It's Time for Call of Duty: Warzone to Make Big Changes to Verdansk or Release a New Map
Call of Duty: Warzone players were recently given access to Rebirth Island, and while the small-scale battle royale map has proven to be a fun addition to the game, it lacks the replayability and size held by Verdansk. However, with Verdansk being over a year old now, it is understandable that players may be a bit tired of fighting each other inside the fictional country. With the last noteworthy changes to the map arriving back in November as well, Verdansk has not felt fresh for quite some time.
Call of Duty: Warzone players have shown patience while the game has seen issues with cheaters, frustrating metas, and major bugs, though the lack of map changes and variety could prove to be a major blow to the battle royale game’s popularity. As such, it seems like it is time for a full-size map addition, especially if Activision and Call of Duty: Warzone’s developers are hoping to keep players engaged. With other battle royales consistently introducing new maps, Call of Duty: Warzone should be no different, as extra locations would go a long way to keeping the game on top.
Call of Duty: Warzone saw the addition of Rebirth Island in Season 1 of Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, and with the extra map came smaller scale gameplay pitting 40 players against each other. With a complex easter egg, some diverse locations to do battle in, and the ability for battle royale fans to get in and out of matches quicker, there is a lot to love about Rebirth Island. That said, the map is only serving as a band-aid for Call of Duty: Warzone’s growing repetitiveness, as it only offers one type of gameplay.
While players that love medium-size player counts and small-scale maps will surely have fun with Rebirth Island, those who want something larger will likely not be satisfied with the map. With few vehicles available, a lack of open land, and less variety in locations to drop into, Rebirth Island is not for everyone. While some people will prefer the map, just as many will want something more akin to Verdansk, with the larger and more complex map taking full advantage of Call of Duty: Warzone’s mechanics. Further, with fan-favorite modes like Plunder not available on Rebirth Island, only players of the traditional battle royale style are catered to.
The other problem with Call of Duty: Warzone’s Rebirth Island addition is that the map is technically not new at all. A reskin of Alcatraz from Blackout mode in Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, those that have stuck with the series for several years are playing something that they may have already put time into years ago. While Alcatraz was undeniably fun, and for many it still is after the Rebirth Island rebranding, it is a remake and not something truly new — and new is exactly what Call of Duty: Warzone needs right now.
Originally leaked prior to Season 4 of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, a second Call of Duty: Warzone map was seemingly set to come to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. Like Verdansk, Urzikstan is also set in a fictional country, with the location featuring heavily in the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare campaign. A desert location with assets already built for use in another mode, it seemed believable that such a map would eventually be added to Call of Duty: Warzone.
However, Call of Duty: Warzone has entered 2021 without any acknowledgement of the location, and Verdansk remains the only fully sized map that is currently available in the game. The premise for Urzikstan certainly sounded promising, as multiplayer locations such as Azhir Caves could have been featured on the map. Allowing for a vastly different visual style from Verdansk, with sand and clay structures replacing the architecture of the countryside, the map could have served as a perfect way to refresh the game and get players excited.
As of now, it remains unclear why this leaked map has not been added. Perhaps holding the location for a later date or simply not wanting to split the player base between Verdansk and Urzikstan, a release of the map should be considered. With PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds expanding via new maps and Apex Legends doing the same through additional maps like Olympus, other battle royale games have proven how successful map drops can be when it comes to keeping gamers satisfied. If Call of Duty: Warzone wants to keep up, a full new map would be a smart idea — regardless of whether it is this rumored desert location or something else entirely.
At the same time, other battle royale games like Fortnite have proven that the same map can work if built on correctly. With Fortnite’s island seeing a major refresh to its locations every season, whether it be through blowing up Tilted Towers or dropping the giant Zero Point portal in the center of the map, Epic Games has kept its player base engaged. For a time, Call of Duty: Warzone players were seeing this same treatment, with a train added to the Verdansk map alongside the subway system. However, once Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War’s second season kicks off, the map changes should become larger.
With Call of Duty: Warzone’s heavily rumored nuke event losing steam after Captain Price’s disarming of the bomb, players have lost the hope for the huge map changes that would have been caused by the nuke’s detonation. Had the nuke gone off, Verdansk could have been given an entirely new feel, but instead it remains the same as it has been for quite some time. Despite the release of Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, Verdansk feels like a Modern Warfare map, with the latest games influence hardly felt.
This needs to change soon, and with leaked Verdansk locations such as the Ski Slopes and Duga, change may happen. Several major map additions to Call of Duty: Warzone would go a long way to freshening up Verdansk, and players could be even more excited for their arrival than they were for the train or Stadium’s heavily requested opening. Make no mistake, though; Call of Duty: Warzone should get a new map, and it should get it soon. While expanding further on what is already there is a step in the right direction for the battle royale game, Call of Duty: Warzone should see a fresh map added that is built around Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War’s setting and mechanics. If Activision truly wants to keep Call of Duty: Warzone going for years, dropping a Warzone map for each new game released would be the perfect way to make that happen.
Call of Duty: Warzone is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
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