Call of Duty: Warzone Season 2 delivers one of the most impactful updates yet in the Black Ops 7 era, reshaping competitive play, weapon balance, and various gameplay systems.
Below, we break down everything you need to know from the Warzone Season 2 patch notes, including gameplay changes, mode updates, and balance adjustments that will define the meta this season.
Table of contents
Warzone Ranked Play Resurgence returns
Ranked Play Resurgence returns shortly after the launch of Warzone Season 2, putting trios into high-stakes matches on Haven’s Hollow. You’ll need to place in the top squads in at least 20 matches, with “Top Placement” defined as finishing in the Top 6 for Resurgence or Top 15 for Battle Royale.
Players climb Skill Divisions by earning Skill Rating (SR) through eliminations, outlasting opponents, and completing in-match challenges. Matches include a Deployment Fee that scales with rank, and SR challenges and top placements offer extra ways to boost scores. Loadouts are tightly controlled, limited to Black Ops 7 weapons with restrictions on optics, launchers, and perks.
RICOCHET Anti-Cheat is set to deploy Microsoft’s Remote Attestation for an extra layer of security on PC. As you rise through the ranks and seize leaderboard spots, you’ll unlock operator skins, animated camo, and other cosmetic rewards.
UAV and Advanced UAV costs increased
The cost of UAVs at buy stations has increased from $6,000 to $8,000, and activating an Advanced UAV now requires four UAVs, meaning you or your squad needs a total of $32,000 to deploy it. This notable change encourages more efficient cash management and greater reliance on map awareness, rather than constantly seeing enemy positions on the mini-map through UAVs.
Other killstreak adjustments include faster Cluster Strike missile travel; Napalm Strikes inflicting increased explosive and fire damage while covering a larger area; and Precision Airstrikes hitting their target location one second quicker.
Killstreak call-in restrictions have been updated to better reflect individual streaks, reducing conflicts when multiple streaks are used in the same area. Players will see “Airspace Crowded” less often, though attempting to immediately call in the same streak now triggers an “At Your Active Limit” message.
Warzone Season 2 also introduces new killstreak options, including Smoke Screen, which deploys a line of smoke to obscure vision, and the RC-XD exclusively on Rebirth Island.
Weapon buffs and nerfs: ARs and SMGs enhanced
With new guns like the ERGT-17 assault rifle and REV-46 submachine gun set to arrive in both Black Ops 7 and Warzone, weapon changes have been made to balance out the meta.
ARs have received several key adjustments. FMJ ammo now increases damage range by 14%, bullet velocity by 14%, and inflicted flinch by 10%, while penetration damage remains unchanged, making it a more compelling choice for AR builds. The AK-27, DS20 Mirage, Maddox RFB, MXR-17, Peacekeeper MK1, and X9 Maverick, along with their attachments, have received enhancements in recoil control, bullet velocity, and other stats. In contrast, the M15 MOD 0 has had its damage range reduced to tone down its mid-range dominance.
SMGs have also been adjusted to boost competitiveness. The Carbon 57, Dravec 45, Kogot-7, Ryden 45K, and Sturmwolf 45 have received tweaks including slight range increases, faster ADS, improved horizontal and vertical recoil control, and higher fire rates. These changes aim to make SMGs more viable across multiple ranges while keeping their ceiling intact.
Shotguns such as the Echo 12 and M10 Breacher, as well as LMGs like the MK.78 and XM325 have gained improvements to various stats. Lastly, the AutoStrike-X8 Conversion for the M8A1 marksman rifle now has higher minimum damage and increased bullet velocity, providing a more reliable long-range performance.
New Slot 1 Perks and Scavenger change
Warzone Season 2 has reworked some of the Slot 1 perks to enhance teamwork, mobility, and situational awareness. Field Medic, formerly Veteran, now boosts reviving speed and provides resistance to equipment effects. Drill Instructor, previously Grenadier, focuses on health regeneration and supporting nearby allies. Surveyor, formerly Cold-Blooded, enhances map awareness and enemy detection.
Meanwhile, the Scavenger perk has been updated by removing its cash component. This adjustment returns Scavenger to its primary function, ensuring it focuses on ammo and equipment replenishment while addressing in-game economy concerns.
Rebirth Island Winter Refresh update
Rebirth Island is set for a winter makeover, adding new POIs, environmental updates, and gameplay tweaks. The massive Turbine now dominates the center of the map, offering verticality, multiple access points, and interior paths that create layered combat opportunities and shift mid-game rotations. In the south, Outpost has been revitalized with new structures and terrain, providing safer rotation options, more cover, and fresh looting and combat opportunities.
The Biometric Scanner experience has been refined with clearer visuals, balanced loot, and a cleaner interface, making rewards more consistent and gameplay more readable. Environmental hazards have also been updated, as Infil Gas Explosions temporarily block certain POIs, while Snowstorm Gas transforms the familiar gas hazard into a winter-themed challenge.
Warzone Season 2 limited-time modes
Season 2 cranks up the action with a variety of limited-time modes designed for fast-paced, competitive gameplay. Loaded Resurgence launches players on Rebirth Island fully equipped with their loadouts, maintaining the classic Resurgence rule that fallen teammates can redeploy as long as one squadmate survives. Later in the season, Loaded Resurgence Casual offers a more accessible version of the mode for those seeking a lighter experience.
Rush Resurgence delivers chaos with faster redeploys, shorter gas circle timings, and Fire Sale events, effectively cutting match durations in half and keeping the action relentless. Extreme Resurgence, dropping 100 players across Haven’s Hollow, doubles the usual player count for maximum mayhem and high-intensity firefights. Both Rush and Extreme Resurgence are weekend LTMs.
The Iron Gauntlet Beta on Verdansk offers a highly competitive, survival-focused Battle Royale for duos. With scarce resources, faster circle collapses, slower time-to-kill, rebalanced loot, and limited vehicles, every decision matters. Perks are removed to highlight combat mastery, and the mode is intentionally separate from Ranked Play to allow experimentation while maintaining stability in competitive playlists. Raven Software will actively monitor feedback and in-game data to refine squad size, pacing, weapon balance, and overall match flow, using Iron Gauntlet as a proving ground for high-skill gameplay in future seasons.
RICOCHET Anti-Cheat updates for Warzone
Building on the stricter Ranked Play requirements introduced by RICOCHET Anti-Cheat, Raven Software is rolling out additional measures to detect and address a variety of unfair player behaviors. These updates target suspicious in-game activity such as the unusual sharing of cash currency, botting behavior, and anti-teaming, using a combination of data analysis and in-game detection to identify offenders.
And as announced a few days back, new systems specifically target input-modifying devices that provide machine-perfect aim and recoil control, giving players advantages that are impossible to achieve naturally. This includes devices like the Cronus Zen and XIM Matrix, ensuring competitive integrity by removing tools that bypass skill-based gameplay.
For complete details, see the Warzone Season 2 patch notes blog. You can also check out our Black Ops 7 Season 2 patch notes breakdown.
