A great deal rests on the return of Verdansk to Call Of Duty: Warzone. Players are growing increasingly frustrated with the modern iteration of the battle royale game. Many are upset with the changed mechanics, from how loot works to the omnimovement system, which makes engagement with the sweatiest players a nightmare for more casual fans.
Cheating has also been a thorn in Warzone’s side for years now, with Activision’s Ricochet system barely holding back the flood of cheaters in the game. It’s a running joke in the community that even the cheaters are sick of how many cheaters are in these lobbies, and especially in Ranked lobbies where the problem is even more dire.
Now, the original map is heading back to Warzone. Verdansk drops on April 3rd at the start of Season 3, which was delayed by two weeks. Here’s the trailer, with the very fitting song choice of “Unforgettable” by Nat King Cole:
Drop into the comments on that video and you see one thing repeated over and over and over again: It’s not just the map we want back, it’s the original game engine with the original mechanics, movement, gunplay and graphics (which were astonishingly good at release).
I’ve already listed many of my complaints with the mismanagement of Warzone out, which you can read here. What I think Activision should do at this point is exactly what players are calling for:
- Revert Warzone back to the 2020 version. Return to the game’s original map and graphics, the floating loot system, the more basic movement and get rid of redeploys, making map traversal slower and more tactical. Ditch omnimovement, leaving that to Black Ops 6 where it belongs.
- Return to the MW2019 arsenal or some version of Warzone-specific guns that aren’t always the same as the yearly Call Of Duty multiplayer release. Guns should change seasonally, with some “vaulted” and others introduced. There is no point in the enormous gun variety in the game if only a handful are viable.
- Get rid of the zaniest skins or give players the option to turn off non-mil-sim skins so that the game feels more like a military shooter. Players who want to experience that and not fight against clowns and superheroes and giant rats should have the option. This would earn huge vats of good will within the community.
- Take drastic steps to solve the cheating problem. There are games that have achieved far better results such as Valorant, so we know it can be done.
- Return the graphics to the way they were in the beginning. This game used to look better. It also used to sound better. Colors and lighting were richer. The sound effects were more distinct. I mean look at this:
This game looked great. It sounded great. The way bullets connected, and bullet casings hit the floor, this was just brilliant game design. Frankly, I don’t know what Activision has to lose by just giving gamers what they want and releasing OG Warzone. I’d love to see the re-release of Blackout also, which could be the Black Ops battle royale going forward.
Regardless, I’m still incredibly excited to dive back into Verdansk. It’s a great map, and no large map since then has been as fun or varied. So many great locations and interesting engagements. I’m curious how it will play, however, with all the changes that have been made since 2020.
