CoD Warzone Blackout release window, gameplay changes, more

CoD Warzone is entering its sixth year of content following its release in early 2020. Treyarch is now looking to bring the battle royale back to its origins with the return of Blackout, the original battle royale experience which released with CoD Black Ops 4.

Unlike Warzone, this was a part of the main Call of Duty game that year and had a lot of differences to modern battle royale games. But, with Treyarch bringing it back, how will it go over and will there be any major changes?

Here is what we know.

CoD Warzone Blackout release window

CoD Warzone will get the Blackout-style experience in Spring 2026. This will likely be during Season 3, which should begin sometime in March or April.

One thing to note is that Blackout is in reference to the gameplay style and not the original map. That isn't coming back. Instead this gameplay experience will take place on the new map, Avalon, which is in the regular battle royale and the co-op campaign endgame in Black Ops 7.

Therefore, fundamentally this will be a gameplay experience shift, rather than a new map to play on.

What made Blackout different?

Blackout was a distinctly different battle royale experience to Warzone. It focused far more on looting and finding items, instead of the depth and customisation we see in Warzone today. You were only given a default pistol to use, and then had to find attachments, weapons, equipment and perks as you played in the map.

This made the experience much more challenging than Warzone as you had to keep track of more items and constantly search for upgrades. You weren't just jumping in with a loadout and sticking with it for the match.

It also discouraged camping because your power came directly from the loot and items you found in the world and not your loadout.

Therefore, Blackout will likely be a mode that spawns you in with just a pistol and reconfigures ground loot to be more impactful with you finding attachments, individual perks, and powerful weapons in high-traffic areas.

If you want an overview of what made Blackout different, check out this breakdown and review of Blackout and Warzone from Drift0r:

We will keep this article updated with more details as and when it gets revealed.

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