With ‘Mercenaries of Fortune,’ Call Of Duty Season 4 Raises The Stakes

The fourth season of Warzone (and Vanguard) begins on Wednesday, June 22, with a new battle royale map, new modes to play, and the return of the round-based Zombies game type for Vanguard.

USS Texas 1945, a reinvention of the USS Texas map from 2017’s Call of Duty: WWII, is also included in Vanguard. On June 22, that map will be released, while Desolation, a new map, will be released in the middle of the season. This is a “small-to-medium-sized map set in a congested settlement,” according to the description. So it’s not a vast expanse of free space but a shattered listening post in the Pacific.

Call of Duty: Black Ops

Gun Game, which first appeared as an April Fool’s joke in 2010’s Call of Duty: Black Ops, will also return to Vanguard players. To win a match in Vanguard’s mode, Blueprint Gun Game, a player must record kills with all 18 weapons. With each kill, the method advances to the next gun on the list; the Throwing Knife is the final weapon.

Shi No Numa, a map that debuted in the inaugural Zombies Call of Duty, World at War, in 2008, is the Zombies callback. In an enhanced “Swamp of Death,” players will return to a round-based style with new main and side missions, as well as a new Wonder Weapon quest.

Fortune’s Keep, Warzone’s newest map, was announced on Monday. The battle royale will include new in-game challenges inspired by the “Mercenaries of Fortune” game, such as the “Black Market Run Contract,” which requires players to reach the Black Market Buy Station before the timer runs out. They’ll uncover some unique riches and equipment there.

Polygon reported that during Resurgence Battle Royale bouts, NPC mercs would attempt to airlift their loot of the island. Players can show up to plunder their dice game, but they must be wary of enemy operators who may have the same idea.

In Warzone, a new vehicle called the Armored SUV will be released in the middle of the season. It has a rooftop turret with plenty of room for players to deploy their loadout weapons.