Call of Duty: Console Ranked Crossplay With PC Disabled Amid Cheating Concerns

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 prevalence of cheaters in Ranked Play, introduced last year with Season 1, has sparked considerable outrage within the Call of Duty community. Activision's Team Ricochet, responsible for the Ricochet Anti-Cheat system, previously acknowledged shortcomings in its initial Season 1 implementation, particularly impacting Ranked Play.

A recent blog post details Activision's 2025 anti-cheat roadmap, revealing over 136,000 Ranked Play account bans since the mode's launch. Season 2 will introduce enhanced client-side and server-side detection systems, along with a major 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 it.

A key immediate change for Season 2 is the introduction of crossplay disabling for console players in Black Ops 6 and Warzone Ranked Play. Given the higher incidence of cheating on PC, this option provides console players with the ability to compete solely against other console players, mirroring a long-standing practice in standard Multiplayer modes. Activision will closely monitor the impact of this change and consider further adjustments to maintain game integrity.

While Activision's anti-cheat efforts are frequently met with skepticism, the company has invested heavily in its Ricochet technology and pursued legal action against cheat developers, achieving notable successes. Prior to Black Ops 6's launch, Activision aimed to ban cheaters within an hour of their first match, implementing an updated kernel-level driver and advanced machine-learning systems to detect and address aimbots. The company acknowledges the sophisticated nature of cheat developers, emphasizing its ongoing efforts to identify and remove cheaters from the game.