Call of Duty has been working on its anti-cheat system RICOCHET for years and has now celebrated a major milestone. Modern Warfare 2 and Warzone 2 now detect unauthorized third-party hardware. MeinMMO editor Maik Schneider believes this is good for all online shooters.
With CoD MW 2019 and Call of Duty: Warzone 2020, the rise of cheaters in the largest shooter franchise began. Cheaters had long been a problem in CoD. Even on consoles, lobbies were filled with hacked accounts that boasted about their undeserved max level.
But with the free-to-play Warzone, the cheaters stepped up their game. This is because the anti-cheat systems of Call of Duty were not prepared for how professionally the provider landscape had become by now.
Warzone was unplayable in some parts of the world for a time. In many lobbies – especially at higher gameplay levels – at least one cheater was around. It was a tough situation for all fair players.
At the end of 2021, RICOCHET came and the tide slowly turned
The reports of how cheaters ruin matches for players decreased. In October 2022 the security team of CoD showed its progress during the beta of MW2:
- At that time, 72% of cheaters were banned before they could play
- Active cheaters were detected on average after 5 matches
The problem with these numbers: they were almost exclusively software cheaters. People with wall hacks, aimbots, or items that are not actually in the game.
However, hardware cheaters had become the big problem.
Such cheaters use specialized devices to gain an advantage. For example, one can manipulate the output of a controller so that the device compensates for all the recoil.
I have always considered this type of cheating to be a much bigger plague than software cheaters. This also led to distrust among players and creators.
Who is really good? Who uses such devices? Who can you still trust?
This led to real witch hunts. The US streamer Nadia has been suspected and attacked since her early successes. Others felt forced to set up 5 cameras to prove their innocence.
It cannot yet be said that all of this is over at once. But the announcement that RICOCHET will detect hardware cheaters feels like a liberation. For a long time, there were doubts about whether such a thing is even possible.
Now the world’s largest shooter franchise has set a new standard in combating cheaters. Others will have to follow suit. Already, players of Apex Legends are demanding on Reddit that they also definitely need this (via reddit.com).
A truly great day for all online shooters.
How is this going now? Not everything is sunshine yet. They have now “laid the groundwork for detection” and are continuing to carry out updates to fight against hardware cheaters.
If you would like to inform yourself more deeply, then take a look at the English blog of the CoD security team (via callofduty.com).
If such devices are detected, affected players will first receive a warning in the main menu. If they continue to play, it can lead to an account ban that is valid across all CoD titles.
It remains to be seen how effective the measures actually are. But no one can spoil my good mood today.
What are your thoughts on the announcement? Leave a comment on the subject. If you would like to read more about CoD, then check here: CoD MW2 & Warzone 2: A change allows you to improve weapons without disadvantages – with a small trick
