Call of Duty: Ghosts SAT COM system explained

Infinity Ward is replacing the traditional UAV system from previous Call of Duty games with a new SAT COM system in Call of Duty: Ghosts. While serving the same functionality of allowing your whole team to see enemy positions and acting as a radar, SAT COMs are placed on the ground instead of being flown above.

With each SAT COM placed, the frequency and strength of the signal improves. Outlined in a recent blog post on the Call of Duty Elite website, Infinity Ward details the tiered system of the SAT COM perk and perks that are directly tied to the SAT COM system like “Wiretap” and “Off The Grid” perks.

SAT COM Active Tier System

1 Active SAT COM
Eyes on: With one SAT COM on the field, enemy players within the line of sight of you or your teammates will show up on the mini-map.

2 Active SAT COMs
With a second active SAT COM, your team is awarded the traditional sweeping UAV effect, highlighting enemy positions at brief intervals.

3 Active SAT COMs
A third SAT COM increases the frequency of radar sweeps. This results in tighter surveillance on enemy movement.

4 Active SAT COMs
If you’re lucky enough to get four active SAT COMs, all detectable enemy players will show up as solid arrows indicating the direction they are currently facing. The ultimate surveillance tool.

Apparently the more SAT COMs that are on the battlefield, the better it ends up being for your team. They can be destroyed by the enemy, so placing them in tactical locations is advantageous. There are also a couple of perks that are tied directly to the new SAT COM system.

Wiretap
Utilize all active enemy and friendly SAT COMs on the field.

The Wiretap perk allows you to passively hack into enemy SAT COM units, providing additional surveillance throughout the match. Use your improved tracking abilities to communicate enemy position to your teammates.

Off the Grid
Undetectable on the mini-map by SAT COM and radar pings.

For those that prefer to stay under the radar, Off the Grid negates the enemy’s ability to ping you via SAT COM. Just remember, firing your character’s weapon will still briefly reveal your position on the mini-map, unless you’re using the Silencer attachment.