Call of Duty: Warzone players have an exciting new map titled Pacific Caldera to look forward to. The map change will be the biggest map refresh the battle royale has ever seen, and will see it slipping further back in time to the 1940s. Call of Duty: Warzone's new map follows in the footsteps of Call of Duty: Vanguard's release, and will bring with it a year of tailor-made seasons of new cosmetics, weapons, gameplay modes, and an evolving storyline as players have come to expect from the title.
Fans have already gotten a decent look at Warzone's newest map from the developers, including details on the different points of interest and areas that define how it will redefine the meta and how players prefer to play. However, that will also be determined by the other changes coming to Call of Duty: Warzone with the launch of the Pacific Caldera map, and the start of Season One. One big change that players have been waiting for is the launch of the game's new Ricochet anti-cheat, while others will have a pretty big impact on how matches play out.
Changes to Loadouts Coming to Warzone
The integration of Call of Duty: Vanguard into Warzone will obviously bring a plethora of new weapons to the game. Season One will include all 38 core weapons from Vanguard, as well as two new guns that can be unlocked for free through the season's battle pass. These weapons will also be the only weapons available in the mode once they are added, which should help the game avoid the balancing issues that arose from the integration of Black Ops Cold War.
The integration will also bring many new attachments, such as Vanguard's bayonets. Notably, players will also only be able to use operators from Call of Duty: Vanguard on the new map, which means that players won't be able to use their previously unlocked or purchased operators.
The new season will also bring a number of nerfs to certain field upgrades and equipment. The developers specifically point towards the nerfing of Dead Silence and the complete removal of Stopping Power Rounds. The developers have also said that options for reworks of equipment like stun grenades and heartbeat sensors are also being looked into for the season's launch. Players will also have to adapt to a sizable change to loadout drops in Warzone. To shift purchasing a loadout drop from being a spike in player power, to a decision that takes more consideration towards strategy, players will only be able to call in loadout drops after the first drop event occurs.
New Vehicles and Contracts Coming to Warzone
One of the biggest changes coming to Warzone with the Pacific Caldera map is the new vehicles, particularly the airplanes. While the ground vehicles will largely be World War 2 equivalents of what players are used to, airplanes have the potential to completely change up the gameplay experience. Not only does it introduce dogfighting, but the map also has anti-air guns that can be used to shoot down planes, as well as trucks equipped to do the same. Balancing the airplanes will likely be quite a challenge for the developers, especially as matches move into their last moments where it could be much easier for a player in an airplane to find and kill those on the ground.
The introduction of dogfighting has also necessitated the developers updating the pacing of matches. To help facilitate players staying in one area to see plane fights to the end, the times for circle collapses will be extended to slow things down. For players who keep their boots on the ground, new contracts are being introduced to give them more goals and objectives to chase after. Pacific Caldera will also be home to a number of public events that can happen across a number of its beautiful new locations, so players should have no trouble finding activities to fill their matches.
Gulag and Gameplay Changes Coming to Warzone
The update will also bring a number of smaller changes that seem as though they will have a pretty large cumulative impact on Warzone. The first of these is a big change to Warzone's iconic Gulag. The Gulag has always given players an opportunity to get back into the action after dying, complete with a fresh drop without any gear. With the start of Season One, it will be changed to allow players to bring the gear used to win their Gulag match with them as they redeploy. The change should help make redeploying a bit easier on players who earn it, while also rewarding those who win their Gulag matches efficiently by giving them more ammo and equipment when they get back to the main match.
The map will also introduce a new mechanic centered around shallow water. Walking through water helps obscure a player's footsteps, even for opponents using the Tracker perk while crouching in shallow water gives players the same benefits as Cold Blooded. Furthermore, using fire-based equipment and weapons on the water will also create a wall of smoke, which all should open up some more tactical options for players in those areas of the map. Finally, gas masks are also being tweaked to interrupt fewer actions while also granting players some protection from the new explosive canisters that players can pick up and throw or set traps with.
With all of the changes coming it is no surprise that the release Warzone's newest map and season was delayed to ensure that it would all launch in the best condition possible. Hopefully, it was enough time for the developers to ensure that the launch will go as smoothly as possible for the many excited players anticipating its release.
Call of Duty: Warzone is available now on PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.