Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Season One is now live, introducing a brand-new battle pass, new seasonal content, and significant changes to certain weapons.
As Dot Esports reports, several Call of Duty content creators were invited to an event where they were able to get hands-on experience with Season One, as well as the chance to ask questions about the upcoming changes. Among these, it looks like one of the most popular melee utilities - the Riot Shield - has received some rebalancing both a buff and a nerf.
YouTuber TheXclusiveAce explained in his breakdown video that the Riot Shield has had its movement speed significantly reduced; "a movement penalty" as the creator calls it, whether it's equipped or not.
Riot Shields can be handy in gunfights and are a great way to minimize damage when it's stowed away on your back, however, to compensate for this new change, Activision has buffed the melee damage of the shield, allowing it to provide a two-hit kill, instead of the current three-hit kill.
The creator also shared details on the new Assassin Vest, which allows players to take a stealthier approach in battle. One of the vest's most notable perks disallows the appearance of a skull on the map when you kill an enemy, meaning their teammates won't be able to track where their allies died.
The selling point of the Assassin Vest, however, is how it gives you a permanent ghost effect, which remains active even when you're standing still.
Alongside these changes, Season One also brings three brand-new 6v6 multiplayer maps, the return of the Gunfight and All for Nothing modes, as well as four new guns that will be available immediately, including the Stormender EMP launcher.
Of course, there's also new Warzone content, such as the new Uzbekistan map, along with a major rework to the battle royale mode, which adds all Modern Warfare 3 equipment and mechanics as well as a host of balance changes.
For more, be sure to check out our Modern Warfare 3 Zombies guide if you're just getting started, as well as our guide to hitting Prestige and Max Level.
