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Tips to reach the top of the scoreboard in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare

Gabe Gurwin
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Infinity Ward’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare is very much a return to the studio’s classic formula, with little frills or goofy abilities getting in the way of the core gunplay. It’s a change of pace from what some veteran players might be used to, and newcomers to the series could always use a few pointers on how to get a good head start. Here are some tips and tricks we’ve gathered for success at Call of Duty: Modern Warfare gathered during our time with the beta so you can hit the top of the scoreboard when it launches on September 12.

Call of duty: Modern Warfare tips and tricks

Copy loadout

Modern Warfare Beta LMG
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Get killed by an enemy with an interesting mix of weapons and gear? Steal it! After you are killed in Modern Warfare’s competitive multiplayer, a prompt will let you copy that player’s loadout when you respawn back to the game. This will only last for your current life, but it gives you the chance to try out weapons you might not be familiar with. We were surprised by how much we enjoyed using light machine guns, for instance, and copying a loadout lets you give them a spin without swapping classes entirely.

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Plant mines behind doors

You can choose to have an explosive such as a Claymore or proximity mine in place of a traditional grenade, but if you do this, you need to make the most of them. Doors can be opened and closed at will in Modern Warfare, and it’s tremendously effective to enter a building, plant a mine, and then close the door leading outside. Eventually, you’ll get a free kill as an unsuspecting enemy opens the door – and you can guarantee they are screaming at their television.

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Save sniping for later

Modern Warfare Open Beta sniper
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You will have plenty of time to use sniper rifles when the full game releases in October, but the Modern Warfare beta’s maps aren’t exactly the best place to try them out. There are a few long corridors where you’ll definitely get sniped a few times, but it can be more frustrating than it’s worth out of the gate. Begin by using an assault rifle and then give sniping a try only after you’ve grown accustomed to the maps. Sniping itself is not terribly difficult, with one shot taking down players hit in the chest.

Don’t be afraid to run

The “time to kill” in the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare beta is fairly short, as the maps themselves aren’t very large. Much of this also comes from how few bullets are needed to kill you, however, so if you find yourself already damaged with an enemy waiting for you to pop your head out, it is often a better idea to flee. Otherwise, you’ll often get killed for good as soon as you turn the corner. If there is more than one enemy waiting for you on the other side, your choice is even more obvious.

Check those corners

Modern Warfare Beta Corners
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Listen to Captain Price’s words of wisdom from Call of Duty 4 and sweep every room you enter, as there are a ton of spots for enemies to hide, just waiting for you to run by. Letha grenades and flash grenades can be effective for luring them out, but you need to approach every situation with caution. If you’re the one camped out in a room, you should close doors in areas you aren’t pointing your weapon, as it will give you a brief chance to react when someone opens one.

Coordinate UAV usage

Unlike in the original Modern Warfare, the new reimagined version ditches the mini-map by default. In order to get the mini-map and see where enemies are located more clearly, you need to use the UAV kill-streak reward. It only takes a few kills to unlock, but you want to make sure you are not wasting it by using yours at the same time as someone else. Hold off until you see your mini-map disappear, then use your reward to keep all enemies visible on the map.

Keep track of  ammunition

Modern Warfare ammo
Image used with permission by copyright holder

You don’t spawn with very much ammunition in Modern Warfare and can easily run out after just one or two gunfights. Make sure your weapon has plenty of ammunition before entering a dangerous area, as the pistols aren’t the most effective alternative. You can also choose the Munitions Box field upgrade, which can be deployed after a cooldown period to give you much more ammunition. Teammates can also make use of this, and you’ll get additional points for every person who resupplies. By default, the Deployable Cover will be your field upgrade, and it has limited usage compared to the Munitions Box.

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Gabe Gurwin
Gabe Gurwin
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Gabe Gurwin has been playing games since 1997, beginning with the N64 and the Super Nintendo. He began his journalism career…
The best field upgrades for Modern Warfare 3 Zombies
A man holding a mysterious glowing vial.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3's Zombies mode puts a slight twist on the mechanics you are already familiar with. It now plays much more like a souped-up DMZ mode rather than its old round-based format. And Field Upgrades have been modified in terms of both their effects and how you get them just for this game type. There are six different Field Upgrades you can bring into the map and use on a cooldown timer to help improve your chances of survival, but you can only pick one at a time. You will begin the game with only one option, but steadily unlock the rest as you level up. Once you have them all, the question then becomes which is the best Field Upgrade? We've managed to exfiltrate with the answer.

Healing Aura
Regardless of whether or not you're playing with a team or running solo, Healing Aura is no doubt the best Field Upgrade to bring on any Zombie run. When activated, you and any teammates in the area will not only gain immediate healing, but it will also instantly revive any downed teammates. The downside to all this power is that this upgrade has the slowest recharge time and is unlocked at level 19.
Aether Shroud
This is another upgrade that you will be glad to have. Aether Shroud makes you you temporary invisibile to all Zombies. This won't make you invincible, mind you, and PMCs can still take shots, but if you're getting swarmed and have no way to escape, becoming instantly invisible to a bloodthirsty pack of zombies can save your skin more often than you think. This upgrade has a medium recharge rate and is unlocked when you hit level 39.
Frenzied Guard
Just past the halfway mark, Frenzied Guard has a massive upside, but not without some risk. When you pop this Field Upgrade, you instantly repair all your armor, but also draw all the aggression of any enemy nearby for 10 seconds. However, another perk is that anything you kill during this time also repairs your armor, so situationally, it can be great or detrimental. This one recharges slowly, unlocking at level 9.
Frost Blast
Frost Blast does exactly what you expect: it fires a freezing blast that will slow down any enemy you hit with it and deal a bit of damage. It's decent in a pinch, but not a game-changer. You can get it when you hit level 29.
Tesla Storm
An odd ability on paper, Tesla Storm is only good if you have a team working together. Activating it will create a lightning chain between you and your team that will damage and stun enemies that get close to any one of you. It lasts for 10 seconds and can be great in the final moments while holding out for an extraction, but not in other situations. It recharges slowly and is the last upgrade you unlock at level 50.
Energy Mine
This is your default Field Upgrade, so it makes sense that it's the "worst" on the list. Energy Mine isn't exactly bad; you simply lay down a mine that does what a mine does -- explodes. It's just that setting up traps like this in Zombies isn't all that applicable except when kiting a boss around or waiting for the helicopter. It has a medium recharge speed.

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How to fix packet burst in Modern Warfare 3
A soldier shields themself from an underwater explosion.

The last thing anyone wants to see when booting up a game like Modern Warfare 3 to head online with your friends is to be stopped by an error. Online games are susceptible to all types of problems beyond the player's control, leading to plenty of frustration and disappointment in a possibly ruined experience. While there are more substantial issues that can completely prevent you from playing, seeing the packet burst issue is almost worse because, while it does let you play, you will experience a ton of lag that makes the game essentially unplayable. If you've been struck by a packet burst error in Modern Warfare 3, here are some possible solutions so you can get back to fragging.
How to fix packet burst errors

If you spot a symbol of three squares on the left of your screen while playing Modern Warfare 3, it means you're suffering from a packet burst. This is essentially an error where something is messed up in the communication between your system and the game's servers, resulting in terrible performance. While it could be simply an issue on the server side and not related to you at all, which you can check by looking at the Modern Warfare 3 server status here, there are a few things you can do to potentially fix the issue on your end.

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Modern Warfare 3 Zombies: Mercenary Convoy guide
Soldiers in a car driving and shooting zombies.

The old format of Zombies has been left behind in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 in favor of a more open-world, objective-based take on the undead survival game type. This time, you will squad up and drop into a map with specific objectives you can choose to complete to earn tons of XP, while also pushing the narrative forward and unlocking new, more difficult tasks to take on. The early-tier missions are generally very simple, but in Act 1, you will be given the objective to find and destroy a Mercenary Convoy somewhere on the map. This sounds easy enough on paper until you realize you have no idea where this convey is or how to find it. Every run in Zombies risks losing all your hard-earned progress, so we'll lead you to the Mercenary Convoy to take it out before the zombies even know you were there.
How to find the Mercenary Convoy

Your first challenge will be to find this Mercenary Convoy. The problem here is twofold: first is that it isn't marked on your map in any way, and second is that, being a convoy, it is mobile. Once you land, you and your team should find the nearest vehicle and head toward the center of the map. Depending on how the threat levels are on your particular map, you are looking for roads and highways that are around the medium-threat level zone. You will have to patrol these roads until you come across the convoy, which only consists of three vehicles. Once you are in range, it does appear on your map to let you know you've found it.

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