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Call Of Duty: Vanguard

Platform(s): PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X
Genre: Online Multiplayer
Publisher: Activision
Developer: Sledgehammer Games
Release Date: Nov. 5, 2021

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'Call of Duty: Vanguard' Kicks Off Free Multiplayer Weekend, Season One And Warzone Pacific Delayed A Few Days

by Rainier on Nov. 19, 2021 @ 2:17 p.m. PST

Players turn the tides of war to experience World War II like never before in Call of Duty: Vanguard.

Vanguard delivers the complete package to Call of Duty fans across Campaign, online Multiplayer and Zombies co-operative modes. Players will witness the origins of Special Forces as they change the face of history, forming Task Force One in a sprawling World War II narrative campaign spanning the Eastern and Western fronts of Europe, the Pacific, and North Africa. Multiplayer features 20 maps on day one at launch. While Zombies fans will experience a signature undead gameplay experience, marking a franchise-first Zombies crossover for Call of Duty.

Later this year, Vanguard players will be immersed in a fully integrated, new Call of Duty: Warzone experience featuring a brand-new map, new gameplay and new experiences. Together, this is the most connected Call of Duty ever, all powered by the next-generation Call of Duty engine introduced in Modern Warfare.

It's time to rise on every front.


Activision revealed that Season One of Call of Duty: Vanguard and Warzone Pacific will now release Dec. 8.

Vanguard owners will have 24-hour exclusive first play access to the Caldera map. Open access begins on Dec. 9.

Season One Content Includes: 

  • Vanguard’s full integration with Warzone: Pacific kicks off, with Vanguard owners receiving 24 hours exclusive first-to-play access
  • Warzone: Pacific’s map is roughly the size of Verdansk and is based on two years of research and listening to the community and will support fully optimized cross-play, cross-progression and cross-gen support
  • Available to all players in Season One, Vanguard Royale mode– and later, Vanguard Plunder mode – showcase all new content from the Season One update onwards, including weaponry and vehicles like biplanes and AA trucks
  •  New 100-tier Battle Pass
  • New iconic WWII weapons
  • Three new Multiplayer maps
  • Three new unique Operators
  • New Zombies content
  • RICOCHET Anti-Cheat, new Progression Systems and a host of other surprises in store for Season One

Season One Brings Vanguard Integration, Caldera Map To WarZone Among Other Free Content

Welcome to Caldera – A New Map Arrives as Ricochet Anti-Cheat Heats Up with Kernel-Level Driver

  • The Warzone Pacific Era Begins. Caldera’s only true comparison to Verdansk is its scale. This brand-new map, built on learnings from the community, is launching with Season One.
  • Ricochet Anti-Cheat Driver Launching with Season One. Arriving with the new map, expect RICOCHET Anti-Cheat to help keep you focused on the fun.

Lush forests and rocky crags. White sand beaches and mysterious ruins. And a dormant volcano that towers over the 200-plus points of interest.

Warzone will change its title to Call of Duty: Warzone Pacific, or “Warzone Pacific.” The new Pacific formally launches as part of Vanguard’s first season of content. A map roughly the size of Verdansk, which it will replace as part of the update, this new map is based on two years of research and listening to the community.

Built on the same tech and engine as Call of Duty: Vanguard, this map is visually appealing as it is ready to support this new game’s armaments, and will support fully optimized cross-play, cross-progression, and cross-gen support.

It, as well as Warzone as a whole, will also support RICOCHET Anti-Cheat. Our upcoming initiative, supported by a team of dedicated professionals focused on fighting unfair play, will already have several backend anti-cheat security features by Vanguard’s launch on November 5.

As part of the Season One update, RICOCHET Anti-Cheat will deploy the server-side upgrades to Warzone as well as a new, internally developed kernel-level driver on PC to assist in identifying cheaters, which can allow players on all platforms to focus more on the fun new offerings across Vanguard and Warzone Pacific. The kernel-level driver will subsequently release for Vanguard at a later date.

Learn more about the RICOCHET Anti-Cheat system here.

New Playlists: Vanguard’s Integration with Warzone, Including 24-Hour Exclusive Access Period, Dedicated Main Playlist and Dogfighting, Detailed

  • Dogfighting, New Vanguard Content, Shine in Dedicated Playlist. Available to all players, take to the skies or maneuver AA guns to breakup epic aerial battles in Vanguard Royale, featuring a streamlined loadout and weapon pool.
  • Honoring Your Progression. The integration adds Vanguard content – expect all your Operators, Calling Cards, and more from Black Ops Cold War and Modern Warfare® to stay in Warzone, as well as cross-progression and Seasonal Prestige.
  • 24-Hour Exclusive Access to Caldera for Vanguard Players. Play the new Pacific map a day early by owning Call of Duty: Vanguard. Rebirth Island will remain live during this time for all other players.

Caldera is just the beginning of Vanguard’s full integration into Warzone, and there’s no better place to experience all this fresh content than in the dedicated Vanguard modes for Warzone Pacific.

Available to all players in Season One, Vanguard Royale mode– and later, Vanguard Plunder mode – showcase all new content from the Season One update onwards, including weaponry and vehicles like biplanes and AA trucks.

The Pacific is home to dogfighting, aerial battles in the azure skies above the majestic isle. Think of a Precision Airstrike where you are in the cockpit, ready to rain down fire on a squad or defend yours from an enemy pilot. That, in its most basic terms, is what you can imagine aerial combat is like in the Pacific.

Expect a new machinegun fighter aircraft to add another element of strategy and firepower to your squad’s winning Warzone Pacific tactics. These are also just part of a brand-new set of vehicles for these Vanguard-focused modes; another is an anti-air (AA) truck that provides a solid solution to grounding planes other than launchers, LMGs, stationary AA turrets or taking to the skies yourself.

In these modes, only Vanguard weaponry can be used in Loadouts. This limit streamlines the meta, granting new players an opportunity to jump in without facing fully maxed-out loadouts right at launch. It also grants room for experimentation with these new weapons, giving the most hardcore community meta prophets a place to focus on the future for a winning loadout.

Good news: Those Operators with previously earned Warzone content can use what they’ve acquired after Vanguard’s integration. In fact, the December 2 integration will follow the same format as when Black Ops Cold War came to Warzone:

  • All Operators – from Vanguard, Black Ops Cold War, and Modern Warfare – can be used across all of Warzone after the integration, even in the Vanguard playlist.
  • Your progression – for your Player Level, Battle Pass system, etc. – is synchronized across Vanguard, Black Ops Cold War, Modern Warfare and Warzone Pacific, and the Seasonal Levelling and Prestige System will return. This also means your level will reset to Military Rank 1 within all games, but this only applies to XP; all content you previously unlocked will still be available.
  • Your personal profile – Calling Card, Emblem, etc. – can be comprised of what you already have in Black Ops Cold War and Modern Warfare, use what you will earn in Vanguard, or be a combination of anything from those games.
  • The Store will stock Vanguard Bundles as well as legacy Black Ops Cold War and Modern Warfare content – all of which can be used in Warzone Pacific.

In addition to getting to try out the new weapons and Operators in Vanguard, those who purchase Call of Duty: Vanguard prior to Season One’s official launch will be able to participate in a 24-hour Caldera exclusive access event in Warzone Pacific starting on launch day, December 2.

As for Black Ops Cold War and Modern Warfare weaponry, they still have a place across both of Warzone’s islands…

Familiar Playlists: Access All Legacy Content in Standard, Rebirth Island Playlists

  • The Biggest Arsenal in Call of Duty. At the start of Season One, you can use150+ weapons in Caldera within standard Battle Royale and Plunder modes as well as…
  • Rebirth Island Returns. The Resurgence continues. Expect the alternate, small-scale map to continue supplementing the main Warzone map.
  • “Original Warzone Vehicles” Still Cruising. Your pink anime truck isn’t going anywhere. All original vehicles and their Vehicle Skins – including ATVs and other Verdansk-era modes of transport – still exist in these playlists.

Warzone is big enough for two islands after all.

For those with Warzone experience since integration with Modern Warfare and Black Ops Cold War, all those 100+ weapons you levelled up and perfected loadouts for can still be used across the many Warzone Pacific playlists. Here are two we can reveal right now:

The first are playlists that include Rebirth Island. From Resurgence to Mini Royales and many more surprises to come, Rebirth Island is back to complement the main Warzone Pacific experience. 

The other is your familiar Battle Royale and Plunder experiences, but taking place on Caldera. Whether it is modern, from the Cold War, or just came with Vanguard, any of the 150+ weapons you have earned or levelled up can be used in the normal playlists.

The usual playlists are also home to the “original” vehicles you’ve driven before – ATVs, SUVs, Helicopters, and the like. While the dedicated Vanguard modes will have all new ways to get around Caldera, such as planes and AA Truck, the original vehicle set, as well as any Vehicle Skins you’ve unlocked for them, will still exist in these other playlists.

Season One: New Battle Pass, Armaments, Multiplayer Maps and More

All these exciting Warzone additions aren’t the only pieces of new content coming with Season One.

Starting on December 2, Vanguard players can expect three new Multiplayer Maps, three unique Operators, new Zombies content & features like additional Covenants, a new Objective, fresh Challenges, new weapons, and more.

Plus, this season marks the first Battle Pass system across Vanguard and Warzone, where up to 100 Tiers of items – including a selection of free Weapon Blueprints, cosmetic content, and two functional weapons – are yours to unlock.

There are also plenty more functional weapons, Weapon Blueprints, Operator Skins, and other content that will become available during the season via Challenges and the Store via bundles.

Key Features:

  • Epic campaign spanning four major theaters of WWII  
    • Experience pivotal WWII battles through the untold stories of multinational heroes that formed Task Force One, changing the face of history and setting the stage for Special Forces as we know it  
    • Development led by award-winning studio Sledgehammer Games, Call of Duty: Vanguard drops players into an epic scale of global warfare, where they will experience combat through the eyes of the original Special Forces Operators across four major theaters of WWII  
    • The deeply engaging, single player narrative features a select multinational group of four soldiers from diverse backgrounds, who rise together in combat to turn the tides of war  
    • Vanguard uses the next generation Call of Duty engine introduced with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare to deliver breathtaking visual fidelity, a photo realistic world, lifelike characters and optimized performance that enhances the gameplay for an advanced Call of Duty experience.  
  • Unparalleled Multiplayer offering 
    • Massive day 1 Multiplayer offering with 20 multiplayer maps at launch, including 16 core multiplayer 
    • Experience signature Call of Duty combat and new ways to play with combat pacing and reactive gameplay environments.
    • Tactical down the barrel gunplay, the return of Gunsmith, new custom ballistics, and reactive environments
    • The fast and frenetic Champion Hill mode features a series of tournament style head-to-head matches, where players can play solo (1v1) or squad up in duos (2v2) and trios (3v3) to battle it out in an arena consisting of four maps to be the last squad standing  
  • Treyarch Zombies!  
    • From the birthplace of Zombies, Treyarch helps deliver a franchise first Call of Duty Zombies crossover as Vanguard connects with the Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War Zombies storyline delivering a new connection for Call of Duty players  
    • Players will be able to survive the relentless onslaught of the undead in a chilling all-new Zombies experience, developed by Treyarch Studios  
    • Provides continuity from a lore standpoint while innovating on the core gameplay loop  
  • Warzone Integration  
    • Raven Studios leading development of brand-new Call of Duty: Warzone map coming this year  
    • Will feature a multi-faceted, new anti-cheat system across Warzone
    • Shares the same tech as Vanguard for seamless weapon and operator integration

Post launch, Vanguard  together with Warzone will offer a massive calendar of free post-launch content featuring new maps, modes, playlists, limited time events and seasonal events, as well as community celebrations and more.

The Battle Pass system also returns, allowing you to unlock post-launch content with unified progression across both Call of Duty: Vanguard and Call of Duty: Warzone. As always, you can unlock items like base weapons, customization items, and more, simply by playing the game.

Call of Duty: Vanguard is scheduled for release on PS5, PS4, XboxSeries X|S ,Xbox One, and PC via Battle.net starting November 5, 2021. Call of Duty: Warzone’s new experience will release later this year.


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