Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 DMZ Early Access Has a Road Spawn Problem

Infinity Ward opened early access to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 overnight, so anyone who pre-ordered the game can now play its campaign alongside DMZ, the extraction mode that has become a fixture of the series. First impressions of DMZ have been fairly favorable, with players generally enjoying the mode's core loop of gearing up, looting, and getting out.

The early problem is spawning. A number of players report being placed in the middle of a road, where they are flattened before they have a chance to move, grab gear, or fire a shot. Because extraction rounds are decided by the opening minutes, a spawn like that can end a match before it really begins, and it is the kind of frustration that tends to spread quickly through community channels.

The reporting that this article is based on does not say how widespread the issue is, nor whether Infinity Ward has acknowledged it or planned a fix. Players who run into it should keep an eye on official patch notes and studio updates for any change to spawn logic.

Early access windows are often where problems like this surface, since it is the first time a large number of players are moving through the map at the same time and trying out every corner of it. For a mode built around surviving the first few minutes, getting spawns right will likely matter a great deal to how DMZ is received at launch.