Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 is updating its early access beta with a major new matchmaking option today. While Black Ops 7 doesn’t release in full until November 14, the beta period offers an early chance to play the game from October 2 to October 5. It’s a short window, but the new update shakes things up for the final two days of availability.
Treyarch announced the addition of an Open Moshpit mode to Call of Duty: Black Ops 7‘s beta, in which “skill consideration is drastically reduced when matchmaking.” Call of Duty games typically make heavy use of skill-based matchmaking, which attempts to balance matches by queuing players of similar skill levels together.
For those who would prefer standard matchmaking, a regular Moshpit queue is available. Full details of today’s update, which also tweaks TTK for weapons like the Dravec 45 and M8A1, can be found on the Call of Duty blog.
Black Ops 7 Is Addressing Skill-Based Matchmaking Complaints
Open Moshpit Is A Long-Awaited Answer
Skill-based matchmaking has long been a subject of controversy, with plenty of ardent defenders and vitriolic detractors alike. In theory, skill-based matchmaking should create more even games, giving everyone a reasonable challenge and keeping matches competitive.
Critics argue that the variance of traditional matchmaking can be more exciting, offering a varied level of difficulty and giving skilled players a chance to dominate lobbies and achieve better win rates. It can also cause problems when queuing with a party, as attempting to account for varying skill levels can cause its own types of frustrations.
Open Moshpit isn’t elimating skill-based matchmaking entirely, but by the sound of it, the impact of the algorithm will be heavily reduced. If you’re playing today, you can test out Open Moshpit on Imprint, Cortex, Exposure, and the Forge.
Two Queue Systems Could Be Great For Black Ops 7
Both Parties Might Be Satisfied
If the Open Moshpit concept sticks around, having two queue systems for casual play could be great for Black Ops 7. With divided opinions about the merits of skill-based matchmaking, allowing both camps to queue according to their preferences might make everyone happy.
A split queue can still cause its own problems, especially if it ends up skewing the balance of Open Moshpit further toward high-level play than a single queue system would. It can also lead to longer waits to join matches, but at launch, Black Ops 7 should have more than enough players to avoid any concerns about impacted queue times.
Either way, it’s nice to see Treyarch experimenting with Call of Duty‘s formula during the beta access period. Hopefully, the Open Moshpit system will live up to expectations and make a return in the release version of Call of Duty: Black Ops 7.
- Released
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November 14, 2025
- ESRB
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Mature 17+ / Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language, Suggestive Themes, Use of Drugs
- Developer(s)
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Treyarch, Raven Software
- Engine
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IW Engine
- Multiplayer
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Online Multiplayer, Online Co-Op