Ahead of the Modern Warfare 4 beta, Activision has detailed its response to two long-standing Call of Duty annoyances. Infinity Ward is promising relief from repeated shader compilation and mandatory restarts while also clarifying how matchmaking will work.

On PC, Call of Duty launches have often been delayed for several minutes by the familiar “Compiling shaders” screen, so Infinity Ward is introducing a new approach. The Battle.net version will preload shaders in the background as soon as the download finishes, while Steam will retain the familiar process but complete compilation more quickly.

The full benefit should be visible when the finished game launches on October 23, with PC players expected to compile shaders only once instead of repeating the process after every major update. The “Update requires restart” message should also appear less often on PC and PS5, although Xbox Series X|S will still require restarts for now and Nintendo Switch 2 will not receive this improvement during either the beta or the final release.

PC players will still need TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot enabled in Windows because Activision uses both measures to reinforce its Ricochet anti-cheat system. The beta client will also be offered as a separate installation rather than being folded into Call of Duty HQ alongside several other games.

The second contentious issue is skill-aware matchmaking, which Activision has defended with data gathered during Black Ops 7 Season 5. Modern Warfare 4 will use that system as the beta’s primary option, but an open matchmaking alternative will also be available so the studio can compare both models directly.

Activision says the revised system reduced match abandonment across skill groups, shortened search times, and improved the share of matches played with a better ping. The company also stresses that beta feedback can still lead to further adjustments if the current setup does not deliver the most enjoyable experience.

3DJuegos