At the end of last week, Call of Duty: Black Ops 4's battle royale mode, Blackout, saw an interesting change when all of the zombies mysteriously disappeared from the game's map. This appears to have been a temporary vacation, however, as the undead are back, and they are more festive than ever.

"Zombies in Blackout are dressed for the season!" Treyarch's announcement states, and players that join a match of battle royale will find that Call of Duty: Black Ops 4's zombies are now sporting Santa hats. While some reports suggest that these holiday living dead may be slightly faster than before, the small cosmetic change appears to be the primary distinction from their standard counterparts. As many would expect, the company has indicated that this is a temporary change.

Furthermore, the Farm, located just south of the Firing Range, is now a permanent zombie spawn point. The Firing Range is currently a very active location in many rounds of Blackout, and an increased undead presence there may have an interesting impact on the flow of a standard match.

The addition of Santa zombies are not the first of Call of Duty: Black Ops 4's seasonal offerings, as a little less than two weeks ago the Blackout Holiday Event launched for those playing on PlayStation 4. This event brought snowballs, festive lighting, and holiday-themed Supply Stashes to battle royale, and Treyarch complimented it with a Winter Event stream in the Black Market as well as a Zombies mode event called "Winter Calling."

Additionally, players can look forward to gaining some additional rewards as they partake in Call of Duty: Black Ops 4's festivities. Specifically, double XP, weapon XP, and Merits will be active starting this weekend, and Treyarch has elaborated in a Tweet:

The holiday gifts keep on coming! Starting at 10AM PT on Dec. 28, earn 2XP in Multiplayer and Zombies, 2X Weapon XP in Multiplayer and Zombies, and 2x Merits in Blackout through Jan. 1 at 10AM PT. Happy New Year!

Over the past weeks, Treyarch has been busy launching Call of Duty: Black Ops 4's first major post-launch content update, Operation Absolute Zero, as well as implementing several changes that impact all of the game's modes. While some players may consider zombies in Santa hats less than thrilling, others are certain to be happy to receive some bonuses as they get familiar with the new content over the holiday.