A new leak has suggested that the Call of Duty franchise may finally be returning to Steam with the release of Modern Warfare 2. While this does not go far enough to confirm the series’ return to Steam, it comes at a time when most big publishers have given up trying to port games off of Steam over the past few years.
While Modern Warfare II has been given a release date as recently as today, we do not really know anything more about the game until June 8, and this is when we are expected to see the reveal trailer, which should help to confirm or deny if or not the Call of Duty series is going to see a return to Steam. While Modern Warfare 2 is going to be the primary Call of Duty title for two years, Activision is still looking at releasing at least one title in 2023, which would give us the best indication of whether Steam is going to be home to Call of Duty again for good, or whether this year (if confirmed) is going to be a one-off.
While Modern Warfare 2 is almost certain to still make its way onto Activision’s Battle.net launcher, it certainly would not be too bad to see Activision broadening the scope of the Call of Duty series on PC. Valve is comfortable with third-party launchers being allowed on Steam, so we may see a future in which Battle.net remains the Call of Duty launcher, with the exception of Modern Warfare 2 being able to purchase it on Steam.
If the game is indeed made available on Steam, players might still need a Battle Net launcher installed on their PCs in order to play Modern Warfare 2, even if purchased via Valve’s own clients. As noted, the new game does not appear to be an up-and-coming or new release on Steam and searching for Modern Warfare 2 for the time being returns results only for the 2009 release.
MWII artwork shows up on Steam
byu/Kalinine inModernWarfareII
A newly leaked picture has emerged to further intrigue, which suggests that the game is on Steam. If a recently leaked image is any indication, then this title may make the trip over from Activision’s own store. Unsurprisingly, more leaks and rumors have emerged in the wake of confirmation, one of which claims that Modern Warfare 2 may feature swappable skins and schematics for one of the gameplay modes that will reportedly make an appearance.
The graphics feature for Modern Warfare 2s Ghost was ultimately replaced by a blank image as word of discovery began spreading, potentially suggesting that rumors about a return of Steam for the Call of Duty series are real. On May 29, keen-eyed fans looking through the pages for Black Ops 3 noticed the newly discovered Steam art on the bottom of the list, advertising a The Call of Duty franchise page on Steam. A simple image of protagonist Ghost the same one used for the reveal was added to the Call of Duty section of Steam, suggesting Modern Warfare 2, at the very least, would make its way to the PC store.
Seeing a skull-faced British Special Forces agent, a fan favorite, appearing on Steam has everybody convinced Modern Warfare 2 will be Steam’s comeback. Ever since Activision decided to name their relaunched Modern Warfare series after the original, everyone has been complaining about how muddy that would make things, especially considering the first two games of the series have been remastered. In this six-year gap, Activision Blizzard has decided to release every new Call of Duty title at Battle.net an annoying stipulation to a lot of PC fans, who would rather have their games all in one place.
