Activision has provided a closer look at Modern Warfare 4’s ambitious new Kill Block map, which shows how the dynamic map completely changes the environment between each match. Kill Block mashes up several fan-favorite Call of Duty maps in a unique way that should keep players on their toes.
Modern Warfare 4’s Kill Block is set at the fictional West Bridge Advanced Military Training Facility, where modular battlegrounds reconfigure before every match, creating hundreds of potential map combinations. As shown in the video below, Activision provides a deep dive of how the modular pieces swap out and reconnect.
Kill Block’s full map size is equivalent to the popular Shoot House map from 2019’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, but the design consists of three “slabs” that are all modular pieces that can be swapped out and connected with other pieces in various different ways. The three-slab design features two outer area “end slabs” and one central combat slab, which combine randomly each match to form a “combo.”
Between matches, the active slabs decouple and a new configuration is set for the next game. Activision says this provides “an ever-changing combo map that enables players to experience a variety of Shoot House-style environments across numerous combat scenarios.”
Each slab on its own is roughly the size of Call of Duty’s 2v2 Gunfight maps, and there are enough individual slabs to form more than 500 combo configurations for Kill Block at the launch of Modern Warfare 4.
Most map sections are entirely new, but Infinity Ward is also using this modular design to slot in various map pieces from Call of Duty’s history. Some of the examples given are parts of Ambush from Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, Storage Town from Warzone’s Verdansk, and Highrise from 2009’s Modern Warfare 2.
The image above shows a combination with slabs featuring a section of Highrise, the Station Gunfight map from Modern Warfare 2019, and another map piece called Cabin.
Kill Block is designed to keep matches fresh by constantly transforming sightlines, routes, cover placement, and engagement pacing. However, it’s still important to have situational map awareness on an ever-changing map, so Infinity Ward has included markings around the perimeter of Kill Block. There are six “A” and “B” sectors labeled along the map’s longer north and south wall perimeter, while the shorter east and west walls have two “C” and “D” sectors. This lets players tell where they are and provide callouts based on the sector.
Activision says Kill Block supports 2v2 Gunfight as well as larger experiences, including 3v3 and the new Gunfight 10v10 mode at launch, with future support planned for more core multiplayer modes.
The Fanatics Fest event takes place this weekend in New York City, and attendees are among the first members of the public experiencing Kill Block. Additionally, Infinity Ward studio head Mark Grigsby and Activision marketing executive Tyler Bahl will sit down for a conversation about Modern Warfare 4 with a few notable celebrities.
Fanatics Fest is not the only way to play ahead of launch, though. Modern Warfare 4 will feature a free open beta at some point ahead of launch, and preordering the game gets you in early.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 launches on October 23 for PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and Switch 2.
