Call of Duty: Warzone Season 4 players agree—great new map, jury's still out on balance changes

operator with scarf and red beret aims gun near an atm — (Image credit: Raven Software)

Call of Duty: Warzone Pacific got its big season 4 update yesterday, and the game received the usual slew of sandbox tweaks alongside a new map for the Resurgence game mode.

I'm already sold on that new map, Fortune's Keep, a Mediterranean fortress-island complete with a castle, winery, and smuggler's cove. It has a vibrant, colorful look, and I'm impressed by its density and gameplay possibilities. You can climb up ivy-covered walls to secure vantage points and flank enemies, and even indulge in a spot of light parkour if you're so inclined. The Warzone community on Reddit seems generally taken with it as well, with players especially praising its aesthetics.

new_map_parkour from r/CODWarzone

The only downside to Fortune Keep's arrival, it seems, is that it has temporarily replaced the previous fan favorite Warzone map, Rebirth Island. Similar to when Activision chucked Verdansk in the bin to make room for Caldera, there's apparently only room for one small map in Warzone's rotation. Activision seems are of Rebirth Island's popularity, though, and said the map will periodically return and swap places with Fortune's Keep moving forward.

Balance-wise, the STG44 (or AR Alpha) assault rifle has taken a hit to damage, muzzle velocity, and critical multipliers. The STG is a top pick in Vanguard, and players have complained about its dominance in the past, so Raven has tried to rein in this popular choice a bit.

It may be quickly replaced by a new top dog: the NZ-41 assault rifle. The NZ-41 has gotten reduced recoil and burst fire cooldown, and you can now hold down the fire button to send out successive bursts instead of having to tap the trigger each time. There's already a pretty active thread on the Warzone subreddit calling for nerfs, though plenty of users are pointing out that it's nowhere near the misery of the game's DMR meta.

please_nerf_nz41 from r/CODWarzone

Season 4 is shaping up to be a promising one for Warzone, and you can check out the entirety of Raven's extensive patch notes here. I'm still hung up on Fortune's Keep—it seems more like a Sniper Elite map than a Call of Duty one, and strikes me as a clear knockout from Raven.

Ted has been thinking about PC games and bothering anyone who would listen with his thoughts on them ever since he booted up his sister's copy of Neverwinter Nights on the family computer. He is obsessed with all things CRPG and CRPG-adjacent, but has also covered esports, modding, and rare game collecting. When he's not playing or writing about games, you can find Ted lifting weights on his back porch. You can follow Ted on Bluesky.