The celebration for Warzone‘s fifth anniversary earlier this month has already come to an unceremonious end, as players have turned their attention yet again towards the future.
While Call of Duty is still a massive monetary success even months after Black Ops 6’s launch, Warzone players cannot wait for Verdansk’s return in season three and are hoping it will right the ship. The latest target in their crosshairs is the game’s most recent new map, which was added alongside season one in December.
Area 99, a small-scale map for the Resurgence game mode, was the main new piece of content for Warzone other than omnimovement when BO6 launched at the end of 2024, and players are starting to reflect on where the map stands in their rankings. And judging by a March 18 Reddit thread, it seems to be ranked rather low.
“When it launched I can’t remember people being particularly excited about it,” the CoD gamer who started the discussion said. “I personally felt it had some good features, but it also felt too cramped for Resurgence. Seeing how it fairly quickly got taken out of regular rotation without people… voicing their disappointment [sic] about this, is it time to officially call this map biggest failure Warzone history?”
And they were not alone in their assessment. “I’d argue the worst map they’ve ever made,” another player replied, while another said “the color palette is horrible, just killing visibility.” And unfortunately, I’d have to agree.
I haven’t been the biggest fan of Warzone the past year or so, and Area 99 is about as unforgettable as any of the maps that have been added, in my opinion. Other players in the thread were agreed in longing for Ashika Island to return as a Resurgence map, upset that it was “sacrificed” for Area 99 to be added.
The idea for Area 99 is cool, but the execution has left everyone wanting. It’s placed in an area where, basically, Nuketown and other sites like it are being manufactured to be sent around the world for nuclear testing. It’s a fun idea, but the map itself is lacking when compared to other Resurgence maps, especially the fan-favorite Rebirth Island.
I also think that BO6 and omnimovement launching with just a Resurgence map, and yet another few months of Urzikstan as the large BR map, was a misstep. It was likely necessary for Verdansk to be delayed into April instead of launching with season one, but it undoubtedly killed a lot of the hype that I and others had for a new year of Warzone.
With Verdansk’s return just over two weeks away, it may be time to get excited all over again, though.
