Activision pulling plug on original Call of Duty: Warzone this September

Just three years after its much-heralded arrival, Activision is pulling the plug on the original Call of Duty: Warzone. The free-to-play battle royale shooter set to go offline on 21st September.

Call of Duty: Warzone launched along Call of Duty: Modern Warfare in 2020, but was renamed Warzone Caldera after the arrival of its similarly styled successor, Warzone 2.0, last November.

Warzone Caldera has remained available in the months since then – meaning players have been able to continue using real-money purchases including skins and weapons unavailable in 2.0 – but now Activision has signalled the end is in sight for the original experience, warning that all progression, inventories, and online services will “expire” in September.

It says support for Caldera is ending so its teams can “focus on future Call of Duty content including the current Warzone free-to-play experience.”

“Regarding purchased content in Warzone Caldera,” the publisher added in an announced on the Call of Duty website, “from Modern Warfare (2019), Black Ops Cold War, or Vanguard – that will continue to be accessible in those specific games.”

Although the original Warzone might be coming to an end, the Call of Duty behemoth rumbles on. Warzone 2.0 and Modern Warfare 2’s fourth season of content recently got underway, and a new mainline series entry – expected to be titled Modern Warfare 3 – will release later this year.