Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0 – Everything we know about the DMZ mode

Warzone 2.0, the successor to Call of Duty’s popular Battle Royale spin-off, will be released soon. This also includes the DMZ mode, for which there was a livestream event in Los Angeles today, to which some major streamers and content creators known for Call of Duty and various Extraction shooters were invited.

Below we have gathered all the information about the new mode that we learned in the stream.

What’s in the DMZ Mode

DMZ mode is a standalone part of Modern Warfare 2, which will be free-to-play just like Warzone 2. The mode follows the principle of Exctration shooters like Hunt: Showdown or Escape from Tarkov.

You take equipment into a match, collect equipment and other loot during the round and complete tasks before trying to get out of the zone again via extraction points.

On the map you will have to deal with AI soldiers and other players as opponents.
If you die, you lose all items, money and equipment you have with you.

You can call a helicopter at fixed extraction points at any time and get out of the round if you can hold out until rescue arrives.

What does DMZ stand for?

The abbreviation DMZ stands for De-Militarized Zone. This term refers to a neutral zone in which no military may officially be stationed.

On which map are we gonna play DMZ?

The game is played on the new map Al-Mazrah, which is also used in Warzone 2.0. The map is based on the West Asian desert and some of the locations can already be seen in the multiplayer of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.

Inventory system & storage

You have two weapon slots, one tactics item, one throwing item, and one slot for items like an ammo box or collapsible cover.
In addition, there are 6 item slots in your backpack that you can fill with different items.

Extracted weapons and items can be stashed in the storage after the mission, but you seem to have limited space – 20 slots for weapons were shown in the stream.

Weapons you find in a mission can’t be customized with the Weaponsmith feature, though it’s not entirely clear yet how and if customizable weapons can be obtained.

Item system and money

Items can be sold at store stations during an ongoing round, you can then collect more loot and turn it into money or extract with it.

When looting, the sale value of the items is displayed, but probably some items can also be used for quests or crafting other items and have more uses than just being sold.

You can also apparently buy pre-made weapons at the store stations.

Key system

In loot boxes and from AI enemies, you can find keys that allow you to access certain buildings. These can be Strongholds, or certain other PIO (Points of Interest), such as a police station or the tower of the airport.

Strongholds

Strongholds are a kind of hotspot on the map, which are initially locked and can be opened later with keys. They are guarded by AI soldiers and contain loot boxes where you can find weapons with some attachments.
In each stronghold there is a kind of large safe that you can crack.

During this process, you will then seemingly be attacked by more AI waves.

In strongholds you can also find items like weapon crates or information that you have to extract with.

Missions

You can choose up to three missions to complete during a round. These range from a simple “kill X soldiers” to taking out a stronghold or uploading data to certain transmitting antennas.

In addition, there are missions that you can do in the game itself, which are similar to those from the first Warzone part. For example, you have to secure a certain point on the map or take out a team.

In-game events

In the game itself, there are various in-game events that are meant to make players aware of each other. For example, there’s the option to activate a UAV tower, which uses radar to show you any enemies in the area.
However, all players on the map will see the activation along with the location – a double-edged sword.

Another event is the use of the Juggernaut, a heavily armored battle suit with a very powerful weapon. Again, the activation is displayed for all players.

Radiation Zones

In the course of a game round, radiation zones spread within the game area, gradually reducing the playable area until they push the last players into a common area.

Faction System

During your turns you can complete missions for different factions. If you manage to do this, you’ll get access to certain weapons and blueprints as a reward.
Whether you can only use these in DMZ or also in the normal Warzone 2.0 is not yet known.

Is the DMZ mode like Escape from Tarkov?

There wasn’t much information about the DMZ mode for Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0 beforehand, but the word “extraction shooter” kept coming up, and many people thought of games like Hunt: Showdown or the genre leader Escape from Tarkov.

Here, however, it has to be said quite clearly that the DMZ mode has hardly anything to do with Escape from Tarkov apart from the extraction mechanics.
It’s neither about survival elements, nor about very realistic depictions of combat situations or weapons, nor does the same “Gear Fear” aspect seem to come up at first glance.

While Escape from Tarkov could probably be described as a kind of hardcore survival military simulation, the DMZ mode is more of a Warzone 2.0 alternative with an extraction feature.
It’s fast-paced, action-focused, entertaining, and fills the usual slow gameplay phase in the middle of a Battle Royale round with all sorts of tasks and opportunities.