Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War's Season 2 battle pass introduced a whole new arsenal of weapons, game modes, and rewards also available in Call of Duty: Warzone. Thanks to the series' integration, players of the free-to-play battle royale got loads of new content to freshen their treks through Verdansk. Even though that update might have just rolled out in February, several rumors have suggested that Warzone may soon receive a monumental update that will completely overhaul its map for good.
Warzone players have long been aware of the nuclear weapons stashed inside Verdanks' hidden bunkers, which have to be unlocked by a code. These warheads have remained dormant since they were first added to the battle royal. Now, chatter online has suggested that Activision-Blizzard is planning a cataclysmic nuclear event that could reduce Verdansk to rubble and usher in a new setting for the online game.
Warzone's map could be blown to smithereens and permanently removed from the game soon. Activision hasn't confirmed this, but months of speculation about what Verdansk's nuclear weapons could be used for were bolstered by alleged leaks that have surfaced over the past few weeks. Several leakers have reported that developers Raven Software and Infinity Ward are planning a Fornite-scale world event to ring in the next chapter of the battle royale in a fittingly chaotic fashion. Here's everything we know about when Warzone's new map update could launch, what it will look like, and what it means for Verdansk.
When Is The New Warzone Map's Release Date?
Activision hasn't announced anything about a new Warzone map, so there's currently no official release date. Still, leakers ZestyCODLeaks and ModernWarzone recently stated that a nuclear explosion event would introduce a new map for the battle royale on April 22, 2021. ModernWarzone has previously leaked accurate information ahead of the official announcement of Black Ops Cold War, so there's some reason to believe that these could be legitimate. Activision has also announced that April 22 will be a big day for Warzone.
The battle royale's current battle pass will end on April 22, which means Season 3 will start after that date. Activision has introduced a few mid-season changes to Verdansk in the past, including Missile Silos and a Shipwreck included in Warzone Season 2. None of these changes impacted the game map's layout, so the beginning of Season 3 could be the perfect time to completely reimagine the title's map to keep long-time fans interested and attract newcomers.
How Will The New Warzone Map Be Introduced?
It's unclear how Activision will launch what could be the biggest change to the battle royale since its release. No leaks have specified what kind of event the rumored nuclear explosion could be, but the company could pull from past Warzone events and its competitors to create a truly immersive experience that could attract millions of players to its servers. One way to do it would be replicating the Warzone's Rebirth Island map limited-time event.
During that December 2020 event, players had until January 4, 2021, to play the battle royale in a new location and complete 16 map-specific missions. These would reward them with unique cosmetics and items they could't acquire after the Rebirth Island event. The rumored nuclear event could offer players a limited-time map of Verdansk that has been recently affected by the devastating explosion. This could feature crumbling structures in the Downtown area and highly radioactive spots near where the explosion originated. After a few weeks, when the smoke is cleared, Activision could unveil a completely new map that's either an unrecognizable, devastated Verdansk, or a new section of the Warzone map beyond its previous borders that has been blasted open.
Alternatively, Warzone could take a page out of Epic Games' playbook and make the rumored nuclear event a live event like Fortnite's Travis Scott concert, to name one. Activision could tell players to log in one day to witness the explosion as a cinematic that will play before dropping players into a round of the battle royale. Previously, Fortnite's Galactus event garnered more than 15 million concurrent players, so framing a Warzone event similarly could be a way to give the title a massive boost in traffic ahead of a content drop.
Where Will The New Warzone Map Be Located?
While altering Verdansk's topography could be a natural way for a catastrophic nuclear explosion to affect the Warzone map, chatter has claimed that it might be done away with. Reputable leaker Tom Henderson claimed that Warzone's Verdansk would be eradicated and never return. The map has been the main setting for the battle royale since its 2020 launch, and since the title has just had its first anniversary, it could be time to freshen its gameplay with an entirely new setting.
While there's no concrete information to reveal where the battle royale could be heading next, rumors have hinted that it could be inspired by the Russian Ural Mountains from Black Ops Cold War's Fireteam game mode. A map themed after the series' most recent release would make sense as Activision has used the free-to-play Warzone to advertise its premium titles, like Modern Warefare, in the past. If this proves to be accurate, players can expect steep terrain, dense forests, and a focus on medium-to-long-range combat.
What Will Happen To Warzone's Verdansk Map?
So could Activision actually do away with Warzone's iconic Verdansk map for good? It remains to be seen what the company's plans are for the battle royale, but it's possible that once Season 3 is released, Verdansk will never be playable again. Fortnite's original Athena map was tweaked 13 times in Chapter 1 before Epic Games completely did away with it in favor of its new Apollo map. While Verdansk might hold a sentimental value for longtime players of Warzone, Activision needs to continuously revitalize the battle royale to keep its existing player base interested and attract new gamers that Verdansk didn't.
On the other hand, Activision might give players the option to queue for games on both maps separately. This could be a way to let day-one Call of Duty: Warzone players who have spent countless hours memorizing every nook and cranny of Verdansk the option to continue playing on it while also being able to enjoy all the new content. All of this is still wildly speculative, and only time will tell what's in store for the battle royale, but a Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War-themed map would make a lot of sense.