Modern Warfare: Warzone’s Gulag Is a Twist We Desperately Needed

• Gameplay footage of Modern Warfare: Warzone has leaked ahead of an expected launch tomorrow.
• The video showcases Warzone’s Gulag respawn mechanic in action.
• The mechanic allows players to duke it out in 1v1 for a chance to respawn back into the game.

We’ve known about Call of Duty: Modern Warfare’s Warzone battle royale mode for a while now, but today offered the most detailed look yet. YouTuber Chaos uploaded an unlisted video showcasing captured gameplay from a day spent testing out the new Warzone.

The video is no longer available, presumably pulled upon request from Activision and developer Infinity Ward ahead of a rumored launch tomorrow, March 10.

Nevertheless, the footage confirmed many of Modern Warfare: Warzone rumors doing the rounds in recent weeks.

Free to play, 150 player matches, a massive map, cross-platform play – the list goes on.

With the battle royale genre at saturation point, there are naturally questions around what Modern Warfare: Warzone can bring to the table to set it apart from Apex Legends, PUBG, and Fortnite.

Modern Warfare: Warzone’s Gulag Respawn Mechanic

The answer may lie in Modern Warfare: Warzone’s Gulag respawn mechanic.

Instead of some bleak Soviet-inspired purgatory for players to wait out the remainder of a match pondering what led to their early demise, Warzone’s Gulag offers a novel spin on the concept of respawning.

The main gist is that when a player dies, Warzone ports them to the Gulag, a mini-sized map where they can duke it out in a 1v1 fight for the chance to respawn.

Mined game data suggest non-downed players will need to find a Respawn Token and deliver a teammate’s body to an Ambulance, at which point the dead player lands in the Gulag.

The Gulag isn’t available throughout the full length of a match, though. According to the leaked video, there’s a time limit, and the Gulag is effectively shut off beyond a certain point.

Throwing Stones

As YouTuber Chaos explains, there’s an interesting dynamic at play within Warzone’s Gulag when two teammates find themselves there at the same time:

You get in the Gulag, and you are in the upper level looking down at the showers. You are spectating whoever is 1v1-ing. If you have a partner that died with you, you could be spectating him while he is fighting his 1v1, and you could be calling out to him where the enemy is.

But, on top of that, you can throw rocks at the enemy. So if you are up there waiting for your turn, you have rocks at your hand that you can throw down at the enemy that actually stuns them and help your teammate out in their 1v1.

Although it’s hard to get excited about another battle royale game, especially with Valorant just around the corner, the Gulag mechanic is something fresh that makes Modern Warfare: Warzone worth your time.

But will it be enough to command your full attention?

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of CCN.com.