This past week Activision Blizzard began teasing its nextCall of Dutyrelease. At the same time, leakers across the industry spoiled the surprise, sharing official assets forCall of Duty: Vanguard, which aims to take a WW2 theme and add a unique spin. Among the leaked information aboutCall of Duty: Vanguardis a key aspect of the game thatCall of Dutymultiplayer fans will want to know about. News has leaked aboutCall of Duty: Vanguard’s launch maps, of which there are many.
The leaked information comes from reliable insider Tom Henderson, who reports thatCall of Duty: Vanguardwill have a massive 20 maps available at launch - with a catch. Setting aside the catch for a moment,Call of Duty: Vanguardis set to feature 16 maps designed for 6v6 multiplayer. That alone is twice the number of 6v6 maps thatlaunched forCall of Duty: Black Ops Cold Warand significantly more than what mostCall of Dutygames deliver.
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As for the additional four maps, those are particularly interesting. Henderson says that those four maps are for what he describes as a new “mini battle royale” mode that will have similar mechanics toWarzone. WhyCall of Duty: Vanguardwill feature this new battle royale mode, as opposed to it being added toWarzone, isn’t clear. However, if it’s going to be available at launch with four maps, then it must be something Activision Blizzard sees as a feature that could prove to be a game seller.
One interesting detail that Henderson shared is that, up until a few weeks ago, he was told thatCall of Duty: Vanguardwould only have 8-10 6v6 maps. He says that there’s been a “massive ramp-up recently” to double that number of maps. He doesn’t speculate regarding why this might be, however. It’s possible thatActivision Blizzardhad the maps ready but wanted to save them for seasonal DLC, only to decide they’d be better for launch.
16 maps instead of 8 maps at launch does appeal to certain subsections of theCall of Dutyplayer base in different ways. For example, it creates a more diverse field of play for esports, which could prove beneficial to theCall of Duty League. It’s also more appealing to the casualCall of Dutyplayer, who won’t grow as bored if there’s a lot of map diversity on day one.
To be fair,Call of Duty: Vanguardhas yet to be officially announced, so it’s possible that Henderson and other leakers have their information wrong. At the same time, it’s possible that Activision Blizzard’s plans have changed. Regardless,Call of Dutyfansshould maintain some skepticism on this massive amount of maps, including a new battle royale mode, untilCall of Duty: Vanguardis officially unveiled.
Call of Duty: Vanguardis rumored to be in development for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
MORE:Call of Duty Vanguard’s Version of WW2 is Going to Be Very Different From the Past
