[OUTDATED] Playing CoD:WaW Multiplayer/Zombies in 2021 using Plutonium

[OUTDATED GUIDE, ONLINE SERVICES HAVE BEEN RESTORED]
People continue to complain about the lack of online services for CoD:WAW in 2021.
This guide aims to at least push people in the right direction.

[OUTDATED GUIDE]

It appears since I've written this guide, that WAW online works for new users again.
You SHOULD be able to use it normally, but I'm leaving this guide up in the event anyone needs it in the future because it's very likely it could easily break again.

Getting the Plutonium launcher set up.

To start, you're going to need to download the Plutonium launcher from their website: https://cdn.plutonium.pw/updater/plutonium.exe

Once you get the launcher, you can place the executable anywhere. Desktop, game folder, doesn't matter. I have it in my game folder.


Run it, and it's going to update.

Once it's complete, it's going to ask for you for a username and password.

You're going to have to head here: https://forum.plutonium.pw/register and sign up.


Once inside the launcher, you're going to click either "T4 Multiplayer" or "T4 Co-Op/Zombies" depending on what you want to play.

Mine has the green play button as I'm set up, but yours will have a blue button that says "Setup".

It's going to pop up an explorer window and have you navigate to your installation directory for WAW.
The default installation directory is "C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Call of Duty World at War"

Once it's selected you're good to launch the game.

Playing with friends

To play with specific friends, you're going to need to go to their profile on the Plutonium forums where you signed up.

Simply link your friend to your profile, and have them go to yours as well. There will be a green plus icon in the top right to "Follow" them.
The link for a profile is: https://forum.plutonium.pw/user/[your username here]

Once you are both following each other, you'll be able to see each other in the Plutonium friends list in WAW. Just click "Friends" in the Cooperative menu when you're playing WAW using the Plutonium launcher.

HOST SPECIFIC SECTION:

For hosting a game, you're going to first press f10 while inside Plutonium. Click the Network tab.

Verify that UPnP is enabled, and be sure everyone you intend to play with has you added as a friend on Plutonium.

You're then going to create a Private Match lobby.
(Note: It will say "Public Match" up top, don't mind that. It's friends only.)

Set it up to play the mode and map you wish to play in the "Game Setup" menu.


Once that's done, you're going to press the ~ key to open the console.
You'll type the command "xpartygo" into the console.

Press enter and it should load you into the game solo. For some weird reason, Plutonium doesn't let people join your pre-game lobby, you MUST launch the session first using the command.


Once you're in-game, tell your friends to double click on your name in the Plutonium friends list, they should be able to join at that point.
Once all your friends are in, click "Restart Level" in the pause menu and have fun playing!



When you eventually lose your Zombies game or complete a Co-Op mission, it will kick you out to the main menu. A minor inconvenience, but necessary to play online in 2021.

If you wish to play the same map multiple times in a row, in the post-game scoreboard screen, pause the game and restart the level again before it kicks you all out.

(Optional) LOW FPS FIX:

Depending on your PC's hardware configuration, you might have a weird stuttering low framerate when in game. This is because Plutonium doesn't automatically select your GPU if you have both integrated graphics and a graphics card.

You're going to go to your Windows Settings.

Search for Graphics Settings.

Make sure "Desktop App" is selected.

Go to this directory: C:\Users\[your user]\AppData\Local\Plutonium\bin and select "plutonium-bootstrapper-win32.exe"

Make sure you select "High Performance"

Once that's done you shouldn't have frame rate issues!

[cap'nAwesome]

RIP plutonium, i miss god mod on bo2

[𝖁𝖆𝖒𝖕𝖎𝖗𝖊]

Waw is the least populated on plutonium

[cyn]

online profiles seem to be able to be created again, this is still an alternative in case activision decides to fucking break something again

[Aimshows]

just got into cod waw and bo1 on PC and i have 1 question.. whats is plutonium?

[ArbyAlmighty343]

my brother double clicked my name and it didnt join him in help

[Danianson]

i have to add that plutonium doest care weather you own the game on steam. as long as you have the game files you can play online. that means that plutonium is NOT connected to steam in any way. you can verify this by login out of steam and then running the game in plutonium, the game will work anyways. so that means that if you paid for world at war you are a sucker (no offense). because of this i have copied my game files and given them to my friends so that they can play online in plutonium without having to buy a game which multiplayer doesnt work. as long as world at war multiplayer doesnt work i dont think anyone should pay for that game. just wanted to let you know

[Gonger02]

does plutonium overides cod waw on steam? i am asking this because i would really like it if it keep track of my hours.

[P0wd3redG0th]

gonna work?

[P0wd3redG0th]

How about if i have a real game

[The Investigator]

Weird I have been hearing people complain about the online services, one youtuber claimed it was down/dead another said steam creates a default online profile that doesn't work and "can't be deleted". Yet I haven't seen this happen for myself. I see pages of servers I can connect to, only thing is closest to vanilla I could find was fast XP servers that I have veriable ping to (some times nice and low other times high) I want vanilla because I didn't play this when it first came out so I'm still experiencing it for the first time. Might be worth looking into this if it has 100% vanilla servers with consistently low ping.