Review: Call of Duty: Warzone Halloween event
There’s a whole new weapon blueprint
Having risen from the grave on October 20th, Call of Duty Warzone’s Haunting of Verdansk event was back in its coffin by November 3rd.
What is Warzone?
It’s the Call of Duty developers’ take on the battle royale game style where players drop into a world and must fight each other to the last player or team. Another mode within this game is called “Plunder,” and players must collect the most cash to win. Each game contributes to your total player record and level.
The best part?
It’s free. While there are many things players could spend money on within the game, the game itself is a free download and can be played across a number of systems – I have played for about a year and haven’t bought a thing.
What’s new?
There’s a whole new weapon blueprint called the Pumpkin Punisher awarded to players who participate in the Warzone Trick-Or-Treat objectives and many secondary awards to be found throughout randomized chests in the world. Beware! Some chests have been known to pack a scare. If you don’t know what I mean, just Google Warzone Jumpscare Compilation.
While the exclusive Pumpkin Punisher doesn’t seem like a game changer to me, it certainly is a season collectible which gives it a perceived value.
I think the thrill of close-quarters fighting is exhilarating enough. Verdansk (the Warzone map) has been changed to nighttime and this has only made close combat that much more likely. Enemies emerge from the dark with barrels blazing and resulting spears of light seem to spray across the map. Due to the darkness, players often have to get that much closer to their enemies before they can see them.
My three perks for every game are cold-blooded, ghost, and tracker. This combination is perfect for the player who likes to dominate close-quarters fighting. Add a proximity mine, claymore, or C-4 and a heartbeat sensor – top this off with a powerful short to mid-range assault rifle with stopping power rounds and you could be the Terminator for Halloween.
While I tried Zombie Royale the day it came out, I played three times and didn’t play again until just recently. I initially thought it was a fail due to the zombies having gas grenades and an insane jump, but I had to give it a chance and try out some strategies for this article. So I gave it a shot and it actually is a great mode to play.
Clearly it wasn’t a fail, as it’s the only mode of the event that has remained nearly unchanged while others have come and gone since.
The trick to Zombie Royale is that teams must stick together and work together if they actually want to win. The reason my first few games were so bad is that there was little to no team-play going on.
For the later games when I started changing my mind about the mode, the teams I was on were actually cooperating and working together. We made it really far when the three of us were defending enclosed areas.
Landmines or C-4 are key to this mode, as I was able to survive for a long time eliminating about six enemies in one enclosed area due to having C-4 and unlimited supply boxes (from fallen zombies). One time, a player even downed me, I detonated the C-4 which then downed him, self-revived myself and finished the player off. It worked for awhile, but teamwork in this mode is key.
New horror-themed character skins are available featuring Jigsaw from Saw and Leatherface from Chainsaw Massacre along with numerous other items, emblems, and calling-cards.
The map of Verdansk has also been altered with pools of actively dripping blood, bizarre and creepy sounds and noises – particularly noticed in the Farmland – and ghosts moving around all across the map.
While I do prefer Verdansk in daytime, night has been quite the ominous treat and I was glad I had the chance to play it before the end of the event!
