Category: Video Games

97% of Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 cheaters were caught within 30 minutes of signing into the beta, Activision has said.

The mega publisher said that its anti-cheat effort, dubbed Team Ricochet, “hit the ground running,” and that “fewer than 1% of cheating attempts reached a match.”

“Cheaters were expected. But our upgraded systems caught them faster than ever, powered by strengthened TPM 2.0 checks and automated systems helping to eliminate a large number of attempts to cheat,” Activision explained. “Those who did manage to slip through didn’t last long. Most never made it into a match.

“You may have seen clips of cheaters in the Black Ops 7 Beta. We had already actioned on most of those accounts before they hit social media. We’re watching closely, acting in real time, and learning from every attempt.”

Activision also reminded players that while Team Ricochet’s anti-cheat detection systems stop most cheaters even reaching a match, player reports “still play a vital role” as they “help fuel our detection models, refine enforcement and improve coverage.”

Interestingly, Activision also spoke about the individuals and companies that sell cheats, saying most major cheat providers have admitted their tools are “unusable” for Black Ops 7, and is targeting them “beyond in-game enforcement,” having closed over 40 cheat developers and resellers since Black Ops 6 launched last year.

“And this is just the beginning. When launch arrives, every layer of protection will be in full force, and Ricochet Anti-Cheat’s defenses will only grow stronger,” the statement concluded. “The fight against cheating is an industry-wide challenge – and we’re committed to leading the charge. We continue to bring new systems online during Beta, fine-tuning our protections, responding faster and gaining deeper insights. We’re dedicated to transparency, community feedback, and constant evolution in our fight for fair play.”

Last week, Activision said it was well aware that cheaters would strike the Black Ops 7 beta, and warned PC gamers that they would not be able to play during the beta or at launch if they do not enable TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot. It also added that getting cheats in the beta is “exactly what we want because Team Ricochet is here, watching, learning, and removing them as they appear. Any account permanently banned for cheating during the Beta will be banned across all Call of Duty titles, from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare to future releases.”

If you’re looking to jump into the beta while it’s live, we’ve got a guide on how to get into the BO7 Early Access Beta, plus how to enable Secure Boot for BO7 if you’re on PC. We’ve also got details of all the BO7 unlockable weapons, and the BO7 Twitch drops you can get your hands on.

Vikki Blake is a reporter for IGN, as well as a critic, columnist, and consultant with 15+ years experience working with some of the world’s biggest gaming sites and publications. She’s also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.

Redemption Road has delayed its shooter strategy game Kingmakers indefinitely, saying it needs “a little bit more time on content polish before we feel good about charging money for it.”

In a statement posted to social media on October 3, the studio said the October 8 release date was now “no longer possible,” and apologized to players, adding: “we are sorry for letting you down.”

Kingmakers features a soldier who travels back to Medieval England, hoping to “change the course of a bloody war” to avert the apocalypse. According to the official release, it will be a “fully real-time simulation with thousands of soldiers fighting simultaneously” utilizing “next-gen multi-threaded AI.”

Kingmakers’ announcement trailer was a viral hit, garnering hundreds of thousands of views on IGN and other channels, with more than a few fans comparing it to Gate, an anime that features a similar mix of modern warfare and medieval fantasy.

While many fans accepted the news, some were disappointed about the late notice, especially as the delay came less than a week before the scheduled release date.

“Why is Kingmakers being delayed? In short, it’s an incredibly ambitious, uncompromising game, and we don’t want to cut any planned features, for the sake of getting it out the door earlier,” the company explained. “Our goal, from the start, has been to create something that’s nothing like anything else on the market, in terms of gameplay, scale, scope, and interactivity.

“With Kingmakers, we set out to push the Unreal Engine 4 codebase to its absolute limits, while still providing true 60fps to mid-range PCs, without the need for fake frames. We are an 80% engineering team, who got into this business to push technological barriers.”

The statement went on to explain that the shooter boasts “tens of thousands of soldiers, each with AI and pathfinding that rivals what you’d expect from a AAA person shooter.”

“When you walk away from a battle, it continues to play out,” it added. “Nothing is faked. We have giant six story castles where every room can be entered and every wall, floor, and ceiling destroyed. When you build a Lumbermill, it’s a real place that can be entered or, in an enemy invasion, turned into a combat area.

“Every mission takes place in a giant, massive map that each player on the server is free to explore – with or without their own personal army of thousands,” Redemption added. “We set out to do all of this, with full drop-in/drop-out four-player multiplayer support, and we have. We just need a little bit more time on content polish before we feel good about charging money for it. So that is what we are doing now. We’re making sure everyone who buys the game is enthralled and feels like their money was well spent. We want this to be the case whether you have a top-of-the-line rig or a PC that’s seen better days.”

Redemption Road did not provide a revised release date, but did promise to share a half-hour-long “deepdive on Kingmakers gameplay very soon.”

Vikki Blake is a reporter for IGN, as well as a critic, columnist, and consultant with 15+ years experience working with some of the world’s biggest gaming sites and publications. She’s also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.

EA has confirmed the global release times for Battlefield 6. EA’s first-person shooter has an October 10 release date, with pre-loads available now across all platforms except the Epic Games Store.

Season 1, Battlefield 6’s first major free update, kicks off on October 28 and releases in three phases: Rogue Ops, which brings new map Blackwell Fields, new weapons, and a new 4v4 mode called Strikepoint; California Resistance, which introduces new SoCal map Eastwood and a 8v8 mode called Sabotage — that’s coming on November 18; and the final phase of the first season, Winter Offensive, which rolls out on December 9. That includes “seasonal map” Empire State and an unannounced themed event.

There is no early access for players buying the more expensive editions, so Battlefield 6 unlocks for all at the same time across PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X and S. Steam players will not need to use EA App to play Battlefield 6 but will need an EA account. Those who purchased Battlefield 6 via the Epic Games Store will need EA App and an EA account to play. EA Play Pro members get unlimited access to Battlefield 6 Phantom Edition on Day 1 through the EA App only.

While you wait to play, check out IGN’s Battlefield 6 Campaign Preview, and find out what we think of Battlefield 6 Multiplayer. A free-to-download battle royale mode is expected to launch later in October.

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