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Highlights
- Leaked information for Call of Duty 2024 suggests that the game will launch with two round-based Zombies maps, Gobblegum, and the long-awaited Factions, along with a potentially controversial pre-order bonus: early access to Zombies.
- Early access to Zombies mode through pre-ordering could lead to potential burnout, with players completing everything before the game’s official release, while also limiting the discovery of secrets and Easter eggs for non-pre-order players.
- However, there are upsides, such as getting to play the mode sooner and having a double-launch for Zombies, as Treyarch could wait until the full release before unlocking Zombies’ quests and story content.
Despite very little information being officially revealed, fans know a fair bit about Call of Duty 2024. Developed by Treyarch, the next entry in Activision’s longrunning FPS franchise will supposedly be set in the existing Black Ops timeline and take players to the Gulf War. Alongside this fresh setting, the game will see Treyarch moving to the IW engine used for other modern Call of Duty games, which should result in a consistent feel for the franchise and allow Treyarch to keep up with graphical enhancements. Two round-based Zombies maps, Gobblegum, and the long-awaited Factions feature nhave also leaked, as has a pre-order bonus that could prove controversial.
In recent years, Call of Duty has offered a number of pre-order bonuses to entice players to purchase the new games ahead of time. Skins like Zombie Ghost are often included with pre-orders alongside weapon bundles that give players special blueprints, though for many, the most exciting offer is early campaign access. While being able to play Modern Warfare 3’s singleplayer mode a week before release may have backfired due to its many problems, the idea is sound, as it gives players a chance to experience the story before being pulled in the direction of multiplayer or Zombies on day one. However, extending that early access to Zombies like Call of Duty 2024 is rumored to do could prove problematic.
Smaller Maps For Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Zombies Would Have Pros and Cons
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Zombies is expected to receive smaller maps once Warzone gets them, though they could have some downsides.
The Pros and Cons of Early Access to Zombies
Zombies Burnout Can Strike Fast With Early Access
While the Call of Duty 2024 leaks reported on by Windows Central suggested that other modes in the game would only have a few days early access for pre-orders, which would hardly be too surprising given how common that approach is for multiplayer games nowadays, the idea that Call of Duty 2024 Zombies could be accessible weeks before the full release of the game is a bit concerning. One immediate problem is that players who do not pre-order the game will be left out, as such a big bonus is essentially forcing their hand, but the larger concern is that Zombies burnout could happen before the game even fully releases.
If players pre-order Call of Duty 2024, they could find themselves playing Zombies for weeks before the full release, and then when the game actually drops, they could find themselves having done everything. If they have played the two survival maps to death before release, gamers could have little interest in continuing to play them in order to complete seasonal challenges. Worse, the pre-order community could discover all there is to see in round-based Zombies before Call of Duty 2024 fully releases, leaving those who wait until day one to purchase the game with nothing to discover on their own. Finding secrets and solving Easter eggs with the community for the first few days after a Zombies map’s release is part of the fun, but it seems like only those who pre-order could get to do that in Call of Duty 2024.
Locking Zombies early access behind a pre-order is also concerning because it does not give players a chance to see how the mode will actually play. Black Ops 4 had a problematic launch with nonstop crashes and bugs, while Call of Duty: Vanguard was hugely unpopular with Zombies fans and many regretted their purchase.
Call of Duty 2024 Zombies Could Have a Second Spark of Life
However, though there are legitimate concerns to be had with several weeks of early access to Call of Duty Zombies, there are upsides to consider. First, players will get their hands on the mode a bit sooner, which will be exciting for those who are desperate for a return of round-based gameplay. Additionally, Treyarch can have a double-launch for Zombies. To accomplish this, the early access period could stop players from doing side quests and the main quest Easter egg, with only traditional survival gameplay available. This way, players could learn the maps and play old school Zombies for a few weeks, with the full release opening up the maps’ quests and story content. All players could then hunt for secrets together at launch, with early access fans providing feedback on the core gameplay so that a day-one patch can fix any issues. Alternatively, only one of the two maps could be available via early access, ensuring that launch day is still exciting.
