Author: Nik Ranger

Shroud stunned after Modern Warfare 1.07 patch buffs “insane” AK-47 Mixer star Michael ‘shroud‘ Grzesiek reacted to Modern Warfare’s 1.07 patch notes during his November 8 stream, and was left shocked at the AK-47’s “insane” improvements. Call of Duty’s latest iteration Modern Warfare released on October 25, and has been a huge success in sales and views on streaming services. The popular first-person shooter pushed out patch 1.07 on November 8 which came with various changes to the game’s meta. However, former CSGO pro shroud was left amazed about one particular change that he argues will greatly benefit the AK-47, and has him wondering if it will be “the” gun players will be using going forward. Shroud stunned by “insane” AK-47 potential post-patch The Mixer star decided to read the latest patch notes for the first time with his audience on November 8, and gave his take on all the changes coming to the FPS. However, it was the tweaks made to assault rifles that caught the streaming personality’s attention. “Assault rifles increased hip spread to reduce effectiveness up close,” he read out loud. “Damn! So that makes the AK insane! Dude, the AK is THE f*cking gun now! Are you kidding me!?” Shroud then shared his doubts about the changes made to SMGs which included increased movement and ADS speeds, as well as a small reduction in sprint out times for the weapon class. “Okay… SMGs were already insane. I don’t know if this is exactly the call. I don’t know if this is the call right here, because SMGs are already broken. But hey, that’s fine,” he explained, before he praised the changes made to the Uzi. “They buffed the Uzi. That’s good, the Uzi sucks!” The human aimbot continued to take in the patch notes and discussed it with his streaming partner, before circling back to the changes made to Assault rifles, which also included “less damage at long range for full auto 5.56 rifles.” Contemplating what gun could end up becoming a better choice for players given the patch, he said, “They nerfed 5.56 rounds, the M4 might suck now, the M13 might be the play. Maybe.” Only time will tell if shroud’s predictions on Modern Warfare’s meta will come true, however the Mixer star is one of the best FPS players in the world, so his opinions hold weight. The former Twitch streamer turned the streaming world on its head when he announced he was leaving for Mixer on October 24, and has already amassed over 740k followers on the Microsoft platform as of the time of this article.

Shroud slams Call of Duty: Vanguard’s “rough” Beta as launch date nears Twitch: shroud / ActivisionOne of the most respected voices in the FPS space, Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek was left unimpressed with the Call of Duty: Vanguard Beta, and voiced his concerns about the state of the game as its release date approaches. The hype train for Call of Duty: Vanguard is already nearing full steam, and with the second weekend of its beta sessions underway, many fans are getting their first taste of the 2022 installment. As the CoD juggernaut prepares to push on with another yearly entry, there are already concerns from players and content creators alike about the state of Activision’s next title. Now, another high-profile figure has throw his hat in the ring of those concerned about Vanguard’s release. FPS legend Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek hopped in to try out the beta, and was left worried about the “rough” state of the game, less than two months from launch. While streaming his beta gameplay to viewers, shroud began to voice his thoughts on the experience so far — and he didn’t have many good things to say after his first impressions. Immediately, Grzesiek called out the game’s sound. “The audio’s tripping me out,” he joked with viewers before asking “Am I the only one that’s tripped out by the audio? What the f**k? It’s like the game audio is non-existent!” After spending a bit more time in-game, shroud elaborated on his concerns: “God, this feels pretty rough.” The streamer did give developer Sledgehammer Games the benefit of the doubt, and clarified that “I mean it is a beta, but holy f**k this feels rough.” As that particular game ended, one viewer asked “What do you mean [the game feels] rough?” to which Grzesiek responded “I mean, just everything.” “Audio is non-existent, shooting your gun feels cheap, hitmarkers feel cheap, [hitmarkers] sound cheap, sparks are flying, it’s like you’re shooting explosive bullets,” the creator shared as he sounded off a list of his concerns. “I’m sure that’s all beta s**t that they can fix,” he clarified once again, “but this feels very early. It feels like a very early build, but isn’t it supposed to come out soon?” he said, referring to the game’s impending release date of November 5. After dipping his toes into the experience, it seems shroud has joined the list of those with reservations about Vanguard. Perhaps his opinion will change after spending more time with the beta, but for now, the FPS legend seemed unimpressed by what Sledgehammer has on offer.

Shroud shows off inhuman aim and smarts with a full team wipe in Blackout Former Counter-Strike: Global Offensive professional player Michael ‘Shroud’ Grzesiek showed off some incredible skill and cleverness during a game of Call of Duty’s new battle royale mode, Blackout. Shroud was playing alongside Tyler ‘Skadoodle’ Latham and Jeremy ‘anythiNG’ Davis in squad games, when the trio found themselves close to the Docks area of the map. The Canadian was attempting to use the Grapple Gun to enter a building through one of the upstairs windows, when he came under heavy fire from an enemy squad, who were closing in on their location from the south. The enemy team began to push towards the Shroud and Skadoodle, who were already missing anythiNG, who unfortunately dropped early on in the match. As Shroud ran upstairs for cover, the call of “they’re coming up the stairs behind you,” came from both of his teammates. Trapped, and with his weapon selection less than ideal, Shroud cleverly jumped off the side of his building, landing on a fence, before dropping down and taking out two enemies with his SG12 shotgun. Grzesiek immediately switched to his Rampart 17 assault rifle, eliminating the third with a devastatingly accurate headshot, then killing the final enemy who was rushing back down the stairs to confront him. Shroud celebrated his unbelievable play with a cry of “They’re all dead,” then briefly smiling into his camera, clearly showing how happy he was to have clutched up and wiped out a whole team. Shroud is one of the greatest FPS shooters in the world, and this incredible clip proves that he is incredibly talented. Of course, even the best make mistakes sometimes, as Grzesiek showed recently when he somehow ran himself over with his own ATV in Blackout.

Shroud shows off incredible aim in Blackout using just a single shot Popular streamer Michael ‘Shroud’ Grzesiek’s has made a name for himself as one of the most exciting gamers to watch, and a single click during a Blackout game marks the quintessential elements of why his stream has blown up over the years. Blackout is the latest battle royale to amass a huge following, and matches are typically filled with stressful, sometimes heart wrenching, moments that test every bit of the player’s mental unless you happen to be Shroud. The former Cloud9 Counter-Strike pro demonstrated one of the cleanest, most nonchalant displays of aim that his fans have come to regularly expect from the temperate streamer. Shroud was keeping ahead of the zone in Blackout just moments after an engagement when he decided that one-click was all that was needed to delete someone from the server. With an Auger in hand and a small cache of ammunition to his name, Shroud was assessing his surroundings when a player driving a Cargo Truck made the mistake of barely coming into the streamer’s view quite a distance away. Shroud gleamed over the far-off vehicle, scoped in and with a slight adjustment expended a single bullet. The shot landed square into the cockpit of the moving vehicle, killing the driver. “Alright, we take those. I guess,” Shroud said. The streamer’s Twitch chat was in utter disbelief, as Shroud let loose a single chuckle in acknowledgement of the moment. Read more: Black Ops 4: Reddit user shares brilliant idea to re-balance Armor Repair system in Blackout – In signature style, Shroud thought no more of the moment because there was the rest of the match to play out, but moments like those linger in the back of people’s head at how nutty his precision can be.

Shroud left shocked by Warzone aim assist after “aimbot” Twitch Rivals clutch Twitch: shroud / ActivisionWhile competing in this month’s $75,000 Twitch Rivals competition, FPS phenom Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek was left stunned by Warzone’s powerful aim assist after witnessing an “aimbot” level clutch. As one of the most popular streamers on Twitch today, it’s a well-known fact that shroud is one of the more accurate FPS gamers out there. After years atop the competitive Counter-Strike scene, we’ve witnessed shroud branching out to the likes of Valorant and Apex Legends, all while proving his aim is sharper than ever. Although he had a brief stint in Warzone as the Call of Duty battle royale release in 2020, it’s been quite some time since the veteran dropped into Verdansk. That all changed on August 26 when shroud made his return to Warzone as part of the latest Twitch Rivals event. $75,000 was up for grabs, meaning the world’s best Warzone pros were all pushing for top spots. One pro, in particular, stood out to the former CSGO star: rising NA talent ScummN left Shroud mindblown after a “f***ing crazy” clutch. “”It literally looked like he aimbotted that guy, that was nuts!”” Some PREMIUM gas for @ScummN coming in from @shroud during today’s Twitch Rivals event ⛽ pic.twitter.com/RdWe3xZNql — Dexerto Esports (@DexertoEsports) August 26, 2021 A few rounds into the custom lobby tournament and shroud was spectating ScummN having gone down earlier in the match. One particular play saw the young Warzone streamer burst through a door, snap onto an enemy behind him, and rapidly take them out with some well-placed headshots. “Dude, that was insane,” shroud said in response. “They just ran into a room and it literally looked like he aimbotted that guy. That was f***ing nuts. ScummN just turned around the corner… literally just f***ing locked on.” While this could be interpreted as some “premium gas” for ScummN, this particular moment sparked a debate among the Warzone community. Many were quick to criticize the play, with shroud’s Duo HusKerrs even downplaying the clutch by saying “that’s controller.” “So many headshots,” shroud continued, stunned by what he’d witnessed. “That was nuts. That was f***ing crazy. It looked so effortless too, he did that with ease.” https://twitter.com/DexertoIntel/status/1410316872533299209 Before long, many viewers were questioning the play and even taking shroud’s “aimbot” comment to heart. “Shroud accusing ScummN of using aimbot,” notorious Warzone content creator BadBoy Beaman tweeted. ScummN was quick to drop a joke in response: “About time, I was starting to think I suck or something.” https://twitter.com/ScummN/status/1430967653448003586 Having competed at the highest levels for months now, ScummN has made a name for himself as one of the most formidable Warzone pros; he even made it into our Top 10 Warzone players for the month of July due to his outrageous K/D in multiple events. So while he’s a proven talent in the scene, shroud’s first time watching ScummN left him stunned. It’s not every day an FPS star of his caliber is left blown away by others in competition — even with aim assist in play.

Shroud says he would rather play Battlefield than Modern Warfare 2 DexertoCall of Duty Modern Warfare 2 received harsh criticism after a rocky launch, and shroud boldly claimed Battlefield 2042 is a better game. Game-breaking bugs, UI backlash, and missing features marred Modern Warfare 2’s highly anticipated launch. After only three days, Dr Disrespect uninstalled the game (for one day), and even longtime CoD supporters such as OpTic Scump questioned MW2’s design choices. With that being said, is MW2 a worse title than Battlefield 2042? EA’s latest series entry severely missed the mark, instigating a refund petition. However, the developers did a good job patching a sinking ship, and successful seasonal content brought back maligned players. Slowly but surely, Battlefield is heading back in the right direction as questions loom over CoD. Shroud made it clear which game he prefers playing. Is Battlefield 2042 better than Modern Warfare 2? During a Twitch live stream on November 3, shroud claimed MW2’s “gun models look great, and the animations are good, but I think Battlefield is much better than this.” The streamer used the word “bad” to describe his experience playing Modern Warfare 2 but wouldn’t go into too much detail on what was holding MW2 back. The streamer wouldn’t entirely give up on the game before at least trying out Ground War to get more of the Battlefield-esque experience. Modern Warfare 2019 introduced Ground War, and the mode instantly became a hit. Heavily inspired by Battlefield’s Conquest, Ground War features 32v32 combat on large-scale maps with flag objectives. Infinity Ward capitalized on disgruntled Battlefield V fans in 2019 as Ground War enticed some Battlefield players to switch teams. However, shroud’s first impressions tell a different story this time around. Battlefield looked down and out for the count, but MW2 stumbling out of the gates may have opened the door for a comeback.

Shroud reveals the problem with Dr Disrespect’s Modern Warfare 2v2 map Shroud / Dr Disrespect, GFUELMichael ‘Call of Duty: Modern Warfare map a closer look since the streamer revealed his original plans online and he might well have found a design flaw already. The Doc posted first-look images of his unique 2v2 setting on October 10, as part of the viral Blocktober event where players have been sharing their idea of ideal maps for all of their favorite games. With the release date beckoning, on October 25, it should come as no surprise to see the former CoD map designer pick Modern Warfare as the game of choice when sculpting his own map. With that being said, it might well be a “subtle blend of violence and speed” as the Two-Time stated in his original tweets about the map, but not everybody is going to love every inch of it. In fact, shroud has already found a potential flaw. Read More: CS:GO pro player dedicated a huge chunk of the live stream to his fellow streamer’s plans – looking at its initial design, layout, and more. “I mean, s**t, I like the idea of it. I like where it’s going. I think one thing that is unnecessary, it’s like really simple how it should be,” he said before pulling up the potential problem area on screen. Shroud added: “You’re looking at it here. This is your mid, you have your left lane and you have your right lane. One thing that I think is unnecessary is these elevator things. These big doorways.” This layout feature of the map alone – having two flanks – caused some confusion for the streamer, which he said could feel “awkward” in-game. However, this isn’t just his criticism of just Dr Disrespect’s map, but rather his preference of how a 2v2 map should be laid out – which he explained soon after. “When it comes to 2v2, I don’t think 2v2 maps should ever have a true flank. I think 2v2 is simply just play your angles and win your fights,” he added. “Then again, I’m used to Counter-Strike and Counter-Strike works very well because the aiming in Counter-Strike is very, very different. “Maybe 2v2s in a game like CoD, where aim isn’t a huge factor and it’s more just positioning, maybe there should be flanks.” On the whole, shroud seemed pretty impressed by Doc’s map, but did find some minor issues that could be leveled out with further development. A greater exploration of the map layout can be seen below. Even with the lanes that shroud isn’t a great fan of, would he be able to take down the Doc on his own map? Whether or not the two will ever have the chance to take each other on inside the custom map remains to be seen, but fans – for sure – would like to see something like that come to fruition. –

Shroud reveals the best CoD Warzone perks you “need” to win Mixer: shroud / Infinity WardMichael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek has revealed which Warzone perks Call of Duty players “need” to equip if they want to have any chance of claiming victory in Infinity Ward’s newly-released battle royale game mode. Like many other streamers, and Call of Duty fans around the world, shroud has been hard on the Warzone grind since Modern Warfare’s battle royale was officially released on March 10. Now, he thinks he’s got a winning formula figured out. According to Mixer’s superstar, who touched on the subject during his March 11 stream, any player who wants to get ahead of the title’s early-release curve and claim some big Warzone wins, “needs” to pick the game’s top-tier perks. As he played Modern Warfare’s 150-player battle royale, he was told by a Mixer fan that if he wanted to win, he “had to run High Alert.” Shroud disagreed, and laid out what he believes are the “absolute best” perks in the game right now. What makes perks the best picks, he explained, was which options “counter all the others.” In his eyes, that means you have to be running Ghost and Cold-Blooded. “High Alert is a must? No… no, it’s not a must. If you’re running Cold-Blooded then High Alert gets counted,” he said, and went on to explain how “countering all perks” is king in Warzone. If you can do that, you’re set up to win, he said. “You have to understand there are versatile counters to every single perk in the game. Ghost, and Cold-Blooded, and then the third can be whatever you want, the third perk is optional… that one’s personal preference. “Cold-Blooded and Ghost is what you need because it counters everything. You want to counter as much as you can with perks. Those two do the most. They’re the best. Ghost especially because you’ll never be seen by UAVs.” As shroud continues to play Infinity Ward’s new entry into the battle royale genre, the Mixer streamer seems to be figuring out the best ways to play. Earlier this week he called for Modern Warfare’s devs to reconsider the way their respawn system works, and dubbed purchasable revives “crazy.” Even earlier, in his first playthrough, he took a swipe at Warzone’s “super fast” gas. While shroud still seems to be zeroing in on what he does and doesn’t like about the latest battle royale on offer, fellow streaming star Dr Disrespect — who just re-signed with Twitch for two more years — admitted he’s loving the game. Still struggling to get your first Warzone win even after shroud revealed the battle royale’s best perks, and still need a little help to get over the line? Be sure to check out our guides on the best landing zones, the first items you should buy, and where the map’s secret locations are, all of which can help you come out of Verdansk in first place, and claim that elusive victory.

Shroud reveals his two “worst” maps in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare FPS legend Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek has been playing a lot of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare since it released, and he’s now identified the maps that he dislikes the most. Shroud has streamed more Call of Duty over the last few months than probably ever in his career, mainly due to Modern Warfare now having cross-play between PC and console, and, of course, him being sponsored to play as a ‘CoD Partner.’ Initially, he was always playing Ground War, which lasts longer than regular modes and has a larger number of players, perfect for racking up kills. Recently, he’s also taken a liking to the 2v2 mode Gunfight, even playing in BoomTV’s recent $25,000 Code Red Gunfight tournament. During one of his recent streams, the Mixer star gave two of the maps the distinction of being his least favorite in Modern Warfare, and they weren’t regular multiplayer maps. It was actually Hill and Cargo, two Gunfight maps, the latter of which was added as part of the recently-released Season 1 post-launch content drop. Why shroud doesn’t like Cargo “I am not a fan of this map,” he said, loading into Cargo. “This is not my map, especially in this new Gunfight variant,” – referring to the Gunfight O.S.P. version that requires players to pick up weapons instead of spawning with them at the start of each round. His girlfriend, Hannah ‘Bnans’ Kennedy, who he was playing with at the time, shared a similar sentiment, saying “I don’t like this map.” To that, shroud replied by saying “Yeah, it’s a mess.” “This map’s a close contender to Hill,” he added. “Actually, I think this and Hill are exactly the same because it’s whoever holds back the furthest is the one that’s going to win. So I think this map and Hill are exactly the same.” Hill, which has been in the game for longer than Cargo, is widely considered to be one of the worst Gunfight maps by most of the player-base, so it’s no major surprise that shroud isn’t a fan of it either. So, it turns out that one criteria maps need to meet to be considered among the worst by shroud is to have a layout and design that promotes less strategic play and more waiting around in the spawn. Unfortunately for him, and everyone else who dislikes Hill and Cargo, those two maps are here to stay as part of the Gunfight rotation, so it’s up to Infinity Ward to release better maps in future post-launch content drops.

Shroud reveals his only complaint about Call of Duty: Warzone so far Mixer: shroud / Infinity WardCall of Duty: Warzone is officially here, marking the storied franchise’s first steps into the realm of free-to-play battle royale, and Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek has already discovered one thing he thinks needs to change moving forward. Warzone officially launched on Tuesday, March 10 after months of speculation, with players jumping out of planes and onto one of the largest battle royale maps ever seen, as 150 combatants battled it out to be the last trio standing and claim victory over their rivals. With the map being so large, it’s important that there is a way to shrink the play area as players get eliminated, and for this Infinity Ward decided to use gas which deals damage and eventually downs anyone who spends too much time in it. This gas is deadly, but it’s also extremely quick when it starts to move, which shroud thinking it may be too speedy and need to be adjusted. After finding himself running away from the gas in a match only to sprint into the crosshairs of a waiting enemy who sent back to the lobby, the 25-year-old explained why the gas had forced him into a situation he didn’t want to be in, but had no choice to be there. “Nobody knows what they’re doing because it’s so new. It’s going to be like that for a while,” shroud stated. “Everyone’s still in zone getting all f**ked up. Holy sh*t, the zone moves way too fast.” “With how much you can respawn, that [gas] moves way too quick, for sure, because you’re permanently in a fight. They’re going to go down, they’re going to respawn on their team, another person’s going to respawn on the team, so if you’re not in the zone from the very beginning, you won’t be able to get into it. [The gas mask] is only 10 seconds of protection.” Clip starts at 27:26 for mobile viewers. With so many players, it’s crucial that the play area shrinks so that gunfights continue to take place, otherwise, it will be extremely difficult to find opponents and matches will become slow as groups hide out rather than push for engagements. Whether Infinity Ward will make any changes to this mechanic remains to be seen, but it seems shroud would gladly welcome a slight reduction to the speed at which the gas moves.

Shroud reveals his favorite Call of Duty: Modern Warfare mode It’s no secret that superstar streamer Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek enjoys playing Call of Duty: Modern Warfare – or, more specifically, his favorite multiplayer mode “Ground War.” When it comes to Call of Duty titles of recent years, Modern Warfare is, by far, the game that shroud has played the most on stream. One reason for this is the much-expanded player-base on PC, shroud’s preferred choice of platform, and the fact that cross-play between PC, PS4, and Xbox One was enabled for the first time in the franchise’s history. Another reason is Ground War, the large and chaotic Domination-type game mode that the former CSGO pro named his favorite thing to play in multiplayer. “Ground War is just the best, it’s just the best game mode by far,” he said. “That’s it! It’s by far the best game mode.” Why shroud loves playing Ground War in Modern Warfare During one of his recent Call of Duty partner Modern Warfare streams, shroud was asked why he doesn’t play any of “normal” multiplayer modes. “Because Ground War is fun,” he answered simply. “It’s way more enjoyable.” Shroud isn’t the only one who’s taken a strong liking to Ground War, either: Many of the game’s biggest content creators and pro players favor the mode because of all that it offers, which regular multiplayer doesn’t. For example, there are way more players to engage (the mode supports up to 64 players), it features vehicles such as tanks, ATVs, and helicopters, the matches tend to last much longer, and you’re spending more time playing rather than waiting in the main menu in between games. (Ground War half of video begins at 6:23 mark for mobile users) Shroud has produced several memorable moments in Ground War, including a ridiculous killing spree that saw him activate his human aimbot powers and deliver three long-range headshots within 30 seconds. Of course, no will ever forget his iconic melee rampage during the Modern Warfare Beta, during which he took down seven enemy players in seven seconds with a combat knife. Safe to say, there’s a good reason why the Mixer star prefers Ground War, and he makes it look so easy too!

Shroud reveals his best attachments for new RAM-7 weapon in Modern Warfare Streaming star Michael ‘Shroud‘ Grzesiek tried out the new RAM 7 weapon in Call of Duty Modern Warfare and shared his thoughts on the best attachments for the new assault rifle. The RAM 7 is unlocked at rank 31 in the new Modern Warfare Season One Battle Pass, which came out on December 3. A bullpup-style rifle, the RAM 7 is smaller than its Battle Pass counterpart the Holger-26 (which Shroud also reviewed) and definitely seems worth the grind to unlock. Shroud definitely seemed to like the look of the weapon when he first unlocked it with the Battle Pass, even though it was the white “Corrupter” variant skin and not the base model. “Whoo-hoo hoo look at how sick that thing is,” Shroud said as he gazed upon the new gun. “Look at my character bro, tell me I don’t look insane.” Aesthetics aside the RAM 7 also seems to be capable of racking up the kills – at least in the hands of Shroud, and the pro shared some of his thoughts on various attachments for the weapon as he played. “The skin I’m going to keep because it looks insane, but something tells me I’m going to need to customize this weapon, obviously for my own playstyle,” the former CS:GO pro said. “These blueprints aren’t always the best, you kind of need to tweak them.” “I don’t like the sight, not a big fan of the sight, the holo is kind of meh,” shroud said, before switching to iron sights for the weapon. “The (holo) sight doesn’t give you enough peripheral vision.” Picking a barrel for the RAM 7 that fits your playstyle is also key when using the weapon, the streamer revealed. “The problem with the short barrel is that the ADS (aiming down sight) speed is nice, but the bullet velocity is not nice,” Shroud explained. Apart from running through what is undoubtedly the coolest-looking gun in Season One, Shroud also gave a word of advice to players still on the fence about whether or not to get the Battle Pass. “Usually a Battle Pass is for someone who really really really plays the game a lot, you know?” he said. “If you’re playing the game a lot why not? Might as well.” The Modern Warfare Battle Pass also includes the Holger-26, the other new weapon heading to the latest iteration of Call of Duty. The Holger unlocks at rank 15 and the RAM 7 at rank 31, so get grinding.

Shroud goes on rampage with perfect melee setup in Modern Warfare beta L: Shroud (Twitch)/R: ActivisionTwitch sensation Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek has discovered the ‘perfect’ melee setup in the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare beta, making use of an ingenius class combination. Modern Warfare has received plenty of attention since the beta debuted to the masses, from integrating its brand new cross-play feature to implementing changes based off of community feedback on the fly, Infinity Ward are pulling out all of the stops. Even though the latest iteration to the Call of Duty franchise is still in its pre-release beta stages, Twitch streamers and pros alike are uncovering the best in-game combinations in a bid to stay one step ahead of the competition. With the beta gaining traction among the Twitch community, shroud has turned his hand to Infinity Ward’s boots-on-the-ground game. Playing Ground War on Karst River Quarry, the streamer found himself behind enemy lines with nothing but a secondary weapon in-hand, leaving the odds stacked against him — but since when has that stopped the former CS:GO pro? Grzesiek takes down a foe near a set of stairs before dodging a Claymore, after which he found himself with multiple enemies to take down. Of course, in typical shroud fashion, he dismantles the opposition with nothing other than his melee ability while holding the M19 – killing a total of 7 enemies in 7 seconds – exclaiming “What’s up?!” multiple times in disbelief. A blast from the past? The ability to quickly dispatch that many of the opposing team is due to the perk ‘Fast Melee’, which greatly enhances the speed of melee maneuvers. Gameplay of this nature resembles the Tactical Knife and Commando Pro perk combination from Infinity Ward’s Modern Warfare 2; a game that was widely acclaimed for exciting, fast-paced multiplayer action. Of course, it remains to be seen if the perk and weapon combo will make it to the end product, which is scheduled to release on October 25. Nevertheless, shroud has certainly landed himself a highlight clip.

Shroud quits Warzone after being killed by a blatant hacker Infinity Ward/Twitch: shroudEx-CS:GO pro turned full-time streamer Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek was left frustrated after being killed by a Warzone cheater, as many players continue to call on Infinity Ward and Activision to do more. In a game with over 75 million players, there were bound to be a few who want to cheat. However, many Warzone players argue it is more than a few, and that cheating is one of the biggest issues facing CoD’s second battle royale. Many have also criticized the response of Infinity Ward and Activision, after they posted a statement which appeared to be asking those cheating to simply stop. Needless to say, cheating has continued – some argue worse than ever – and, on August 15, shroud grew frustrated after encountering a hacker in his solo match of Warzone. Near the Superstore area of Verdansk, shroud was lasered and eliminated by an unseen enemy using a floor-loot RAM-7. This was the first clue that something illicit was occurring as the RAM-7’s recoil is significant, especially with no attachments. Initially, shroud was impressed by the skills on display by his opponent. That is, until a couple more swift eliminations made it clear that the player was cheating. “Holy sh*t! Can I watch that guy?” he said, after seeing the enemy killcam. “Holy f**k, I wanna watch that guy… This guy’s incredible – oh never mind – he’s f**king cheating! I’m done. I’m done, I’m done, I’m done.” He quickly exited Warzone and moved on with his stream, another sign that the battle royale’s hacking situation is detrimental to its popularity with players. There are, after all, few things as annoying as dying to a hacker. It was an unfortunate end to shroud’s time on Warzone but he, like many others, simply wants to see more done to combat the cheaters. In any game as big as Warzone hackers are almost inevitable. The frequency with which players meet them, however, is one thing many argue needs to be improved.

Shroud pulls off 1v2 clutch to solo win Blackout Code Red tournament match Former Counter-Strike: Global Offensive player Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek pulled off an incredible 1v2 clutch to secure victory for his team after a crazy solo run in Dr DisRespect’s Code Red tournament. Shroud was teaming up with former teammate Tyler ‘Skadoodle’ Latham in the $20,000 tournament, when the duo were drawn against the Xcalizorz and SandyRavage in a losers bracket match-up, with the losing pair heading out of the tournament. Grzesiek and shroud had been eliminated in Game 1 of the series without getting any kills, and to make matters worse, Latham was taken early on in Game 2, leaving the Canadian on his own to try and secure the win for his squad. With the game on the line, Grzesiek managed to dominate his way around the map, picking up 18 kills on his way to the final circle. With two opponents remaining, and Xcalizorz and SandyRavage still on the map, both teams needed the final kills to claim the win. Shroud was anxiously searching for the final two enemies, knowing that this opponents were doing the exact same thing. Unfortunately, the remaining team found him first, dealing major damage to the streamer and leaving him with just 8 health points. Aware that Xcalizorz and SandyRavage would now move towards the gunfire, shroud had to quickly heal up, then eliminated one with pinpoint accuracy from his KN-57, before quickly switching to his Saug 9mm to wipe out the onrushing second, and secure the win for his team. “Let’s go baby,” celebrated shroud, while Skadoodle laughed. “What a run baby!” The pair were able to continue their impressive showing all the way through to the Losers Bracket Final, where shroud and Skadoodle finally fell to eventual finalists DrDisRespect and DougIsRaw. Unfortunately for The Doc, he couldn’t pull off the victory in the tournament he was hosting, as TSM Viss and Halifax beat them in the final.

Shroud proves that you don’t even need to aim with a Saug 9mm on Blackout It seems that the Saug 9mm submachine gun on Call of Duty’s new battle royale mode Blackout is so powerful, you don’t even have to aim down your sights to wipe out players, as shown by popular streamer shroud. Michael Grzesiek, better known as shroud, was playing the mode alongside Jake “ChocoTaco” Throop and Justin “Just9n” Ortiz in squad games, when shroud and Just9n found themselves in the final circle, with six enemies still alive. Outnumbered, and with a weapon designed to be used at close range, it seemed like the duo would need to pull off some crazy plays to secure the victory, but thanks to the incredible power of the Saug 9mm, Shroud was able to decimate his opponents. Shroud jumped through the window of a mobile office, and snapped on his opponent, then quickly spun around on a second enemy, putting him down in quick fashion, all while hip-firing his weapon. With one member of the first team left, Grzesiek hopped around a fence, and sprayed him down. Not content with dominating three enemies with his crazy hip-fire, shroud spotted the final team on a hill behind him, and immediately began to give chase. Throwing a concussion over the hill, shroud shredded his final three opponents with ease, proving that not only is he one of the very best Blackout players, but also that the Saug 9mm is ridiculously effective. Shroud’s teammates couldn’t believe what they had seen, with ChocoTaco commenting: “That gun is insane!” Thankfully, it doesn’t seem like the Saug 9mm will be a recoil-less death machine for long, as Treyarch are set to roll out a weapons balancing patch next week.

Shroud proves that he’s a Call of Duty: Blackout monster with two incredible plays Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek’s mastery of the Call of Duty: Blackout beta probably shouldn’t have come as a surprise to anyone, but that doesn’t stop us from being impressed. The former Counter-Strike: Global Offensive pro makes a habit of picking up games and dominating his opponents with relative ease and he already produced some moments of brilliance on the PlayStation 4 version of Blackout. However, he truly came into his own when the PC version was released, as can be seen in this absolutely ridiculous sequence of kills using the MDG 12 shotgun and ICR-7: In fact, his accuracy with the ICR-7 is truly astounding. He proved that point as he peppered enemies with bullets as they tried to get into the safe zone during another match. The Canadian maestro used the assault rifle to take down two of his opponents – which included some pretty impressive grappling hook work to close the distance – before whipping out a Ray Gun to drop the third and final player: The end of the Blackout beta, which is due to occur shortly after the time of writing this article, will leave a number of streamers and Call of Duty players wishing for more. Despite being a player that has been associated heavily with PUBG for the last year, shroud appears to have enjoyed the Blackout beta a great deal. The full version of Blackout is expected to be available to play from October 12 along with the release of Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 – we’d advise avoiding shroud if you end up in a game with him!

Shroud proves his skill on console with insane snipes on the Blackout PS4 beta As a former professional CS:GO player and regarded as one of the finest PUBG streamers, Michael “shroud” Grzesiek is known for his prowess with a keyboard and mouse – but he is proving to be no slouch with a controller either on the Blackout beta. Because the first few days of the beta for Call of Duty’s battle royale mode are exclusive to PS4, shroud has been forced to dust off his console to try out the first BR game from a AAA developer. And while his early performances were good, there was no doubt he was slightly out of his comfort zone with toggle in place of a mouse, but he seems to be finally getting the hang of things and getting like his normal (and incredible) accuracy. More: Shroud’s Controller Disconnects at the Worst Possible Moment While Playing the New ‘Blackout’ Private Beta – With a sniper in hand, shroud has been tearing up the opposition on Blackout, from sniping enemies out of the air before they even get a chance to land, to quick-scoping enemies in close quarters. All of this from his second day on the beta using a controller, it seems as though it hasn’t taken the popular streamer long to get into his groove. Or take for example this precise two piece, as he swivelled round and knocked both opponents with the powerful, fully equipped, Paladin – the bulky 50. cal sniper. Players in his lobby aren’t even safe at ridiculously long distance either, as shroud manages to account for bullet drop and lead time to knock opponents across from Nuketown island. Fans of shroud will be keen to see him try out Blackout on PC, when the beta goes live on all platforms on September 14. His abilities in PUBG, another militaristic battle royale from which Blackout certainly takes inspiration from, are the stuff of legend, so putting his already accrued knowledge of the mode together with his mouse accuracy should be something very special to watch when the PC beta drops.

Shroud proves he’s the king of melee kills by wiping out two enemy teams on Blackout Former Counter-Strike: Global Offensive professional player Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek proved that he doesn’t even need to fire a bullet to dominate enemies in Call of Duty’s battle royale mode Blackout. The popular streamer was playing duos matches alongside former teammate Tyler ‘Skadoodle’ Latham when he came across an enemy squad in a house just south of Firing Range. Running through the house, shroud found the pair sitting in the bathroom, bashing one in the back as he attempted to jump out of a window, before spinning around and killing the second before he could fire a bullet at the former Cloud9 player. “That’s got to be the shittiest way to die, oh no,” laughed Grzesiek, clearly not feeling any regret over the way he eliminated his opponents. Shroud then spotted another duo heading towards him from the north, hopping into a shed at the rear of the house to confront an enemy, whacking him in the head with the but of his gun. With an enemy outside throwing nades into the building at him, Grzesiek quickly jumped out of the window and flanked around his opponent, swooping in as his enemy was distracted to clobber him in the skull too. Shroud has been in incredible form since the release of Blackout, pulling off incredible moments like an amazing five man killing spree with a sniper at Construction Site, and a clever play to take down a stream sniper. Of course, things haven’t always went the former CS:GO’s way, as he recently got blown up by Skadoodle while trying to fly a helicopter, and also managed to glitch himself under the map while trying to catch a supply drop in mid-air with a chopper.

Shroud proves he’s human after all with this hilarious death in Blackout Popular Twitch streamer Michael ‘Shroud’ Grzesiek might be one of the best players in the world at any game he touches, but that doesn’t make him immune from dying in painful ways. Ever since Black Ops 4 released on October 12, Shroud has been playing nothing Blackout on his stream, having made the switch after being known as a PUBG streamer for most of the last year. Throughout his time playing Blackout, he’s put on some impressive displays of skill that make it seem as though he’s simply a bot putting on a great impression of a human. That all changed when he fell victim to one of the most embarrassing and painful deaths that a player in Blackout can experience, however. Rather than getting taken down by an opponent who managed to outsmart him, Shroud was betrayed by his own ATV while trying to engage with an enemy team. While driving on his ATV, Shroud catches a pair of players out of the corner of his eye and quickly hops off to park his ATV on a hill and take aim at the unsuspecting players. Shroud lands a few shots but then starts taking damage and before he even has time to react, he witnesses his character get run over and killed by the vehicle. “Oh my God, are you kidding me? I was like, ‘what the fuck is hitting me?!’” said Shroud of the unfortunate incident. “That’s how I die? I was so confused. I was like ‘why am I glitching around?’” The worst part of all is that his death came while he and his teammate, recently retired Cloud9 CS:GO player Tyler ‘Skadoodle’ Latham, were battling it out in the top 10 of the match and Skadoodle wasn’t able to survive long enough to overcome Shroud’s untimely demise. So the next time Shroud does something amazing on stream, just remember this moment and that he, too, is human and has died to vehicle physics at least once in his life.

Shroud proves he’s a literal human aimbot during a Blackout match While some players of online games use an aimbot to cheat their way to victory, streamer Michael ‘Shroud’ Grzesiek has proven that his aim is just as good without one. The former CS:GO pro put his impressive skill on display during a match in Call of Duty’s new Blackout battle royale mode, which released as part of the Black Ops 4 title on October 12. While in the loading area waiting for his match to begin, Shroud picked up an SMG weapon and began shooting it in a manner that would make it look like he was using aim hacks. He was flicking his weapon left and right, never really aiming at any enemy players, and yet nearly every time he fired a shot, there was a hit-marker indicated that he had his someone. Anyone watching who understands at least a little about aim-botting would suspect its use immediately, which would explain why some members of his chat were going ballistic at what they were seeing on screen. The shots that Shroud was hitting were mesmerizing; it’s hard to imagine someone being so good at first person shooters that they can make it seem as if they’re hacking when they’re not. Skill like this is what has made Shroud a household name in the online gaming community. After retiring from a successful career in CS:GO, Shroud has found a niche in the battle royale genre, and has become a huge fan of Blackout since getting to try it during its beta testing week in September. Now that the game is fully out, expect social media and Twitch to be littered with clips of him doing unprecedented things in the newest and hottest battle royale game.

Shroud offers huge incentive for Dr Disrespect to do 24-hour MW stream Michael ‘shroud‘ Grzesiek has made a huge promise to fellow Twitch superstar Dr Disrespect if he goes through with his plan to do a 24-hour stream for the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare launch. There is a lot of excitement surrounding the launch of Modern Warfare on October 25, as a lot content creators who don’t normally stream Call of Duty as their primary game are planning on being involved. Both shroud and Dr Disrespect figure to be among the streamers who will be playing a lot of the game when it first drops, especially since the addition of crossplay between platforms has brought PC into the mix much more than ever before. In fact, the Two-Time has gone as far as to say that he wants to do a 24-hour stream for the release, which would be considerably longer than he’s ever gone for a single broadcast. Even his stream schedule for the week of October 21 doesn’t specify times for Thursday and Friday, instead Modern Warfare is simply penciled with no start or end times. First ever 24 hour stream for #ModernWarfare Launch? — Dr Disrespect (@drdisrespect) October 18, 2019 However, not many believe that the back-to-back Blockbuster champion will be able to pull off such a massive stream, especially considering that he’s 37 years old and has never come close to doing it before. Among those is shroud, who basically sneered in disbelief when the Doc presented his idea as they were playing PUBG on October 21. Read More: Shroud host causes streamer to freak out – “No way, you’re doing 24 hours?” he said, laughing. “No way! You’re not going to make it. Have you ever stayed up that long? Okay so, you think you’ll get to 12 maybe, at least? You’ll get to 12, 12 is pretty easy.” When the Two-Time reiterated that he wanted to do 24 hours straight, the former CSGO pro made a borderline-absurd pledge that he would gift 200 subscriptions to his channel should he actually be able to pull it off. “24 hours, I don’t believe it,” he said. “I’ll give you a 100, no 200 gifted subs if I see 24 hours on the uptime. You have to be live 6 pm Thursday to 6 pm Friday.” (Mobile users can click HERE for the clip) With each subscription costing $4.99, 200 gifted subs would come out to approximately $1000, which is a considerably amount of money to spend on Twitch, even for one of the platform’s most successful streamers. Nevertheless, this agreement does offer another incentive for the Doc to try and complete a 24 broadcast for the first time in his career, which should be filled with a lot of hilarious and action-packed content. He has expressed interest in playing with legendary CoD pros Seth ‘Scump’ Abner and Matthew ‘FormaL’ Piper, with whom he’s played on multiple occasions, so that would make the stream even more of a must-watch.

Shroud’s insane Modern Warfare clutch gets perfect reaction from his opponents Twitch superstar Michael ‘shroud‘ Grzesiek flexed his gaming muscles at the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare multiplayer reveal, pulling off an astonishing 1v2 clutch. The global reveal event for the multiplayer side of things in Modern Warfare took place on August 1, finally giving fans a taste for what they can expect once the game launches on October 25. Shroud was one of the several top streamers and YouTubers that were invited to participate in the gameplay portion of the presentation. Many were looking forward to seeing the former CS:GO pro in particular try out the game, since Modern Warfare is fully cross-platform and he would be using his trusted mouse and keyboard. Read More: Shroud gives his opinion on Modern Warfare – And he did not disappoint, pulling off a remarkable clutch play that not only excited everyone in the room, but also again showed why the streamer is widely considered to be one of the best FPS players in the world. Playing the brand new 2v2 Gunfight mode, shroud found himself in a precarious situation after his teammate Skadoodle was eliminated and he was left with just 10 health points, in a mode where health does not regenerate automatically. With throwing in the towel never being an option, he helped level the playing field by quickly blasting Jericho with a shotgun, turning it into a 1v1 fight, albeit still with a strong health disadvantage. Turning his attention to the remaining opponent, shroud was able to grab the high ground, giving him a view of virtually the entire map. It was then when he spotted the opposition, quickly snapping in his direction and hitting an insane no-scope, giving him the round victory and completing the unbelievable clutch. As expected, the play led to a massive reaction from those who were watching, including shroud himself, who was very excited and proud about his in-game heroics. After the final kill, Jericho, the popular content creator who found himself on the wrong end of the clutch, could be heard bellowing “why did you put me against these people?!” The official broadcast crew who were handling Call of Duty’s stream were also pretty blown away by the play, and their reactions too were very much of the same nature. Players will get their own chance to try out Modern Warfare multiplayer pre-release during the upcoming beta sessions, which will not only be open to everyone on all platforms, but will also feature cross-play. The full game is scheduled to be released on October 25, 2019 for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.

Shroud pulls off insane Black Ops 4 One in the Chamber clutch Dreamhack / TreyarchCall of Duty: Black Ops 4 after playing so much Apex Legends, with an incredible ‘One in the Chamber’ clutch. The former Counter-Strike: Global Offensive professional player has built a reputation for having an incredible steady hand where aiming is concerned and is now one of the most popular streamers on Twitch – with almost 6 million followers on the platform. However, it was when he didn’t have any ammo at all that shroud really got the best out of himself in this incredible play. For those that aren’t aware of ‘One in the Chamber’ rules, basically every player starts with one bullet when they spawn – picking up an extra bullet for each kill that they get. After missing a player completely, though, shroud was left in a sticky situation with two players right on his tail. The streamer sprinted through one of the buildings on the Arsenal map, conscious of the opponents on the approach. No bullets? No problem. Jumping over a barricade to set a trap for the player, he swiped one with a melee to retrieve a new bullet, spun back towards the other and finished him off to seal an incredible clutch play. Read More: Shroud’s Top 10 best moments in Apex Legends – These are the types of plays responsible for shroud’s ever growing popularity, as he proves time after time that he’s got one of the best hands in gaming.

Shroud highlights the one thing he’d change in Modern Warfare Popular streamer Michael ‘ Call of Duty sub-series had been around since 2011. It’s already seen plenty of players flock to its servers – including Shroud, who has barely played anything else since making his move to streaming on Mixer. However, the release of the new title hasn’t been completely smooth sailing for Infinity Ward. A number of Call of Duty professionals have aired their frustrations with the maps, game modes, and even grenade usage as the game’s meta takes shapes. Now, though, Shroud has weighed in. In his YouTube highlight video, ‘The Golden AK’, the former Counter-Strike: Global Offensive professional took a donation from a viewer that asked him about what he’d change in Modern Warfare. “Add BR (Battle Royale) – does that count?” he joked, before being a little more serious. “No, if I was to change anything, I’d change some of the map design. Some of the map designs are a little too crazy for me. Not all, just some.” Many players won’t disagree with Shroud’s thoughts on the maps, especially as it’s been a widespread complaint about the game so far. However, some changes do appear to be around the corner – even though there won’t be tweaks to the maps that were released with the game. Infinity Ward are supposedly lining up a number of classic Modern Warfare series maps as future downloadable content. He might also get his wish on the battle royale, though, as some leaks have surfaced that suggest that code has been added to the game files alongside the new maps and some new modes. If it’ll be released, however, is a different story, considering the developers have remained quiet on the possibility since pre-release rumors and leaks suggested it was going to happen.

Shroud Goes on a Tomahawk Rampage in Black Ops 4 – “I think they made the axe a little too strong” Popular streamer Michael “shroud” Grzesiek tried his hand at the Black Ops 4 beta on PC, and he was tearing up the lobbies in no time, even with a tomahawk. Shroud is often regarded as one of the finest PC gamers around, especially when it comes to first person shooters, but Call of Duty has never been his game of choice. Formerly a professional Counter-Strike player, shroud transferred his skills to PUBG primarily, becoming the most popular PUBG streamer in no time. And he was no slouch at the newest Call of Duty title either, starting the day off with some seriously impressive performances – and that was before he discovered the tomahawk. More: Treyarch’s Dan Bunting Discusses Competitive in Black Ops 4 – “Competitive players will be surprised” – One of the equipment choices, the tomahawk is an iconic weapon in Black Ops games, first appearing in 2010’s original Call of Duty: Black Ops, and is back for the fourth instalment. You only get one to throw, but you can immediately pick it back up, as shroud discovered to his glee. After taking out five players, and almost a sixth, with his axe, shroud did provide Treyarch with a bit of feedback, which is what the beta is for at the end of the day – “I think they made the axe a little too strong.” And that wasn’t shroud’s only highlight from his Black Ops 4 play session, as he also got to grips with the sniper and one of the specialist abilities – Ruin’s awesome gravity slam. This rounded off an insane TDM comeback, as shroud pulled his team back to a 75-74 win. You can watch shroud stream daily on his Twitch Channel, where he may be back at some more Black Ops 4 over the course of the PC beta weekend. The real treat for shroud fans will be the upcoming ‘Blackout’ battle royale mode beta in September, where shroud will get to put his PUBG skills to the test in Call of Duty.

Shroud gives his verdict on new Holger-26 LMG in Modern Warfare Season 1 Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek has revealed his thoughts on Modern Warfare’s new Season 1 light machine gun, the Holger-26, and explained how he thinks players could get the most out of the “satisfying” new weapon. Modern Warfare’s first seasonal release marked the biggest post-release content drop ever seen in Call of Duty, and with it came the first two guns to be added to the game: the RAM-7 assault rifle and Holger-26 light machine gun. These weapons, which are available to all players for free once they level up their seasonal Battle Pass, have already taken over a handful of multiplayer playlists as players, including Mixer star shroud, try to get their eye in with the new additions. After playing on the newly added return to fan-favorite map Crash, and diving into a series of huge battles in Ground War, the former CSGO professional has delivered his thoughts on the new LMG, and they’re not exactly positive. “It’s got a lot of recoil, but it shreds… it looks so fucking cool, I love the AK-style look,” shroud said, and added that he loved the clip size. “This gun has a lot of bullets, this is a Ground War type of gun. It has so many bullets!” Like all weapons in the Call of Duty franchise, however, the Holger-26 seems to suffer when not fully decked-out with the dozens of attachments available in Modern Warfare, and shroud noticed a definite drop in quality on the ‘naked’ LMG. “Oh my god, this gun is kind of ass [without attachments],” the Mixer star said after failing to claim a double-kill despite getting the drop on his opponents. “I’m really hoping his gun has some good attachments, because it’s pretty bad without them.” The other four LMGs currently in Modern Warfare all see a significant power-spike once dialed up with optics, stocks, and extended mags, so shroud made sure to check back in with the Holger once he’d grabbed a few of the unlocks. Unfortunately, he still seemed to struggle with the weapon, and suggested that he might have to wait until he had some of the “better” choices to load the LMG up with before he truly damned the “kind of ass” gun to gather dust in the vault. “This is pretty good… wait, it’s kind of ass, to be honest,” the streamer flip-flopped as he battled through looming tanks, and high-stakes helicopter escapes in a player-loaded Ground War playlist armed with the light machine gun. “This gun could be good, I think, if you get the level 49 laser, which I’d say is a really good laser. The sights are kind of meh, but you could add the viper to it, and I think that would be really good. The irons are poo-poo.” “This gun might be fun once I kit it, it looks kind of fun already. Just hold and bounce dude, I was spraying people down, that’s funny. Even the noise is really satisfying.” Segment begins at 4:48 mark for mobile users. While Mixer’s human aimbot may not be completely sold on the Holger, that’s not to say that other players might not enjoy the bullet-loaded machine gun, so make sure you jump into a game with it once you unlock it at Tier 15 on the Battle Pass. There’s also plenty of other new things to unlock in the game’s first season, including watches, experience tokens, player cards, emblems, knife skins, and more, so players better get cracking if they want to earn all of Season 1’s new goodies.

Shroud gives his opinion on hit registration in Blackout Shroud / TwitchCall of Duty’s first foray into the battle royale genre with Black Ops 4’s ‘Blackout’ mode has been a great success in the days immediately after its release, but that doesn’t mean it is perfect. Some players have reported issues with hit registration during some games, and it looks like the usual explanation of “you just missed” doesn’t apply, because even Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek has experienced similar issues. One of the biggest streamers on Twitch, shroud is known for his incredibly crisp aim and ability to master a game’s mechanics quickly, but even he has been missing shots that simply cannot be explained. “I’ve definitely had some shots where my bullet literally goes through people,” the former CS:GO pro said during a recent stream. “I’ve definitely had that happen, a lot of times.” However, the Canadian believes that the hit registration isn’t a major issue most of the time: “It feels okay because a lot of times it’s just a spray battle.” The clip below is an example of one of the questionable shots that the Canadian star was describing. He attempts to snipe an opponent that is crouched behind a tree but misses two shots that seem to be perfectly lined up: It is not unusual for a new game to suffer from some connection or hit registration issues in its early days, especially in battle royale modes with a huge map and player count. Blackout was only released on October 12, so some teething issues should be expected and they will do little to bring down the overall opinion of the game, which has already been a massive hit with streamers and Call of Duty fans alike.

Shroud explains why he won’t play Call of Duty with Dr Disrespect Twitch: shroud / drdisrespectTwitch star Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek had some choice words when one of his fans in his chat asked him if he would play Call of Duty with Dr Disrespect. Shroud and Dr Disrespect are two of the top streamers on Twitch, so their friendship often has both fan bases eager to see them stream together, as the duos mix of personalities and skills always makes for an entertaining time. When they aren’t playing together, naturally they have a bit of a rivalry between them and during a stream on September 11, shroud took a shot at the Two-Time when explaining why he won’t play Blackout with him. Shroud won’t play Blackout with Dr Disrespect As shroud was getting ready to start his stream, he was talking to his chat about various topics, when someone from his audience asked him if he would play COD with Dr Disrespect anytime soon. “COD with Doc? He’s playing on console dude. You think I’m a f*ckin pleb?” he said, quickly shooting down the idea of playing with the Two-Time, while also roasting him for how he plays. This isn’t the first time that the former CSGO pro has taken a shot at Doc. During his September 10 WoW Classic stream, he was asked by someone in chat if he could see Dr Disrespect ever playing the MMORPG. “He would play this character, use all that information and knowledge that he had and he would just shit on some noobs and then never play again,” he said, ribbing the Two-Time, who himself has previously made fun of those playing the popular online game. Doc’s COD experience While there is no denying the Two-Time exudes incredible power and dominant skills, he found himself being bested by some razor-wire while playing Black Ops 4 on September 4, which sent the Twitch star into a rage. “What the f*ck is this stupid f*cking game!? Huh!? What is this?” Dr Disrespect screamed, after his attempt to use his grapple gun and zip over the wire completely blew up in his face, sending him to a humiliating death. The insults are always in good fun though as the two Twitch stars are both friends in real life, and taking shots at the other has become sort of a sport for them. As of the time of this article, both shroud and Dr Disrespect are in the top 10 most subbed channels on the streaming platform.

Shroud explains why Warzone is boring in its current state Infinity Ward / ShroudTwitch superstar and former CS:GO pro Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek is unimpressed with Warzone’s current state of gameplay, arguing that the repetitiveness of combat dissuades him from dropping into Verdansk. Call of Duty’s battle royale has captivated millions of players since its launch, but the gameplay tends to boil down to the same type of combat scenarios from one match to the next, according to shroud. “[Warzone’s] just not very much fun for me. It’s the same game, every situation, every fight, everything just feels the same to me,” he said. Even though the game includes dozens of weapons with an enormous map for the 150 player-lobby, shroud sees the same scenarios play out again and again. While teams can come up with creative ways to navigate the expansive Warzone terrain, fights ultimately culminate between who gets the first few shots off on a person. At a high level, there’s much more nuance that goes into a firefight. But, compared to other battle royales like Apex Legends that throws a mixed bag of quirks simply for choosing your character, Warzone’s gameplay is much more straightforward. “I like variety. I like choosing between 1,2,3; or 1,2,3 4,5,6. Instead of just choosing 1 or 2,” shroud went on, describing his preferred types of games that offer an assortment of scenarios for players to explore. Back in March, shroud expressed similar sentiments when he confessed to giving Call of Duty games only a two-week lifespan until he moves onto the next title. His decision isn’t really surprising since he’s admitted to preferring games that incorporate more skill from the player in order to come out as the winner. Topic starts at 7:16 “Warzone isn’t really my style, you know?” shroud said while explaining why he prefers Apex over Warzone. “While (Warzone) is fun from time to time … it’s not particularly my fancy. I don’t fancy it. I fancy games like CS, Valorant, Apex — games that take some skill.” While millions of players are enjoying Warzone for what it is, don’t expect shroud to jump into the battle royale for a prolonged time, at least while it’s still in its current state. Ironically, he’s still probably very good at the game, so it’s a bit of a shame that the FPS guru doesn’t rank it higher on his list of go-to titles.

Shroud explains why CoD Warzone will be “impossible to balance” Infinity Ward / Mixer: shroudMichael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek has explained why he believes Infinity Ward’s new battle royale title, Warzone, will be “impossible to balance,” especially considering it has to contend with Call of Duty’s regular multiplayer mode too. Shroud has been playing Warzone nearly non-stop since Modern Warfare’s battle royale was released on March 10, and he’s mostly been enjoying the grind — he even went as far as to dub it “more impressive” than Apex Legends. Some players have already been complaining about the title’s ‘time to kill,’ which is far higher than similar titles like Fortnite, PUBG and of course Apex, but shroud isn’t in the same camp. In fact, he’s stepped in to defend Infinity Ward. According to the Mixer star, who was asked about the game’s rapid-fire time to kill during his March 16 stream, battle royales in the Call of Duty franchise are always going to run into “big balancing issues” when it comes to gunplay. This comes from the fact any developer tweaking weapon power and stats will also have the flagship multiplayer mode in the back of their head. Unlike other rival titles, CoD will always have more than one mode to balance. “The TTK is too high? I mean, it’s really, really fast, it really is… but that’s the thing, you can’t balance it. It’s near impossible to balance TTK in Call of Duty because their main focus is to try and combine all aspects of the game,” he responded. As well as battle royale, Modern Warfare has to make sure its vast arsenal of weapons also aren’t too overpowered or too weak in their multiplayer modes, as well as the 2019 release’s story mode, and Spec Ops missions. “Multiplayer, battle royale, and all the others are kinda connected too, so it’s tough to balance because that’s just CoD right?” shroud continued, before suggesting the franchise’s weapons usually land around the same level of power. “Shotguns are gonna win close range usually, SMGs dominate, assault rifles are just like that good balance, and snipers just own… you just have to take it for what it is, that’s pretty much what you do in every Call of Duty game. “That leads into Warzone. How can you balance all that to be perfect? You just take it for what it is. There’s too many variables [to balance them all],” he added, and suggested again that fans just “accept it” rather than complain. For mobile readers, the related segment begins at 3:37 in the video below. Outside of his thoughts on time to kill, shroud has been dissecting the new battle royale over the past few days. He’s already taken a swipe at the game’s respawn system, and earlier said he didn’t like Warzone’s “super fast” gas. That doesn’t mean he hasn’t been looking to get better though, with the streamer unveiling what he believes are the “absolute best” perks to pick in the 150-player battle royale if you’re chasing early wins in the new mode.

Shroud explains why Warzone aim assist debate “doesn’t matter” anymore Infinity Ward / Twitch: shroudThe debate surrounding Warzone’s aim assist across both console and PC isn’t a big deal at all in the eyes of FPS sensation Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek. Aim assist has long been a controversial talking point in the competitive gaming landscape. From Fortnite to Apex Legends and plenty more, many battle royale titles often come under fire for the feature. More often than not, developers are looking for ways to strike a balance across platforms. While some games keep lobbies separated, others mix in players from across the board. Infinity Ward’s take on the genre brings console players into the fray against PC gamers. Though there is an option to disable the cross-platform functionality if you desire. Does one have an advantage over the other? Is aim assist more favorable for those using controller? How can a mouse & keyboard compete? Well, one of the sharpest aimers in the world believes these questions don’t matter at all in Warzone. The topic was brought up in the midst of an August 19 Twitch stream with shroud and Jaryd ‘summit1g’ Lazar. The two were battling through Verdansk as a formidable duo just days after shroud abandoned the game due to hackers. While dropping into the pre-game instance with a random loadout, shroud was given a pistol. This weapon is what kicked off the conversation. “Using a pistol like people do on controller is insane,” shroud said. “It’s so easy on a controller and it’s so hard to [use] pistols on PC.” These secondary guns require the utmost precision, yet deal the least damage of any gun in the game. “On PC, sniping is easier,” he admitted. “For pistols, console is easier. Everything in between is pretty well balanced for the most part.” It’s this state of balance – excluding pistols and snipers – that leads shroud to believe that aim assist isn’t a big deal in Warzone. “Having the controller vs PC arguments in this game just doesn’t matter.” Instead, he believes there’s a far more important issue that impacts gunfights. “It’s f***ing CoD bro, we’re running on dogs*** servers. No offense to CoD, I understand having 150 people on this size of a map is very hard.” With mostly balanced aim assist across input devices, it’s server quality that impacts the game more than anything, according to the former Counter-Strike phenom. The relevant topic begins at the 2:18 mark below. “Using an SMG, an LMG, a Rifle, those are pretty well balanced,” he reaffirmed. Pistols and snipers are the only weapon types that impact the status quo in shroud’s eyes. Perhaps his comments will lead to a future update to address these in particular. Though, with the full reveal of Black Ops Cold War just days away, any major changes to Warzone may be held back for the new release at this point.

Shroud explains why Warzone 2’s DMZ mode failed Shroud/ActivisionStreaming star Mike ‘shroud’ Grzesiek has given his take on why he thinks Call of Duty’s DMZ mode has failed despite all the initial excitement. When it was announced that Warzone 2 was coming as a part of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, it confirmed a number of leaks that had excited players beforehand. Most notably, the inclusion of an Escape From Tarkov-esque mode. That, as we know it now, is DMZ. While it takes place on Al Mazrah like Warzone, it’s a separate mode, and more high-risk, high reward as you have to put your loadouts on the line in a bid for escape. In DMZ, some of the items you collect can carry over into both Warzone and Multiplayer – the cross-progression CoD players have been after for a while. However, it hasn’t exactly gone down a storm. Shroud gives his take on Warzone 2’s DMZ mode failing That includes Shroud, who has grinded hours upon hours in Warzone, and has plenty of experience with Escape from Tarkov. “What they’re trying to do, and a lot of games are trying to do this, is create an ecosystem within their own game where everything like benefits each other,” he said during his January 23 stream when quizzed about DMZ. “Call of Duty wants to have that cross-progression, anything you do helps your account, characters, whatever the f**k. “That’s like important, it is, but it’s not that important. So, the problem with Call of Duty trying to make a DMZ survival extraction looter shooter bulls**t is that they’re still tying into that system. And, as long as they’re tying into that cross-progression system, it’ll always be bad. Always always always.” The DMZ mode is being given some updates when Season 2 rolls around, but those changes are unlikely to satisfy everyone. We’ll just have to wait and see if the devs give it a bigger revamp moving forward.

Shroud explains why the recoil in Black Ops 4’s Blackout mode is so good Mastery of recoil control can be one of the biggest differences between an average player and one of the best players on the planet in most first-person shooter games, and that’s no different in Call of Duty: Blackout. But just how well have the game’s developers implemented recoil into Call of Duty’s first ever battle royale mode? Well, Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek thinks they’ve done a stellar job. “I like the recoil in this game. I like it,” the Canadian stated during a recent Twitch stream. “It’s really good. At first I didn’t know how I felt about it but, with the way the armor and the health works, you have to be somewhat skilled to AR [Assault Rifle] somebody at range, you know? “You see my point? See what I’m saying?” he continued after failing to pick off an opponent at range and having to chase them down to finish them off. “See, there’s recoil. It’s just hard, that’s it. Very difficult.” As a former Counter-Strike: Global Offensive pro, shroud knows a thing or two about recoil control, and he seems to be a fan of the way that Blackout’s recoil rewards skilled players that know how to control it. The fact that Black Ops 4 and Blackout use a predictive recoil system means that players that concentrate on learning them, or at least getting a good feel for them, will have a significant advantage over players that simply spray and pray. With the game only going live on October 12, there is still plenty of time for players and streamers to master the mechanics and improve.

Shroud explains why Modern Warfare’s AK-47 is better than the M4A1 Popular streamer Michael ‘Call of Duty: Modern Warfare since its October release, and revealed his surprising opinion that the AK-47 assault rifle is better than the ultra-popular M4A1. While CoD developers always try to balance weapons as best as they can, there are usually one or two weapons who separate from the pack as the best in the game, and in Modern Warfare that gun is the M4A1 assault rifle. While most are sticking to the weapon exclusively, shroud has a different take and revealed why he thinks there’s actually a better weapon out there in his latest YouTube video – the AK-47. While playing Ground War on the new Call of Duty title, the former CS:GO pro discussed how he hoped to unlock the gold camouflage for all the ARs, and was playing with the M4A1, which he had lots of challenges to complete with as he hadn’t used the gun much. “I mean, the AK-47 is still better than the M4A1,” the streamer stated. “The M4A1 really is easy mode.” “But the AK can multi-frag so much harder because you will win gunfights, especially penetration fights. When it comes to lining up three people, the M4 is going to fade, but the AK will get through three people so easily.” While the M4A1 may be the best gun in the game right now according to popular opinion, it may not stay that way for long, with Infinity Ward confirming on November 6 that they will be releasing a patch in the near future which looks at weapon balancing. Shroud will be hoping that the developers don’t make any changes to the AK-47 though, so he can continue to shred through his opponents with ease.

Shroud explains why Modern Warfare needs a battle royale mode L: shroud (Twitch)/R: Infinity Ward (Activision)Twitch phenom Michael ‘shroud’ Grzeciek has explained why he thinks the upcoming Modern Warfare ‘needs’ a battle royale mode if it is to have longevity. The first-person shooter (FPS) genre is not in the same place that Infinity Ward left it three years ago, with their 2016 release of Infinite Warfare. An emergence of battle royale (BR) games has revolutionized the genre, with Treyarch becoming the first developer to lead the Call of Duty franchise into unknown territory with ‘Blackout’, that shipped with Black Ops 4. Blackout was Call of Duty’s first venture into the battle royale genre. The Blackout mode was a big hit with Twitch streamers and pros alike, but so far, Infinity Ward are yet to confirm whether they will have their own take on the mode in their new title. However, fans have been given a glimmer of hope, when a line of code slipped through the cracks, hinting at its potential inclusion in Modern Warfare. Shroud has historically favored BR games, even praising Treyarch’s endeavors following his initial concerns over Blackout. Now, after playing the multiplayer beta for the new game, he has expressed the need for the mode to be brought back in some capacity. When initially asked “Do you think it’s worth getting? Will it last?”, Grzeciek promptly responded with: “Not without a BR.” He went on to add: “Straight up, this game needs a BR — and I don’t know if they’re doing one.” Discussing the inclusion of standard 6v6 game modes, the 25-year-old explained: “These game modes only last for so long; FPS needs BR nowadays” before going on to explain that the latest iteration to the franchise is “very unique in comparison to other CoDs.” There has been speculation surrounding whether or not Modern Warfare will release with a BR game mode on release, with reports suggesting that the game mode will come post–release in early 2020, as a free-to-play game with an entirely separate installation. Moreover, the inclusion of large maps to facilitate the new 32v32 game mode, alongside the introduction of projectile drop and bullet travel (as opposed to the more basic hitscan detection system) adds to the flock of people hypothesizing if/when the the developers will add the popular game mode. Given the success that Blackout has brought over the past year, Infinity Ward will likely have their finger on the pulse and be hot on the heels of their developer counterparts.

Shroud explains why killstreaks “ruin gameplay” in Black Ops Cold War Twitch: shroud / ActivisionAfter playing the Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War PC beta on October 15, Twitch streamer Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek has revealed one of his main gripes with the game — and long-term Call of Duty fans might not be impressed. [jwplayer ulMZS35X] After weekends for PS4 players to play both the alpha and beta builds of Cold War, Activision have opened the floor to fans on all platforms to give the game ago ahead of its November 13 release. As such, we saw many pros and top streamers piling into the servers to try out the next installment in the CoD franchise, including Twitch and FPS extraordinaire shroud. That said, it didn’t take long for shroud to find something really frustrating him about the game, and Call of Duty in general: killstreaks. After the enemy team called in multiple Spy Planes, a Sentry Turret, and an Attack Helicopter, he finally had enough, and made a bold call, saying that “killstreaks have got to go.” After getting a few kills of his own, shroud said: “Nobody gives a f**k about these killstreaks anymore. They only ruin the gameplay experience. There’s quite literally no positive besides a fake feeling of more content, progression” That wasn’t all, though. He continued, completely condemning killstreaks as a whole: “That’s all it is. A waste of space. Waste of everything. Nobody cares.” Killstreaks have been a point of contention for a while in the Call of Duty community. The switching between a traditional killstreak system, scorestreaks, and the new Cold War system that seems to be a combination of both, has left fans arguing over their favorite systems and what works best. It goes without saying, though, that shroud falls into a slightly different category of players that believe killstreaks have no place in Call of Duty at all anymore — and it would be interesting to see how the game plays out without them.

Shroud explains why he quit playing “monstrosity” Warzone and CoD games Twitch: shroud / ActivisionStreaming star Mike ‘shroud’ Grzesiek has labeled Call of Duty Warzone as a “monstrosity” as he explained why he’d rather play something like Halo instead, despite not having much love for that either. When battle royale titles started getting big on Twitch, tens of thousands of viewers would flock to watch shroud popping heads and racking up wins. The former Counter-Strike star was, for a lot of it, balancing Twitch dominance with his esports career, excelling in both disciplines. As he stepped away from competing, he struck around in the battle royale scene and has dominated everything from PUBG to Fortnite, Warzone, and even Cuisine Royale. In recent months, BRs have certainly taken a backseat on his channel, but fans are still eager to see him play them – especially given that he’s been dominating in CS2 with his aimbot-like skills again. Shroud blasts Warzone for being a “plague” for mouse and keyboard However, he certainly won’t be going back to Call of Duty or Warzone anytime soon, as he says there is too much “bulls*it” affecting the game – especially for those on mouse and keyboard. “It’s just CoD, brother. I’m not a fan of the point-and-click,” shroud said, answering one fan’s question about why he doesn’t play Warzone anymore. “CoD just needs a little bit more depth for me to really enjoy it, you know? And by that, I mean like depth when shooting gun. “Dude, that game is a f*cking monstrosity. It’s a plague for mouse and keyboard. It is, by definition, a terrible shooting game for mouse and keyboard. When you shoot in that game, your screen is covered with bulls*it. You can’t even see what you’re shooting at. You know what that means? You can’t play on mouse and keyboard.” The former CS star added that controller players benefit from that because aim assist cuts through the ungodly amount of “visual clutter” that appears on-screen in-game these days. He added that he’d rather go play Halo and he is no lover of those games either due to their “shooting loop” as well. So, don’t tune in to one of his streams expecting him to play either game.

Shroud explains why controller has a big advantage on Warzone and Apex Mixer: Shroud/UnsplashStreaming superstar Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek has explained why he loves Call of Duty: Warzone and Apex Legends being cross-platform, but feels that when it comes to tournaments, there shouldn’t be any cross-play involved. In recent years, cross-platform play between console and PC players has been prevalent in a number of game genres – though, it has exploded thanks to battle royales like Fortnite. While players have been able to test their skills against an even bigger pool of players, the debate about keyboard and mouse versus controller has raged on, especially with controller players having aim assist. That’s no different in Call of Duty: Warzone and while shroud claims that he doesn’t mind it, he doesn’t want to see it used in tournaments. During his March 20 stream, the former Counter-Strike: Global Offensive professional had been gearing up to compete in the Warzone from Home tournament hosted by 100 Thieves when he and teammate GaGod dived into cross-play. With GaGod using a controller and shroud on PC, both players give their viewpoint on things, with the controller user admitting to the assist being pretty overpowered. So, shroud chimed in. “No random schmuck can just pick up mouse and keyboard and do somewhat well, they’re going to suck, and they’re going to suck a lot. But, if you grab like a controller there is a chance it will just assist you in some situations,” he said. “That’s the whole point of it. I don’t mind it.” The Mixer streamer continued on, noting that Warzone being cross-play is “really cool” and that he “loves it,” but does he have some issues with it. “I’ve always been like this and I’ve always said there shouldn’t be aim assist or controllers or whatever in tournaments,” he added. “You shouldn’t mix it. Either you go only controller or only PC. In Apex, for example, when you have half and half, the competitive integrity is already gone from the get-go.” Other games like Fortnite have tried to split the player base in tournaments by running some console-only events, but, cross-play remains a huge draw for players. While the aim assist is overpowered debate will rage on, developers are unlikely to make any sweeping changes because there has to be a level playing field. Otherwise, PC players would likely run rampant.

Shroud explains why CoD Warzone’s respawn system ‘doesn’t work’ Mixer: shroud / Infinity WardMixer star Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek has revealed his thoughts on Call of Duty battle royale Warzone’s respawn system, suggesting Infinity Ward had missed the mark by adding Gulag one-vs-ones and purchasable revives. Warzone launched on March 10 and, of course, battle royale regular Grzesiek just had to give the new 150-player mode a go. Straight off the bat, though, he dubbed CoD’s new take on the genre “crazy,” mainly because of the respawn system. The streaming star struggled to find his feet in the first few playthroughs, dying early in the round more often than not. What his deaths revealed, however, was some pretty key issues with its respawning, at least according to shroud. Shroud’s main complaint with Warzone’s respawning system is it promotes “crazy” gameplay in the battle royale. It’s a step away from similar titles like Apex Legends, Fortnite, and PUBG, all of which have periods of calm in their matches. That’s not to say he’s not totally opposed to the fast-paced mode Infinity Ward have dropped into Modern Warfare — he admitted “it is Call of Duty at the end of the day… it’s supposed to be crazy” — but it seems like he isn’t sold just yet. “I don’t like that you get into a gunfight, then you rez [respawn], and then you get into a fight, and then you rez. I don’t like that loop. It’s a battle royale, you should be mobile, you should be moving,” he said after another visit to the Gulag. These constant respawns, which are worst at the start of each match when the Gulag is available, is compounded by the fact Warzone boasts 150 players each game. “Every place you land is a hot zone, and stays that way, it’s crazy,” he added. Shroud is never one to shy away from a challenge in how to “solve” issues like these, either. He told Respawn how to fix both Apex’s supply bins, and make their Deja Loot armor better, and he’s done the same for Warzone and Infinity Ward now too. According to the Mixer star, the overload of respawning options in the battle royale should be heavily reduced or even scrapped, so more players are actually booted from the game once they’re eliminated in the early stages. Read more: Best landing spots on Warzone’s Verdansk map – “Maybe the game could have only one Gulag, one respawn? That should keep it moving,” he suggested. “There should only be one respawn for anyone on a cache. I think I’ve respawned on the exact same cache like five times already.” For mobile readers, the related segment begins at 14:55 in the video below. Warzone’s respawn system isn’t the only thing shroud has taken a swipe at in the early days of the release either — the streamer also suggested Infinity Ward slow down the “super fast” gas which closes in on players throughout the game. Whether or not the Modern Warfare devs listen to shroud remains to be seen, but with the suggestions he’s been throwing out already stacking up, maybe they’d be best to wait until he’s done critiquing the game before they make their move. Then again, maybe shroud’s problem has been how much he’s died. Of course if you’re constantly re-spawning the game will seem “crazy.” Maybe he needs to read our Warzone landing zone guide, and see where the best drop spots really are.

Shroud explains why CoD: Warzone solos are actually better than trios Instagram: shroud / ActivisionMixer star Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek has, like many other streamers, been on a Call of Duty: Warzone binge since its March 10 release, but has explained why he prefers the new solo mode over its standard trios mode. Pretty much every big name across a range of titles has been playing the newest major entry to the battle royale genre, including multiple tournaments taking place to pit a variety of pro players and content creators against each other. While people have been enjoying playing in squads with their friends, shroud has revealed that contrary to popular opinion, he actually much prefers the solo mode, and explained what makes it so much better. After playing a match with girlfriend Hannah ‘Bnans’ Kennedy, he told her that solos “feel really, really good.” Shroud said: “Solos are actually so good in this game, it feels way, way better than trios,” with Bnans sounding a little surprised by this revelation. The former CS:GO professional continued: “I think it’s how the game should be played… You’re not ever overwhelmed. If there’s ever a situation where people are ‘camping,’ it doesn’t matter because it’s just one. One isn’t that much of a threat. Three? Okay, that’s why you lose in a camping situation.” He went on to reiterate that solos feel “really, really good,” but also added that Activision obviously doesn’t want to promote the idea of not playing with your friends, suggesting he understands why modes with more players are necessary. This is in stark contrast to what fellow streamer Jaryd ‘Summit1G’ Lazar thinks, who described the experience as “very campy, very sweaty,” adding that it “kind of sucks.” Obviously the solo mode in Warzone is dividing opinion amongst all types of players, so maybe Activision will look to introduce duo and squad game modes in the future.

Shroud explains why “fun” Call of Duty Blackout mode was doomed to fail Activision-Treyarch / Mixer: ShroudCall of Duty’s first foray into the battle royale genre with Black Ops 4’s Blackout was always doomed to fail, Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek believes, with timing, playerbase, and the nature of the franchise all playing a role in its demise. While he’s been dabbling in Escape from Tarkov recently, and had a stint playing World of Warcraft Classic when the remade MMORPG first launched, shroud has — for the most part — stuck to what he knows best: shooters. In particular, the Mixer superstar is a leading name in a host of first-person battle royales, from PUBG and Apex Legends, to Call of Duty’s short-lived first stint in the genre, Blackout, which launched in Treyach’s Black Ops 4. During his March 1 stream, one loyal fan asked Grzesiek if they could pay him $6.90 to give Blackout “one more chance.” The Mixer star declined the request, and explained he wouldn’t be able to anyway because of the playerbase. According to the streaming star, Blackout was always going to struggle to keep interest after its release, especially its PC version, and added the timing of Treyach’s battle royale release just added to its rapid-paced disappearance. At its core, Blackout was a “fun” title, shroud said, but because Call of Duty is primarily a console-based franchise, and Apex Legends exploded onto the scene soon after the battle royale was finally finding its feet, interest died out. “Nobody plays that on PC anymore, I promise. I promise if I tried to dabble in it, and tried to play it on PC, I bet you I don’t even get a lobby,” shroud told his fan eager to see him return to Black Ops 4’s coastal 100-player warzone. The Mixer star added Blackout may still be thriving on console, but a few external factors denied it the chance to really stretch its wings — Call of Duty’s yearly releases, and the arrival of Respawn’s Apex launch in February. “Blackout was a fun game actually… it was an Apex before Apex Legends existed. That’s what Blackout was, and it was sick. I really enjoyed it, and it only got better. Games like that don’t last on PC though,” he added. And that, at its core, was the reason it suffered, he said. With the player bases split, dwindling lobby-counts were felt all the harsher. “I was hoping to see some crossplay in the future, but we just never got it,” shroud concluded. For mobile readers, the related segment begins at 12:35 in the video below. Funnily enough, shroud’s 2020 sentiments echo what he first said about Treyach’s battle royale back in October 2018: “At the end of the day it’s CoD, and I feel people are going to get over it pretty quick,” he said. At the time he was streaming with Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins, who disagreed “because of the battle royale,” and suggested the franchise titles only get old when they’re based around the annual multiplayer features of the games. In the end, however, shroud was right, and it leaves one wondering if Modern Warfare’s new Warzone battle royale will fair any better. Call of Duty fans will know the answer soon enough, it seems, after famous game leaker TheGamingRevolution revealed Infinity Ward’s take on the ever-popular battle royale genre could be dropping on March 10.’ That’s not all that’s been leaked either: character animations, in-game challenges, and the amount of players set to duke it out have all been dug out of the title’s code — now all that’s left is to see if Warzone outlasts Blackout.

Shroud explains why Blackout is better to watch than PUBG Popular Twitch streamer Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek says he can’t understand why some people prefer watching PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds instead of Call of Duty’s rival ‘Blackout’ mode. Shroud, formerly a professional CS:GO player, moved to full-time streaming playing PUBG predominantly, with his skill in-game making him currently the second most followed channel on Twitch. He has since diversified his streaming content however, favoring other Battle Royale games over PUBG, mainly the ‘Blackout’ mode in Black Ops 4. His following remains dedicated and he continues to grow regardless of the game he plays, with shroud’s viewers more attracted by his personality and entertainment than for a particular game. Some portions of his viewers miss him playing PUBG however, saying that they prefer it over watching Blackout, which shroud says he can’t understand. “I don’t see it, because you watch PUBG, nothing happens. You watch the gunfights in PUBG, nothing happens,” shroud says, whereas with Blackout “there’s always crazy shit happening, so I don’t get it.” Blackout remains shroud’s main game of choice for the time being, even as the gaming industry becomes more and more saturated with games in the battle royale genre, and even the undeniable popularity of Fortnite, which in many ways, dwarfs both Blackout and PUBG. Shroud is not limited to these two games, of course, often playing a variety of other titles with a focus on new releases, as his fans enjoy seeing him try out those as well. As for a return to PUBG, shroud was very complimentary about the new map, Vikendi, but said “it’s still PUBG – and that’s the problem.”

Shroud explains why Black Ops Cold War looks “significantly better” than MW shroud – Twitch / Treyarch[jwplayer QkvtNtzX] After getting a chance to watch some alpha gameplay of Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, renowned FPS guru Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek contends that it looks a lot better than the series’ 2019 entry – Modern Warfare. It’s well documented that Call of Duty is one of the few major gaming franchises that release a new title every year but with a different developer – featuring a rotation of devs that include Treyarch, Infinity Ward, and Sledgehammer Games. Inevitably, this leads to each year’s game being looking and functioning differently from the previous one. Case in point, the upcoming Black Ops Cold War was developed by Treyarch and it’s a completely different game than 2019’s Modern Warfare, which was from Infinity Ward. In fact, shroud believes that it looks “significantly better.” The star Twitch streamer explained his opinion after watching some gameplay from the recent PS4-exclusive alpha period. “Cool, it actually looks good, Cold War looks good!” he said. “Looks simple. That looks significantly better than Modern Warfare, in my opinion. Just because there’s less bulls**t and more ‘arcade-y’ kind of fun. The colors are nice and vibrant, no one’s blending in, no dark corners, from what I’ve seen.” Shroud especially took a liking to several of the game’s mechanics, such as sniping, reloading, and sliding, and was also very fond of how simple everything looks. “Sniping looks cool, this looks good, I like this! This looks so simple man, I like it, very simple. Reloads are so simple. Holy s**t you can slide! He was side-sliding, that’s cool – he was sliding in one direction while looking at another. The sliding is f***ing sick! The sliding is good! I like that.” Obviously shroud’s opinions so far are based on what he’s seen; since the game won’t be available on PC until the Open Beta on October 15, we’ll have to wait to get his official verdict once he gets to try it out. When Modern Warfare first released in 2019, shroud played it a good amount over the first few weeks, dropping nukes left and right and dominating yet another FPS – but what else is new? Hopefully fans could see him do that same on Black Ops Cold War when it hits shelves on November 13, especially since it’s expected to also introduce major changes to the Warzone battle royale.

Shroud explains why Apex Legends takes more skill than Warzone Mixer: Shroud/RespawnStreaming superstar Michael ‘Shroud’ Grzesiek has claimed that Apex Legends actually requires more skill to play than Call of Duty’s Warzone, and that he might be “done” playing the CoD battle royale. Ever since games like H1Z1, PUBG and Fortnite started to make waves, the battle royale genre of games has become pretty packed in recent years – with a number of developers having a crack at it. The newest addition to the BR market comes in the form of Call of Duty: Warzone, which plenty of players have enjoyed. Though, after making the switch back to Apex Legends for a few games, it appears as if Shroud is “done” with Warzone after explaining that it’s a little too “casual” compared to rival titles. The former Counter-Strike player made the claims while playing Respawn Entertainment’s game, uploading it to his YouTube channel in a stream highlights video. After missing a his shots on an enemy, he exclaimed: “wow, I forgot this game actually takes skill, this is hard – I’m in the CoD zone!” “It’s actually crazy how easy CoD is when you play a game like this,” Shroud continued after racking up a few kills. “You don’t think about it because you’re having fun playing it, its there to have fun, but then you go play a game that is somewhat challenging and you’re like woah, woah woah woah. It is fun but it’s throwing me off my game.” It didn’t seem to throw him off too much, however, as the former CS:GO professional picked up a handful of victories. Though, he did dive back into the comparison to state that he was “done” playing Warzone as much as he had been. Timestamp of 3:55 for mobile viewers Shroud “done” with CoD “Dude, I’m done playing CoD, seriously. After seeing my performance in this game, I am done. I am done. If I play CoD, it’s going to be very very minimal – like maybe an hour or something a day but I’m done, I can’t,” he added. Though, the Mixer star continued on with his thought, noting that playing too much of Warzone would affect anyone who wants to play any other sort of battle royale at a competitive level. “I’m glad I just noticed it early, f**k. No offense to CoD, it’s a fantastic game, but I now understand why Tyler (Skadoodle) doesn’t want to play. It’s too f**king casual and it’ll f**k you up man,” he added. “If you’re trying to be somewhat of a competitive player in anything else, and actually like keep up, can’t do it.” Of course, Shroud didn’t swear off Call of Duty completely, but fans hoping that he would return to something like Apex Legends or PUBG might have their wish granted. As for his comparison of the skill gap between the two, that is purely his opinion but both sides will no doubt argue that they have the superior player base regardless.

Shroud explains why Warzone is more “impressive” than Apex Legends Infinity Ward / Mixer: shroudMichael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek’s Apex Legends climb has taken a backseat for Warzone, and as the streamer spends more time in the Call of Duty battle royale, he can’t help but admire Infinity Ward’s “impressive” game. The addition of Warzone — Call of Duty’s super-sized battle royale successor to Blackout — has captivated the community and breathed new life back into the controversial Modern Warfare release. With 150 players, two different modes in your generic battle royale and the cash-based Plunder, unique revive mechanics with Gulag duels, the free-to-play game has been a hit with everyone. Warzone smashed through 15 million players within four days, equalling the growth of battle royale competitor Apex Legends. The Respawn-developed battle royale based loosely in the Titanfall universe appeared out of nowhere, racking up 25 million unique players in the week after its release. https://twitter.com/CallofDuty/status/1238632552946003969 Given how much negative press Modern Warfare received, Warzone’s rise in its first week has helped turned the game’s misfortunes around. While there are a number of reasons behind its success, shroud pinned it down to one thing — it’s just fun. “It’s fun,” he simply put in a recent Mixer broadcast. “It’s chaotic as f**k, and you get flanked by no sound all the time, but besides that, it’s fun. Being fun isn’t enough though — a game can be fun for one round but fall off afterwards. What makes Warzone stand out, and keep shroud coming back, is its vast scale. With 150 players, a massive map, and tons of loot, the game blows its competitors out of the water by size alone. “I give this game the exception because of its scale. I don’t give Apex [Legends] the exception at all — that should not be how it is — but this game? Holy f**k.” “This game is impressive just from a development standpoint. What they managed to achieve is pretty nuts. [It runs better than Apex with] four times the population, four times the loot, the chaos, the map size — everything. It’s impressive.” Shroud singling out Apex Legends isn’t a surprise. The streamer has been on the grind on World’s Edge and King’s Canyon for weeks, and has found more problems with the game than anything else. He labelled the recent Deja Loot LTM as “terrible,” and he’s constantly offering up solutions for issues like underpowered Evo Shields, blinding Muzzle Flash, and RNG-heavy supply bins. Warzone isn’t without its flaws, but to the FPS veteran, that’s part of the flair. Infinity Ward could have turned around and tried to make a hyper-competitive battle royale in Modern Warfare to replace Blackout, but it wouldn’t have felt like CoD. By taking itself a bit less seriously — from sound design to gameplay — Warzone has a unique experience unlike any battle royale on the market. “[The sound] was concerning for a second, but then I realized this game is not made for that kind of scale so I bet it wasn’t even thought about,” he said. “It’s CoD, how are they supposed to dictate somebody shooting 600-1,000m — that’s never going to happen. They treated this as more of a fun thing rather than super serious and that’s why they could get away with stuff like that.” Shroud isn’t the only major name to commend Warzone. Dr Disrespect, who used to work as a Call of Duty level designer, described the battle royale experience as “silky smooth” and heralded the map as one of the best he’s played. Whether Warzone can maintain his attention for the weeks to come remains to be seen, shroud is absolutely digging the new game mode for now, and might stick it out for a bit longer rather than returning to King’s Canyon.

Shroud explains why Infinity Ward should “turn off” CoD Warzone vehicles Infinity Ward / Mixer: shroudMichael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek has called for Infinity Ward to “turn off” the vast array of vehicles found across Verdansk in Warzone, and suggested they don’t have a place in Call of Duty’s newly-released battle royale. There’s no denying Modern Warfare’s step into the battle royale genre has been a smash hit success since its March 10 release — more than 30 million players have already loaded into Warzone, and there’s plenty more on the way. While many have fallen in love with Warzone, including Dr Disrespect, shroud has been a little harder to convince in regards to the CoD BR being top-tier. This time, the streamer has vehicles in his sights, and he thinks its time for them to go. According to shroud, transport options like trucks, buggies, and choppers “don’t have a place in Warzone.” He compared it to H1Z1, which is ruled by vehicles. Compared to Daybreak’s old battle royale, he said, cars in Warzone just don’t work. “They should turn off vehicles or something. I think they should turn off vehicles in general,” he said, and added base player speed made cars all-but obsolete. “You run pretty fast, you get across the map fast already just by running.” He added H1Z1 “got vehicles right” by having them be easily destroyed, creating new gameplay moments. With Warzone’s higher strength cars and trucks, the transport options rule the battlefield with their protection and speed. “It feels like H1Z1 solos where you drive around in a car and when the time is right you blast them, or you run them over with the car. It feels like H1Z1, [but the problem is] it’s a lot harder to blow up a vehicle [in Warzone],” he said. While Shroud’s most recent ideas about how to improve were about vehicles, it’s certainly not the only thing he’s suggested Infinity Ward tweak. He also recently revealed he was concerned the battle royale would be “impossible to balance.” Before that, he took a swipe at the title’s respawn system, as well as Warzone’s “super fast” gas. That’s not to say he hasn’t been enjoying it, of course — he also dubbed the “chaotic” game mode “more impressive than Apex.” Shroud isn’t the only streamer to slam vehicles either: Summit branded Warzone’s cars and trucks “overpowered.” He had a little less luck with helicopters, however, accidentally blowing his team up during the $50k Code Green tournament.

Shroud explains why sniping isn’t fun in Modern Warfare Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek was never typically known as a Call of Duty player, siding more with PC-based shooters such as Counter-Strike and PUBG. That said, he’s been playing a lot of Modern Warfare since its release, but has taken issue with sniping in the game. Not only has he been predominantly a player of games such as CSGO, he’s also made a name for himself as one of the most mechanically skilled FPS players in the world, picking up any shooter with ease and instantly looking like a god at it. That’s why it’s a surprise to see him complaining about something; simply because he’s so good that it’s difficult to believe he could possibly have anything to be upset about. Nonetheless, he shared in a livestream on November 14 that sniping in Modern Warfare just isn’t fun, going on to explain why. Running about with a sniper in Ground War, Modern Warfare’s new 32v32, big-battle style arena, shroud addressed why he thinks “sniping just ain’t that sick.” “The weird part about sniping in this game is it’s really easy, but it’s not at the same time,” a clearly confused shroud said. “You get into a spot and own it for a couple of kills but then everybody knows where you are, so you die and then have to get to a new spot.” (Timestamp 7:12 for mobile users) Naturally, he then went on an insane killing spree, picking off people across the map and barely missing a shot, making it look even easier than you would think before the match ended and he could speak a bit more. “I pretty much cut my kills in half when I snipe,” he said before once more hitting shots that seem impossible to any other player. He then goes on to edit has loadout, putting a new stock on his HDR sniper rifle and removing the suppressor and barrel, explaining that he wants a quicker ADS speed, but acknowledging that he may lose power in long-range gunfights. While shroud expresses that he thinks there are issues with sniping in Modern Warfare, you would guess he adores it just from watching his gameplay. His shot is so crisp that you could easily believe he had been doing it his entire life, and he’s a perfect representative for the beauty that could be PC Call of Duty after so many years of console dominance.

Shroud explains one simple change he wants in PUBG and Blackout Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek, a popular Twitch streamer known best for his incredible skill in battle royale titles PUBG and Blackout, has one simple suggestion to improve both games. Formerly a professional CS:GO player, shroud gained massive popularity on Twitch thanks to his mechanical skill, considered one of the most accurate and intelligent players on PC FPS games. After stepping down from professional CS:GO, he shifted his focus to streaming PUBG mainly, the militaristic battle royale game. His skill was easily transferred from shooter to shooter, maintaining and increasing his audience even as he played a variety of games, but PUBG remained his staple. More: Summit1g fan accidentally donates thousands of dollars to the popular streamer His attention shifted to ‘Blackout’ upon the release of Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, praising it for its smoother gameplay when compared to PUGB, but he has one criticism of both games, which he believes there is a simple fix for. In a YouTube video on January 5, shroud explained his issue is with what he calls ‘pointless’ loot and weapons, which clog up the loot pool. “I just don’t see a point in some of these weapons. It’s the same with Blackout. They just waste fucking loot by having pistols and shit. Just get rid of all of those items. There’s no point because you’re never going to use them, unless you get a shitty start and that’s all you have to use, then you just die and that’s it.” Shroud explains that in every situation, an assault rifle will win, leaving pistols, SMG’s and even shotguns all feeling valueless. Although he does make an exception for the Vector in PUBG, which he says is “broken”. He goes on to say that the developers “don’t really know what’s going on”, referencing the fire rate nerf to the M16. “You know, with that change, that they don’t really know what’s going on. They need some backup.”

Shroud explains why he might be “done” with CoD Warzone really soon Infinity Ward / Mixer: shroudMichael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek is on the verge of being “done” with Modern Warfare’s new battle royale Warzone, the Mixer star has revealed, explaining that even though the chaotic mode is “fun,” he’s ready to put it back on the shelf. Warzone has definitely been a smash hit since its March 10 release. Over 30 million players have already piled into Infinity Ward’s release in the past fortnight. With a host of competing titles, it’s impressive it landed this well. There’s only so long it can keep it’s audience though, shroud believes. Like any modern Call of Duty titles, there comes a time when the player-base dwindles. According to one of Mixer’s biggest names, it’s on the verge of happening now. Shroud calls time on “fun” Warzone after two weeks It’s not that shroud thinks Warzone is bad. He’s not suggesting he’ll shelve it because of any major issues like Dr Disrespect and his war on the game’s 12-tick servers. But the streaming star just feels like Warzone’s time is up. “It’s Call of Duty. Everyone has a different lifespan for CoD, right? Everybody stops playing at X amount of time,” shroud explained. “Usually I play Call of Duty games for about two weeks, and then I’m done, and I don’t play ‘til the next one.” After a week spent “hardcore grinding” Modern Warfare’s multiplayer, and then another week on Warzone recently, shroud feels like he’s hit a wall. There’s only so much you can get out of one CoD title, he said, and he’s done just that. “I’m almost done. We’ve pretty much hit the two-week mark. When the game first came out I hardcore grinded it pretty hard. I’ve been playing this [Warzone] for about a week too. I’m at that two-week lifespan… I’m going to move on.” Warzone needs something ‘fresh’ to keep players Not every new game release has such a short fuse though, shroud said. One of his fans asked him why he stuck with similar battle royale PUBG for so long if he has a “two-week” timer. Shroud explained it was “just CoD.” While many modern games can suck players in for “ages,” the CoD franchise often forgoes long-term changes because of annual releases. This leads to players losing interest, the streamer added. Chief among them, now, was shroud himself. “PUBG was new. No one’s really done something like that,” he said, and pointed to the fact Call of Duty never really breaks the mold in the same way. “Granted, if you go back and play PUBG now you’re going to hate your life.” For mobile readers, the related segment begins at 0:15 in the video below. Could Warzone go the way of Blackout? There’s also been plenty that’s dogged shroud’s week-long grind too. From “useless” vehicles, to the “crazy” respawn system, as well as Warzone’s “super fast” gas, the Mixer streamer has had plenty to say on the battle royale. This isn’t the first time shroud has ‘called time’ on a CoD battle royale either. Just over a year ago, he suggested Blackout was on its last legs. While many disagreed, his prediction came true, and Black Ops’ mode is now dead in the water. Perhaps Infinity Ward should take shroud’s declaration of being “done” as a warning. If they begin to lose fans, Warzone may follow Blackout into obscurity. The iron is hot now, and the devs need to strike — it’s time for more content, and fast.

Shroud explains how Treyarch can fix Fireteam in Black Ops Cold War Treyarch / Twitch: shroudFireteam is the newest game mode to hit Call of Duty, with Treyarch adding the team-based mode in Black Ops Cold War. However, according to Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek, Fireteam is a long way off being enjoyable. He’s got some fixes though. The new Fireteam game mode in Black Ops Cold War is a bit of everything. It’s part battle-royale, with players being divided up into 10 teams of four. It’s got some objective hunting, and obviously, kills go a long way to racking up points. However, the game mode has received a mixed reception upon release in the beta. While it’s definitely a different gameplay experience to normal, the mode loses its charm pretty quickly. It can feel like a grind, with games taking forever, and long time-to-kill making the action less explosive. It can also get pretty confusing, with the objective not awfully clear. Shroud shares many of these same concerns with Fireteam as the rest of the community. He’s got some solutions though. His biggest quandary with Fireteam is the long time-to-kill. With players getting armor on top of their health, gunfights can take forever, and even if you win one, you’re at a stark disadvantage until you find time to heal up and top up your plates. Shroud has a simple solution though: remove the armor, and increase everyone’s base HP. “I wish there wasn’t armor in [Fireteam]. That would be nice. Simple solution: why can’t they just make it so your HP is higher in this game mode? No armor, nothing — your HP is just a little bit higher. You still get the same regen, it might just take a little bit longer to get to max, but isn’t that an easy solution,” he said while playing through the beta. Shroud’s problem isn’t with the armor mechanic itself. After all, he was an avid player of Warzone, and didn’t have any problems with it in the battle royale environment. It just doesn’t fit the bill for Fireteam though. It makes the gameplay clunky, in his opinion. Segment begins at 11:12. “The problem isn’t the armor itself, or the health that you have. The problem is that once you’ve ticked away and that armor can’t be regened like your health can, you’re now Joe Garbargio,” he said. Then, there was also another issue: “that game mode took way too long.” That’s been a pretty hot talking point in the community since Fireteam’s release. The simple solution for that is reduce the time limit and points required to win. Those changes will come with time as Treyarch keeps tinkering with the new game mode. For now, the jury is still out for shroud on Black Ops Cold War. While he’s enjoying himself, he hasn’t played enough yet to form a proper opinion.

Shroud explains how to fix Level 3 Armor in Blackout Level 3 Armor in Call of Duty’s new Blackout battle royale mode remains a hot topic in the community, and popular streamer Michael ‘Shroud’ Grzesiek has explained how it can be fixed ahead of the game’s full release. The former CS:GO pro was asked about his thoughts on Level 3 Armor while live-streaming on Twitch, and he proposed several solutions that Treyarch could explore. The first solution would involve either getting rid of the helmet portion of the item, or completely removing Level 3 Armor from the game, leaving only Level 1 and 2 for players to pick up and use. “They need to remove it. I’m sorry, I’m going to stand by that,” Shroud said. “Or remove the helmet completely. It’s just not fair. It’s literally not fair.” Treyarch’s David Vonderhaar, in a recent interview with GameInformer, has said that, while changes to Level 3 Armor are being tested out, the development team will likely not remove it from the game because it would be “the wrong call.” Knowing this, Shroud offered up an alternative solution, one that would require players to sacrifice a significant amount of movement speed if choosing to equip Level 3 Armor. “Or, make the Level 3 Armor reduce your movement speed in half,” he proposed. “That way you choose to be more of a tank, but you can’t be as fucking fast. So when you see a Level 3 Armor and you have Level 2, in your head you’re like ‘do I want speed or do I want to be a tank?’” In the short period that the Blackout beta was live, Shroud established himself as one the game’s top performers. That, combined with the fact that he has an influential presence in the online gaming and battle royale communities, could see certain aspects of his proposed ideas be implemented into Blackout.

Shroud explains biggest lesson Warzone devs learned from Blackout Twitch: Shroud/ActivisionTwitch star Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek said Call of Duty: Blackout might still be around if the devs had taken the steps they eventually did with Warzone. With battle royales becoming the most popular genre in gaming, Call of Duty has now taken two swipes it with Blackout and Warzone. The latter came as a part of Call of Duty Black Ops 4 and was a bit of a hit with fans, but it never quite lived up to its early potential. When Warzone was released as a part of Modern Warfare, and as a standalone free-to-play game, plenty quickly made the switch. While Warzone has its downfalls, and some fans believe Blackout was ultimately better, Shroud says that it’s clear that the devs have taken the mistakes made with Blackout and that’s helped make Warzone as big as it is today. During his July 17 stream, the former Counter-Strike pro made his return to Warzone, dropping into the Rebirth Island mode when he realized the map had a familiar look, given it was used in Blackout as Alcatraz. “That s**t was fun. Yeah, Blackout was sick. Unfortunately, it didn’t have cross-play, if it had cross-play it would still be here, and if it was free I think, that would be the bigger one,” the Canadian streamer said. “That’s what they learned with this game, they learned that free + micro-transactions (is) a W.” While fans continue to pick their favorite, it’s unlikely that Blackout will make a storming return anytime soon. Leaks have revealed that Warzone is going to be supported through Call of Duty’s next release, Vanguard. Players might make the odd return to Blackout for a change of pace, but Warzone still reigns supreme when it comes to battle royales.

Shroud explains how “balanced” cross-play could be “perfect” in Modern Warfare L: Infinity Ward. R: Shroud/Twitch.Top Call of Duty. For a few years, fans of multiplayer titles have been clamoring for cross-platform so they can take on friends on different consoles or test their skills against the might of PC players. To make that happen, however, developers have to be willing to make it a reality. Games like Fortnite Battle Royale and Rocket League have made it a possibility – with others joining the cause. The next confirmed cross-play title will be Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and while some console fans are worried about getting wrecked by keyboard and mouse players, shroud isn’t too worried either way. During his July 26 stream, the former CS:GO pro had been discussing battle royale titles with his viewers when one brought up the topic of cross-platform play. Read More: PUBG. Yet, during that descent into his match, he also explained why the cross-play between PC and console would work, despite the apparent skill gap in controller vs keyboard and mouse. “As long as the console is balanced well, the controller, it’s perfect – it’s perfect,” he stated. “The way it works is, bad players on console and bad players on PC – the bad players on console win. In the middle, it’s pretty even and at the top tier, it’s just ever so slightly PC is a little bit better.” Shroud continued on: “It’s still balanced really well. They’ve just got to make sure the actual controller aim assist is done correctly because if you do it too much, then the controller wins. You do it too little and then PC wins, so you’ve got to get it right and there definitely is a way.” Of course, it’s still unconfirmed as to whether or not Modern Warfare will have a battle royale portion of the game, but the multiplayer will be cross-platform regardless. –

Shroud experiences framerate oddity in Blackout PC pre-order beta Shroud / TreyarchMajor streamer Michael ‘Shroud’ Grzesiek noted an oddity in Call of Duty: Blackout’s framerate during a stream of the game’s PC pre-order beta. While chatting with another player, Shroud stated that he’d experienced some issues with the game’s framerate after adjusting his settings. According to Shroud, he’d placed his settings on high, but was still getting a framerate of 90 FPS. However, he stated that he felt as though he was getting less frames than that amount, and subsequently lowered his settings. That didn’t fix the issue, though – while he still capped at 90 FPS, he stated that the framerate felt higher than what was projected. “I don’t understand why that is,” he questioned. “I don’t really get it. I’m not sure how that works.” In an AMA on Reddit, Treyarch’s Community Manager revealed that the PC beta would be capped out at a total of 90 FPS throughout the play period in order to ensure a “smooth experience” for all players. Keep in mind that this cap is not intended for the game’s full release: while the Beta will remain at 90 FPS, the full game will likely feature more extensive framerate settings. A Reddit user by the name of Orthiax questioned the cap, to which the Community Manager responded that it was just a test and not the final product. The PC pre-order beta began on September 14, with the PC open beta starting up on September 15 alongside the XBox One beta. The beta will end across all platforms on September 17, at 1 PM EST.

Shroud “disappointed” with CoD’s new DMZ mode, claims it doesn’t “come close to Tarkov” Activision / Twitch: ShroudResident FPS phenom and Twitch mega-star shroud wasn’t all too pleased with his first session in Call of Duty’s new DMZ game mode in Warzone 2. Not only was his experience held back by various glitches, but the overall premise left a lot to be desired from the Escape From Tarkov fanatic seeking a similar challenge. Months ahead of its official reveal, rumors began pointing toward a new game mode in Modern Warfare 2 in a similar style to Escape From Tarkov. A more hardcore shooter with higher stakes than usual, allowing players to carry loot between games, steal valuable equipment from fallen enemies, and extract with a wealth of items to sell on an open market if they so choose. Naturally, these rumors caught the eye of many in the community and Tarkov-obsessed streamer shroud was among the first to jump in on this new creation. Now, however, the experience is tied to Warzone 2 and lacks a number of key features in the survival shooter genre. Obviously, plans can change greatly throughout development and early rumors are just that, rumors. But the launch state of DMZ didn’t quite scratch that itch for shroud as he fought through one game-breaking bug after another in an early play session on November 9. Early into the streamer event at Infinity Ward’s headquarters, shroud came to grips with just what this DMZ playlist set out to accomplish. It’s not quite in the same style as Tarkov’s more methodical gameplay, where death can be instant, and each movement must be considered. In fact, he’d argue “it’s not even close.” “This is pretty much a touched-up Plunder,” shroud said on stream. “I’m a little disappointed. I was hoping it’d be more gritty, a little more hardcore. It seems to be… well, CoD. As a result, DMZ came across like something new entirely, as opposed to a stricter Tarkov clone with CoD’s fundamental gameplay systems slapped on top. With AI enemies scattered across the map, mini-objectives to complete in certain areas, and Buy Stations to exchange cash for upgrades, it’s drastically different from what he was expecting. “You can’t even say [it’s] ‘Tarkov but casual,’” he continued. “It’s not even in the same realm.” Not helping his early impressions were the frequent bugs in CoD’s new DMZ mode. Some were more comical than anything, though others forced hard resets and sent him back to the desktop. One such error was an infinite money glitch, allowing him to generate an endless supply of cash. Obviously an unfair advantage, the game decided to penalize him by inexplicably tanking his frame rate. “It didn’t crash, but it might as well have crashed,” shroud joked. After closing out of the game and waiting for it to restart, a staff member suggested he take the time to open a care package on his desk. “They probably put more care into this box than they did the… never mind,” he said snarkily. In another instance, shroud’s trio was obliterated by a batch of AI after they glitched through some terrain. An incoming helicopter awkwardly phased through the ground, forcing enemy bots to bug out, appearing at one spot before instantly teleporting to another. “What in the world is this? What the f**k is happening?” shroud asked. “This comes out in a week by the way.” Just one specific moment actually impressed the sharp aimer, and that was the game’s ending. Extracting from a designated spot on the map led to a final gunfight as teams pushed to exfiltrate with their own gear. For shroud’s team, they were the first inside a helicopter and had to defend the vehicle for 20 seconds before it took off. “This is actually cool,” he said in the chaotic battle. “The best part was leaving, getting out of the game. How you move on the heli, that was cool.” But outside of that brief positivity, shroud wasn’t all too satisfied with his first taste of the DMZ playlist. “So uhh… this game mode,” he joked to thousands tuned in live. Clearly, he wasn’t too eager to jump back in. But that’s not to say he won’t give it a second chance upon release on November 16. For now though, don’t expect the new Warzone 2 mode to be a constant on his streams anytime soon.

Shroud destroys TimTheTatman’s team with crazy 1v3 Modern Warfare clutch Mixer superstar Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek reminded everyone why he has the nickname “human aimbot” during the Call of Duty CODE Bowl charity tournament. Shroud teamed up with streamers Dr Disrespect, TimTheTatman, CouRageJD, and several others to participate in the CODE Bowl that blending the personalities in with members of the United States Army, all in an effort to raise money for charity. While the event was more about having a good time and raising money, there were still some moments where the players’ competitive sides came out. Shroud, being a former CSGO pro, has the competitive itch always burning inside of him. That all came to a boil during Friday’s tournament when he was the sole surviving member of his team going against TimTheTatman and two other players. Armed with just a pistol, shroud was able to miraculously clutch up the round and take down all three of them without even breaking a sweat. When he gets into the zone, there’s really not much you can do about it. The commentators were in awe of the insane play, reacting with one-word exclamations as the sequence played out. This is far from the only example of shroud channeling his inner human aimbot on the new Modern Warfare title. It’s a shame this had to happen to a guy as nice as Tim, especially considering it’s fresh off a roast from the Doc, but it had to happen to somebody. CouRage was his teammate when this happened but luckily, he was already dead before this moment, which was somehow better than becoming a victim of shroud’s rampage. If you would like to donate directly to the Call of Duty Endowment program you can do so HERE. All of the proceeds go to veterans in an effort to prepare them for the job market and raise awareness of the value vets could bring to the workplace.

Shroud completely breaks Blackout while trying to catch a supply drop with a helicopter Former Counter-Strike: Global Offensive pro player Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek hilariously managed to find himself swimming underneath the map during a game of Blackout on Call of Duty: Black Ops 4. The streamer was trying to catch a supply drop in midair using a helicopter he was piloting, with Skadoodle, just9n and anythING directing him on how to steer the helicopter so it would be directly underneath the falling package. Shroud was able to position the helicopter perfectly, with the supply drop landing neatly on top of the helicopter. Unfortunately, instead of sitting on top of the vehicle, it began to drag the helicopter down to the ground, and Grzesiek could only watch in horror as he was pushed through the map and into an abyss below, where he could swim around. “Guys, I’m in the floor,” laughed shroud, as he stared up at his teammates. The Canadian attempted to use his Grapple Gun to get back on the right side of the map, and was able to shoot it and grab onto the floor. Unfortunately, it wouldn’t let him through, and he just kept bouncing back into the water below the map. With shroud losing hope, he suddenly began to fall again. “I’m falling again,” commented Grzesiek, “This is where I die.” Miraculously, instead of being eliminated, shroud ended up back on the ground as if nothing had ever happened. Shroud has been showing off his amazing shot and incredible in-game smarts since the release of Blackout alongside Black Ops 4. Recently, Grzesiek went an incredible rampage, taking out six enemies single handedly with a SAUG 9mm, and also pulled off a crazy ATV kill during the Doritos Bowl tournament at TwitchCon.

Shroud mind-blown by CoD pros Scump and Priestahh in Modern Warfare Twitch: Shroud / MLGFormer CS:GO pro Michael ‘shroud‘ Grzesiek was stunned by the skill on show from CoD pros Seth ‘Scump’ Abner and Preston ‘Priestahh’ Griener, as he faced off against them at the Modern Warfare Pro-Am. Shroud is now best known as a streamer, but his time as a pro player has served him well, with many fans considering him one of the best aimers in any FPS – earning him the nickname of ‘human-aimbot’. But, even with his human-aimbot intact, Grzesiek found that he was no match for former OpTic and 100 Thieves stars Call of Duty players of all time (3rd on our overall list), with a whopping 27 tournament wins to his name, and while Priestahh is still relatively new to the pro level, he’s already secured three championships himself, first with FaZe and later 100T. When up against Scump at the Pro-Am, shroud recognized immediately why the 2017 World Champion was such a problem on the sticks, exclaiming after their first engagement: “Dude Scump is slaying!” (1:46). After Scump dropped a 52 kill game, the teams moved on to SnD inspired ‘Cyber Attack’, and the OpTic star wiped out the streamer and half his team at the start of the round, he could only accept his fate: “Yep, that’s a CoD pro right there!” (5:09). Watching Scump tear it up all event long, shroud stated: “Dude, Scump is so good, it’s crazy how good he is. I don’t understand, how does he do it?” (8:43). The teams later moved on to playing the 2v2 Gunfight mode, and although he was initially relieved not to have to face Scump, the 25-year-old and his duo D’Angelo Russell had to play Priestahh, who made light work of them. “We’re not playing Scump yet, but we’re playing another Call of Duty professional, Priestahh, and he’s going to lay us out,” the Canadian explained (11:58). And he wasn’t wrong, as the young phenom quickly tore them apart, clutching multiple 1v2’s and cruising to a 6-1 victory, with 12 kills. The Twitch superstar will be back on Call of Duty this upcoming weekend, starting September 20, to try his hand at the full multiplayer beta on PC. With cross-platform enabled for the first time though, he may not be able to avoid running into more CoD pros on console ready to ruin his day. Modern Warfare will be the first game played in the new Call of Duty franchised league, starting in 2020, and both Scump and Priestahh will be all but guaranteed starting positions on top teams. The game returns to the modern setting for the first time since 2011’s MW3 (although a remastered version of the original entry in the series was released in 2017), and so far community reception has been positive from the beta version of the game. There is also speculation that a battle royale mode could be released post-launch, which would certainly pique the interest of someone like shroud, who has favored the BR genre for his streams.

Shroud casually goes on ridiculous killing spree in Blackout Former Counter-Strike: Global Offensive pro player Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek is well known for pulling off incredible moments on Blackout, but this clip from his Wednesday, November 7 stream might just be the best of the bunch. The popular streamer was playing alongside former Cloud9 teammate Tyler “Skadoodle” Latham when the pair hopped into a Duos game on Call of Duty’s first entry into the battle royale genre. They decided to land at Construction Site, a massive unfinished skyscraper with lots of loot, but the availability of items generally means that there are also a whole heap of enemies waiting to take you down. Armed with the Outlaw sniper, shroud immediately spotted players to the south-east of Construction Site, downing one with his first shot before taking out his teammate who was trying to run down a hill to escape. Skadoodle found himself facing two enemies to the west, which Grzesiek quickly dealt with, killing one who poked his head over a hill, then patiently waiting for the second who stepped out from behind a rock and got blasted by the Canadian. Shroud then turned to face the skyscraper and spotted an enemy player high above him, peering down at the duo and then attempting to back away from the ledge, clearly wanting nothing to do with shroud and Skadoodle. Unfortunately for him, it was too late as Grzesiek immediately downing him with a headshot. “Oh my God,” laughed shroud. “They’re not going to peak that again!” Grzesiek has been in incredible form since the release of Black Ops 4, showing incredible skill by eliminating six enemies without looking down the sights of his SAUG 9mm to win a match, single-handedly securing a win for his team in Dr DisRespect’s Code Red tournament, and even outsmarting a stream sniper who tried to kill him when he left his PC.

Shroud camps his way to first Modern Warfare nuke Activision – Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2The former Counter-Strike pro, Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek has been grinding his way through the Modern Warfare beta lately and just earned his first nuke with less than 24 hours to go. An FPS phenom and streaming sensation, shroud is one of the most recognizable faces on Twitch today and his latest obsession has been the Modern Warfare beta. Released across all platforms on September 19, the public beta marks the first time that an entry in the Call of Duty franchise has allowed crossplay between PC and console gamers. Harnessing his technical prowess with a mouse and keyboard, Shroud finally earned the exceedingly difficult nuke killstreak on the final full day of the beta. In a September 22 stream, shroud played cautiously in the Ground War game mode and essentially kept within a single building to acquire the match-ending streak. Accumulating kills in the massive lobby which pits two teams of 32 players against one another, it took the esports veteran just under eight minutes to rack up 30 eliminations using only his weapons and equipment. Using the M4A1 Assault Rifle, shroud held down the building just opposite of C Flag on the Karst River Quarry map. This spot nears the center of the map and oversees enemies crossing from all directions. With the high ground well in control, it was going to take a herculean effort to remove the streamer from his camping spot before the nuke was called in. “GG,” he yells as he finds the pivotal kill to end it all. Sitting atop the leaderboard with 37 eliminations total and 0 deaths to his name. Joking to his friends in the lobby, he acknowledged that sticking to one spot on the map was the crucial strategy, stating that “I was trying so hard right there, I was camping up a storm.” In an unfortunate turn of events, fellow FPS phenom and Twitch streamer ‘aimbotcalvin’ recently encountered some bad luck trying for a nuke of his own. Having played a great deal of Modern Warfare throughout the beta period, shroud has gone on record calling it the “best CoD ever.” You can tune into his stream here and read our full guide on how to play the beta for yourself before the servers are switched off on September 23.

Shroud calls Modern Warfare “best CoD ever” but has two major concerns Call of duty / ShroudPopular Twitch star, Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek has explained his two primary concerns about Modern Warfare, but has still labeled it the “Best Call of Duty ever.” The much-anticipated release of Call of Duty’s upcoming title saw many of the top streamers on Twitch trying their hand at the Modern Warfare beta. Among those testing the game early was former CS:GO pro, shroud, who previously got the chance to experience Modern Warfare during the official multiplayer reveal. Best CoD ever? After playing multiple hours of the Modern Warfare beta, shroud claimed that it was one of the best Call of Duty titles, naming his highlight video “Best CoD Ever.” Shroud demonstrated just how good he can be at any game he tries and pulled off some incredible plays in the stream highlights video showing off why he’s known for his mechanical skill in FPS titles. Although shroud clearly enjoyed the early look at the upcoming CoD’s multiplayer game modes, he revealed that he had some concerns about the current state of the game and highlighted some issues that would need to be addressed before the game launches on October 25. Shroud’s 2 Modern Warfare complaints Shroud highlighted his two main concerns were screen shaking and audio. He explained that footsteps could often be difficult to hear with the amount of background noise, although he later praised the game for how smooth it ran, despite these issues. “I wish there was less screen shake, I won’t talk about the beta bugs because I’m sure they’ll get fixed.” the streamer explained, detailing some of his concerns, “Screen shake and noise, there’s so much noise everything is so loud footsteps are nearly impossible to hear. The game feels good though.” Over the course of the Modern Warfare beta, developers Infinity Ward have already made quick changes to the game following player’s feedback and concerns, such as the minimap change, so it is likely that some of shroud’s concerns will be addressed before release. The cross-platform open beta is set to finish up on September 22 and fans of the new Call of Duty will have to wait as it won’t be available until the official release on October 25.

Shroud: Black Ops Cold War is “way more meaningful” than other CoD games Activision / ShroudStreaming star Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek has explained why he’s excited for the upcoming Call of Duty title following the release of Black Ops Cold War’s teaser trailer. Call of Duty has shared a series of short teasers, inside of Warzone, for their next title, which concluded, on August 19, with a brief teaser trailer being released to fans of the franchise. The new trailer confirmed that the next title in the Black Ops series will be set in the Cold War era and they also announced that a Worldwide reveal would be coming on August 26. Shroud impressed by Black Ops Cold War Popular content creator shroud reacted to this new trailer during one of his recent streams and explained why he actually “liked the direction” of the new Call of Duty compared to past titles. “I like the direction that Call of Duty is going, you kinda had it in Modern Warfare,” he explained, comparing it to the latest CoD release. “I mean I guess they’ve always kinda gone in this direction of feeling really real.” He highlighted that, although Call of Duty has always tried to be realistic, Black Ops Cold War could be one of the most accurate titles yet. “I feel like they’ve always tried to go in that direction but they’re really leaning into it now.” The Twitch star added that they were also using plenty of “real footage” from the Cold War during the teaser and said it was a good sign. “That’s crazy, so they’re using real footage, real history and they’re trying to make this new Black Ops game, that’s cool,” shroud admitted, “I like that, that’s way more meaningful than just making another Call of Duty.” Although the first trailer has finally been released, there is still plenty that is unknown about the upcoming Black Ops title. It is still unclear what Treyarch and Raven have in-store for the fans gameplay-wise, but more information will be shared in the Worldwide reveal on August 26.

Shroud explains why Black Ops 4 streamer might be “the best PC player” he’s ever seen Treyarch / Shroud TwitchTwitch star Black Ops 4 which earned the up-and-comer huge praises. Shroud was an electrifying talent during his Counter-Strike pro days, and his skills as well as personality perfectly transfered over to his streaming career that thousands of viewers per day enjoy. It’s because of this that Shroud’s high remarks on the relatively unknown Siritron came as a surprise to many, sparking interest in fans who have been looking to learn more about the 26-year-old streamer. During a livestream, Shroud gave his thoughts on someone he came across who was playing Black Ops 4 which immediately turned heads just looking at his raw skills on the popular FPS shooter. “So we found this guy playing Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 and he was playing multiplayer on PC,” Shroud said. “And he probably had the best aim I’ve ever seen in my life. It was absolutely incredible.” While Shroud wasn’t sure if it was because of his natural skills or if he had thousands of hours logged into the game, but he ultimately can away with one verdict: “Bro, this guy might just be the best fucking PC player I’ve ever seen in my life.” Shroud had gone through his VODs on Twitch to see if he played any other shooters wondering if the skills transferred to another FPS, but his search didn’t yield many results. Who is Siritron? Siritron is a full-time streamer who typically goes by the name ‘Sirian.’ While there isn’t much on how he performs in other FPS titles, his Black Ops 4 gameplay is insane with how pixel-perfect his mechanics can be. For people wondering what Shroud was talking about in his praise for the Twitch talent, look no further than the numerous clips his viewers made that show a consistent aim that deletes multiple players. Shroud’s comments will sure to attract a lot of attention from people looking to know more about the streamer to see his godlike gameplay for themselves.

Shroud argues CoD streamers are ‘wasting their talent’ with Activision’s FPS Twitch: shroud / ActivisionVenerable FPS legend Michael ‘Shroud’ Grzesiek has argued Call of Duty streamers are ‘wasting their talent’ by staying loyal to Activision’s FPS franchise. When it comes to leaving a legacy in the FPS genre, few stand atop the mountain quite like shroud. From his accomplishments as a pro Counter-Strike player to his popularity in retirement as a full-time streamer, the FPS veteran has gone from strength to strength. Looking to impart some wisdom upon the release of Modern Warfare 3 (the second one), shroud had some words for the CoD scene’s top streamers. Arguing the juggernaut franchise does little to accommodate its most competitive players, he explained why he’s ‘saddened’ by those who continue to grind regardless. Especially on the Battle Royale side with Warzone, shroud claimed “anyone” still pushing to compete in the space is simply ‘wasting’ their time. “I hate… not hate, hate’s a strong word… I dislike that HusKerrs wastes his talent on CoD,” shroud said during his November 2 Twitch streamer. “It’s such a bummer, because he’s such a skilled gamer.” While HusKerrs has certainly done alright for himself, currently sat as the fifth highest-earning Warzone player with over $300,000 in total prize winnings, shroud believes the grass would be greener for HusKerrs in virtually any other FPS scene for a player with his skills. Honestly, anyone that wastes their talent on CoD makes me sad,” he continued. “It’s probably the same feeling when people watch me play World of Warcraft. They go ‘Wow, why is he playing World of Warcraft?’ It’s my same feeling when I see really skilled players playing CoD.” On the more casual side, for streamers simply playing to make content and dominate lobbies, shroud admitted “that makes sense.” However, for those seeking to scratch their competitive itch, doing so in CoD leaves him perplexed. “I mean the people who are competing, the people hunting for that competitive grind, that confuses me. If you’re playing for content or just to roll people, that makes sense. But if you’re playing for that competitive grind, you can play any other game. “I’d say play Halo instead to be honest. More games with a real competitive scene, Valorant, Counter-Strike, Apex.” So even with the release of Modern Warfare 3, and the looming changes to Warzone with its new map and the return of advanced movement systems, shroud doesn’t appear hopeful for the scene’s competitive viability moving forward. For his money, he’d rather see top CoD competitors take their talents elsewhere.

Shroud and Skadoodle demonstrate the perfect way to use a helicopter in Blackout Former professional Counter-Strike: Global Offensive players Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek and Tyler ‘Skadoodle’ Latham were able to eliminate a full enemy team – without stepping foot off their helicopter. The pair were playing duos matches on Call of Duty’s battle royale mode, when they decided to hop into a helicopter and fly around, hoping to locate some enemy players. Shroud and Skadoodle were flying around between Rivertown and the Fracking Tower, when they came across an enemy squad sitting in two houses just north-west of the tower. While most players would park the helicopter and jump out to battle their opponents, shroud decided to circle around the buildings, allowing Skadoodle to pick one off from range when he decided to peak out of a top floor window to see what was going on. With the final enemy hiding from the duo, shroud decided to take the fight to him rather than wait for him to make an appearance. “I’ll get you in there,” commented shroud. “Shoot him through the window, ok?” Skadoodle managed to hit his shot, and as he tried to hide in the building, Skadoodle pulled out his assault rifle and shot him through the wall, securing the kill and wiping out the team. While shroud and Skadoodle’s use of the helicopter worked out very well for them here, it’s safe to say that hasn’t always been the case during their run on Blackout. Recently, Latham managed to fire a rocket launcher into the chopper he was sitting in, blowing it up and killing his whole team, while Grzesiek managed to glitch himself under the ground while trying to catch a supply drop in midair with a helicopter.

Shroud and Lirik Think Blackout Will Create Longevity for Black Ops 4 on PC The new ‘Blackout’ mode coming with Black Ops 4 is Call of Duty’s first foray into the battle royale genre – something which top streamers Shroud and Lirik believe could give CoD the place in the PC market it has been missing. Since the early days of CoD 4 Promod on PC, Call of Duty titles have been notoriously quick to lose their player base on PC after launch, despite the console equivalents dominating for the better part of a decade. Much of this comes down to the gameplay itself being somewhat unsuited to PC, but also the developers’ lack of support for PC versions. This year, main CoD developer Treyarch enlisted Beenox studios, and the help of the Overwatch design team to make the best possible PC experience for Black Ops 4. the multiplayer PC beta went over well with most players, with more customization possible for PC players, and a more optimized game overall. But shroud and Lirik, two of the most popular streamers and top PC players – shroud was formerly a professional CS:GO player – think it will be the Blackout mode particular will be what BO4 needs to be a success on PC. “This CoD’s not going to die on PC, just because of this game mode.” Shroud explains that because viewers on Twitch will want to watch the game on PC, streamers like himself and others will be playing exclusively with keyboard and mouse, maintaining and promoting high player base for the PC version. While Call of Duty remains a console staple, it may well have found it’s way back to the hearts of PC players too with Blackout. The PC beta for Blackout will begin on September 14, lasting until Monday 17, giving shroud, Lirik and every other PC player and streamer an opportunity to help Treyarch and Beenox refine the mode before launch, on October 12.

Shroud addresses Nadia’s Warzone cheating accusations with simple rebuttal: “Who cares?” YouTube: Nadia / Twitch: ShroudWith mega-popular content creators like Ludwig and Ninja chiming in on recent controversy surrounding rising Warzone streamer Nadia, Shroud has now jumped into the conversation to ask why anyone cares about the cheating accusations. In the span of just a few months Nadia has gone from a relatively small Warzone competitor to the biggest female personality in the CoD scene today. With thousands watching her every move on social media, Nadia’s quick rise to fame has led many to cast cheating allegations her way. Online discourse reached a boiling point during the Call of Duty Next LAN event, wherein, further accusations caught fire across social media with Nadia addressing them one by one. From being swatted to having CoD pro Censor propose to her, it’s been one thing after the next on the back of this unparalleled cheating drama. While many Warzone stars have been accused in the past, none have quite broken through to the mainstream like Nadia has. The likes of Ninja, Dr Disrespect, Moistcr1tikal, and Ludwig have all chimed in on the controversy and now, we can add shroud to that list. As one of the sharpest aimers of all time, the CSGO phenom turned streaming sensation and occasional Valorant pro knows a thing or two about tapping heads. Shroud has even had some iconic CoD highlights himself over the years. But when the topic of Nadia’s gameplay came into question during an October 4 stream, he wasn’t too eager to give it much thought. “Do you have any input on that Nadia girl that plays CoD?” a viewer asked the human aimbot. “Dude, I don’t care about CoD, I’m sorry,” he replied bluntly, loading into another Valorant match in the background. From shroud’s point of view, cheating accusations simply don’t matter here for one specific reason: Nadia happens to play Warzone with a controller. If she were using a mouse and keyboard instead, then perhaps shroud would be more inclined to find some answers. But since it’s a controller player coming under fire, he’s unconcerned. “If she’s on controller, which I think she is, you’re never gonna figure it out,” he said. “Controller aim assist is pretty much the same thing as cheating so who the f*** cares? Who actually cares?” Clearly, shroud isn’t looking to pile on with the accusations, nor is he interested in trying to disprove them either. Instead, he’s content letting it all pass him by due to the existing power of controller aim assist in Warzone already.

Shroud activates human aimbot powers in crazy Modern Warfare killing sprees Sam Jones Art / GameInformerSuperstar Twitch streamer Michael ‘shroud‘ Grzesiek put his out-of-this-world FPS skills to the test in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Beta, yet again proving himself as the “human aimbot.” September 19 marked the first day that the Modern Warfare Open Beta was made available on PC, in order to test out the cross-platform ability that will be enabled for the first time in Call of Duty history. Former CS:GO pro and FPS legend shroud could not miss the opportunity to flex his gaming muscles in the Beta, and he’s already put together some clips worth of a highlight reel. What may be his best sequence so far came during a Headquarters match on Gun Runner, with him using a default class no less. Read More: How to play Modern Warfare Beta – Armed with the powerful FR 5.56 burst assault rifle, he mowed through a squadron of five enemy players in quick succession, or as he put it – “just slapped those guys” – hardly missing a shot in the process. Another impressive display of marksmanship came while playing Cyber Attack on Hackney Yard, where he wiped out another group of five enemy players. While there’s no doubt that his clever positioning played a big role in this killing spree, his ability to hardly lead any of his shots astray was really what made the difference. Shroud seemed to be enjoying Cyber Attack, because his next incredible play came on that very same mode, this time on the gigantic map called Grazna Raid. This clip may have been dedicated to those who thought that the CSGO legend could only pull off killing streaks from a perched position, as he used a sniper rifle to perfection while essentially “running and gunning” the whole time. This last clip, from a Domination map also on Grazna Raid, may not really be considered a “killing spree,” but is still an impressive collateral snipe nonetheless. Position on a staircase located on the side of a building towards the corner of the map, shroud predicted the enemy movements expertly, and got rewarded with a nice and tidy double kill. Considering that all of these highlight plays, and more, came in only the first few hours of the first day of the Modern Warfare Beta, shroud may be able to produce a whole montage by the time the weekend is over. Call of Duty fans will hope that the superstar enjoys his experience during the trial phase of the game, so that he could really start dominating once it fully releases on October 25. Read More: MW’s UI could use more stats – The Modern Warfare Beta is now available on the Xbox One and PC to all those who have early access via pre-orders, as well as open to all players on the PlayStation 4. The Beta will become fully available to everyone on September 21, and will conclude on September 23 at 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET.

Should Warzone remove Dead Silence & Heartbeat Sensors? ActivisionTwo of Warzone’s biggest, ongoing points of contention are Dead Silence and Heartbeat Sensors. Both items have become synonymous with the Call of Duty brand, and are now commonplace in Warzone’s battle royale. So we’re going to take a look at each, their impact, and whether or not they should stay in the game. Dead Silence first emerged as a top Perk in 2007’s immortal Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, whereas the Heartbeat Sensor arrived a mere two years after it in Modern Warfare 2. CoD fans will be familiar with the items, and they’ve never caused too many issues in the past. However, the same cannot be said for their presence in Warzone. Activision’s premiere battle royale experience launched in March 2020, and both pieces of equipment have constantly flirted with heated discussion over their admission into the game’s inventory. But why? Well, they both provide huge advantages that can massively impact a game of battle royale. Not only that, but they are items that can encourage camping, and also hinder players unable to grab their loadout. Let’s get into it. Should Dead Silence stay dead in Warzone? The obvious counterargument to the removal of Dead Silence is that in its Warzone form, it’s only a temporary buff. It adheres to the Warzone ethos of randomized loot as it cannot be directly equipped in a loadout. But a fascinating point to consider is that Warzone’s Verdansk also had another pickup that was arguably just as deadly — Stopping Power. Harnessing this power, players could effectively supercharge their ammo clip and give the gun a massive DPS boost. Read More: How to easily kill Krampus in CoD: Vanguard – The thing is, this required a lot more skill in most cases as you still needed to be able to aim and land your shots, but Raven Software felt this was too much and omitted the item from Warzone’s new Caldera map. It begs the question as to why they felt the need to remove Stopping Power but not Dead Silence. Dead Silence, once activated, provides absolute silence for a short, but long enough, period of time. There’s an element of skill and timing required to truly maximize its effectiveness, but it’s still an overpowered ability that gives you superpowers. All you need to do is lay eyes on an opponent, trigger Dead Silence, rush at them with carefree abandon and you can kill them with a surprise attack. Because let’s make it very clear, if you’re on the receiving end, and you’re not looking at the fleet-footed ninja making a beeline for you, there’s just nothing you can do. Scratch that, you can equip High Alert in the Perk 2 slot, but absolutely no one is going to favor that over Ghost and Overkill when Heartbeat Sensors and UAVs are around, and it only truly combats a single piece of field equipment you’re not guaranteed to face. Even the world’s leading pros can do very little against a completely silent and unprovoked attack. It’s a super OP mechanic that players have wanted to be removed for the longest time. As an audio connoisseur, Dr Disrespect has been extremely vocal about Dead Silence being removed saying: “It’s still something that we, all the players, don’t want in the game anymore. Two years later, how many times do we have to say we don’t want it, for it to still be in the game. It’s still in there!” According to the game’s launch patch notes, Dead Silence has been nerfed so it will now “refresh on first kills only, with reduced drop rates found in loot”. Yet, there are Dead Silences aplenty in Caldera, and Raven might need to seriously consider how they approach a huge aspect of the game that fans have campaigned to be removed for nearly two years now. Heartbeat Senses are always tingling in Warzone Again, like Dead Silence, the launch of Warzone Pacific was supposed to usher in a new era for one of the game’s most popular pieces of equipment. Heartbeat Sensors are handy pieces of tech that you can whip out in the blink of an eye and they reveal the position of un-Ghosted enemies in a 50m radius. Warzone and Vanguard Season 1 has indeed impacted the sensor and reduced its capabilities, but as with most first-time nerfs, the results are almost negligible. In the same way that the devs tend to ever-so-slightly increase recoil and reduce a gun’s DPS by 1 point in a couple of hit regions, the Heartbeat Sensor has had its ping time increased by three seconds. In a game of battle royale that can last anywhere up to about 25 minutes, this is a nothing change. The Ghost Perk is obviously well-suited to deal with Heartbeat Sensors, but that creates more problems in itself. Being forced to pick Ghost negates other Perks in the category, and if you don’t have it, then you’re exposed. Players wanting to snipe need a secondary weapon, so Ghost is out of the question and Overkill is the answer. There’s also the ‘unfair’ part of the equation that can apply to multiple scenarios. Firstly, Heartbeat Sensors are ground loot. If you’re lucky enough to score a great gun, it doesn’t guarantee you’ll win a firefight. Neither does a Heartbeat Sensor, but the opponent will still likely have a gun, making for somewhat of a fair fight. If you have a Heartbeat Sensor and they don’t, then they’re basically at your mercy. Once you also factor in that Loadout Drops cannot be obtained until the first Loadout event occurs, then many players have a great advantage for the first few, important minutes of the game. If they have Dead Silence as well, then you may as well start mentally preparing yourself for that impending Gulag scrap. Here’s another scenario for you to mull over: One player has racked up 5-10 kills, dies, and ends up in a late-game Gulag fight. Another has kept well-hidden for the majority of the game camping in buildings, cradling their trusty Heartbeat Sensor for precious snippets of info. The player wins the Gulag, jumps back into the fight, the circle is closing with less than 30 people left, and unless there’s a free, and probably well-guarded, Loadout Drop waiting, then they don’t have Ghost. Is it fair to punish the respawning player by having them exposed to the umpteen Heartbeat Sensors all being simultaneously watched? So what’s Warzone’s solution? It’s very simple, either the offending items are finally removed from the game once and for all, or sufficient solutions are found. Do you start bringing in equally broken gameplay features like a limited-use grappling hook to propel yourself out of danger? Can one of the current Perks not be upgraded to enable ‘Supersonic Hearing’ that enables the audio of Dead Silence footsteps? Making it more of a risk-reward item? Combat Scout shook Warzone’s Perk 3 meta up and also made Cold-Blooded a viable option in one fell swoop. Why can’t the same be done for Dead Silence and Heartbeat Sensors? Could Caldera not suddenly have an island-wide EMP bomb go off once the game reaches a certain circle perhaps? Ending the late-game camping and dominance of technology? At the moment, most players are currently pigeon-holed into using Ghost and also having a Heartbeat Sensor as their Tactical Equipment. At its core, Warzone, Apex Legends, and other shooter battle royales should always favor gunplay as the primary component of victory. Even positioning and strategy should be a notable factor, but unnecessarily OP items and random drops are not something the CoD community wants. These cries have fallen on deaf ears since March 2020, and Raven’s first attempts to thwart the power of these items have done nothing. How long will it be until enough becomes enough for loyal Warzone fans?

Why Treyarch should add a no-specialist mode in Black Ops 4 Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 isn’t the first in the franchise to give players Specialist abilities, but given how strong they are in this game, perhaps Treyarch should give players the choice to play with or without them. Features that stray away from the gameplay synonymous with the original games tend to be quite polarizing these days. Of course, it’s very difficult to keep everybody happy when you change such a popular game, but finding a balance is sometimes a worthwhile solution. While many players might not have a problem with Specialists in Black Ops 4 – after all, it is a popular concept in other successful Activision titles such as Overwatch – the argument is being made by YouTubers, streamers and other fans alike, that they are slightly too overpowered. In the past, when movement was given a revamp in Call of Duty with the introduction of wall running and double jumping, we were given the option to play without those features in Advanced Warfare and Infinite Warfare. The former gave us the option of playing ‘Classic Mode’, while the latter included a Tactical Team Deathmatch. This is a possible solution that Treyarch perhaps should adopt with Black Ops 4, if the heat about their Specialists continues to build among the community in the coming months. Xclusive Ace discussed his concerns with Black Ops 4 in a video he uploaded to YouTube on January 5, where he said despite liking the map design and weapon balance, he thinks the “glaring issue” is definitely the Specialists. “The specialists in this game, I feel are way too much” he said. “Back in Black Ops III and Infinite Warfare, I feel like the Specialist system worked out fairly well.” “It was a minor annoyance from time to time, but it wasn’t something you were constantly dealing with over and over again throughout a match.” The YouTuber believes that, unlike other Call of Duty games, many of his deaths are coming from powerful Specialist equipment and it feels like there aren’t enough counters to them. Their current implementation could affect the longevity of the game, he argues. After Xclusive Ace brought the debate forward, Reddit users have continued to discuss the issue on the Black Ops 4 subreddit. “When you have both big YouTubers and the Community itself complaining about the Specialist mechanic, it’s evident that a Specialist Free Moshpit is much needed in this game” said Im_Tsuikyit, during a long post about the issue. “What we need is for perks to hard counter specialist equipment at the very least,” AntonMikhailov commented. “This whole ‘perks only half counter equipment’ shit needs to go away.” Ultimately, if good counterplay solutions aren’t going to be introduced, it might be a good idea to offer players a game mode which goes back to basics and doesn’t include Specialists – in a similar way double jumping was made an optional feature in previous instalments. At least then people have a choice.

Should pro Black Ops 4 players be expected to stream and create content? KiLLa weighs in MLGThe content debate in Call of Duty has been raging for a number of years now, but it would appear that we are still no closer to having everyone see eye-to-eye. Professional players are often under a lot of pressure from fans and fellow community member to create YouTube content and stream regularly on Twitch, but others argue that this is not in their job description. The pro players are paid to compete at the highest level and win tournaments – many feel like worrying about content creation alongside this is simply a distraction. However, content from players like Matthew ‘Nadeshot’ Haag and Seth ‘Scump’ Abner was often credited as one of the key reasons the competitive scene grew at all. The release of Black Ops 4 in October saw a number of players and teams make a concerted effort to increase their content output, but former world champion Adam ‘KiLLa’ Sloss appears to have noticed a significant dip in early 2019. “Outside of OpTic, only person streaming is Clayster. That’s just not acceptable,” said the 25-year-old. outside of optic only person streaming is clay thats just not acceptable — Adam “”KiLLa”” Sloss (@KiLLa_Sloss) January 11, 2019 There are still a handful of players putting out regular streams alongside those mentioned by KiLLa, but the number does appear to be dropping off as CWL Pro League Play-In qualifier and main season draw ever closer. Read More: Team Liquid pro players win Dr DisRespect’s Code Red $10K Blackout tournament – final placements – “Pro players making content would just be so healthy for everything COD. idk how that isn’t obvious by now,” said Austin Pamaj, a content creator for FaZe Clan and former member of OpTic Gaming’s content team. Unfortunately, KiLLa seems to believe that the conversation is going nowhere: “No point beating on a dead doornail.” Whichever side of the argument you fall on, there’s no denying that the regular content from the likes of OpTic Gaming and eUnited’s James ‘Clayster’ Eubanks has kept the scene interesting in the month since CWL Las Vegas ended. Given that OpTic won the event and eUnited finished second, the question of impact on performance is also rather dubious.

Should New York gamble to make room for CoD’s next star? With New York Subliners’ current roster achieving a respectable 3rd place at the CDL Stage 1 Major, Ian ‘Enable’ Wyatt and Jonathan ‘Pacman’ Tucker debate whether they should resist the temptation of starting French wonderkid Paco ‘HyDra’ Rusiewiez. Quick to grab Makenzie ‘Mack’ Kelley last year and add him to their roster, NYSL is doing a decent job of performing, but the addition of HyDra could potentially even take that further. “They’re in a very weird spot,” Enable states during the Reverse Sweep CDL Preview Show. “The team has looked great… it’s obvious they’re a top-four team in Cold War right now.” While the Subliners have looked solid, Enable “knows that Clay wants to team with HyDra.” This could cause some conversations to have to occur in the New York camp. “They can’t tiptoe around it, but at the same time, you don’t just want to wait on it, because he could be the next Simp.” Pacman agrees with Enable’s line of thought, too, stating that “it doesn’t matter how good you are playing…. you put the guy on your team.” At the end of the day, whether or not NYSL is currently performing well, a player like HyDra having the potential to be a “generational talent,” is an opportunity that both the Subliners and opposing teams will be well aware of. Check out the full video above, and for all Reverse Sweep content, head over to our dedicated main page.

Should CDL home events count as championship wins? ActivisionWith the Call of Duty League underway, one of the major topics of debate is around how the home events that make up the regular season should be considered in comparison to the tournaments of seasons past. Originally, the CDL was going to follow a league format similar to that of the Overwatch League, where each weekend would simply see teams face off in predetermined league matches, with the results only affecting the overall season standings. Following backlash from Call of Duty fans and players alike – who have been used to a largely open, tournament-based circuit and saw the shift as a major downgrade – the format was changed almost at the last minute. Instead, each weekend after the launch in Minnesota will now operate a tournament style featuring eight of the 12 league teams. While the shift is definitely an upgrade to the originally proposed league style, many fans have suggested that the new format still isn’t good enough. With not every team competing in every event, there will inevitably be tournaments from which the favorites will be absent, and when compared with the epic nature of past open events, a GSL-style group stage followed by a single-elimination playoff does leave something to be desired. Read more: 7 players to watch during CDL Atlanta – All of these reservations have raised an important question – should CDL home events really be counted as championship wins for the victors, or are they merely league matches masquerading as separate titles? Who cares if it counts? First things first, why does it matter? The points and prizes distributed at home events are the same regardless of whether or not they’re considered real championships. Before competing in Call of Duty was a viable career path, the glory of a championship win was all that really mattered – and several of the top players now have been competing since those days. Ian ‘Crimsix’ Porter is often cited as a candidate for the greatest Call of Duty player of all time. There are a lot of reasons for that, but one of the first statistics people reach for in his favor is the fact that he’s the player with the most championship titles to his name. It’s not just a matter for those players whose trophy cabinets are already overflowing. There are plenty of players in the league who have never won a championship, for whom their career may be, to some degree at least, defined by whether or not they ever break through that barrier. Meanwhile, young stars Tyler ‘aBeZy’ Pharris and Chris ‘Simp’ Lehr are coming off arguably the most impressive rookie seasons Call of Duty has ever seen. It’s still early days in these players’ careers, but already they’re on a path that could one day lead them into the conversation for GOAT status. Exactly how these tournaments are considered when all is said and done will influence the legacy of every player who competes in them. It matters whether they really count. Not all championships are made equal It remains an inescapable fact that home events cannot possibly compare to the highest tier of Call of Duty events. Call of Duty fans have gotten used to a circuit in which all of the top teams are always present at the major events. Not only that, but those events have in most cases followed one of the most rigorous formats in all of esports. Call of Duty events typically operated a group stage which leads into a double elimination bracket, with every group stage team guaranteed at least one ‘life’ in the playoff stage. Not only that, but both the group stage and the lower bracket of the playoff stage are fed into by the open bracket, allowing any team of players to show up on the day and work their way onto the main stage through LAN play, if they’re worthy. When it comes to determining the best team at a particular moment in time, there are few more thorough methods than a Call of Duty open event. By comparison, therefore, CDL home events feel noticeably flimsy. If you compare home events to the most prestigious titles in Call of Duty, they obviously don’t hold up, but that’s not really a fair comparison for this purpose. Different events will always have different levels of prestige attached to them, but when it comes to deciding whether or not an event counts as a championship win, it’s not about matching the highest peak, but rather reaching the minimum requirements – and that’s a rather different matter. So how do CDL home events compare to the least competitive events that have been granted ‘championship’ status? Let’s assume the CDL teams are the top 12 teams in the world. It may not be strictly true at all times, but it’s rarely going to be too far off given the resources available to CDL teams compared to those in Challenger. In that case, each home event has, even in the weakest possible scenario, the majority of the top 10 teams at any given tournament. There are certainly championships in past seasons that don’t hit that bar. In Modern Warfare 3, for instance, OpTic Gaming racked up several wins that are rightfully attributed to Seth ‘Scump’ Abner’s total. With the bulk of the competition taking place in Europe, however – and this being in the days before big budgets for pro CoD teams – many top teams and players from the US were absent for much of the season. That’s before you get into the various invitational events over the years. Of course, retrospective consideration can be a tricky thing, as events that look less impressive by modern standards may have been deemed more important in the context of their time. That being said, there are titles considered valid that even at the time were much weaker events than the likes of MLG opens – compLexity’s ESWC win in 2013, for instance. It’s included in stats about the legendary dominance of one of the game’s greatest dynasties, but coL were the only North American team in attendance at a time when a good result for a European squad was breaking top-eight internationally. Even accounting for the context of their respective eras, it would be hard to argue this win as being a greater accomplishment than winning a CDL home event, and it’s not the only example for which the same case might be made. If, then, we’re to start discounting tournaments that don’t hit a certain level of rigor, then a reexamination of Call of Duty history is in order. Where do we draw the line? If the cut-off point is stricter than eight of the top twelve teams in the world attending, some players may find their stack of championship wins somewhat depleted. The trophy matters In the wake of the broadly successful CDL London event, one of the chief complaints was that victors Chicago Huntsmen didn’t get to celebrate their win as would be expected of a proper tournament – the was no trophy, no ceremony, no naming of an MVP. They simply walked off stage, their win over Dallas Empire seemingly only amounting to a few extra CDL points. It may seem a superficial point, but whether or not the tournament is treated as a championship – and a trophy is awarded – does make a material difference. In CS:GO, the reason that the Majors are the most prestigious event isn’t because they offer the most prize money and nor is it because they have the most rigorous format. There have been events that offered more prizes, and the qualification and tournament structure of the Majors have been among the biggest criticisms of them over the years. No other tournament means quite as much as a Major, though, because no other tournament carriers that moniker. In short, Majors matter more because everyone believes they matter more. The same is true, to varying degrees, of the prestige attributed to any competition. Perception isn’t a negligible factor, and so whether or not CDL home events are treated as real championships makes a difference to how much weight they actually have. To that end, the lack of fanfare around the home event victors actually hurts their status a little. It wasn’t evem clear that these home events do actually have a prize pool, but for a tweet from Clayster confirming as much. Fortunately, it seems like the trophy issue is set to be resolved at future events, and that will go some way to legitimizing these events as proper championship wins. A trophy may only be symbolic, but having something on the line for victory other than just CDL points does make a meaningful difference to whether the events are treated as proper championships or merely regular league matches that just happen to be arranged in a tournament format. More context will always be necessary to distinguish CDL home events from epic championships like the MLG Anaheims of old. But if we’re keeping score – and we are – then to dismiss them from the count entirely goes too far in the other direction. Ultimately, when it comes to matters of prestige and legacy there is no objective measuring stick by which a “correct” conclusion can be reached. These things are always a matter of consensus, and so how home events are considered will be determined by the majority judgement. For the players who find success over the Modern Warfare season, however, it will be easy to feel hard done by if that consensus concludes that their wins weren’t “real”.

Should Call of Duty change its MVP criteria? Pros debate Twitter: KuavoKenny/MLGCall of Duty pro players have been debating whether or not a player should be named as tournament MVP award even if they aren’t part of the winning team. The debate around who wins a CoD tournament MVP award can be decided on a number of factors, but almost always goes to a player on the team picks up the trophy at the end of the event. It’s an argument that has not only caused semi-passionate debates in esports, but in traditional sports too. How do you decide on an MVP is a big question. Can an MVP really go to somebody who loses the tournament but drags their team through on a magical run? It’s become quite the hot topic between Call of Duty pros. With a number of players watching the ESL One Cologne CS:GO tournament, they noticed that despite Team Vitality losing in the grand final, Mathieu ‘ZywOo’ Herbaut claimed the MVP award thanks to his remarkable stats throughout the six-day event. It prompted eUnited star James ‘Clayster‘ Eubanks to tweet: “MVP from the non-winning team, we should take notes. It’s not the “finals MVP” it’s the “tournament MVP.” MVP from the non-winning team, we should take notes. It’s not the “”finals MVP”” it’s the “”tournament MVP”” https://t.co/e63z1JQJZa — eU Clayster (@Clayster) July 7, 2019 However, a number of current pros took exception to the post. 100 Thieves star Kenny ‘Kenny’ Williams quizzed Clayster on how determining an MVP at a CS:GO event translated to the Call of Duty world. The eUnited star responded, stating that he believes an MVP should be decided on who “adds most value to their team” but while he doesn’t believe a top 12 or top eight placing team should have the MVP, a top six or top four squad should at least have the chance to win it if they’re outperforming other. I think it should literally be who adds most value to their team. I don’t think someone placing t12/t8 should get it, but a team in the t6t4 range should realistically have at least the OPTION to get it if some1 on the team is consistently dropping bombs and adding the most value — eU Clayster (@Clayster) July 7, 2019 Kenny’s 100 Thieves teammate Austin ‘SlasheR’ Liddicoat responded to Clayster’s initial post, saying: “What cod player who didn’t win the tournament has deserved a MVP?” While Clayster didn’t respond to SlasheR tweet, a number of other pros did and started off-shoot debates of their own – while maintaining the overall question of what decides an MVP. What cod player who didn’t win the tournament has deserved a MVP? — 100T SlasheR (@SlasheR_AL) July 7, 2019 Luminosity Gaming star Matthew ‘FormaL’ Piper added to SlasheR’s post, stating: “It’s so hard to say someone deserved it and didn’t win the tournament. “Only way I see it is if the winning team has no clear stand out player while the 2nd place team has an absolute superstar performance, while also doing exceptionally well in the final.” It’s so hard to say someone deserved it and didn’t win the tournament. Only way I see it is if the winning team has no clear stand out player while the 2nd place team has an absolute super star performance, while also doing exceptionally well in the final — LG FormaL (@FormaL) July 7, 2019 Yet, during the somewhat serious debate between the community, some like Anthony ‘Nameless’ Wheeler took the chance to make some jokes. The former professional-turned-analyst told SlasheR that he deserved MVP for his performance during CoD champs for Call of Duty: Ghosts where he finished second with Team Envy. Despite Clayster’s call for a change, it’s probably unlikely that CoD events switch up from their current criteria for an event MVP, even though there is an increasing growth in the importance of stats outside of K/D ratio. Yet, it is an interesting thought and perhaps something that could be considered moving forward into Modern Warfare.

Shotzzy uncovers “crazy” Modern Warfare movement trick for CDL Champs Infinity Ward / Twitter: DallasEmpireJust weeks out from the biggest Call of Duty tournament of the year, 2020 MVP candidate Anthony ‘Shotzzy’ Cuevas-Castro has uncovered a powerful new movement trick in Modern Warfare. Despite nearing the end of the Modern Warfare cycle, a brand new movement trick has only just been discovered. 11 months into the game, with hundreds of hours of competitive experience, Dallas Empire’s Shotzzy has found something new. There’s no official label for the trick just yet, but it’s similar in many ways to slide canceling. Your character model will be much harder to shoot while your aim will still be on point. It can throw your enemies for a loop and give you an advantage in more or less any gunfight. Ahead of the Call of Duty League Playoffs, the console FPS prodigy has explained how you can use the trick. Whether you’re in a competitive matchup or even pushing for a win in Warzone, here’s how you can outplay your opposition. With $4.6 million up for grabs in the CDL postseason, teams have been looking for any edge they can get. In the midst of recent scrims, Shotzzy and a few others have been utilizing a brand new movement trick. It’s so new that it technically hasn’t even been named yet. “Some players have been calling it the belly flop,” he said. There’s no official label for it though, for now. As ‘belly flop’ implies, you’ll be dropping to the ground to perform this movement trick. Similar to a slide cancel, the intention here is to stop an animation and move faster than should be possible. The first step is to “slide cancel into a dropshot.” So you’ll need to sprint, slide, cancel the slide, and then immediately go prone. “As soon as you lay down you want to press your jump button…just spam it,” he added. From your perspective, it might not look all too crazy. But from the enemy’s point of view, you’ll be moving at an absurd speed. “It looks way crazier when you do it to someone else.” It all but cancels any form of standing up animation. One frame you’re lying flat on the ground, the next your character is upright and actually in the air. It can throw their aim off while you maintain a clear shot on them at all times. In critical 1v1 engagements, it could leave your opponents absolutely stunned. It can be done at any point and there’s no real downside to the trick. You’re back on your feet in an instant and ready to move on to the next fight. It’s too early to tell if this discovery might be added to the new list of Gentlemen’s Agreements (GAs). For the time being, however, it seems to be fair game; expect to see it used frequently once the CDL Playoffs begin on August 19.

Shotzzy & Scump call out “scumbag” CDL pros over secret audio setting Twitch: ScumpShotzzy and Scump discussed the state of the Call of Duty League during ta January 29 watch party and the SMGs didn’t hold back on the state of MW2’s audio and the pros that are abusing a secret setting. During the first match of January 29’s CDL Major 2 qualifiers Shotzzy and Scump sat down to talk about the state of the game. ‘The King’ asked his former SMG dup what he thought about his upcoming match, and while he assured fans he’s still excited to take on Atlanta FaZe for the #1 seed at the event, he’s grown frustrated over how easy it is to abuse the game’s audio. Shotzzy & Scump call out players for using Loudness Equalization during CDL matches. It didn’t take long for their conversation to turn to the Loudness Equalization setting that is available to PC players in Modern Warfare 2. “It’s bad,” Shotzzy admitted. “I’m not saying that’s why we lost [to Las Vegas] but whenever you were playing, maybe like one team was on the setting, now like every team is on the setting…people don’t even need awareness to have awareness.” Scump followed him up by saying that there are definitely “scumbags in the league” and that enacting a Gentleman’s Agreement to not use the setting would prove useless. “People are going to use it anyway because they’re scumbags.” For those who don’t know, Loudness Equalization does exactly what it sounds like. After enabling it, every sound in the game become takes on equal priority, so footsteps that were previously quiet now become exponentially easier to hear, creating a distinct advantage when it comes to tracking enemies. Until it’s banned, Shotzzy thinks there’s no way to avoid having it on. “If you’re not using it you’re actually trolling…” It has become a divisive point of discussion in the community overall and it will likely come under the microscope even harder in the downtime following Major 2.

Shotzzy reveals buffed Bas-P loadout in Modern Warfare 2 after Vaznev nerfs Activision/OpTic TexasAfter recent nerfs to the most meta weapons in Modern Warfare 2, OpTic Texas star Anthony ‘Shotzzy’ Cuevas-Castro has revealed one of his off-meta loadouts that could usurp the Vaznev as the dominant SMG in the game. Shotzzy is often regarded as one of the best submachine gun players in the game, mixing a crisp shot with some of the most fluid and impressive movement in MW2. As such, he’s a player that many fans and players looking to get better aspire to and can take inspiration from, whether it’s down to how he navigates the map or as simple as how he builds his weapons to get the better of his opponents. That’s where this loadout comes in. In the Season 3 Reloaded update, both the Vaznev and the TAQ-56 received nerfs, albeit somewhat small, hinting at a potential meta shakeup, especially in ranked play. That’s pushed players to try out other weapons including, in Shotzzy’s case, the Bas-P — and it is actually very good. Shotzzy’s MW2 Bas-P ranked loadout Here’s how Shotzzy builds his Bas-P to take out opponents in ranked play: Muzzle: Spiral V3.5 Flash Hider – Underbarrel: FSS Sharkfin 90 – Rear Grip: Bruen Flash Grip – Stock: Bruen Flash V4 – It’s worth noting that Shotzzy does admit this might not be the best build, and as always, these things are subjective and certain players may prefer certain attachments, so it’s well worth playing around with to find what works best for you. Needless to say, it can clearly pack a punch as shown by the OpTic star, so be sure to give it a try next time you load into MW2 ranked play.

Shotzzy is already breaking Black Ops Cold War’s movement in crazy ways Treyarch / Call of Duty League2020 Call of Duty League MVP and World Champion Anthony ‘Shotzzy’ Cuevas-Castro has already put in an immense Black Ops Cold War grind, uncovering a variety of absurd movement tricks in the process. [jwplayer pHIlNffX] Treyarch’s latest release has only been live for a few weeks and Dallas Empire’s Shotzzy is already breaking it apart. From the most powerful loadouts to some of the most insane maneuvers anyone has seen yet, it’s safe to say he’s ahead of the curve. Shotzzy has grown a reputation for uncovering new movement mechanics in Call of Duty titles. He was pushing boundaries throughout the Modern Warfare season and it appears the next year of CoD will be no different. Focusing on two maps to start, Shotzzy has outlined a number of tricks and set plays for Crossroads and Armada Strike. Here are the biggest takeaways. For Crossroads, it’s an extremely small map but there’s one hotspot that stays true regardless of which mode you’re playing. The high ground bridge that crosses over between the two main buildings will always have activity. Players try to be the first across while others hold the angle and pre-aim it for some early kills. One way to outsmart the opposition on this bridge, is to fake that you’re falling off, according to Shotzzy. “You fake that you’re going down, basically, then you mantle back up,” he explained. In doing so, your character model dashes from one spot to another in barely a few frames. From your perspective, it may not look like much. From the enemy’s point of view, however, you’ve just disappeared and reappeared while practically turning invincible for a brief moment. For a more general tip across Armada, there are two ways to abuse vertical features on the map. Both ladders and rappels can be manipulated to provide a massive boost to your movement. While climbing ladders, spam the jump button when past the halfway point and you’ll be able to mantle up the rest of the way. This cuts out a full animation from reaching the top in an ordinary way. Additionally, apply the same trick of spamming the jump button while gliding up ropes around the map. Doing so will launch your operator into the sky for a few seconds, offsetting the aim of anyone nearby. These are just a few of the more ridiculous tricks Shotzzy has uncovered thus far. Expect to see some crazy nuances across every map as the 2020 MVP puts in more time. If you discovered any of your own game-changing tricks, be sure to let us know by sharing some tips on Twitter @DexertoIntel.

Shotzzy interview: MVP gas, big stats, and Empire’s rivals at CDL Champs Call of Duty League[jwplayer br5AuoVJ]The Dallas Empire’s Anthony ‘Shotzzy’ Cuevas-Castro is a Call of Duty League MVP candidate and a major reason behind his team’s No. 2 seed heading into CDL Champs 2020. We interviewed the SMG Slayer about his play, his team, and their competition this postseason. MVP Race The Call of Duty League MVP candidates are you, Cellium, Envoy, Simp, and Skyz. Do you think you’re the best of that list? “If you don’t think you’re the best, then you’re obviously not. So I’m going to say yeah. But CoD is just so day to day. It can be hard to have a ‘best player in the league’ because one day you’re the best, the next day someone else is.” https://twitter.com/CODLeague/status/1284552188933488642 Apart from you, do you think one of them stands out as the best candidate? “They are really good players, but they’re all really different roles. Simp and Envoy are that main slayer, do-it-all kind of guy, and Skyz is a main AR. If I had to go with one, I’d go with Cell because he can do the dirty work and basically do whatever is needed based on the situation. Teams need players like that.” You’ve obviously put up nasty numbers for much of the season, but people rightfully talk about your movement as the biggest key to your success. Do you think you have the best movement in the league? “I would probably say yeah, just because I get gassed a lot for it—that’s about it to be honest. But it’s the same as Halo 5, everyone said I had the best movement but I didn’t know that until I stopped playing the game and rewatched some of my matches. It’s kind of the same way this game.” https://twitter.com/CODLeague/status/1271630070881431552 The Dallas Empire heading into CDL Champs Fans obviously recognize that you’re out there being a weirdo on the map just frying people and doing whatever you want, but it feels like iLLeY and Huke get slept on sometimes. Do you think that’s the case? “Everyone on my team does, just because when they watch my perspective it’s just movement, movement, you know? But I play with these players every single day and I know how much impact they put on the map. They honestly allow me to do whatever I do. And they’re not like “why are you doing this, why are you doing that?” They kind of just let me roam freely and that’s why you see the stats I put up.” How specifically do they enable you to roam freely, are Clay and Crim holding down lanes while iLLeY and Huke hit angles or bring pinches when needed? “So, basically, the main ARs are holding angles and they’re like “do whatever you want, you’re f**king disgusting, like do literally whatever you want.” So I do, but every movement that I make isn’t a dumb move, like I’m always thinking about where I’m gonna go next to open the map for my teammates. Then, Huke is a Smoke player so he’s basically taking consistent routes and has to die sometimes just so he gets another Smoke. He’s kind of throwing his life out there, but gets kills and there’s a lot that’s strategic to it. And iLLeY’s kind of a dirty work player, one of the masterminds that knows every move he makes is really impactful, trying to get us spawns and rotating really early.” The meta has shifted around in the past events due to the 10mm and Merc Foregrip GA’s. But teams are still running two AR’s with 10mm back and your team looks especially comfortable now that Crimsix is on the M4. Do you think you guys improved with the meta change? “Yeah, I think so honestly. Crim had trouble trying to play with the MP5 and the M4 at the same time and felt that it was messing up his shot. Once he was able to switch to M4 full-time, that’s when you started to see his stats increase. And us as well, we were just dominating around the map for the most part and the subs were just doing their thing. Our pacing is really good with this new meta.” So what I’m gathering here is that Crim getting to swap off of the MP5 is the biggest reason for improvement? “He always jokes about it, saying the M4 saved his career. But genuinely, he was a good sub.” …was he though? “I mean, maybe not in the matches [laughs], but in scrims he would drop 30-bombs, sometimes 40-bombs with the sub. It was just one of those things where he couldn’t transition from scrims into the league matches. Which happens sometimes. But you know, the M4, he f**king loves it.” One thing that really stands out, especially from Clayster, is your team’s comms. How would you describe the impact that Crim and Clayster’s leadership have in-game? “In scrims it’s different because we’re all talking and small talking, but when it comes to match time, Clay and Crim are just steering the ship and we’re just waiting for the calls. It’s cool when you have teammates that are able to do that because I can just rely on my gunshots, listen to them, and talk when I need to.” The Champs 2020 competition Does any team stand out as the biggest competition you might face in the league this postseason? “In practice we do really well against literally every single team. I think we’re the most consistent team in the league right now, but obviously our matches against FaZe are like 1-4, 1-3 or something like that. For some reason every single time we play them it’s either really close or we get blown out. So we always look forward to playing against them and I guess you could say they’re our toughest competition right now.” Pro 10s and still frying. @Shotzzy is just not human. Full video: https://t.co/gsToKHknNr pic.twitter.com/D0z7fagqIH — Dallas Empire (@DallasEmpire) August 6, 2020 Looking at the playoffs, you play in Winners Round 2, so that would be against London, Toronto, or Florida. Are you hoping for any of those to make it out in particular? “Toronto. I really wanna get some revenge. We fell short last Home Series and we want to play them again.”

Shotzzy explains how Dallas Empire can become world championship level again ActivisionSo far in the 2021 Call of Duty League season, Dallas Empire have failed to reach the dizzying heights of their Modern Warfare year. Star player Anthony ‘Shotzzy’ Cuevas-Castro says, though, that their issues require only a simple fix. While Dallas haven’t exactly been being stomped, they’re very much playing second fiddle to an incredible Atlanta FaZe side. And that’s not where this team expects to be. After an incredible Modern Warfare season, culminating in a dominant world championship win, the Empire should always be vying for top spot in the eyes of players, management and the fans. Right now, though, they’re not quite there, and we spoke with Shotzzy to find out exactly what was going wrong with Dallas Empire, and how they can reach championship-winning form once again. The first flaw that Shotzzy points out is how little he and his teammates — Ian ‘Crimsix’ Porter, Indervir ‘iLLeY’ Dhaliwal and Cuyler ‘Huke’ Garland — manage to find their A-game at the same time. “For us, when we play the best, it’s just whenever everyone is having their little moment,” Shotzzy said. “If you look at the scoreboard, when we’re winning the most is when everyone has neutral stats and everyone’s doing the job.” While often, especially in respawn modes, you’ll see teams win off the back of some insane individual performances, Shotzzy clearly feels that a more balanced approach with everyone mucking in is their key to victory. That’s not all, though. The 19-year-old adds that there seems to be some discrepancy between scrims and their actual matches — which could prove to be a huge issue if they aren’t able to perform when the pressure’s on. “For some reason, we can’t translate our scrims into matches,” he said. “I think it’s just because people play different in matches. Once we find that balance like we did in MW, I think we’ll be good.” Of course, while Shotzzy clearly believes firmly in the abilities of his team to become championship-caliber again — and for good reason, too — the Empire have their critics. Some, like Reverse Sweep’s Jonathan ‘Pacman’ Tucker and Ian ‘Enable’ Wyatt have argued that iLLeY needs to step up to get the team on top again. Whatever happens next, we expect Shotzzy to be on top of his game as always, and it’ll be interesting to see how Dallas improve going into Stage 3.

Shotzzy denies claims that H3CZ made OpTic Texas pick Dashy up for CDL Call of Duty LeagueBrandon ‘Dashy’ Otell returned to OpTic Texas after a turbulent departure, and conflicting reports make it difficult to tell whose decision it was. On January 17, Seth ‘Scump‘ Abner shockingly decided to retire in the middle of the Modern Warfare 2 season. His departure opened the door for Dashy’s return. OpTic Texas previously replaced Dashy with Huke ahead of the CDL Major 2 qualifiers. During an OpTic podcast, Scump suggested that Dashy was dropped by OpTic due to out-of-game issues. Dashy fired back on Twitch, calling out his teammates for making excuses during the rocky Vanguard season, and criticized Rambo for his coaching methods, including skipping scrims to go bowling. Bringing Dashy back appeared to be a tall task with tensions so high, but OpTic Texas pulled the trigger and brought back the dominant AR player when Scump retired. Conflicting reports tell two different stories of who supported the decision. Shotzzy claims team supported decision to bring Dashy back Dexerto, Deputy UK Editor, Jacob Hale shared two different clips on Twitter. In the first video, OpTic Gaming Creative Director Hitch claimed H3CZ made the final call on bringing Dashy back into the fold. H3CZ reportedly said, “I don’t care who’s happy or who’s not, Bruce is coming back. Hitch added, “that’s the first time I have ever seen Hector talk that way. He was like, enough of the players making decisions, Bruce is coming back, and that’s that.” Shottzy responded during a Twitch live stream, “everyone had a say. It wasn’t like he was forced on our team. We had discussions, and everyone is good. There’s no beef and no tension.” OpTic Texas is back in action on Friday, January 20, facing off against Seattle Surge. The match is jam-packed with storylines as Seattle’s Amer ‘Pred’ Zulbeari squares off against the team he almost joined after Major 1, and we get our first look at the new OpTic roster.

Shockz Explains why he Re-signed with Mindfreak over Other Offers Call of Duty pro Shockz will be staying in Australia for the Black Ops 4 season. Shockz was a free agent with sights on moving out of the APAC region, but issues with his schooling have caused him to re-sign with Mindfreak. He made the announcement on Twitter and confirmed that he had received offers from teams in North America and Europe. They also dominated their home region, winning five of the seven 2K tournaments they entered during WW2. Read More: Blackout beta day 6 update adds new characters, item spawn changes and more – Full Patch Notes – It is not all good news for Mindfreak as Denz is still seeking opportunities abroad for the Black Ops 4 season. Shockz and Denz have flirted with leaving APAC before, when they were rumored to be joining ACHES on Cloud 9 during Infinite Warfare.

Shocking glitch stops OpTic’s Crimsix from getting perfect S&D in CWL Pro League match Despite getting their first win of the CWL Pro League, OpTic Gaming’s Ian ‘Crimsix’ Porter was slightly robbed of his satisfaction thanks to an inexplicable glitch. With their series against UYU tied at two maps apiece, OpTic were able to build a huge 5-0 lead in the game five Search and Destroy partly thanks to the play of Crimsix. The 33x tournament champion had six kills and no deaths, and had his sights on achieving a perfect S&D match, which is not often seen at this level of competition. Pulling out his Annihilator Specialist weapon, Crimsix looked like he was destined for perfection, until he ran into UYU’s Proto, who mowed him down with a Saug 9MM SMG. While it initially looked like Proto had made a spectacular play, a closer examination revealed that Crimsix had perfectly aimed and fired his Annihilator at the UYU pro but the bullet did not register for whatever reason. He later had a much more animated reaction to the sequence after finding and clipping it from the CWL’s live-stream of the match. The video is pretty remarkable but for all the wrong reasons as it shows Crimsix lining up his Annihilator and taking the shot exactly as Proto crossed his line of sight. The casters’ reactions are pretty telling as well, as they could not really believe their eyes at how Proto had managed to avoid dying in that situation. Those who may be familiar with inconsistent bullet registration and how prevalent it is in Call of Duty may simply pass this off as just another case of the issue flaring up. While it’s true the hit-reg has almost never been consistent in online CoD, this is the CWL Pro League, and the fact that something like this could happen at an official LAN tournament does flash some potential warning signs. Luckily for Crimsix, OpTic, and maybe even the CWL, the issue did not end up changing the inevitable outcome, as the Green Wall went on to win the match and improved to 1-1 in the Pro League.

Shameless Warzone hacker still not banned after cheating daily on TikTok ActivisionThe Warzone community has been infested with hackers running loose on the streets of Verdansk. People are outraged as one hacker is streaming and still isn’t banned. It’s been a rough couple of months for the Warzone community. Popular streamers like NICKMERCS, CouRageJD, and others have taken a break from the game due to hackers. With the news of a new anti-cheat set to come with the launch of CoD Vanguard, players are slowly coming back in hopes of this fixing the issue. For now, hackers are still running amok, and the community is extremely upset as another person is getting away with this despicable deed. Warzone community wants streamer banned for cheating People are furious with Activision, as a hacker is live-streaming daily and still isn’t banned. This Reddit post showcases the streamer playing with blatant hacks during a TikTok broadcast. You can see in the clip that this person has red outlines of enemies and is locking onto people through walls. Since the in-game reporting system wasn’t doing any justice players decided to take their frustration to Twitter. Here people were posting the link to the hacker’s stream, tagging Activision, and asking the devs to ban this cheater. @ATVIAssist @CallofDuty wanna ban him since he is live streaming hacks? 😂 Don’t miss out. https://t.co/0fWeWLaMbV — Thatoneguyatthefestival (@Final_Insomniac) August 30, 2021 How is this guy not banned yet. his been actively cheating hacking hour hours now and no ban. @Activision @RavenSoftware @CallofDuty #hacking #cheating #warzone #callofdutyhttps://t.co/vFEP6gome5 — hungryhippo (@Marquez_602) August 28, 2021 How many accounts got banned @RavenSoftware @InfinityWard @Activision @ATVIAssist @ATVI_AB ??? Legit scroll through TikTok and see people STREAMING using hacks https://t.co/XS6KGdvfkn — Martin Sokal-Mahesh (@SokalMartin) August 29, 2021 Multiple players were upset that the hacker had been streaming for several days, and they still weren’t banned. One person asked Activision, “How many accounts got banned?” This was in reference to the company claiming they banned another 60,000 accounts in August. While the community has been pushing to get this to the spotlight, at the time of writing this, the hacker still isn’t banned in-game or on TikTok. Players are hopeful that their campaigning will ultimately lead to this person getting banned. For now, the community is just hanging tight and waiting for the anti-cheat that is coming with Vanguard, praying this can finally put hackers to rest.

Shameless Warzone hacker exposed after tracking through entire building ActivisionWarzone hackers remain a major issue for players as they wait for RICOCHET anti-cheat to activate in the Pacific update. In the meantime, hackers are cheating like there’s no tomorrow, blatantly shooting through buildings. With RICOCHET still some time away, hackers have been mocking Activision at every turn, such as posting insane clips to TikTok while they can. Of course, it’s not uncommon for some cheaters to be overly blatant with their hacks, but it seems to have gotten a lot worse as of late. One such hacker felt so untouchable, they even decided to just start tracking players through walls in a completely off-putting spectacle that looks just un-fun for players and cheaters alike. Hacker shoots Warzone players through buildings In a clip posted to Reddit by user rougeot10, the player got on a helicopter to get away from enemies, but had the vehicle come under fire. Despite flying behind a building, creating what should have been a wall of cover for protection, the player still found themself being shot. Somehow. After landing, the helicopter exploded in a blaze that was anything but glorious. Luckily, the kill cam exposed the cheater in the most perplexing way. As you can see in the video, the hacker tracked through the entire building, and it’s not like this is Wanted where you can curve bullets, oh no. They even seemed to get a hitmarker on the helicopter driver, with some sort of building-penetrating round. Even once the helicopter passed the large building, the hacker kept on firing with pinpoint accuracy to secure the frags. “Not even the slightest attempt at hiding it,” a user wrote in the comments, pointing out how obvious the cheater was. “Seriously, what is the point in even playing at this point?” another wrote, clearly upset at the state of the game. Hopefully, Warzone can finally reemerge as a top battle royale once anti-cheat kicks in, but until then, it’s an ongoing bumpy ride for anyone trying to play the game without any hacking shenanigans.

Shameless Warzone hacker caught streaming with cheats and they’re still terrible ActivisionWarzone hackers jumping on to stream is unfortunately nothing new, as Call of Duty players will already know, but this cheater has been flamed for still being terrible at the game. The hacker problem has been a long, drawn-out process for Raven Software to get a handle on it. In August, the developers have made significant strides in tackling the problem, whether it be targeting spoofers so that they can’t make accounts anymore, or more waves of bans being rolled out. With that being said, not everybody has been caught just yet – and some are continuing to stream in front of an audience, showing off their cheats. Warzone hacker caught and flamed on Instagram However, it all blew up in the face of one hacker on August 16– who goes by the name of ponstermenus on Instagram – as one Reddit user posted a clip to the Warzone subreddit. The user posted: “It has now gotten to the point now that people are streaming with cheats, what the f**k?” After watching the clip, some other CoD players couldn’t help but notice that the cheats weren’t actually helping him. There were around 380 viewers watching the broadcast when the footage was recorded. Repeatedly, he could be seen missing sniper shot after sniper shot, with the chat laughing their heads off meanwhile. One said: “He’s cheating and still missing,” with a load of laughing emojis. Others said: “For a hacker you play very bad” and “Bro is missing with hacks”. With so many different ban waves announced almost weekly now in Warzone, it remains to be seen if this cheater, in particular, will be banned. What we now know, however, is that using cheats isn’t always the quickest way to improve at the game… Because this was a terrible performance.

Shameless Warzone cheater rage quits stream after aimbot stops working ActivisionThe Warzone community is having a blast after a streamer who was openly cheating rage quit because his aimbot broke. Warzone devs have been doing everything in their power to minimize the number of hackers in the battle royale, with mixed results. While cheaters continue to get banned, normal players are loving every second of ‘fall of hackers’, and this time it was caught on camera. Warzone streamer still loses while hacking https://twitter.com/MavriqGG/status/1482752003621199878 A tweet posted by MavriqGG had the Warzone community rolling out of their chairs, laughing, as they watched the cheating player complain for two straight minutes. In the clip, the streamer actually went live while using hacks on Rebirth Island, and to his surprise, he wasn’t winning gunfights without any effort, as he expected. Throughout the video, he gets frustrated with the game as he feels he should be killing people faster and not losing any fights. At one point his started aiming at the floor and said, “The aimbot just f**king broke again.” The community had a blast with this, and even Swagg joined in on the bashing calling the cheater “a loser.” Another person loved what they were watching. “This is better than seeing him get banned. I’d much rather watch a cheater lose his hacks mid-game this is gold!!!” According to the streamer, their cheats were not working as intended and he had to end his stream and said he was going to try and “fix his situation” with the cheat provider. This particular cheat provider has actually been sued by Activision for millions of dollars for providing players with hacks to Warzone. At this time it is unknown who the streamer is and if they have been banned for their actions.

Shadowbanned Warzone streamer reveals just how easy lobbies can get ActivisionCall of Duty: Warzone streamer and tournament player, bbreadman, apparently got shadowbanned. And it turns out that might be a good thing for content, as it immediately gave him ludicrously easy lobbies. Bbreadman is a good Warzone player. He normally has a 5.99 K/D and the skills to drop trick shots on big names like Dr Disrespect in the game’s biggest tournaments. Apparently, Bread may have been a little too good or received one too many reports from upset victims. He let people know that he had been shadowbanned and, shortly after, showed what that means. As it turns out, you can get amazing lobbies. The 5.99 K/D streamer, duo’ed with Speros (who has a 3.54 K/D) was placed in a game with a median K/D of… 0.47. Shadowbanned Warzone players get easy lobbies? FIRST LOBBY WHILE SHADOWBANNED LOL pic.twitter.com/mMUziEmDJt — bread (@bbreadmanW) December 2, 2021 In Bread’s tweet, he seemed just as confused as the rest of us. While the shadowban does force him to play in servers up to 350 ping, it seemed to counterbalance that with a really easy lobby. The streamer reacted with a simple, caps-locked “FIRST LOBBY WHILE SHADOWBANNED LOL,” with a screenshot showing just how uneven the lobby was. A day later, Bread still appears to be shadowbanned. As he’s asked for help fixing the situation, which routinely puts him in higher-ping lobbies and gives him longer queue times. Still, he’s made the most out of this interesting punishment. Since sharing the first lobby he got, Bread’s raised his K/D to 6.0. No word yet on whether or not his quasi-ban will be lifted or if it’s continuing to give him easy matchups. When Warzone Pacific launches on December 8, there are hopes that the entire ban situation will become less cloudy. The new season will launch with a RICOCHET Anti-Cheat, so there could be fewer false bans and fewer hackers as well.

Several Team Reciprocity CoD players announce free agency ahead of franchising MLGTeam Reciprocity’s fate in next season’s Call of Duty franchising appears to be sealed, as several of their pro players have declared free agency. On August 28, three of Reciprocity’s Call of Duty pros announced that they would be free agents for the inaugural season of franchising, which is set to kick off in the early parts of 2020. Zach ‘Zed’ Denyer and Dylan Henderson will both be restricted free agents, meaning that REC will have the option of matching any contract offered to them by other organizations. “Going to be a restricted free agent for the 2020 CDL season,” they both tweeted. “Any franchise team interested, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me via DMs or email. Also willing to relocate anywhere and have a valid P1 working visa.” Going to be a restricted F/A for the 2020 CDL season, any franchise team interested please don’t hesitate to reach out to me via dms or my email – dylanhendersoncod@gmail.com Also willing to relocate anywhere and have a valid P1 working visa.— Dylan (@DylanCOD_) August 28, 2019 Alex ‘Alexx’ Carpenter, on the other hand, has confirmed that his free agency will be unrestricted, which would allow him to sign with any interested organizations without REC being able to match their offer to retain him. Read More: Temp announces roster change – Also declaring restricted free agency is Sean ‘Seany’ O’Connor, who started the season in the starting lineup but was moved down to the substitute’s role after Denholm ‘Denz’ Taylor was promoted midseason. As for Denz and Bradley ‘wuskin’ Marshall, they both have not announced any news regarding their status at this time, but they too will likely be looking for new opportunities. TEAM RECIPROCITY 2019 CALL OF DUTY ROSTER Zach ‘Zed’ Denyer – Dylan ‘Dylan’ Henderson – Alex ‘Alexx’ Carpenter – Bradley ‘wuskin’ Marshall – Denholm ‘Denz’ Taylor – Shane ‘ShAnE’ McKerral (coach) – Reciprocity were one of the better Call of Duty teams during the 2018-19 CWL season, finishing third at CWL Fort Worth, qualifying and placing fourth in the Pro League Playoffs, and securing a top-six spot at CoD Champs. Shortly after these free agency announcements surfaced, REC CEO and owner Chad Larsson confirmed that the org would not be participated in franchising, at least for the first season. Read More: Hastr0 teases ‘hot’ roster moves for Envy – “Unfortunately, Reciprocity will not be participating in Season 1 of CWL franchising,” he tweeted. “It’s been an awesome year, grateful for the opportunity to have made a mark in the CWL scene.” This news come despite wuskin going live on stream several weeks ago to confirm that it “would be a miracle if REC don’t get a spot,” in the new CDL. Unfortunately Reciprocity will not be participating in season 1 of @CODWorldLeague franchising. It’s been an awesome year, grateful for the opportunity to have made a mark in the #CWL scene. #recpack — Chad Larsson (@ChadLarsson) August 28, 2019 Keep up with all of the offseason roster moves and team changes via our dedicated CDL franchising RosterMania hub.

Semi-finals set for EU’s first Black Ops 4 CWL 2K Familiar names from last year’s online events are upsetting the big organizations in the first 2K of Black Ops 4. Only four teams remain in EU’s first 2K of the year and the major organizations have been eliminated. Red Reserve were knocked out in Round 7 thanks to a team led by U.K pro (and former Red Reserve member) Niall. Niall’s team features Braaain and Creza, names familiar to those who followed the National Circuit last season. They are currently searching for an organization and are playing the 2K under the name “PickUsUpPls”. PickUsUpPls will play in the semi-finals against another team searching for an organization but is loaded with CWL talent, captained by Reedy. Read More: How to complete Black Ops 4 Dark Ops challenges in Multiplayer, Blackout and Zombies Reedy, Hawqeh, Vortex, Moose and Denza reached the semis after knocking out the new-look Gone Gaming roster in Round 7. On the other side of the bracket is a team led by Cammy and Defrag, who qualified for last year’s Call of Duty Championship with Nordic Gaming. U.K veteran SunnyB is also on the team, playing under the name “Get us to vegassss” while searching for an org. Team Cammy took major scalps along the way to the semis, eliminating Heretics before a comprehensive sweep of Team Reciprocity in Round 7. Rounding out the semi-finals of EU’s CWL 2K are the remnants of the Team Sween squad that placed top 16 at last years Call of Duty Championship. Sween, Dylan and weeman added Nolson and Brash Esports’ Nevo to complete their 2K roster. They upset CWL pros Alexx, Joshh and Dqvee in Round 7 by way of forfeit. Read More: Tainted Minds take down Mindfreak to win first APAC CWL 2K of Black Ops 4 – Final Placements The EU CWL 2K Semi-finals will take place on Monday, November 5 at 3 PM EST/ 7PM BT. EU CWL 2K Semi-finals SF #1: Team Cammy vs Team Sween SF#2: Team Reedy vs Team Niall

Secret Warzone trick allows players to survive Semtex stick ActivisionA secret albeit simple Warzone trick allows players to survive a direct Semtex stick, massively weakening enemy equipment and ensuring players can stay in the fight for as long as possible. Any FPS game of Warzone’s size works hard to ensure that any and all equipment has an adequate counter. However, one predicament from which there has been no return is being ‘stuck’ by an enemy semtex – an adhesive grenade that explodes after a short-timer. Once players are directly hit by a semtex, there is no way to shed the explosive device and an elimination usually follows. That is, until now. In a June 11 Reddit post, player ‘LordTexugo’ outlined a “secret technique” which allows players to survive a ‘stuck’ semtex. It’s not immediately clear whether it is a glitch or an intended mechanic, but Warzone’s current build has one sure-fire way of escaping if you find yourself stuck with a semtex. Firstly, players will have to have a Riot Shield equipped. Riot Shields can kill enemies via melees, so charging enemies when carrying a Riot Shield is a fairly common tactic. A fairly common response from opponents is to throw a semtex. However, upon being stuck, players can quickly dispense with their Riot Shield, throwing it to the ground. Doing so removes the semtex from players. Immediately after, players should re-pick up their Riot Shield and reposition so as to avoid the semtex’s blast. The Redditor’s attached video shows it to be an incredibly consistent method to avoid being killed by semtex grenades, even if they are direct hits. Many compared it to the similar trick with Thermite Grenades, in which players hit by the fiery projectiles should immediately throw a Trophy System so as to save themselves. As previously mentioned, it’s not clear whether Raven will look to patch the mechanic but, for now, drop in and save yourself from enemy semtex using this handy trick.

Secret Warzone Season 6 killstreak reveals all circle locations ActivisionCall of Duty Warzone players have uncovered a brand new killstreak in Season 6 that wasn’t included in the patch notes – and it looks like its exclusive to the bunkers. Season 6 for Call of Duty Modern Warfare and Warzone went live on September 29, bringing a whole raft of new content – including two new weapons, new multiplayer maps, two new operators, and a few fresh modes for Warzone. On top of that, Warzone players can also use the fast-travel Metro system to hop around the map. Yet, even though the season is barely in its infancy, players have already uncovered a secret new killstreak that wasn’t mentioned in the patch notes and appears to be popping up in the different bunkers. It’s called Foresight and, well, it takes the Recon circle peek contracts that can be found around the map and cuts through the time needed to complete them. Quite simply, if you find yourself with the streak, activating it will show you the complete set of circle rotations – including those at the very end when the circle starts to wade back through the gas and also starts getting smaller and smaller. As noted, it appears as if this Warzone killstreak can only be found inside of a bunker – be it as floor loot or out of the upgraded supply crates – so you won’t be able to find it anywhere else just yet. A new killstreak has been found in the bunkers of #Warzone! “Foresight” allows you to see every circle location for the entire match, even after the circle begins to “move” in end game! #ModernWarfare #Season6 pic.twitter.com/iuFU0IhIFZ — ModernWarzone (@ModernWarzone) September 29, 2020 It’s unknown whether or not the killstreak will be added to the Buy Stations or if it can also be found in the upgraded drops that come when you take down one of the helicopters. So, you’ll need the bunker locations and codes that can be found here. On top of that, players have also noted that Self Revive Kits have been popping up in supply crates, so it appears as if Season 6 is going to seriously shake up Warzone.

Secret Warzone MP5 buff makes it one of the game’s best weapons ActivisionAn unannounced Season Five buff for the Modern Warfare version of the MP5 SMG has made it one of the strongest weapons in Warzone, drastically increasing its damage, and viability. When Warzone first launched back in the spring of 2020, the Modern Warfare MP5 quickly established itself as the strongest close-range weapon in the battle royale. However, like many weapons since then, it has fluctuated in popularity and viability, with many now preferring Cold War’s MAC-10 or Bullfrog for their close-range weapon of choice. That is not to say that the Modern Warfare MP5 is useless though – it still sees some play at casual levels and remains a long way ahead of its Cold War version. It could be set for an explosion in popularity in the near future as previously unannounced buffs appear to be surfacing. An August 29 YouTube video from Warzone content creator TrueGameData explored the unannounced buff, which appears to have dropped with the August 25 patch (despite not being present in Raven’s notes). After receiving a tip-off from one of his subscribers, TGD found the buff to be true, with the MP5’s TTK drastically improved as a result. Its damage appears to be stronger, with both the 10mm 30-round mags and standard 9mm mags being on the receiving end. Comparing the weapon to Warzone’s other SMGs, TGD found that it was one of the most powerful close-range weapons in the game and that its buff was significant. It’s not entirely clear why the Modern Warfare MP5 received such a generous buff, or why it was omitted from the official patch notes. If the buff was a mistake then we can expect an official reversal in the coming days but Raven’s silence on the matter may be telling. For now, drop into Verdansk, equip 10mm mags, and enjoy the improved MP5.

Secret Warzone glitch lets Black Ops Cold War players unlock new AMP63 Pistol early ActivisionA new Warzone Season 3 bug allows players to unlock the new AMP63 Pistol and take it with them into Black Ops Cold War ahead of its official release. As part of the major Season 3 Reloaded update, two new weapons were locked in for both Warzone and Black Ops Cold War. After an earlier tease, the Ballistic Knife became available as soon as the patch went live. However, the AMP63 Pistol was held back for an in-season release. We’re only 11 days removed from the midseason update and while no timeline was mapped out for the gun, players are already getting their hands on it. Completing the relevant challenge in Warzone – taking out five enemies with a pistol in 20 separate matches – permanently unlocks the gun. Ahead of any official confirmation, this challenge is already live in Warzone. Due to this early access, players are taking the new unlock right into Black Ops Cold War multiplayer, whether Treyarch planned it or not. The AMP63 is a fast-firing Pistol that pays homage to a classic SMG. Originally known as the PM63 in Black Ops, this gun was once a deadly SMG. Now reworked as a Pistol, it’s among the latest batch of fresh content in Cold War. Activision typically announces when these new additions are set to go live. Before they could make things official this time around, however, the weapon is already wreaking havoc ahead of schedule; multiple players spotted the sidearm in multiplayer on May 31. In fact, some were even on the receiving end of its dual wield power as early as May 28. Read More: 10 most popular weapons in Warzone – While it’s a lengthy challenge to unlock through Warzone directly, gaining access to the AMP63 early puts you at a unique advantage. Not only will enemies be confused by what hit them, they’ll also have no way to match your power and bring their own new pistol into the fight. This certainly isn’t the first time upcoming weapons have spilled out ahead of their intended release dates. We’ve even seen SMGs unlocked before the devs were able to announce them. Activision is yet to respond in this instance. There’s no telling if any issues will arise when the gun is properly made available. For now, you’ll have to be cautious in multiplayer. Early trendsetters might be looking to abuse the power of the AMP63 until its official release.

Secret Warzone feature might help you find campers without UAV Infinity WardWhile not confirmed, there might be a hidden feature in Call of Duty: Warzone that gives away the position of players on the map, without needing any special equipment or killstreaks. Knowledge is power in most battle royale games, and especially Warzone, as knowing where enemy players and teams are can really tilt the odds in your favor. There are several ways to gain this sort of information – one can use a UAV, Heartbeat Sensor, or even one of those Recon Drone Field Upgrades no one ever picks up. However, there might be another method, one that doesn’t require the use of anything except for your eyes, and it has to do with birds. Yes, the very same birds that are always flying around and confusing players into thinking they’re enemies dropping down from the sky. Read More: Four new features Warzone desperately needs – Apparently, when a flock of birds can be seen soar into the air from the same spot, that could mean an opposing player or team is moving around in that general area. As you can see, the player here spots a dozen or so of birds rise into the air from just behind a ridge on the horizon, the same way they would in real life if someone were to disturb their peace. Keeping an eye on that area, ‘Noahthegoofy’ gets his patience rewarded when an enemy miraculously appears and immediately gets gunned down for what turned out to be a free kill. Read More: Spratt reveals his AX-50 loadout for Warzone – You can even see him pull out a Heartbeat Sensor and not get a ping, which means that the opponent was using Ghost, but the perk appears to not be good enough to counter birds. Since there’s no official record of this being an actual feature in Warzone, there is a big question as to whether the player made a crazy discovery or if it was a giant coincidence. Some in the comments section corroborated the finding, claiming that they too had similar experiences. However, there were also a few who said that they actively looked for flocks of birds rising to the air but couldn’t find any enemies in the vicinity, leading them to assume that they’re just random occurrence or something having to do with the gas coming in, as opposed to there being any players nearby. Either way, it might be something worth looking into during future Warzone games; you never know when it could come in handy.

Secret Warzone buff makes Mountaineer a must-use perk in Season 5 ActivisionAfter receiving an unannounced buff in Season 5, some believe Moutaineer turned into arguably one of the best perks in Warzone. As far as perks are concerned, most Warzone players use a combination of Irridated, Double Time, and Sleight of Hand for their first two slots. However, Mountaineer recently entered the conversation. In December 2023, JGOD already saw potential in the newly added perk, and that case only strengthened. Mountaineer doubles the height requirement before fall damage becomes lethal. The lethal number is 13 meters, but with Mountaineer, it nearly doubles to around 26 meters before becoming fatal. IceManIsaac discovered that after the Season 5 update, Mountaineer prevents death from 34 meters, up from 26, making jumping off previously unimaginable heights possible. In addition, general fall damage also got nerfed, as players can survive a 16-meter jump when it was previously 13. The ability to safely fall from high heights when escaping a gunfight or sneaking behind an enemy makes Mountaineer one of the best perks in Warzone Season 5. For the other perk slot to pair with Mountaineer, it makes the most sense to use Double Time to get increased tactical sprint duration and reduced refresh time or Sleight of Hand if you want improved reload times for a slow weapon. If players want to know how far a drop is, individuals can place a ping on PlayStation and Xbox by holding up the D-pad while aiming the weapon at the ground. On PC, it’s the middle mouse button or the Alt key. The ping feature gives you an exact meter distance from the height of your jump. It will be hard to use in the heat of battle, but players should use it when they can to avoid unnecessary deaths. With perks all sorted, you still need to know which weapons to use. So check out our guide on the best loadouts in Warzone Season 5.

Secret Warzone ‘Bomb Drone’ killstreak discovered hefy123Attaching C4 to a drone has become a hilarious tactic for Warzone players worldwide. Now, Infinity Ward has combined the two objects into a singular device and added the ‘Bomb Drone’ to the game. It has become a tradition for Call of Duty players to attach C4 to objects they’re not supposed to. Black Ops players will remember attaching C4 to RCXD’s and causing havoc in multiplayer. Although these tactics cannot be described as optimal, they can certainly be useful to catch an opponent off-guard. In Warzone, the Recon Drone is the community’s choice of delivery service for C4. The device is capable of accessing areas the RCXD never could. On top of this, the drone is significantly more discreet and can reach players camping on top of buildings. However, until now, attaching C4 to a Recon Drone was an awkward process. The new ‘Bomb Drone’ killstreak solves that issue completely. Where to find the Bomb Drone A thread posted to the Warzone subreddit has nearly 4,000 upvotes and shows a player using the new ‘Bomb Drone’ killstreak. The drone was located in a red keycard bunker, in training mode. Players will undoubtedly find some great ways to put the ‘Bomb Drone’ to use. The bad news, is that both these devices are currently limited to training and private matches. We’ll just have to keep our fingers crossed they’re introduced to the main modes as soon as possible. Infinity Ward’s choice to take an unintended mechanic and make it part of the game is great to see. It’s not very often developers integrate community discovered tactics directly into a game. Although it may frustrating to die to this device, it looks like a killstreak the Warzone community will get behind. The ‘Bomb Drone’ isn’t the only new device that’s been added to Warzone. Alongside it came the RCXD which players can obtain by completing the new ‘Detection’ contract. It’s important to note that neither of these devices were recorded on the official patch notes. This is no doubt so players can discover the devices themselves without patch notes spoiling the surprise.

Secret Warzone 2 update patch notes: Restock event fix, deployable cover exploit, more ActivisionRaven Software and Infinity Ward stealthy resolved Warzone 2 issues on the developer Trello boards overnight. Warzone 2 dealt with major bug issues at launch, but the game has slowly reached a stable state. The development team expressed their commitment to “improving the overall stability and performance of our games, including reduced crashes” in the early Season 2 patch notes. Besides major updates, the developers constantly roll out small patches to fix bugs and glitches. For example, on January 20, an update addressed UI hiccups and included a long laundry list of minor patches. Most of the time, small updates fly under the radar and fail to garner much attention, but each patch goes a long way in improving WZ2’s overall experience. Warzone 2 Restock event fix and deployable cover exploit removed On February 6, the developers released a hotfix, unbeknownst to most players, as it wasn’t posted on any social media channels. Raven Software and Infinity Ward have Trello boards listing every known issue in Warzone 2, multiplayer, and DMZ. The developers also provide updates on Trello when the issues get resolved. The feature is a great way to give passionate community members an inside look at what the developers are working on. Warzone 2 added back the Restock event. It was initially removed on January 11 for causing loot dropped by players to disappear. Regaining from the gulag with nothing to your name than a pistol or shotgun is always hard towards the end of the game, but the event refills every looted crate making it easier for players to get back in the action. The update also resolved an issue where more than one player could loot a supply crate and fixed an exploit allowing players to reach out of bound areas with a deployable shield. February 6 update patch notes Here are all of the bug fixes listed on the Warzone 2 Trello boards. We’re aware of an exploit with the Deployable Cover allowing some Players to reach Out of Bounds areas. – We’re aware of an issue where loadout and equipped items do not load into a match with a player but are back on-soldier after the match. – [All Platforms] Supply Crate: We’re investigating an issue where more than one Player can loot a captured Supply Crate. – [All Platforms] Restock: We’ve disabled the Restock Public Event while we investigate an issue causing loot dropped by Players to disappear. – We will provide an update when Infinity Ward unveils the full Season 2 patch notes.

Secret Warzone 2 PC audio setting is so strong it “feels like cheating” ActivisionWarzone content creator Metaphor has revealed a simple audio tweak that gives Warzone 2 players the most precise audio cues to pinpoint the locations of enemy players on PC. Locating enemies through footsteps and other audio cues has been standard in FPS games for a while now. Warzone 2 is no exception. The battle royale in Al Mazrah rewards those who use every bit of information about enemy players’ movement they can get their hands on. Audio cues of them moving, looting and interacting with the environment are therefore of the utmost importance. We have already compiled a list of in-game audio settings for Warzone 2 that will offer you an edge over your enemies. But, in a January 6 video, Metaphor revealed how to tweak your PC’s audio settings to maximize the number of audible cues that enemies give off. In turn, you’ll be able to pinpoint and eliminate them far easier. Warzone 2 audio settings so strong they “feel like cheating” “There’s a new audio setting discovered that makes your audio sound absolutely insane,” he said. “This is gonna alert you when people are in the area no matter what.” Here’s how to turn on this secret audio setting for Warzone 2 on PC: Right-click the speaker icon on your taskbar and go to “Sounds”. – In the “Playback” tab find the device with a green tick mark (Your default device). – Right-click that device and go to “Properties”. – Select the “Enhancements” tab. – Make sure the “Loudness Equalization” setting is turned on. – Click “Ok” to confirm the settings. – Head into Al Mazrah with the enhanced audio. – To turn this setting back off simply follow the steps and deselect the “Loudness Equalization”. – These settings will help you pinpoint the exact direction or location of opposing players. Metaphor did underline that this audio setting has some problems with elevation, so it can sometimes seem like enemies are above or below you when they are on the same floor. All you need to do now is to play with a headset and focus on audio cues of footsteps, breaking windows, and opening chests. Good luck!