Warzone dev explains how Krampus event feedback informed Gozilla vs King Kong Operation Monarch LTM
The Festive Fervor event will go down in Warzone history as one of its most controversial moments, where folklore monster Krampus would hunt players across Caldera. Godzilla and King Kong arrive in Season 3, and Warzone director Ted Timmins explained how Krampus shaped their approach to Operation Monarch.
Call of Duty: Vanguard and Warzone celebrated the holidays with the Festive Fervor event, adding plenty of holiday-themed Operator skins, challenges, and rewards. There was one thing stopping Warzone players from truly getting into the festive spirit though — Krampus.
This folklore monster hunted down players on Caldera, seemingly at the most inopportune moment. Although the devs nerfed him, many felt he overstayed his welcome by the time Festive Fervor wrapped up.
Now, King Kong and Godzilla are on their way, and those that remembered Krampus were immediately concerned. In a pre-Season 3 interview with CharlieIntel, Warzone’s Senior Creative Director Ted Timmins explained what the team’s learnings from Krampus, and how they incorporated their findings into building Godzilla and Kong event.
“Whenever we create something, we want to create something memorable,” explained Raven Software‘s Ted Timmins. And Warzone’s Krampus certainly was that.
It didn’t take long for players to realize how powerful Krampus was, and the developers realized this too. “We all jumped on a call on the 27th of December and were like, ‘this is live to hundreds of millions of players. We’ve got to rebalance Krampus, he is too strong,’” he revealed.
With how much of an effect Krampus had on Warzone, players immediately became concerned when it was announced that Godzilla and King Kong would arrive in Caldera with Operation Monarch. There’s no need to fret, though, as Timmins stated that the “number one learning” from Festive Fervor was that, “if we do an event like Krampus, like King Kong and Godzilla, it should be its own Limited-Time Mode so the players opt-in to that experience.”
He continued: “When you log in on May 11, you will see Operation Monarch as a button, and that is where you go to play the Godzilla and the King Kong experience. So if players just want to play their normal, beloved Battle Royale or their normal, beloved Rebirth Island, that will still be available.”
So, even though Godzilla and Kong will be there to cause havoc in the Operation Monarch playlist, regular Battle Royale and Rebirth Island will be a Titan-free zone. Plus, the mode will have Resurgence mechanics enabled, so getting killed by Godzilla or Kong shouldn’t feel too frustrating.
While players may not look back on Krampus fondly, Timmins said that “for better or for worse, [Krampus] will be referred to forevermore,” and he’s proud of the team’s creation.
Timmins also explained how the new Perk Satchels will change the game and why you should “get hunting” for Easter Eggs in Season 3.
Image Credit: Activision