Exciting news for those outraged by Activision’s recent actions.
The “H2M” mod, a community project aimed at reviving the 2009 release of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 using the 2017 Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered as a base, has leaked online with online multiplayer being fully playable.
Activision issued a cease and desist just days ago, strategically timing it less than 24 hours before the mod’s scheduled release. This move came right after the end of a Steam sale where Modern Warfare Remastered was sold at a 50% discount, propelling it into the top 50 best-selling games on the platform.
The timing led many to believe that Activision waited until the sale concluded to stifle the H2M mod.
However, mere hours after the mod creators announced they would comply with the cease and desist, the mod files mysteriously “leaked” online and are now being widely shared.
The H2M mod was eagerly anticipated by longtime Call of Duty fans who have grown disenfranchised with Activision’s direction for the series. Many feel that the franchise has strayed far from its roots, with a focus on corporate profits and an appeal to casual and younger audiences since the 2019 release of the Modern Warfare reboot.
This reboot introduced faster-paced gameplay and a new movement system that detracts from the traditional “boots on the ground” experience that originally defined the series.
In recent years, Call of Duty titles have leaned into commercialized microtransactions, featuring celebrity cameos and other tie-ins, while the free-to-play “Warzone” battle royale mode has shifted the series even further away from its origins.
Fans who once loved the franchise for its intense, gritty combat now feel alienated, as the games have become, in their view, overly commercialized and lacking in the passion that once drove their creation.
Activision and their abused development teams no longer have the same love and passion for the franchise, given how modern game developers prioritize political agendas and profit over quality gameplay.
The recent controversy surrounding Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III, which is a mere DLC expansion being sold as a standalone game, has only deepened this discontent.
Adding fuel to the fire, Call of Duty developers were outraged over a joke made by actor Christopher Judge, highlighting the growing rift between the game developers, the franchise’s current direction and its fanbase.
For many, Call of Duty has shifted from being a beloved game to a vehicle for political messaging and cash grabs.
A clear example of this is Activision’s 2020 remaster of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. Despite knowing that loyal fans would eagerly embrace a modernized version of the classic COD experience, Activision opted to release only the campaign mode, deliberately excluding the multiplayer component.
This move was seen as an attempt to steer players away from a genuine, nostalgic COD experience, instead pushing them towards their latest annual slop releases that lack the same authenticity and are monetized to the core.
This explains the strong demand for the H2M mod and its predecessor, the SM2 mod, which also faced a cease and desist from Activision. However, once something is on the internet, it’s nearly impossible to erase, no matter how hard they try.
The reason the H2M mod couldn’t launch as planned was due to the publicity surrounding it before its intended August 16th release, with content creators given exclusive coverage with offline BOT lobbies to generate hype for the mod on YouTube.
While the team behind H2M can no longer work on the project legally, there’s nothing stopping you from downloading and playing the mod yourself. Although the official H2M website has been taken down, you can still download the H2M mod.
This link includes the necessary game modification files you’ll need.
You can also find a server link here. It’s a JSON text file that allows you to connect to live servers for playing H2M. As of this writing, these links have been tested and are safe, but that could change, so use your best judgment when downloading and installing the mod.
After downloading the game mod, extract the h2m.zip file. Navigate to the H2M folder, and select H2M Files. Then, go to the Steam directory for Modern Warfare Remastered, located under Steam > SteamApps > Common > Modern Warfare Remastered.
Drag the contents of the H2M Files folder into the Modern Warfare Remastered directory. When prompted to replace any files, confirm the replacement.
Next, within the H2M folder, find h2m-20240815T230815Z-001. Open it and drag the H2M-Mod.exe file into the Modern Warfare Remastered directory.
This will allow you to launch the mod instead of the original game.
Finally, to connect to a server, you’ll need to transfer the JSON text file named “favorites” into the “players2” folder within the Modern Warfare Remastered directory.
Now, you can launch H2M-Mod.exe. Upon launch, you’ll notice the server browser is empty. To populate it with available H2M modded servers, simply click the “Filter Servers” button at the bottom of the HUD.
This will automatically load the server list, allowing you to start playing.
At this point, there’s little Activision can do to prevent players from downloading or enjoying the H2M mod, especially since the servers are community-hosted. The “leak” of the mod can be seen as a defiant “fuck you” to Activision’s corporate tactics, which are prioritizing profits over maintaining their older titles.
Their older games have been left to deteriorate, with multiplayer lobbies plagued by cheaters and security issues, all in an effort to push players toward their latest $70 offerings, filled with frequent microtransaction-driven seasonal content.
Unfortunately, those who managed to refund their purchase of Modern Warfare Remastered are the real losers in this situation. The game was recently on sale for half its usual price, and now, many of the players interested in H2M will either have to repurchase it on Steam at full price or wait until the next sale.
