One player of Infinity Ward and Raven Software’s hit shooter Call of Duty: Warzone 2 discovered an ingenious use for the game’s proximity chat feature, using misdirection to lure an unsuspecting opponent to their doom. The popular Battle Royale title recently saw the launch of Season 2, which gave gamers a new map, new gameplay features, and even an adorable Easter egg that lets players feed the sea lion on Ashika Island.
Building on the unexpected success of its 2020 predecessor, Call of Duty: Warzone 2 introduced numerous additions and gameplay changes to the Battle Royale franchise when it released in 2022. While some of these changes proved to be controversial with the player base, such as changing the Gulag to a 2v2 format and lowering the game’s TTK, other additions like the human-vs-AI DMZ mode in Warzone 2 have received wide praise. Another popular addition to the free-to-play title has been proximity chat, which not only gives gamers more tactical awareness on the battlefield but has also led to some clever and crafty uses of the feature to outplay unwitting opponents.
TikTok user p11nkxbl discovered that Call of Duty: Warzone 2’s proximity chat is not only useful for improving battlefield awareness, but it can also be used to outwit enemies in a truly hilarious fashion. In an amusing new video, p11nkxbl is shown on stream standing inside a building in Warzone 2 with her fingers on the keyboard and a rifle at the ready as she puts her ingenious plan into action. Pretending to ask someone in the room with her for batteries for a dead controller, p11nkxbl keeps her aim trained on a nearby corner. Overhearing the request on proximity chat and anticipating an easy kill from a controllerless console player, an enemy creeps around the corner and is instantly eliminated as the sound of gunfire and laughter erupts.
Warning: Video contains some profanity.
Although this isn't the first instance of players using proximity chat to trick enemies in Warzone 2, it’s certainly one of the most hilarious and creative examples yet. Users commenting on the TikTok seemed to agree, with one impressed reply calling p11nkxbl a “psyops legend.” Other replies seemed to decry the devious tactic before quickly adding that they’d probably try it for themselves in the future. Unable to argue with the success of the wickedly creative strategy, other replies stated that they would have fallen for the ruse.
While some players may take issue with using deception to score a kill, it's impossible to dismiss the effectiveness of p11nkxbl’s hilarious strategy. And although the enemy player likely felt a bit foolish after the encounter, at least they didn’t experience the quickest death in Warzone 2 history.
Call of Duty: Warzone 2 is out now for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X
