
TL;DR
- Call of Duty Warzone Season 3 launched on April 3, 2025, with the headline of the long-awaited return of the classic map, Verdansk.
- The amount of damage that some weapons dealt was one of the issues the developers knew they would need to address in Season 3.
- The Death Counter Widget has been added for this season, which is an overlay that appears in the player’s HUD.
- More anti-cheat measures have also been added, reversing the impact that cheaters have on ranked matches.
- Despite the fixes, the update has also introduced a few issues that many in the community are hoping will be fixed in the upcoming Season 4, launching on May 29.
Call of Duty Warzone is one of the most popular esports games in 2025, and for good reason. Developed by Infinity Ward and Raven Software, the free-to-play first-person shooter lets players fight against one another in a battle-royale setting, much like Fortnite and PUBG. Loadouts can be selected that give players certain weapons, and they’re blasted into the map, with the aim for one team or individual to be the last one standing.
The game was relaunched in 2022 as Warzone 2.0, which introduced several new features, such as starting with a 2-plate vest instead of nothing, 2v2 Gulag with computer-controlled guards, more realistic effects for vehicles, water-based combat, and much more. Since then, the player base has only grown exponentially, with season passes bringing in new weapons, perks, and maps.
Season 3 is the latest update for Call of Duty Warzone, bringing several refinements and the return of Verdansk, a favourite that debuted with the original Warzone in 2020. However, some in the community have noticed a few issues with this newest season. With this in mind, we’ve broken down the biggest refinements Season 3 has brought, as well as several new issues that the community has noticed since launching in April.
What is Call of Duty Warzone Season 3?
Call of Duty Warzone Season 3 launched on April 3, 2025, bringing with it a long-awaited return of the classic map, Verdansk, which first appeared in the original Warzone in 2020. It’s been completely redesigned with new graphics, new lighting, and a refined design across the area. Recently, a new update was released that activated the train, meaning players could ride it or take some of its prized loot.
Season 3 also introduced several new Loadouts, such as the Ladra SMG and the Vendetta Park, which can mark your enemy’s last known position on a player’s next spawn. Zombie Mode also saw a new limited-time mode called Zombie Snacks. This replaces your Operator’s health with an energy meter and also grants them extra power to defeat as many zombies as possible. Every map in Zombies supports this temporary mode, with food scattered everywhere to keep the player in this state. Alongside these new features, Season 3 also comes with a new limited-time event featuring actor Seth Rogen, which lets players equip him as an operator skin if they buy the premium track. Ultimately, this season’s pass was full of refinements along with a splash of nostalgia thanks to the return of Verdansk, bringing some long-time players back to the original map that was iconic five years ago.
What are the biggest issues Season 3 needed to address?
Developers Infinity Ward and Raven Software knew that they needed to address several issues in Call of Duty Season 3 when it came to the amount of damage that some weapons, like bombs, dealt. As the patch notes show, there are several fixes for some issues that irritated players in the previous season, such as:
- Fixed an issue where the required movement speed for Ghost activation was not correctly set to 35 (equivalent to crawling or faster).
- Fixed an issue while using Bomb Squad where all explosives were incorrectly capped at 150 damage. Explosives can now deal up to 300 damage as originally intended.
- Fixed an issue where the Gulag notification for a squadmate entering or leaving did not play correctly.
- Fixed an issue where the MX Guardian could incorrectly equip Dragon’s Breath rounds.
In addition, the Death Counter Widget, an overlay that appears in the player’s HUD, added more detail to how you died in the map, such as:
- Affected by Heartbeat Sensor: Indicates the enemy detected your position with the Heartbeat Sensor equipment.
- Body Shield on Teammate: Indicates your position was revealed by an enemy with a teammate in an active Body Shield.
- Affected by Resurgence Mark: Indicates your position was revealed by a teammate who died in a Resurgence game mode.
- Affected by Prox Alarm: Indicates your position was revealed by Prox Alarm Tactical equipment.
- Affected by Most Wanted Target: Indicates your position was revealed by opting into the Most Wanted Contract.
Finally, more anti-cheat measures were implemented in Season 3, reversing the impact that cheaters have on ranked matches, meaning a player’s score won’t be affected by their efforts.
How well does Season 3 address those issues? Are there new issues?
Despite the fixes and refinements of Season 3 being welcomed by casual and hardcore Call of Duty fans alike, the update has also introduced a few issues that many in the community are hoping will be fixed in the upcoming Season 4, launching on May 29.
Several users on Reddit have mentioned how movement feels slower since Season 3 came out in April, with big delays when players try to slide, resulting in it feeling janky and laggy. Some have mentioned that this change is intentional for casual players, but others note that it breaks the flow when you’re on a map, making the game feel as if you’re more prone to be shot by a sniper due to the slower movement.
In addition, other users have reported big lag and frame rate drop issues with Season 3. Players wondered if their graphics card drivers were at fault, but even after updating them, the game still experienced the same issues, causing a lot of frustration from players. It’s ultimately a shame, as Season 3 has some great additions and refinements that help to give Warzone a dash of nostalgia, tied with better controls for cheaters, extra help for when you die, and welcome fixes for explosives that can deal up to 300 damage. But this means nothing if the game isn’t running as expected, so developers Infinity Ward and Raven Software need to look into this, fast.
Conclusion
Although Season 3 has been a success for the most part, the community wants to see more focus on fixing the lag and movement issues that the season has allegedly brought in.
It detracts from the positives, as seeing more control on how you die, fixing the explosive damage, and the return of the Verdansk map have been welcomed. But if players are constantly noticing graphic and basic gameplay issues, all of the improvements from Season 3 are pointless without these being fixed. With Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile being discontinued, it matters more than ever now that Warzone 2.0 delivers a smooth and stable experience. Many mobile players may now flock to the main game, curious to see how the game plays via Xbox Cloud, console, or Gaming PC.
But players may not have to wait much longer to see if these issues are fixed, with the Call of Duty Warzone Season 3 end date being May 29. This date also means the start of Season 4. Hopefully, developers Infinity Ward and Raven Software have been spotting the frustrations players have been having with Season 3, and fixes to the lag and movement will be brought in as soon as Season 4 launches.
FAQs
Call of Duty Warzone Season 3 came out on April 3, 2025.
In addition to gameplay and graphic improvements, Season 3 heralded the return of the iconic Verdansk map, which first debuted with the original Warzone in March 2020.
Call of Duty Warzone Season 4 is set to launch on Thursday, May 29, 2025.
References
- Nhttps://www.callofduty.com/blog/2025/03/call-of-duty-warzone-verdansk-map-return-intel-drop (Call of Duty)
- https://www.callofduty.com/patchnotes/2025/05/call-of-duty-bo6-warzone-season-03-reloaded-patch-notes (Call of Duty)
- https://www.reddit.com/r/CODWarzone/comments/1klvwpa/movement_after_season_3_reloaded_update/ (Reddit)
- https://www.reddit.com/r/CODWarzone/comments/1kfoxci/what_did_they_do_to_this_game_lag_and_fps_issues/ (Reddit)
- https://x.com/WarzoneMobile/status/1923468603959259556 (X)