Activision Tackles Call of Duty Cheating with New Anti-Cheat Measures and Crossplay Options
Activision has responded to widespread player concerns regarding cheating in Call of Duty's Black Ops 6 and Warzone, announcing significant updates to its anti-cheat strategy and offering console players in Ranked Play the option to disable crossplay with PC players.
The surge in cheating reports following the introduction of Ranked Play in Black Ops 6 and Warzone last year has sparked considerable outrage within the Call of Duty community. Many players believe the prevalence of cheaters is severely undermining the competitive experience. Activision previously acknowledged shortcomings in its initial anti-cheat implementation for Season 1, admitting that Ricochet Anti-Cheat didn't meet expectations, particularly in Ranked Play.
A recent blog post details Activision's comprehensive anti-cheat plan for 2025. The company revealed over 136,000 Ranked Play accounts have been banned since the mode's launch. Season 2 will introduce enhanced client-side and server-side detection systems, along with a crucial kernel-level driver update. Further advancements, including a novel player authentication system designed to identify and target cheaters, are promised for Season 3 and beyond. Specific details on this new system are being withheld to prevent cheat developers from exploiting the technology.
A key immediate change for Season 2 is the introduction of crossplay disabling for console players in Black Ops 6 and Warzone Ranked Play. This feature addresses the widely held belief that a significant portion of cheating originates from PC players. Console players have long utilized crossplay disabling in standard Multiplayer modes, and this option will now extend to Ranked Play. Activision plans to closely monitor the impact of this change and consider further adjustments to maintain game integrity.
While Activision's anti-cheat updates are often met with skepticism, the company has invested heavily in developing its Ricochet anti-cheat technology and pursuing legal action against cheat developers, achieving notable successes recently. Prior to Black Ops 6's launch, Activision aimed to ban cheaters within an hour of their first match. The game launched with an updated Ricochet kernel-level driver and new machine-learning systems designed for rapid detection and analysis of gameplay to counter aimbots. Activision acknowledges the sophisticated and organized nature of cheat developers, emphasizing their ongoing efforts to identify and remove cheaters from the game.
