Infinity Ward has deployed the first update to the Modern Warfare 4 early access beta, a day-two patch that reduces footstep audio, lowers the lethality of two weapons and adds a new map and mode to the multiplayer rotation. The studio said the update rolls out on Saturday, August 22 at 10am PT.
Footstep volume drew the loudest response from the beta's opening day, and it is the change Infinity Ward led with in its patch notes. Enemy footstep and gear audio now carry a shorter distance and play at a lower overall volume.
We heard you loud and clear on the footstep volume, so we've adjusted things downward for today.
The studio said its aim for movement audio is to signal that enemies are approaching without giving away their exact positions at range, and that it will keep reviewing feedback on the subject through the rest of the beta.
Weapon and map changes
Infinity Ward also said time-to-kill "isn't quite right yet" and has begun tuning down weapon lethality, starting with two guns and one attachment it described as the changes it already felt good about.
- ISO Nightshade SMG: more damage falloff at longer ranges and a slightly reduced headshot multiplier.
- Oris 8.6 marksman rifle: a shorter initial range before damage falls off, a lowered headshot multiplier, and a longer delay between throws for its Razor attachment.
- Frangible Rounds: slow duration cut by 26.8% and slow magnitude by 21.4%.
- Transit 213: shadowed areas brightened and overall color balance adjusted for visibility.
The update adds Cachette, a core 6v6 arena set in an abandoned wine warehouse and mechanic's garage on the outskirts of a French rail terminal. Its arrival brings the beta's map pool to four, which Infinity Ward said is the number it needs to switch map voting on.
Joining it is Inflation, a mode shown during Call of Duty: Next in which players eliminate enemies to collect cash and take down HVT Operators to steal what they are carrying. The richest players in a match are marked as HVTs for everyone else to hunt, and surviving into Overtime raises cash multipliers.
Fixes and known issues
Daily challenges can now be rerolled, and the patch closes out a long list of bugs. Among them are an issue that blocked players from starting or completing the Mobility Course, footstep audio incorrectly using wet-surface sounds on dry ground, errors when entering the Gunsmith without a valid weapon selected, controller reconnection failures, and magnified optics appearing opaque while aiming down sights.
Two problems remain open. Join-in-progress is still disabled on Kill Block, which Infinity Ward attributed to a round-transition bug it is working to fix, and the studio said it is investigating reports that cooking some lethal equipment causes framerate drops. On PC, it said it is working to clarify in-game error messaging and improve the Secure Attestation Wizard, the tool players use to diagnose and fix problems getting into the beta.
The early access beta runs until August 25 for players who pre-ordered, ahead of an open beta weekend from August 28 to September 1 that is free for everyone.