Players can move on to the next gun in the list by reaching a certain score, and at that point, everyone on the team will get the new weapon. Knife kills will reset the other team, as always, but the goal is to be the first team to get a kill with all weapons.

Bounty

This is a TDM variant where the player with the most kills will be marked as a high-value target (HVT) and extra points are given whenever they’re killed.

Vortex

Terminal remix Airborne in MW3
Vortex returns. Image via Activision

Using spooky, zombie, or apocalypse-themed variants of maps like the ones mentioned above, Vortex returns. This mode will come midseason alongside the Vortex: Decay’s Realm limited-time event.

Limited-time events

Several events are coming with exclusive rewards throughout the season.

  • Horde Hunt: Feb. 7 to March 6
  • Year of the Dragon: Feb. 9 to 14
  • Cryptid Bootcamp: Feb. 14 to 28
  • The Walking Dead: Fear the Living: Feb. 28 to March 6
  • Vortex: Decay’s Realm: Mid-season
  • Dune: Rule of Fate: Mid-season
Author
Image of Scott Duwe
Scott Duwe
Senior Staff Writer & Call of Duty lead. Professional writer for over 10 years. Lover of all things Marvel, Destiny 2, Metal Gear, Final Fantasy, Resident Evil, and more. Previous bylines include PC Gamer, Red Bull Esports, Fanbyte, and Esports Nation. DogDad to corgis Yogi and Mickey, sports fan (NY Yankees, NY Jets, NY Rangers, NY Knicks), Paramore fanatic, cardio enthusiast.