Modern Warfare 3 has a strong offering of post-launch content. Season 3 has been a franchise-best for Call of Duty, with six free maps arriving in multiplayer. From remasters, reworks, and brand-new levels, these are our favorite maps in MW3 Season 3, ranked from worst to best.
All New MW3 Season 3 Maps, Ranked from Worst to Best
Growhouse
I feel bad calling Growhouse the “worst” map, as I don’t think any of Season 3’s maps have been terrible. Unfortunately, in any race, someone has to come in last place. Growhouse is a remake of the Vanguard map sphere. Unlike that map’s setting, this one is set around the titular Growhouse. It consists of a main house with an underground lab, outdoor greenhouses, and a fairly standard yard with various cover spots.
The map’s concept is clever and it brought some good laughs, but it’s unfortunately outclassed. Growhouse is very small, and though it offers fast-paced matches, it has a massive spawn-trapping problem. As such, it feels lackluster alongside MW3‘s other excellent remasters of tiny maps like Shoothouse and Rust, not to mention excellent originals like Meat and Stash House.
Tanked
Tanked is a repurposed map that cuts the Zoo section from the Vondel Warzone map into its own multiplayer map. Surprisingly, it flows pretty well. It balances a realistic-looking environment with solid design elements. Not to mention, Tanked has a great atmosphere thanks to its unique use of colors and beautiful skybox.
It plays especially well in kill-based modes. In Team Deathmatch and Kill Confirmed, it’s fun to run around the outdoor Zoo and its various indoor exhibits searching for enemies. There’s a solid variety of ranges at which you’ll engage enemies in Tanked. The aquarium is super close quarters, but the outdoor area offers longer walkways and paths that allow rifle users to excel.
Grime
Grime is a great approach to urban combat in Modern Warfare 3. The map reminds me of Sledgehammer’s excellent London Docks map from Call of Duty: WWII. It’s set in an industrial district of London, with an appropriate amount of filth to earn the title. There’s a flat grey/brown aesthetic that honestly makes it a bit visually dull, but it helps with visibility when engaging enemies.
Speaking of engagements, this map excels at creating them. Grime has a standard 3-lane layout, but the mix of interior and exterior is what makes it a blast to play. The map mostly takes place outdoors, but much of the fighting occurs in cramped warehouses. This is especially true in objective modes like Hardpoint, which is a highlight on this map. The king-of-the-hill spots make great use of the environment, creating engaging firefights. Overall, Grime adds tension to MW3‘s urban combat. I can’t remember the last time I took cover in CoD as much as I have on this map. It’s a unique and worthy addition to the pack in Season 3.
Checkpoint
For a repurposed map, Checkpoint plays shockingly well. Checkpoint is based on a section of the Stronghold POI from Rebirth Island. It removes access to rooftops and that ever-so-dominant tower, so there’s a lot of fairness in firefights.
This is, again, a 3-lane map. That being said, the main focal point is a fairly unique, U-shaped building with extremely small rooms to fight over. Checkpoint can get chaotic, but both sides have good protection that prevents abusive spawn trapping. While it certainly lacks the balance necessary for viability for ranked play and the pros, Checkpoint is a blast to play in public matches.
6 Star
What immediately stands out to me about 6 Star is how gorgeous it is. Set around a rooftop bar and lounge above a premium Dubai resort, this map’s colors pop. There’s something so unique and refreshing about seeing the familiar action of Modern Warfare 3 play out in such an elegant setting.
Not to mention, 6 Star has incredible flow. Players fight over two long but different lanes on the outskirts, deciding whether they want to duke it out in the hotel’s open hallways or get in gunfights in and around a curved pool. The pool lane reminds me of Raid from Black Ops 2. In the middle, players fight in an open atrium broken up by a lavish ovular bar, which provides excellent cover. 6 Star’s objective placement is also superb, funneling players toward the most interesting areas for intense and varied firefights. This is why 6 Star excels in competitive. Not only is it fun to play on, but it’s also engaging to watch the matches unfold.
Emergency
Emergency is Call of Duty chaos at its finest. This map is set in and outside of a remote hospital’s wing, and yes, it’s yet another 3-lane map, but it proves why that formula is so effective. Players can fight over a fairly balanced middle lane, where much of the action takes place. It has a semi-open layout across the hallway, which creates medium-range engagements. Assault rifles are usually the go-to here. However, there are balanced power positions on either side for snipers. The outermost lane is excellent for players who prefer fighting at a distance too. This outdoor area with a Helipad allows players to grind for longshots and provides snipers a place to practice their precision in an otherwise close-quarters map.
The last lane is the most intense with a hospital hallway connecting an entrance to some rooms and a bathroom off to the side. This is where the most frenetic engagements on Emergency take place. The bathroom, shockingly, is excellent to defend in objective modes. So is the main reception desk. Between holding out in the bathroom, with only meters between enemies and I when they contest, and laying down by the desk to try and have my cover tank suppressive fire, I can’t think of a time when I’ve had more fun fighting for my life in MW3.
