Call of Duty: Warzone dev exploring "fair" and "reactable" counterplay to controversial Dead Silence field upgrade
Perks of the job.
If you're playing Call of Duty: Warzone, you probably have an opinion on Dead Silence.
The popular field upgrade does exactly what it says on the tin: it temporarily makes your footsteps silent. But there's more: it also makes your movement slightly faster.
It's extremely powerful in Warzone. Getting the jump on an opponent is often the name of the game, and if they can't hear your footsteps, you're at a distinct advantage.
Too much of an advantage? Dead Silence critics point to the field upgrade's lack of a downside. Other field upgrades, which many are currently neglecting because they can't compete with Dead Silence, do have a downside. Stopping Power, for example, adds recoil. Deployable Cover has an animation that must run its course before the cover hits the battlefield. And using the Recon Drone leaves you defenseless.
And Warzone itself does not contain a decent Dead Silence counter. Players have suggested Raven make an existing perk, perhaps High Alert, detect players using Dead Silence.
The problem is exacerbated by the prevalence of Dead Silence. In Warzone, field upgrades drop from chests that spawn on the floor. The feeling is it's too easy to find Dead Silence - and remember, it can be grabbed from defeated enemies if they were carrying it.
Raven, then, faces a tricky design decision in sorting out Dead Silence, but it signalled it's up to the task.
"We are exploring all avenues in terms of changes to provide 'fair' and 'reactable' counterplay options to Dead Silence," Raven said in updated patch notes.
"A decision like this must be made carefully especially considering how it may destabilise other aspects of the game. We cannot promise anything at this moment but as we close in on an appropriate solution, we will share more details. Sit tight."
This note fell under the title "some thoughts on perks..." which suggests Raven is thinking of tackling the Dead Silence issue using the perk system. Perhaps that idea about High Alert will be the way to go.