Dead Silence is a Field Upgrade in CoD: Vanguard multiplayer

Keshav Bhat
Vanguard player peeking around the corner

Fans hoping that Dead Silence would be a perk in Call of Duty: Vanguard will be disappointed to hear that Sledgehammer Games has replicated Modern Warfare including it as a Field Upgrade.  

Dead silence, in some variation, has been in Call of Duty’s multiplayer modes for years. The feature allows players to move silently across the map, with enemies unable to hear your footsteps.

In Modern Warfare in 2019, Infinity Ward removed Dead Silence as a Perk and opted to include the feature as a Field Upgrade. These Field Upgrades are rechargeable upgrades that are earned throughout the games.   

Call of Duty Vanguard

With Call of Duty: Vanguard multiplayer, that experience from Modern Warfare is brought back once again. Dead Silence is not a Perk, and Sledgehammer Games has opted to add the ability as a Field Upgrade. 

With it being a Field Upgrade, players won’t be able to consistently have silent footsteps through the course of the match. 

Rather, they will have to earn it as an upgrade to unlock to use only during certain periods of games. This makes it a bit more strategic to use, as players will have to choose when they activate carefully as it won’t always be on.

Dead Silence Field Upgrade in Vanguard

This decision will surely be met with mixed reactions, as many players did not like Modern Warfare’s take on Dead Silence. Being a Field Upgrade, however, does match Warzone, where it’s also classed as a Field Upgrade that can be picked up from the ground or Loot Boxes.

Sledgehammer have clearly taken inspiration from Modern Warfare, using the same minimap as Infinity Ward too, which won’t show unsilenced gunfire on the map.

Treyarch added back in Ninja perk to Black Ops Cold War’s release, which added silent footsteps while moving to the game. There was no Field Upgrade option for Dead Silence. 

Some fans have also pointed out that Vanguard’s footstep audio is already so quiet that Dead Silence’s impact might not be significant, but Sledhegammer could choose to raise movement audio throughout the open beta phase and the full game release.

Image Credits: Sledgehammer Games

About The Author

Keshav Bhat is the Co-Founder of CharlieIntel.com, the world's largest Call of Duty news site. Based in Atlanta, Keshav also serves as the Head of Social Media for Dexerto network, running a network of over 10 million social followers. Keshav can be contacted for tips at [email protected]