Excitement around Call of Duty: Vanguard is quickly building, with fans hyped about the plentiful launch content and the fixes being made due to beta feedback. Now, they have something else to be positive about, as Call of Duty: Vanguard will be getting a ranked mode.
The news that a competitive option is coming to Call of Duty: Vanguard will surely restart the discussion around Call of Duty’s skill-based matchmaking. After all, many feel like this would be the way to limit such a system, with SBMM included in ranked play but left off in public matches. While that will likely never happen, as Activision and the various Call of Duty developers have supported the concept of SBMM, fans should expect to see the debate starting up once again regardless.
Still, while heated discussions will likely be caused by its inclusion for that reason, most Call of Duty fans should be thrilled by this news. Back in Call of Duty: Black Ops 2, League Play was one of the most popular features, as players had a blast with the game’s competitive offering. While it remains to be seen if this system will be as strong as that one was, the fact that there will be a system at all is promising. Activision confirmed the feature via a post on the official Call of Duty Twitter account, describing it as a “new level” of competitive play.
In a follow-up Tweet, Treyarch confirmed it would be working with Sledgehammer Games on the mode. While some fans will obviously be worried about this due to the flawed League Play from Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, Treyarch also made the system from Black Ops 2 - meaning that it has worked on the best and worst iterations of competitive Call of Duty. As for when this new system will be coming to the game, only 2022 was mentioned, so fans will be waiting until at least Season 1 Reloaded - though it certainly could come later than that.
As for what the mode will feature, players can expect Ranked Skill Divisions that sort players based on their performance and win count. Visible Skill Ratings will make it clear what rank players are, while Competitive Rewards will see players unlocking exclusive items by succeeding within League Play. In Call of Duty: Black Ops 2, these rewards took the form of Calling Cards. These will likely return, and like Gunfight Tournament, weapon blueprints and charms may also serve as special unlocks.
While the delayed release of League Play may seem disappointing, it should actually work out perfectly for competitive players. Gamers will have a few months to learn the ins and outs of Call of Duty: Vanguard’s maps, being fully prepared once League Play launches.
Call of Duty: Vanguard is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.