"Call of Duty: Warzone" is the franchise's latest attempt to cash in on the popularity of the multiplayer battle royale format that has taken the world by storm with games like "Fortnite" and "PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG)."
The game arrives later today (March 10) and is completely free to play for everyone, regardless of whether you own a copy of "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare" or not. However, the practical details of how to download the game can be a tad confusing, considering it has two different release times and players who already own " Modern Warfare" will have to follow a different process to download the game from players who don't.
We've listed down all the details about the release of "Call of Duty: Warzone" and everything you need to know about how to download the game once it goes live.
Release Times
"Call of Duty: Warzone" will have two different release slots. If you already own "Modern Warfare," you will get access to the game earlier than those who don't. The game will be available for download at 11 a.m. EDT today i.e. Tuesday, March 10.
If you don't already own "Modern Warfare," you can start downloading "Warzone" at 3 p.m. EDT today. As far as other time zones are concerned, the folks at Activision have been kind enough to share a very helpful map that displays all of the release times across the world for players who don't own "Modern Warfare."
How to download "Warzone" if you already own "Modern Warfare"
For "Modern Warfare" owners, downloading "Warzone" is quite simple. The download option will replace the "Classified" panel in the in-game menu. If you have the latest patch installed, "Warzone" will download somewhere between 18 GB and 22 GB of additional files. If you don't have the title update installed, it will be close to 80 GB. Once the download is complete, the panel that says "Classified" will now read "Warzone."
How to download "Warzone" if you don't own "Modern Warfare"
If you don't already have "Modern Warfare," don't worry. You can still download "Warzone." All you need to do is go to your chosen platform's first-party store (PlayStation Store for PS4, the Xbox Store for Xbox One, or Battle.net for PC). From there, search for "Call of Duty: Warzone" and begin your download.
The game will take anywhere between 83 GB and 101 GB of data to download, so the download might take a while. Thankfully, the developers have thought ahead and packed in something to do while you wait. The first 20 GB of the "Warzone"download includes Modern Warfare's Gunfight mode, which is an offline mode that lets gamers face off against bots. This will also allow you to learn the ropes and practise your aim before you jump into Warzone's competitive battle royale when the full download finishes.
