Call Of Duty: WWII Multiplayer Headquarters & New Supply Drop System Revealed

Call Of Duty: WWII aims to take the franchise back to its roots while establishing some new conventions along the way. This mission is particularly obvious in light of changes to the game’s multiplayer offering. As outlined in a recent Game Informer exclusive, players will socialize and get Supply Drops in interesting ways.

Starting first with Supply Drops, we know they’ll be parceled out to offer different tiers of gear, including Epic and Legendary items. However, this time the emphasis is on cosmetics as opposed to guns with a measurable advantage. Here’s what Sledgehammer Co-Studio Head Michael Condrey had to say on the matter:

“We started with this root in believability. You get to Legendary and it’s black ebony wood that’s been stained or maybe an ornamental weapon that a general could have had behind his desk. The Epics that are the rarest are customized with thematically appropriate elements. For example, the StG 44, the iconic German assault rifle, the Epic version has an Iron Cross paintjob on it. We have a new loot item taken from World War II, they’re called Sweetheart Grips. Soldiers would take and replace their pistol grips with Plexiglass.”

In other words, each Epic and Legendary tier of gun is historically rooted in the kind of variation one might’ve actually seen on the 1940s battlefield. As in any era of war, soldiers became attached to their weapon and customized it in various ways. Supply Drops are essentially a gameplay mechanic that simulates this real-world activity. The more you fight, the more you can customize.

With this focus on player individuality in mind, Sledgehammer has also introduced a new way Supply Drops can be opened. All combatants funnel through the 48-player social space called Headquarters, and showing off rewards there actually increases one’s social score. That score contributes to improved Supply Drop odds. As if that incentive wasn’t enough, opening rare Supply Drops around others will offer a prize to every player watching it happen. In that sense, when you benefit from a cool drop, your friends have the chance to do so as well.

We’ve spoken at length about Headquarters’ contributions to multiplayer already, but the exclusive contained a few small tidbits about it we hadn’t heard before. In addition to opening Supply Drops, groups can also watch high-profile streams and eSports tournaments together at an in-game theater. Headquarters can also be attacked dynamically via an airstrike. In limited events like these, players must work together with anti-air weapons to fight off the enemy. Daily and weekly quests are on offer too. These previously undisclosed concepts exist in addition to a firing range, 1v1 PvP pit and a special prestige section.

These multiplayer reveals are part of a much larger Game Informer piece that also touches on other facets of Call Of Duty: WWII including campaign and Zombies. For more details on the latter, click here.

Call Of Duty: WWII comes to PS4, Xbox One and PC Nov. 3. Its multiplayer Private Beta begins Aug. 25 on PS4.

What do you think about Headquarters and Supply Drops in Call Of Duty: WWII? Will these features make multiplayer better? Tell us in the comments section!