How to Fix Kicked for Inactivity in Modern Warfare 3
Image via Sledgehammer Games / Infinity Ward / Activision

How to Fix Kicked for Inactivity in Modern Warfare 3

Time to whip out your early 2000s anti-AFK machines, people!

One of the inconveniences of modern-era multiplayer gaming on matchmaking servers is that you can get kicked from the Modern Warfare 3 lobby for inactivity (being AFK) even if you weren’t AFK. This article explains why this is happening and how to fix this issue in Call of Duty MW3.

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Why Do I Get Falsely Kicked for Being AFK From the Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 Lobby?

Well, you see, this is not a bug or anything. This is a feature. Many Call of Duty MW3 players worldwide have been kicked from the lobby for inactivity despite claiming they were actively playing the game. The answer might be more straightforward than you think: It seems that the developers of Modern Warfare 3 have dialed the “AFK kick” timer far too low for some players’ taste.

Suppose you are static in one position (let’s say you’re holding a vital angle, choke point, objective, etc…) the game might see you as inactive and remove you from the lobby, despite you actually were not AFK. You didn’t have any actions to take. There is an easy fix for this, however.

How to Prevent Getting Kicked From the Lobby in Call of Duty MW3

Intuitively enough, to prevent getting kicked from the lobby in CoD MW3, you just need to keep moving from time to time to signal to the game server that you are there. Despite making a joke about installing an Anti-AFK machine (like this one from 2007) or auto-click software to combat the mechanic that removes inactive players from the server, I advise you not to do such things because that is against the Call of Duty Terms of Service. You wouldn’t want to put your account in jeopardy, right?

If you are new to MW3, feel free to check out all maps in Modern Warfare 3.


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About the Author

Nikola L

Nikola has been a Staff Writer at Prima Games since May 2022. He has been gaming since being able to hold an Amiga 500 joystick on his own, back in the early 90s (when gaming was really good!). Nikola has helped organize dozens of gaming events and tournaments and has been professionally attached to gaming since 2009.