I think at this point, everyone who plays games or perhaps even doesn’t, knows the brand “Call of Duty” or CoD for short. And with the release of Modern Warfare II, Activision has also refreshed, improved and release a new take on Warzone. Now introducing Warzone 2.0.
Warzone is the Call of Duty take on the Battle Royale genre. Not forgetting Black Ops 4’s Blackout (I miss it dearly!). They have some experience in the arena, and it’s clearly time to up their game. No longer content with being a sidenote in the conversation of Battle Royale. Warzone really upped the Call of Duty name with an excellent release.
Warzone 2.0, then is Activision saying “we know what we’re doing and we’re going to do it bigger and better than everyone else”. The question is, do they succeed?
Well, actually, kinda, yeah.
The Battle Royale genre is one of my favourites and I’ve written ridiculous amounts of articles on Fortnite and PUBG. Warzone is great but never held my attention like the others. Warzone 2.0 looks to be changing that, and that’s fascinating to me.
2.0
Giving something a whole version increase in the name is always a great way to signify change and improvement. So, what does the “2.0” in Warzone 2.0 really bring to the table? Is it the usual changes of a new map, new cosmetics and a few new weapons? Or is this something more substantial?
Substantial is the best word I’d use to describe the new version of Warzone. Crikey.
Here are the big changes:
- The map: Al-Mazrah is the new playground players will find themselves in. 150 players will drop here, a map comprised of old and new locales, such as Airport and Quarry from 2009’s Modern Warfare 2.
- Backpack system: Picking up an item will put it into a revised inventory system, and these items can be lost upon the player’s death.
- Vehicles: Fuel is required to keep going, and, the addition of boats, vastly improved damage mechanics and changes, too.
- Mickey Mouse head: The circle will split into three smaller circles that will rotate and rejoin each other after a period of time. So you can be in between multiple safe areas during a match. This has caused me to panic, often!
- Proximity chat: The once adored/maligned chat option in PUBG. You can hear people talking nearby. Proximity chat adds depth and realism to the mode. Someone talking about plans hiding around the corner. Keep quiet if you’re being chased!
- Gulag – You still go to the Gulag (albeit a newer arena) but now you drop in as part of a duo and it’s 2v2. Also, if you’re in there too long, a jailor enters, heavily armoured and weapon-clad. That dude scares me!
It’s a Warzone….
So yeah, big map, big changes, big fun.
I played on release day, hotly anticipating the new take on a game that became a beast in itself over a couple of years. It wasn’t a shambles, but it wasn’t smooth. I expected a game this big, with heavy user counts all the time, would have been ok handling the logins of all the people starting in Warzone 2.0.
It was a struggle. Lagging, disconnecting and seeing that you weren’t getting a great experience was enough to make me shy away from it for a while.
Thankfully after some gentle coercion to do a full squad with some of the boys, I got to experience it as it should be. Warzone 2.0 is a fluid, massive Battle Royale and a credit to both Call of Duty and Activision.
Is it my favourite in this genre? Not yet, but it’s a contender to stay in my general rotation every week. That’s a big deal, and honestly space I don’t have a schedule I can’t keep! But I want, nay, need, to drop and learn and discover. There’s more to Warzone 2.0 than I’ve listed above, and I need to fully comprehend how significant the change is.
So far, though. So good. Warzone 2.0 is a big entry in late 2022.
Have you dropped yet?
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