Modern Warfare 4's Early Access Beta Wraps With a Round of TTK Nerfs, Open Beta Confirmed for August 28
Infinity Ward tuned time-to-kill across five weapon classes on the beta's final day. The free Open Beta follows next weekend with the level cap raised, Ground War, and a Warzone Resurgence map.
Modern Warfare 4's Early Access Beta closed today at 10 AM PT after five days of daily patches from Infinity Ward, and the studio used its final update to push the biggest time-to-kill (TTK) changes of the whole test. If you sat out Early Access to wait for the free weekend, here's what actually changed and what to expect when Open Beta opens August 28.
Image via Activision / Call of Duty
Infinity Ward's own framing was blunt: "today's update includes adjustments that increase the minimum TTK for several weapons." In practice that meant shrinking the effective range of several guns' best damage tiers rather than cutting their raw damage numbers — the Assault Rifles hit hardest, with the AXION, HAN 86, Kastov 762, and M4 all seeing their maximum-damage range tightened by 2–5 meters. The HAN 86 also lost headshot and neck multiplier strength, and the PPSH-41 and MAR-9 picked up similar range and multiplier trims in the SMG and Marksman Rifle classes.
Infinity Ward was explicit that this isn't the final word: "we are actively reading your feedback and assessing the data. You can expect to see more changes to Weapons and Attachments as we begin Open Beta later this week." If you found Early Access too lethal, expect this trend to continue rather than reverse once Open Beta opens.
The same update closed an out-of-bounds exploit on the map Cachette, fixed incorrect attachment "Cons" text on two Kastov 762 optics, and cleaned up a handful of UI/audio bugs (lobby music bleeding into matches, Social bar icons not updating, repeated Gunny unlock notifications).
Open Beta runs August 28 through September 1, free for everyone, no pre-order or code required. Infinity Ward has confirmed the player level cap rises from 20 to 30 with additional weapons, equipment, perks, and killstreaks unlocking along the way, plus the return of Ground War: Combat Outpost and the series' first look at Warzone Resurgence on a new map called Zodiac. Expect more TTK and attachment tuning to land during Open Beta itself, per Infinity Ward's own statement above — this almost certainly won't be the last balance pass before October 23 launch.