WithCall of Duty: Vanguardjust around the corner, fans are beginning to discuss what improvements they hope it makes over its processor,Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War. One of the biggest improvements that many hope to see made is the competitive game mode known as League Play. It is unclear whether or notCall of Duty: Vanguardwill launch with League Play as the mode has taken a few months to come to previous titles, but there are some clear improvements that could be made to the mode to make a potential wait worthwhile.
League Play is the name ofCall of Duty’s ranked mode, which can be also found in most modern shooter games under different names. Many shooter fans prefer playing in competitive modes in games likeOverwatchandCounter-Strikeas the modes give unique rewards while also offering players a way to get put into matches with likely skilled players who want to do their best. However,Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War’s rendition of League Play has been plagued by issuessince it was added, andVanguardwill have to avoid making those same mistakes to be successful.
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Call of Duty: Vanguard League Play Needs to Get Rid of Play Time Bonuses
One of the biggest appeals of playing a competitive shooter mode is raising through ranks by winning games and improving one’s skills over time.Black Ops Cold Warthrew this balance out of whack by including a controversial system that helped players rank up based on how many hours they played rather than based on their performance. This mechanic was one of thebiggest blunders Treyarch made withBlack Ops Cold Waras it ultimately undercut why many players went to League Play, to begin with: getting ranked based on their skills.
With players getting rewarded with higher ranks for simply spending time in the mode, it hampered the experience for all. Many found themselves feeling cheated in games by having teammates that weren’t at the skill level required for their rank while others also found the mode become tedious and boring because they couldn’t keep up with their teammates. While the system may have helped the game attract players to logging into League Play matches at least once a day, it seems to have degraded the quality of matches for many players. This issue is exacerbated further by how many fans see League Play as a playlist to escapeCall of Duty’s controversial skill-based matchmaking, soVanguardshould do away with play-time bonuses to ensure its ranked mode feels skill-based.
Vanguard Needs to Avoid a Rocky Launch for League Play
Another issue that plagued the launch of League Play forBlack Ops Cold Warwas numerous issues with bugs, connectivity, and hacking. Many players found themselves frequently in matches against hackers after the launch of League Play as well as being disconnected in the middle of matches or having to deal with players simply leaving matches if they weren’t doing well. This issue was caused by players not being punished for leaving early when the mode launched, leading to many players leaving matches if they thought they wouldn’t win as they saw it as a waste of time.Call of Duty: Vanguardhas confirmed a ranked modealready, so, hopefully, the developers will be able to ensure that it is in solid condition when it releases.
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Cold Warplayers also reported being forced to play placement matches against keyboard and mouse players which they saw as unfair due to how much more responsive the control system is for shooters. To avoid this playersshould be able to turn off crossplay for ranked matches so that they don’t feel as though certain players are getting advantages from theirpreferredVanguardcontroller.
League Play Needs to Be More Understandable Moving Forward
Perhaps the mostfrustrating part of League Play inBlack Ops Cold Waris how confusing its progression systems are. While most competitive modes in shooters give players an ELO score based on their performance and ratio of wins to losses that determine what rank they are placed in, League Play has three separate progression systems for players to track. The first is a player’s Skill Division, which ranges from Competitor up to Master that players are placed in after completing their placement matches. Within that Skill Divison, they are then placed in a Division Ladder with 50 other players of the same Division in a leaderboard.
A player’s position in their Division Ladder determines how many gems they receive for playing, which allows them to increase their rank even faster. All in all, it is a lot going on for a competitive mode and has left many players confused about how fast they are actually progressing through the ranks or how they compare to their friends. There are a few different systems thatCall of Duty: Vanguardcan improve, and the ranking system is a prime example of where it could do so.
It will be very interesting to see howCall of Duty: Vanguard’s ranked mode shapes up to other games in the genre and series. There is definitely a lot forCall of Dutyfans to be excited about, like the game’s return to World War 2 or theZombies mode inVanguardusing dedicated servers. Hopefully, the developers will be able to deliver an entry in the series that satisfies its many fans while bringing new ideas to bothVanguardandWarzone.
Call of Duty: Vanguardreleases on July 10, 2025 for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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