Call of Duty: Warzone

Call of Duty: Warzone launched in March 2020 as a standalone free-to-play battle royale set on the sprawling Verdansk map, built on the technological foundations of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. Up to 150 players competed for survival, and eliminated players had a chance to return to the match through one-on-one duels in the Gulag for a second chance. Alongside the main battle royale mode, the game also offered a Plunder mode, which was primarily about collecting in-game currency on the map without permanent elimination after death. Warzone could be played for free without owning the full Modern Warfare game, which helped it quickly build a massive player base across console generations and on PC.

Using in-match currency, players could have their own pre-set weapon loadouts parachuted onto the battlefield, which set the game apart from battle royale titles based purely on random loot found on the map.

The Xbox One version launched on exactly the same day as the PlayStation 4 and PC versions, so unlike other entries in the series, there was no timed advantage for either console here. The main differences were therefore purely technical - the base Xbox One ran the game at a lower resolution, while the more powerful Xbox One X allowed a higher image resolution while maintaining a similar frame rate. The game supported crossplay from the start, so Xbox players could compete without restriction against PlayStation and PC players in shared matches. Content updates, new maps, and gameplay mechanics arrived on Xbox One simultaneously with other platforms, so throughout its support period the game remained an equal part of the wider Warzone ecosystem, with the same content and the same game seasons as on the rival console and PC. Xbox One players therefore didn't miss out on any gameplay mechanic or map just because of their platform choice - the difference stayed purely on the side of the hardware's performance.

Why play it: For players on the base Xbox One, this is the same battle royale experience as on more powerful platforms, just at a lower resolution, and crossplay also lets you play without restrictions alongside friends on PC and PlayStation.