Call of Duty: Vanguard has finally arrived. The newest entry in the Call of Duty series is receiving much praise from the fanbase, as the game looks to make strides in multiplayer, zombies, and the campaign. However, the game is far from perfect. Players have already found problems that developer Sledgehammer Games will want to look into as soon as possible, including an issue that may be game-breaking in the popular Search and Destroy mode.
Search and Destroy is a game mode that pits teams against each other with one single life per round. Attacking teams must destroy a bomb site and defending teams must stop the attacking teams from doing so. The game mode has been a staple in the Call of Duty games for a very long time, and it has returned in Call of Duty: Vanguard. But players have noticed that a visual glitch makes it so that the team that planted the bomb has a noticeable advantage in the beloved mode.
After the attackers plant the bomb in Search and Destroy, there is an icon above the bomb site that says "Defend." This is normal, as players now know that they have to make sure that the bomb goes off before it is defused. However, as soon as the enemies start defusing the bomb, the "Defend" word changes to "Defuse Target." This makes it extremely obvious that the enemies are now defusing the bomb, meaning players can get an unfair advantage Call of Duty: Vanguard with this trick.
Instead of properly visually defending the area, using audible cues, etc., a player could simply plant the bomb and hide. They could then wait for the "Defend" icon to change to "Defuse Target," as that would mean that someone is now defusing the bomb, and they can then proceed to take action. This is very likely not by design, as Twitter user and streamer @FF_MuTex noted while sharing a video of this in action. This is not how Search and Destroy has been played in the past and it is extremely heartbreaking to many players, as are some of the skill-based matchmaking decisions of Call of Duty: Vanguard.
This is not the first issue that players have noticed, as there is also a problem where players are spawning in enemy locations in Call of Duty: Vanguard as well, something that can be very frustrating in multiplayer. A brand-new multiplayer experience is bound to have hiccups, and the hope is that this is cleaned up as soon as possible. The beta had plenty of problems that were fixed rather quickly, so the hope is that the full game will have problems resolved soon as well.
Call of Duty: Vanguard is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S.
