Return of Verdansk map to Warzone is a "starting point" for further development of Call of Duty's battle royale
The return of Verdansk to Call of Duty: Warzone almost two weeks ago has created a lot of buzz. The number of players and viewers on streaming platforms soared, and the map itself became the main topic of discussion in the game's community. Undoubtedly, the bet on nostalgia played its role, and this is exactly what Warzone needed right now.
In an interview after the return of Verdansk (which has been absent since 2021), Activision developers announced ambitious plans for the future of their battle royale. They insist that the success of Verdansk is only a "starting point" for the revival (or evolution) of Warzone.
Here's What We Know
Before Verdansk's return, Warzone was going through hard times: the game seemed outdated, suffering from cheaters and instability. However, Verdansk's nostalgic value alone managed to bring millions of players back. Activision ran a powerful marketing campaign to let everyone know about the return of the legendary map, and so far, this return can be called a success.
In a recent interview with IGN, Pete Actipis, the game director at Raven Software who is working on Warzone, explained that this is just the beginning of a grand evolution:
"It's been pretty successful, and I think you can feel that in the game, right? We recreated Verdansk to provide the best possible experience. But we didn't stop there. This is the starting point. This is not an anomaly for where Warzone is headed. We took great care in creating this year's experience, and the data shows that it was really successful, and we just hope to keep that momentum going into the future."
He also spoke about Battle Royale Casual, a new mode added with Verdun that offers players a much easier experience in Warzone. This mode is not only here to stay, but will also be evolving:
The great thing about this is that this is the first [revision] of this mode. It's just been released, and we'll be analysing the data, we'll be evolving it over time to make sure that it retains the design principles and the spirit that we put into it.
Right now, it's still quite new. I think it's already giving players what they need, and we'll just continue to watch and develop it. It's a fun mode.
So I just want to believe that the battle royale in the game will flourish.
Source: IGN
