Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 is just over a week away from its official launch, and the community is about to burst with excitement. If you’re on either PlayStation or Xbox, you might be wondering exactly what time Modern Warfare 3 will release for your timezone.
Every year with Call of Duty, confusion pops up around the exact release times for different time zones and console/PC. All you need to know is that if you’re on PlayStation or Xbox, the game launches at different times depending on where you live while PC users around the globe have to wait for the same time.
PlayStation and Xbox release time for Modern Warfare 3
I previously wrote about the MW3 release schedule for PC, so if you’re planning to play on Steam or Battle.Net, you should check out that guide.
For those of you on PlayStation and Xbox, there are a couple of things to remember when thinking about when MW3 will be released for you. The first is where you live; for most players, MW3 launches on Nov. 10 at midnight in your local timezone. The only exception to this is for those primarily in North America.
In North America, when 12 am ET on Nov. 10 arrives, MW3 launches worldwide. This means if you’re in the Central or Pacific timezone, the game opens a little before midnight on Nov. 9. More specifically, MW3 launches on PlayStation and Xbox at 11 pm CT/9 pm PT on Nov. 9.
Basically, when 12 am ET hits, the entire world has access to the game, including those on PC. For anyone outside North America, you just have to wait until midnight local time. This means that those in New Zealand, Australia, and parts of Asia will get access to MW3 several hours before anyone else. The streaming and content embargo for MW3 lifts when midnight hits in New Zealand, which is 6 am ET on Nov. 9.
After this occurs, anyone with access to the game can stream or upload content freely.
Can you do the New Zealand trick to play MW3 early?
If you have been around the Call of Duty community for a while, then you likely know about the “New Zealand trick.” This involves tricking your game into thinking you are living in New Zealand, which gives you access to the game hours before it goes live in your region.
Unfortunately, this trick only works on Xbox consoles. PlayStation and PC players cannot take advantage of the New Zealand trick.
If you are on Xbox, all you have to do is change your console’s region to New Zealand and make sure your time zone matches up with that region. Then, your copy of MW3 should unlock when it unlocks for New Zealand, which is 6 am ET. You need to have a digital version of MW3 for this to work.
Published: Nov 8, 2023 09:47 pm