Call of Duty: Warzone has hit the market just recently, but the game has already proven that there’s plenty of room for improvement in the well-established battle royale genre. While the title has obviously adopted some of the existing BR features from other games, the amount of uniquely introduced gameplay attributes is overwhelming.
The result of the improved battle royale formula is the huge popularity of Warzone. It does a lot of things right, regardless of whether they are taken from the competitors or created specifically for the newest Call of Duty title. In this article, you’ll learn about the returning BR features and the pioneering ones in Warzone.
10 Adopted: Respawn System And Self-Revive
Originally, the respawn mechanics have been introduced to the genre by Apex Legends, and it was a natural game changer. Giving players a second chance in the unforgiving battle royale gameplay was a delicate solution to rage quits and overall frustration. Call of Duty: Warzone has obviously acknowledged the value of the respawn system.
The game has a buyable self-revive feature, which lets you get back on your feet when you get downed by an enemy. If the opponent kills your character completely, even then you can return to the battle if your teammates have enough cash to buy you back for a redeploy.
9 Unique: No Inventory Management
Managing your inventory is another reason to get frustrated in a battle royale game. You have to bear in mind how much free space you have left and what exactly occupies slots in the backpack. Call of Duty: Warzone has taken a different route in that regard, and the unique feature of the game is that there’s no exhausting inventory management.
All types of ammo automatically stack up; the same goes for armor plates. You can easily share them with your teammates at any given moment of the game, and there’s nothing complicated about it. Moreover, there’s no need to carry any attachments since they do not spawn in the game world.
8 Adopted: Missions And Contracts
Battlefield 5 Firestorm introduced an exciting way to engage players, which has brought diversity to the BR gameplay. Upon the completion of specific missions and objectives, players are rewarded with valuable in-game stuff and loot. It’s been a nice addition to the genre, and this particular feature has been adopted by Call of Duty: Warzone.
There’re three types of contracts in the game. You can go on a hunt for a player, defend an area, or loot a series of crates. Each mission enriches the flow of matches and makes the overall experience a lot more dynamic and interactive.
7 Unique: Adding Killstreaks
Killstreaks are a unique feature of the Activision’s shooter franchise, and it would’ve been surprising if Warzone lacked it. While it’s not something entirely new for the Call of Duty series, the Killstreaks mechanics are unique to the battle royale genre in general. It creates an assortment of gameplay opportunities and a variety of unexpected scenarios.
However, Killstreaks do not work in Warzone as they do in regular Call of Duty multiplayer. To obtain some of the most desired special abilities, you’ll have to spend in-game cash at buy stations. Luckily, there’s a lot of money scattered across Verdansk for everyone to have an airstrike.
6 Adopted: Ping System
Apex Legends was the most revolutionary battle royale release in years, and the game has improved the comfort of playing the said genre drastically. One of the key pioneering features of the game was the fully voiced dynamic ping system. It was so great, that the competitors raced to implement a similar system in their games. Call of Duty: Warzone is no different.
In Activision’s latest, you can request any type of ammo and armor. You can also ping loot on the ground and give instructions to your squad regarding the enemies’ positions and movement. The system greatly simplifies communication and makes it far more interactive.
5 Unique: 1v1 Gulag Matches
Although Call of Duty: Warzone has taken the respawn mechanics from Apex Legends, there’s still a related feature in the game, which is completely unique. Once you get killed for the first time during a match, you are placed in Gulag where you participate in a fast 1v1 match in a small arena. The winner is then returned back into the combat on Verdansk.
It’s a great way to give players an additional skill-based chance to get back into action. If there’re any of your teammates still alive, they can buy you back for a respawn even if you lose the afterlife 1v1 match in Gulag. But as a feature itself, the Gulag fights are deeply satisfying.
4 Adopted: No Fall Damage With Renewable Parachutes
Apex Legends was the first battle royale game to completely remove fall damage. It helps to focus on the gameplay rather than on a desperate search for a way down. Although it might be a simplification, Apex Legends benefited from such an approach a lot. Since there’s a lot of verticality in Call of Duty: Warzone, especially in urban environments, the game needed a similar solution.
There’s no fall damage in Warzone, sort of. Once you’ve jumped from a dangerous height, you can immediately open a parachute. Moreover, you can cut it and reopen it for as many times as you want. It sounds more like Battlefield than Apex Legends, but the idea is the same – to maintain the fluid, skill-focused gameplay. That said, you can still receive fall damage and die if you fail to open the parachute in time.
3 Unique: Loadout System
Call of Duty: Warzone lacks free-spawning attachments, but it doesn’t mean you can’t improve your weapons. Guns come in various rarity types with the common ones lacking any attachments at all. Epic or even legendary weapons come equipped with scopes, extended magazines, lasers, suppressors, etc.
The interesting part is that you can prepare almost a dozen of loadouts with weapons of your choice, which you can equip with any available attachments. You can later call in supply drops while in a match or simply loot a random supply crate to pick the loadout you fancy the most. It’s also the only way to make use of perks.
2 Adopted: Glowing Loot Crates
That is something to come straight from Fortnite. If you are familiar with this game then you know that there’re glowing loot crates of varying rarity. They make enticing sounds to attract players who are searching for goodies, and it is exactly how crates work in Call of Duty: Warzone. Interestingly, the system fits the modern setting of the game perfectly, which you wouldn’t think could be possible with Fortnite-style mechanics.
Although the sound the crates make in Call of Duty: Warzone is the same buzz for every rarity type, you never know if it’s going to be a blue uncommon chest or a golden rare one. But you are always guaranteed to get a random weapon.
1 Unique: Temporary Ring Immunity
Call of Duty: Warzone is less random than other battle royale games. It emphasizes the player’s skill rather than the unexpected obstacles and violent conditions of the in-game environment. The deadly gas ring in Warzone is relatively slow when it’s contracting, which alone is a huge advantage. The concept of regenerating health is also helping a lot.
However, there’s an even more elegant solution to giving players more time to recover when escaping the ring. Gas masks give a few precious seconds of immunity thus allowing players to reach safe places and focus on combat encounters.