Highlights
- Call of Duty: Warzone's new Urzikstan map introduces a refreshing change to the Gulag, bringing it back to a traditional 1v1 format.
- The Urzikstan Gulag features a 3-lane system and the possibility of fighting in pitch-black darkness, adding an element of strategy.
- A new rope escape mechanic is also introduced, allowing players to ascend out of the Gulag, but they will be vulnerable for a short period of time.
Inspired by the 1999 Japanese novel of the same name, the battle royale genre is still a relatively new one in the grand scheme of the gaming industry. While different games over the last few years have put their own twist on the genre, the basic set of rules for the battle royale dictate that only one player can be left standing at the end of a match, so when games throw teams into the mix, things tend to get a little more interesting. Though it certainly wasn't the first to do it, Call of Duty: Warzone embraces teams arguably more so than any other battle royale, and the vast majority of its gameplay mechanics and map designs have been made with teams of at least two players in mind.
Call of Duty: Warzone's Gulag is the best example of this. After dying in a Warzone match, players are taken to the Gulag, where they face off against another player to try and win a second chance in the Warzone arena. One of the biggest features that sets Warzone apart from its competitors, the Gulag has had a bit of a divisive recent history, but Raven Software is set to remedy that with the upcoming Urzikstan map.
Call of Duty: Warzone's New Urzikstan Gulag Makes Some Refreshing Changes
Announced during the recent Call of Duty Next event, Call of Duty: Warzone will be receiving a brand-new map named Urzikstan. Set to release at the start of December 2023, alongside Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3's first Season, Urzikstan is another large-scale Warzone map set in an industrial city, albeit an abandoned one that's fallen into a state of disrepair. Much like Verdansk and Al Mazrah before it, Urzikstan will have multiple points of interest inspired by classic Call of Duty maps such as Derail and Favela.
But while there's plenty for fans to be excited about with Warzone's new Urzikstan map, it's actually the new map's Gulag that could be its most exciting feature. In many ways, Urzikstan's Gulag is a much-needed return to basics for the battle royale series. With the release of Call of Duty: Warzone 2 last year, the developers tried to take the Gulag in a bold new direction, introducing a 2v2 system, a Jailer mini-boss, and bigger arenas, along with a few other things. Of course, as is the case with any element of change in the Call of Duty franchise, fans weren't too happy with Warzone 2's Gulag, and Urzikstan seems to be a direct response to that.
Call of Duty: Warzone's Urzikstan Gulag will pair things back to just a traditional 1v1. Along with the lower player count, this new Gulag will also feature a traditional 3-lane system, splitting each arena into a left lane, right lane, and middle, fitting right in line with most previous iterations of the Gulag. But while Urzikstan's Gulag is definitely a return to basics, it does take a few little risks, which should hopefully go a long way in making this new version of the Gulag a refreshing one.
When a player loads into Urzikstan's Gulag, there's a small possibility that the lights in the arena will be switched off and they'll be forced to fight in pitch-black darkness. In these instances, players will need to rely on their night-vision goggles to gain the upper hand. The other big new feature of Call of Duty: Warzone's new Urzikstan Gulag is that once the match timer has run out, a rope falls from the arena's ceiling. Landing in the center of the map, players will be able to escape the Gulag by ascending up this rope, though they'll be completely vulnerable for a few seconds. Hopefully these changes add the perfect level of strategy to Call of Duty: Warzone's new Gulag while still retaining the same simplicity of the older iterations.
Call of Duty: Warzone is available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S.
