CoD Modern Warfare 2: No servers or mods for PC version

[Apoptosis]

Call of Duty community manager Rob Bowling, also known as 'fourzerotwo', has confirmed in a podcast that the PC version of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 will not support user-created mods. Worse, it will not support dedicated servers. PC gamers will have to suffer peer-to-peer connections, just like their console-owning cousins.

Mr. Bowling could offer no defence for this move, and simply stated that: "The team's focusing on having it very equal on every platform" and "We're doing a lot of work on the back end."

Previous PC versions of CoD have supported dedicated servers. Their absence will apparently make the game "much more accessible to the PC community as a whole."

sources: here and here

[bhelms]

Yeah, I read about this the other day... It's not huge deal to, in my opinion. I mean, we are losing some big perks of being on the PC, but I'll still have my mouse, keyboard, and fun gameplay. I have played CoD4 on the PS3 and the matchmaking/server system doesn't really bother me.
However, from readings on forums, it is going to cause them some losses as far as how big the game will get on PC. A lot of people are claiming that they won't play anymore because that is too big of a loss. Whether or not they are really going to stick to that or not... I don't know of course.

But yeah, not the smartest move on their part, but not a game-killer for me.

[smack323]

i think moves like this will cause more people to just pirate the game because they wont want to play online anyway

[bigblockmatt]

thats lame. so is it going to be like L4D is? does that mean that pc and PS3 users will be able to play against each other?

its not a deal breaker for me... i like playing the single player AND multi, not just one

[bhelms]

I highly doubt they will be playable against each other. People would complain about aiming with a mouse being easier. Although... that would be awesome to have the potential to. Maybe an option to join servers that allow both.

[werewolfdaddy]

Things are worse than first thought with this game. In addition to the lack of dedicated servers or mods, the game decides who hosts. You can't kick people or configure the servers at all. You will not be able to adjust FOV or turn off breathing sway. There will be no lean in the new game either. When asked if the PC version was just a direct port of the console game, Infinity Ward said, "No, PC has custom stuff like mouse control, text chat in game, and graphics settings." Really? That's it. Sounds like a direct port to me. This statement tells me they did the bare minimum adjustments to the game to get it to play on a PC: a direct port.

But the most egregious offense for me is 9v9 max multiplayer.

[bigblockmatt]

But the most egregious offense for me is 9v9 max multiplayer.

thats rediculous!!

[skier]

But the most egregious offense for me is 9v9 max multiplayer.

thats rediculous!!

one of my friends was telling me about that the other day, he's a long-time diehard COD player and he said he won't even consider buying it, he said he'll stick with COD4

9v9 + is bad even for TF2 just too many freakin people to do anything, everything becomes dependent on Luck and 'oh hey theres randomly a person there even though there shouldnt really be'

[bhelms]

9v9 + is bad even for TF2 just too many freakin people to do anything, everything becomes dependent on Luck and 'oh hey theres randomly a person there even though there shouldnt really be'

The funny thing about this is that when I've talked to people about this, its always different opinions. Some people say, "Omg, 9v9 isn't enough!", while others say what you have.

I ended up buying the game cause 2 of my friends did as well. I also never bought the original so it's even more fun for me. The 9v9 bit isn't always 9v9. Only certain gametypes allow that many. The map sizes seem to go very well with how many people are playing. There aren't too many people where you are just shooting in every direction because there are people everywhere, also while there isn't a problem running around a while trying to find a target.

The co-op stuff is pretty fun too, we gave a couple of the missions a try after playing multiplayer for hours.

The only complaint I have so far is that some of the killstreak rewards or whatever they are called, are too powerful on certain maps. I got 20 kills on an open map with one. I imagine that it will get some attention though.

[werewolfdaddy]

It causes me inconsolable remorse to hear you bought or plan to buy that game. Forget 9v9 multiplayer. All it proves is they realized they didn't create a game that scaled well with MW. Otherwise, the maps would have been better suited to large player servers. All the information that's been given-- no dedicated servers, no mods, no personalization and a game that's a direct console port-- is foreshadowing of what's to come. They are only giving lip service to the PC community, an effort that is, in effect, a slap in the face. In the end, it seems the gaming industry is trying to move away from PC gaming. Consoles are easier to code for as they have only one hardware configuration. Most importantly, piracy on consoles is a fraction of the PC piracy. If MW2 sells like hotcakes on the Xbox 360, but a failure on the PC, they're going to say PC sales in general are to blame, that PC gaming is dying. Having heard this, there are idiots who will believe it and will buy a console. The hope here is if they say it enough, it will become true. What bothers me most is that Infinity ward is so gleefully and faux clueless about how they are crapping on a huge portion of their customer base. So far, nearly 200,000 PC gamers have signed a partition, in effect, saying they agree with me. However, Infinity Ward refuses to admit they screwed us all over.

[bhelms]

You make some very good points there, and I do agree. However... It all comes down to me buying a game with friends on the PC and enjoying it very much. Regardless of how I get into a server and what server I go into, once inside the gameplay is very fun. And as far as the 9v9 bit... I have no problem with that because I play this game to have small fights with other small teams. The maps were made to cater to small skirmishes. If they wanted more than 9v9, the maps would be larger. In my opinion, complaining about that is like saying, "Man I wish they made a different game." The large battle gameplay will come in the form of Bad Company 2. That game is aimed towards large teams while MW2 is not. They didn't realize anything, they just decided to make battle/teams a certain size.
And as far as them not doing the extra effort to make the PC version different... Yeah its gay, and not showing any love for the PC community, but atleast they did release it to the PC community. I wanted to play this game because CoD4 was apparently so much fun (never bought it) and this looked fun. I would have been mad if I had to play it on a friends console. I enjoy my keyboard and mouse.
People don't sit around and complain all day about games that only come out on consoles. But if they do put it out on PC as well but not with all the PC perks people pitch a fit? Well it sucks, but what if they ditched the PC altogether? I do not like the decisions they made but I am glad that they atleast allow me to play it on my keyboard.

As far as PC gaming... that's a-whole-nother debate. These are bad signs and I hope it doesn't go down the drain

[werewolfdaddy]

You make the best point for buying the game and that is it's bringing you and your friends together. Ultimately, that's what gaming is all about--having fun with friends.

[bigblockmatt]

Those are some good points bhelms. I plan on getting the game. I play it both for single player and multiplayer. though i will have to wait to play it because of other commitments going on in life, i still will play it and probably like it a lot, regardless of the multiplayer 9v9 thing...

[vicaphit]

I saw a screenshot of the pings on a particular multiplayer match. Everyone had terrible pings except for one person (the host). I have a feeling that all of the multiplayer will be like that. It was a bad move, and IW doesn't seem to awknowledge the fact.

[bhelms]

My friend and I have yet to have a bad ping (always green bars). The worst I've seen so far was a server with 2-3 people with bad pings. They were all from Australia.

[XstollieX]

It's not as bad as I was thinking it could be. Though I have only played online once. Didn't like the fact that certain game types become available at certain levels. I haven't looked yet but can this be set up for a lan or does it have to run through the iwnet servers?

[werewolfdaddy]

As I understand it, no lan play. Killing lan play is one step toward ending piracy, after all.

[XstollieX]

As I understand it, no lan play. Killing lan play is one step toward ending piracy, after all.

That will truly suck. Several of my friends have bought cod4 and 5 exclusivley for the lan games that we do. I'm sure they aren't the only ones who have done that. I dig they game so far though I have only played for about an hour, I may regret my purchase.

[werewolfdaddy]

If you have a shared internet connection, you can still play online together. The problem with this is you're all going out on the internet back onto your lan. You might as well play each other from home.

[bhelms]

Apparently you can do the special ops co-op thing via LAN. haven't tried it myself though. And yeah, that's not multiplayer but still thought I'd mention it.