Warzone Prompts Backlash After Introducing Bots to New Black Ops Royale Mode

Just hours ahead of its release, Call of Duty: Warzone developer Raven Software announces that the shooter’s highly anticipated Black Ops Royale mode will integrate bots into select lobbies. Although the developer’s statement confirms that this will only affect Call of Duty: Warzone players within Europe and the Middle East, Raven describes it as a “test,” suggesting that it may soon be added to other regions around the world. As expected, fans have a lot to say about the decision, with some calling it the “worst thing” the studio has ever done.

For the past two decades, Activision has released a new Call of Duty entry every single year. While there have been a few curveballs along the way, such as 2021’s Call of Duty: Vanguard, the publisher has largely rotated between the iconic Modern Warfare and Black Ops subseries for the past eight years. The latest installment, Black Ops 7, is a direct sequel to one of the franchise’s most beloved entries: Black Ops 2. Developer Treyarch has also used the opportunity to celebrate the series’ legacy, bringing back remastered maps, returning modes, and the biggest addition of them all, the return of Blackout, Call of Duty‘s very first Battle Royale mode.

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Warzone’s New Black Ops Royale Mode Will Have Bots in Some Regions

The return of Blackout, which is now officially known as Black Ops Royale in Warzone, has been massively anticipated following Activision’s announcement late last year. The mode finally released today, but developer Raven Software provided fans with some disappointing news just hours beforehand. In a new statement via the Call of Duty Updates Twitter account, the studio revealed that, starting from next week, Black Ops Royale will introduce bots as part of a new test within Europe and the Middle East. This means that those outside of these regions won’t see any bots in their Black Ops Royale lobbies, but the possibility that this will roll out worldwide in the future has angered fans.

Bots were first introduced to Warzone back in Season 3 of Black Ops 6, which also saw the triumphant return of Verdansk. However, bots were only incoportated to separate playlists that were labelled as ‘Casual’. Raven says it has since “learned a lot” from Casual Battle Royale and Resurgence and now wants to “build on those learnings” with today’s announcement.

Content creator Xclusive Ace responded to the news by saying, “Being forced to play against bots in a (previously) pure PvP environment takes so much away from the experience,” while professional player and streamer Swagg urged the studio to revert the decision. Others even urged Raven to stick with its previous system and make a dedicated Casual Black Ops Royale playlist in order to keep bots separate.“We should have the option ALWAYS to play against real players. I have 0 satisfaction in playing a multiplayer game against AI,” BennyCentral said.

Altough the return of Blackout has been massively anticipated by the Call of Duty community, fans were also left disappointed when Raven Software confirmed that Black Ops Royale would only feature Quads matchmaking at launch. This came as a huge blow to those who only play Warzone solo, but the studio did attempt to justify its decision by stating that as Black Ops Royale is a fresh experience, Quads made the most sense as it is the most popular across all of Warzone‘s other modes. Raven says its priority is focusing on understanding how players feel about the core experience before introducing other options.

Black Ops Royale arrived in Warzone today, 24 hours after the launch of Call of Duty‘s big Season 2 Reloaded update. For those not interested in the Battle Royale experience, Black Ops 7 has also added tons of new content for Multiplayer, Zombies, and Endgame. The former of the bunch has once again received a ton of new and remastered maps, as well as some new weapons, modes, and more. As for Zombies fans, Treyarch Studios has launched Paradox Junction, a new round-based map featuring two different versions of the iconic Black Ops map, Nuketown.