Call of Duty: Warzone recently added Zombies with the Haunting of Verdansk update, confirming the existence of its heavily-rumored Zombie Royale mode. While most Warzone players are simply trying to survive in the overrun, nighttime version of Verdansk, Call of Duty Zombies fans have quickly picked up on a special reference within the new mode.
Captured by reputable leaker and Call of Duty Zombies YouTuber TheGamingRevolution, the undead hordes can be heard saying “Sam” during matches of the Zombie Royale mode. While their voices are quite different from the original Zombies encountered in Treyarch’s iconic survival mode, they are undoubtedly still saying the name of one of the Zombies storyline’s most important characters.
The inclusion of both the classic, yellow-eyed Zombies and the mention of Sam shed new light on an Easter egg discovered last month within Warzone. Near the stadium location, a creepy ghost girl could be heard laughing if players approached a campsite. While some speculated that this could be Sam, it seemed equally possible that it was just a basic Halloween scare. Based on this discovery regarding the “Sam” voice line, however, it seems more likely than not that the laugh was indeed Samantha.
Samantha Maxis will be one of the few characters from the Aether story that makes an appearance in the Dark Aether storyline, as the original crew met their final fate at the end of the Tag Der Toten map. This time around, however, Sam will be a fully grown adult as opposed to a young demonic girl, as seen in the Black Ops Cold War Zombies reveal trailer. She lacks her supernatural powers, and simply has a conversation with the Black Ops campaign character Weaver.
While it is unclear if there are other references to Treyarch’s Zombies story within Zombie Royale, the undead horde shouting Sam is a cool callback to a series staple. Ever since the influential Der Riese map was added in World at War, the undead hordes have repeatedly uttered Samantha's name. With Black Ops Cold War Zombies bringing back features like the Mystery Box and Pack-A-Punch, the zombified enemies will likely still be saying the fan-favorite character’s name when Black Ops Cold War Zombies drops on November 13.
Call of Duty Zombies fans are an extremely dedicated bunch, with one YouTuber even purchasing a “Remaster Die Rise” billboard near Treyarch’s studio. Whether or not the Call of Duty developer will do so is unknown, but fans should enjoy this bit of nostalgia that has been thrown in to Call of Duty: Warzone regardless.
Call of Duty: Warzone is available on PC, PS4, and Xbox One.