Call of Duty: Warzone needs a new map, and Verdansk '84 ain't it | PC Gamer - rossiprinfordied

Call of Tariff: Warzone inevitably a new map, and Verdansk '84 ain't it

(Prototype credit: Activision)

I got nuked last week. It burnt-out, like, really bad—would not recommend. Like more Call of Duty: Warzone players WHO watched Verdansk turn to ash that day, I was crazy for what the incoming day would lend as Warzone Season 3 kicked off and Activision unleashed the long-rumored new-sprung map.

As it turns out, developer Raven Software wasn't working on an entirely new map, but as an alternative reworking the onetime one into a 1984 Cold War-themed remix with parvenu locations and a different coating of paint. In that respect are cable cars where the Dam up used to be, but Verdansk '84 is still identical much Verdansk. And after four years exploring the new digs, I'm surprised Activision spent months building hype for what ultimately feels like an ordinary map update.

IT's not that Verdansk '84 hasn't changed for the better—springtime suits the region well and I'm glad to see each that ice finally melt away into a flowing river. It's clear a slew of time went into improving the map's flow, with more roads for easier fomite access to Verdansk's remote corners. Raven has also filled in floater that were mostly empty space with moolah-occupied points of interest. The rising Airplane Factory is a great example of this, sandwiched between the Superstore and airport where there used to be a bunch of cylinders that nobody cared about.

I guess I was hoping for a bigger change of scenery. Large-scale swaths of Verdansk '84 are virtually untouched outside of new textures that wee-wee everything look older (and not always better). Speaking of, when I heard "Verdansk in 1984," I expected Activision to utilize the chance to inject more colour into the game—maybe some neon lights along Downtown skyscrapers operating room a more colorful color palette to counter old Verdansk's wet-out greys and beiges. Some buildings induce red happening them now (neat), but new Verdansk has the same muted color marking that's now less photogenic thanks to more clouds and an atrocious wall of toxic gas always that becomes more prominent as the match progresses. I really miss the elderly sack skies. The southernmost end of the map looks darkling and dismal now.

Activision could have set expectations better here. The publisher gone months teasing the nuclear destruction of Verdansk, a message that of course led players to believe the map would be replaced entirely. It felt like Warzone was on the same trajectory as Apex Legends, a free-to-play battle royale stake that regularly cycles between three distinct maps and updates them individually to keep things fresh.

Warzone dipped its toes into this idea with Metempsychosis Island (a smaller island map out suited for lower participant counts) away regularly changing when the map is available and what modes you butt play on that. Rebirth Island has proven so best-selling that there's almost always a playlist running it today. But post-Season 3, it's pull in that Activision is sticking closer to the Fortnite simulation of map remodels—the nuking of Verdansk John Drew overt parallels to Epic's black hole event that ushered in Fortnite Chapter 2.

The divergence is that when players emerged from Fortnite's black hole in 2019, the brave meaningfully changed. Chapter 2 introduced an completely-new mapping with an updated art vogue. You could now properly swim, catch fish, carry allies to safety, and upgrade weapons! It was a fair way to press readjust patc making engine upgrades that moved the game forward. Activision tried and true something exchangeable here and failed to stick the landing. The Warzone of this week is the Warzone of endure week, just with better artillery balancing and a remixed map.

Raven told me that it also paid snuggled attention to common glitch spots in the old correspondenc to forbid the same using in Verdansk '84, but players have already patterned out new ways to clip under the map and ruin the game for everyone else. The more things modify, the more they stay the same.

New sights certainly made for an exciting commencement fewer drops, but the more of Verdansk '84 I explore, the more I realize that Warzone is the battle royale pun with the least going on. We're on a cycle of getting a some untried weapons each season (which usually try to be irrelevant or implausibly broken), a new manner that can buoy disappear within weeks, and more cosmetic packs than anyone can keep up with. I equal turn my SMG into a tape deck as much Eastern Samoa the future guy, only meaty gameplay additions are what will ultimately keep me roughly and Verdansk '84 isn't that.

If the gewgaw of that big Grid Regalia in the sky is supposed to hold us finished for an entire harden, then it's probably fourth dimension to start setting expectations take down for Warzone Season 4.

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Warzone map : Master Verdansk '84 and Rebirth Island

Morgan has been writing for PC Gamer since 2018, first as a freelancer and currently as a staff writer. He has also appeared on Polygon, Kotaku, Fanbyte, and PCGamesN. Before freelancing, he spent most of steep school and all of college committal to writing at small gambling sites that didn't pay him. He's very happy to have a real job at once. Henry Morgan is a beat author succeeding the a la mode and greatest shooters and the communities that play them. He also writes gross news, reviews, features, the occasional templet, and bad jokes in Slack. Twist his arm, and he'll evening write on a deadening strategy game. Please don't, though.