Trying out Modern Warfare 3 Zombies for the first time? Use these 10 essential tips and tricks
Looking for Modern Warfare 3 Zombies mode tips and tricks?Zombies is back, bringing with it a fresh take on a classic mode beloved by Call Of Duty fans. Until now, previous iterations of Zombies mode (or MWZ) featured a round-based system, with players fending off against hordes of undead. WithCall Of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Zombies steps away from rounds, dives into experimentation, and tries something entirely new.
As such, you may need a little help when diving into Zombies for the first time. Below, we’ll explain how the new mode differs from previous instalments, take a look at what you can expect from Zombies mode, as well as providing you with our 10 essential tips and tricks for surviving the undead swarms.
Modern Warfare 3’s Zombies mode explained
In Modern Warfare 3, Zombies goes open-world for the first time ever and does so by basing itself in the most expansive Zombies map to date. Allowingup to 24 playersin a lobby, the stage has been set for larger boss fights, merging 3-person squads together to defeat objectives.
As Task Force 141, SSO Kate Laswell and Sergeant Johnny ‘Soap’ MacTavish lead OperationDeadboltagainst Viktor Zakhaev as he lets loose a vial of Aetherium on the military police that infects the dead and brings them back to life. And, alas, we have hordes of the undead to fight off once again.
Players will navigate the tiers, or circles, encompassing the map. Each of thesetiers increase in difficultyas you approach the core, forcing you into contact with much tougher and more dangereous zombie types. The main goal is tocomplete the objectives, earn Essenceto acquire perks and equipment for your fight against the Zombies, and exfil from the map with all your loot. The Aether Storm expands across the map after45 minutes.
There’s a bunch of achievements available too, like petting a hellhound or killing a certain amount of zombies or even reviving a player from a different squad. In order to achieve any of this though, you’ll want to follow along with our ten top tips and tricks for playing in Modern Warfare 3 Zombies.
This might seem like an obvious thing to say, but we need to stress how important it is to learn the map. MWZ is a vast open-world with different areas to advance through and battle the zombie outbreak, with increasing difficulty. Each location around the map comes with its own nuances and areas that you’ll find can be advantageous or detrimental to your zombie battling. You’ll learn it the more you play, but it’s a great idea to pay attention and remember what works best for you and your team.
Contracts are found across the map in MWZ and they act as mini-missions to complete. While it may be tempting to ignore them, don’t. They’re a great way toearn fast rewards and perks, which equals moreweaponsand upgrades to use and hopefully exfil with (more on this later). There’s a wide variety to choose from, but two in particular are great for getting points and guns fast; Raid Weapon Stash and Eliminate the Bounty. Activating a mission is one thing on the map, but actually completing it is how you’ll reap the rewards.
Completing the main story missions in MWZ is another excellent way of unlockingweapons,perks, equipment, and unique cosmetics (like the Zombie Operator skin). In each Act, you’ll be able to take on the story mission before the next one appears. And, unlike the rest of MWZ, you’ll be able to complete missions as a separate objective away from other players in the game, apart from your own squad, of course. You’ll progress through the game, which will also help you to understand more about the tiered-system and in doing so, you’ll gather XP and items for your collection. Be warned, they’re tricky little things so make sure you’re locked and loaded to take them on.
Using the tips above, you’ll be well on your way to gathering some much-needed and valuable Essence to spend. One essential way to use it is at the Pack-a-Punch machine, a feature from MW2. In each zone, you’ll be able to pack-a-punch a weapononceand as you progress, the cost of this will increase. In Zone 1, it’s 5,000 Essence. Zone 2, 10,000 Essence. Zone 3, 15,000 Essence. Pack-a-punching boosts your weapon’s overall stats, thus making it easier to kill the Zombies, which is especially helpful when the Zombies themselves get more intense as you progress through the zones.
If you want to have a better chance of defeating the crazed mass of zombies that are coming for you in MW3 Zombies, you’ll want to try running around in circles, or circuiting, to gather them altogether behind you. They’ll follow you and so you’ll get better positioning to fire into a horde rather than trying to pick them off individually.
Tying in nicely with our other tips so far, you’ll want to keep on your toes. The zombies will be coming to you, so the longer you stay in one place, the more that will gather and you don’t want to get hemmed into one spot making it near impossible to fight off the hordes. Keep the pace up, know when to use sprint, and even more importantly, know when is a good time to run away as fast as possible to regroup. It’s a great tip that anyModern Warfare 3 beginnershould know too.
This one may also seem obvious, but with everything that’s going on in Urzikstan, it can be quite easy to get distracted and find yourself split from your squad. Make sure you stick together so that you can protect each other from sudden influxes of the undead. It’s the same as any multiplayer mode, communication is key. Let your allies know what you’re planning on doing, so they can come with you or advise against it. Of course, if you’ve been brave enough toplay Modern Warfare 3 Zombies solo, then good luck to you.
If you find yourself in an especially tricky situation and you need a little moment to recover, get yourself in a body of water. Zombiescannot swimand they will not follow you. They will hang out by the edge though and throw projectiles that may well hit you if you don’t swim away. If you can gain some distance in the water, take the opportunity to recharge.
A tip that is true for any Call Of Duty game, or pretty much any of thebest FPS games, aim for the head. You’ll do more damage, you’ll use less bullets, and you’ll get the job done faster. Hit them where it hurts so you’re not wasting your time. Remember, you’ve only got45 minutesbefore you’ll need to exfil and escape the gas. Time is of the…Essence.
On the subject of exfilling, you’ve got a unique opportunity in Modern Warfare 3 Zombies. Within the game mode, you’ll sometimes acquire weapons that would usually need unlocking through level progression or activating specialArmory UnlockChallenges. While it’s fun to use these weapons in Zombies, if you exfil with them equipped, you’ll actually be unlocking them acrossall game modesmeaning you’ll have fasttracked your way to more weapons. As well as being a top tip for MWZ, it’s just another top reason to play the game mode.
To successfully exfil, you’ll need to reach an extraction point on the map (marked by a blue icon of a stickman exiting a door). Reach the extraction point and interact with the green smoke to call a helicopter. Remember to make sure your weapons have been upgraded via Pack-a-Punch first as the extraction point will be in a high-threat area and be quite a challenge to reach.
That’s everything we’ve got on the top tips for Modern Warfare 3’s Zombies mode. While playing MWZ is one of our top tips forhow to level up fast in Modern Warfare 3, there’s plenty more to do like exploring all theMW3 mapsor trying out all theMW3 game modes and playlists. So, dive in to those guides to make sure you’re getting the most out of your MW3 experience.
