Soldiers moving out in MW3
Image via Activision

How to play split screen in MW3

Time to deploy the friendship.

Veteran Call of Duty fans might have a few fond memories of playing CoD with friends on split screen. The oldest form of multiplayer gaming has lost its popularity over the years, but you can play split screen in Modern Warfare 3.

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MW3 has split-screen support for all the multiplayer modes except Free-for-All, Invasion, and Ground War. Additionally, Zombies lets you create a party with up to six members but doesn’t offer split-screen ability. Apart from the supported game modes, everyone on your squad needs to use their own consoles or PCs to play together. Thanks to MW3’s crossplay features, you can assemble your roster regardless of their preferred gaming platform.

Here’s everything you need to know about starting a split-screen game in MW3.

How can you play split screen in MW3?

A player reloads a sniper rifle in MW3.
Once you get used to the split-screen viewing experience, you can overpower your enemies with the sheer power of real-time communication. Image via Sledgehammer Games

To enable split-screen and start a split-screen match in MW3, you’ll have to ensure a second controller is connected to the console of choice.

Enabling split-screen in MW3 is easy:

  1. Connect two controllers to your console.
  2. Link the second controller to a new profile or assign an existing profile to it.
  3. You’ll get a prompt under the Launcher Menu icon to press a button to join the split screen. If you’re on PlayStation, press X, and for Xbox, press A.
Tip:

PC doesn’t offer split screen in MW3; however, you can connect a mouse and keyboard to your console to enable it the same way you can with a second controller.

After completing this process, the first player can set up a lobby or queue for a game to start playing split screen. Both accounts need to have an active PlayStation Plus or an Xbox Game Pass subscription since they’ll need access to MW3’s online services.


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Gökhan is a Staff Writer and Fortnite Lead at Dot Esports. Gökhan graduated as an industrial engineer in 2020 and has since been with Dot Esports. As a natural-born gamer, he honed his skills to a professional level in Dota 2. Upon giving up on the Aegis of Champions in 2019, Gökhan started his writing career, covering all things gaming, while his heart remains a lifetime defender of the Ancients.
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