Call of Duty: Warzone Anti-Cheat Has New Damage Shields

By M. Kang

Posted on February 23, 2022

[adrotate group = “15”]

Cheating in multiplayer shooter games like Call of Duty or Fortnite is a big issue but Call of Duty: Warzone has an interesting new solution on how to handle those pesky cheats!

Activision Blizzard is rolling out the RICOCHET Anti-Cheat technology to help address cheating in Call of Duty Warzone. What this anti-cheat software does differently is that it not only detects cheaters but addresses it in real-time not through bans but through damage reduction!

As outlined in their blog post, once this new cheat detection software detects cheaters, “it disables the cheater’s ability to inflict critical damage on other players.” This feature, called Damage Shield, essentially makes cheaters extremely vulnerable to regular players with no recourse. The decision to use a Damage Shield rather than to ban allows the anti-cheat software time to “collect information about a cheater’s system.” Doing so ensures that “there is no possibility for the game to apply a Damage Shield randomly or by accident… in gunfights between law-abiding community members.”

This Damage Shield is certainly a unique (and creative) way to deal with cheaters. Other interactions of anti-cheat software tend to ban cheaters even during games. Others put all cheaters in the same game so they get a taste of their own medicine. Applying a Damage Shield makes it fun for regular players as they get to fight back on cheaters in real time.

To note, all cheating can still be reported through in-game reporting tools.