If you play Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 or Warzone, or even if you follow the game loosely, you’ve probably heard a lot of talk about the completely not fit-for-purpose anti-cheat. Since ranked play dropped into both, it has become a never-ending source of anger and frustration for players because these modes are especially overrun by cheaters.
I’ve never really been a big Warzone fan, but I enjoy watching content creators play. Some will accuse players of sour grapes because they got taken out, but in most cases, it’s far from the truth. It’s increasingly obvious when players are cheating, and it’s making the game completely miserable.
How bad is it? I forced myself to start the ranked journey on Warzone, and I can completely agree. Even in the lower tiers, cheating is rife. It’s even evident in non-ranked lobbies on Resurgence since before cheaters can even play in ranked; they have to cheat their way to meet the entry requirements.
What do these cheaters actually do?
The most common things you’ll come up against in a cheater’s arsenal are aimbots and wall hacks. If you want to see them in action, the video above has been made by one such provider of said cheats, so give it a watch.
Now do you understand why it’s one of, if not the most miserable experiences in gaming right now? How is this stuff allowed in a game that is supposed to have an anti-cheat?!
With wall hacks, a cheater can see the location of every player on the map even when they’re out of sight. This not only opens up the ability to wall bang but pre-firing, particularly on Warzone. How can you compete against a player who’s already firing at you as you emerge from cover?
Aimbot is exactly what it sounds like. In combination with wall hacks, a cheater can center their aim on you without you even being visible, but when you are, you’ll get lasered by absolutely perfect aim, more often than not, all headshots.
Not only this, but these nefarious beings (I refuse to call them players) will exploit areas where they can get under the map, able to fire at players above them but completely safe from taking damage themselves.
Oh, and the final nail? If these cheaters do end up getting taken out, many take to crashing the lobby because they won’t lose their precious stolen SR if the game crashes.
It’s frankly disgusting. And this is without even considering the number of players who are clearly using a Cronus with their controller for unbelievable aim assist.
My own experience isn’t AS bad, but it’s bad enough to make me not want to play anymore
Naturally, at the higher tiers on the ladder, the effects of cheaters are more frustrating. The higher you go, the more SR you have to spend to even play a match, so the chances of coming out negative are higher before you even begin.
For content creators, too, let’s not forget that playing Warzone is their livelihood. They’re playing the game day in and day out to entertain their audience and earn a living. How would you feel at work if someone came in and deliberately ruined your day for no good reason?
I’m in no way inflating how good I am at this game. I’m average, at best. I can hold my own in multiplayer, which, for the most part, has been enjoyable to this point. I like Black Ops 6. I think it’s a good game at its core, but as with Warzone, the useless anti-cheat will continue to cast a shadow.
So, how has ranked Warzone been for me? Not fun. It’s easier to avoid losing SR in the lower tiers, but even on my journey to, as of right now, Silver III, I couldn’t count on both hands the number of times cheaters have wrecked a decent game. It’s always the same combination of wall hacks and aimbots. You can watch a kill-cam and see as clear as day how someone has tracked you to perfection, then lasered you with perfect headshots the instant you appear.
And even in these lower-tier lobbies where losing SR isn’t exactly a regular occurrence, I’ve had three lobbies crash mid-game. The telltale signs of the game freezing and stuttering for a brief moment before you’re kicked to the lobby are a dead giveaway.
What is Activision actually doing with Ricochet?
It all begs the question of what has Activision actually been doing with Ricochet? It’s completely not fit for purpose, and yet apparently money has been pumped into developing and applying it. But it does nothing. It’s the literal embodiment of a bad return on investment.
Of course, the anti-cheat team isn’t the same team that works on cosmetic items. But it’s fair for players to feel aggrieved that premium items are pumped out at an alarming rate while a fundamental issue with the game remains untouched. The game doesn’t work, but hey, we got a Squid Game collab.
It’s even more comical when there was an issue with the pricing on the Hella Fresh bundle in the store, and that was fixed INSTANTLY. Meanwhile, players are crying out for bugs to be fixed and the anti-cheat to actually, you know, work, and the can keeps getting kicked down the road.
Above all, it’s poor customer service. Warzone might be free to play, but Black Ops 6 is not, and they’re both using the same anti-cheat. Players in both, but primarily right now it seems, the former are suffering and made to feel like they don’t matter. The constant shilling of premium bundles in a $70 game is a discussion for a different time, but combined with a miserable experience in competitive play, it’s not making Call of Duty fun for legitimate players.
Microsoft needs to step in and start making some big decisions. Call of Duty is one of the company’s biggest gaming moneymakers since acquiring it, and the state of the game right now is laughable.
The other thing they could do is have different leaderboards, one for PC / crossplay and one for console only. Take PC out of the equation, and suddenly, the experience will be a whole lot different.
