Call of Duty League Pros Outraged by S&D Map Changes
- Dealership and Rewind have been added to the Search and Destroy map pool for Major 3
- How will this controversial change impact the CDL standings during Major 3?
Earlier today, the Call of Duty League officially announced a major change to the Search and Destroy map pool heading into the Major 3 Qualifiers. These changes will also be effective immediately in Ranked Play. What are these map changes and how will they impact gameplay as teams prepare for Major 3?
Major 3 Qualifiers start Friday, April 4th
Related Article: FaZe Secures 3 Peat - CDL Major 2 Recap
Old Maps Out: Vault and Skyline
The new Search and Destroy map pool will see two maps removed: Skyline and Vault. As two of the maps included within Black Ops 6 at launch, Skyline and Vault have been some of the most competitive maps across all three game modes.
🚨 NEW MAPS, WHO DIS? 🚨
— Call of Duty League (@CODLeague) March 25, 2025
Search & Destroy just got a shake up 👀 pic.twitter.com/91BRhxi2lt
During Major 1 and 2, Vault was played for Hardpoint, Control and S&D. With a layout so similar to the traditional Treyarch 3-lane system, the additional routes created bottlenecks within high-level S&D gameplay. The A bomb was particularly troublesome as it is positioned underneath the center building on the map, with only two doorways available to break a setup.
Before Hacienda was introduced, Vault was played in nearly every series due to it being the most balanced Control option by far. It is also heavily chosen in Hardpoint which should not change heading into Major 3.
Skyline was a staple in Majors 1 and 2 as it has very straightforward gameplay that forces early interactions. With the way the map is laid out, even gunfights are inevitable as teams are taking/retaking bomb sites. Skyline was played in some of the best moments of the season so far, including game 7, round 11, between the LA Thieves and Atlanta FaZe in the Grand Finals of Major 1. Hopefully, the new maps will provide us with more memorable moments as these two have.
Many players have already taken to X to criticize other teams for the way they would exclusively 4-stack the A bomb site on this map:
— 04 (@04IsBack) March 25, 2025
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New Maps In: Rewind and Dealership
The two new maps entering the Search and Destroy map pool are Rewind and Dealership.
📢 #BlackOps6 Ranked Play
— Call of Duty Updates (@CODUpdates) March 25, 2025
The competitive map pool has been updated.
CDL Search and Destroy
❌ Maps Removed: Vault, Skyline
✅ Maps Added: Rewind, Dealership
Rewind was a map that was included in BO6 at launch. Top teams scrimmed this map for weeks after launch and it was a favorite in many pre-season tournaments. With a much less traditional layout than that of Vault or Skyline, it is very interesting the CDL decided to replace them with this launch-day map so late into the season.
Dealership is a new map that was introduced in Season 2 of BO6 which means top teams will have virtually no reps on it.
This black market car dealership looks to have a traditional 3-lane style which is ideal for S&D gameplay. As teams begin scrimming this map, we will have a better idea of the pacing and favored bombsites teams will be targeting in Major 3.
A Controversial Change
“Dealership is a terrible map... the pros had no control over this.”
- Ghosty
These changes to the map pool have been met with instant criticism from the pro players and the community. Ghosty has been very public with his early criticism and had some words as he saw the CDL's announcement:
Ghosty reacts to NEW CDL map pool update 😤
— SpawnUp (@SpawnUpgg) March 25, 2025
"Dealership is a terrible map... the pros had no control over this." pic.twitter.com/gq6l4cQBkQ
Shotzzy also weighed in on the changes during his Twitch stream with some 'not so nice' words:
Shotzzy gives his thoughts on new CDL map pool 👀
— CoD Clipped (@CoDClipped) March 25, 2025
"All 4 of those maps are literally dogsh*t for SnD." pic.twitter.com/BBQlzSMoJ0
If it is true the league had zero communication with the players regarding this change, that is very concerning as the future of the entire Call of Duty League hangs in the balance after this season. The competitive Call of Duty scene has been demanding for years that developers and league management work with the players to make changes that are beneficial for the game's competitive integrity. Continuing to work against the players will keep plaguing the league with the problems that have hurt the CDL since its inception, making the league's future look even bleaker.
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Impact on CDL Gameplay
Rewind should heavily benefit teams with “ratty” playstyles as it has many alleys and rooms allowing players to hide and pop out whenever they want. Teams like FaZe and Toronto instantly come to mind with how good their sub players are at escaping and playing their lives.
In pre-season tournaments, many teams ran 3-4 ARs and took control of the street portion of the map, forcing the subs to come out of the exposed doorways and take fights with a massive disadvantage. With how well flex players have been able to switch their playstyles this season, we may see a wide variety of strategies depending on the targeted bombsite.
Dealership will be an incredible opportunity for the bottom teams to gain a considerable advantage early in Major 3. A fresh map allows each team equal footing to prepare and learn everything about it to catch others off guard in qualifiers. As teams gain advantages, this map may be vetoed heavily by teams who would rather avoid it than square up against better-prepared teams.
Will This Impact CDL Standings?
These changes could have a drastic impact on the CDL standings. Generally, S&D skills translate from map to map, so we should still see the top S&D teams succeed. However, this could condense the map pool for top teams, allowing teams on the bottom more opportunities to steal maps.
Some teams, like Rokkr and Ultra, which are very good at abusing the same strategy on Skyline, may suffer as they will have to diversify their play styles on these new maps. We will see if these new teams develop similar strategies on the new maps or completely adjust their pace of play to match their opponents.
Ultra had a 100% win rate on Skyline and Vault SND 😬 pic.twitter.com/hQ7VdS7E7y
— Breaking Point (@GGBreakingPoint) March 25, 2025
Major 3 Qualifiers start Friday, April 4th. Stay tuned to see which teams will take full advantage of Rewind and Dealership and if any top teams will crumble on the new maps.
What to Read Next
Taven is a recent graduate from the University of Oregon's Sports Business program. During his time post-grad, he has developed his own website where he has covered the Call of Duty League as well as college football. He competed semi-professionally in the CDL Challengers Circuit for three years as well as for The University of Oregon's CCL team, which made playoffs and placed T48 each of Taven's three years. Taven still enjoys playing Call of Duty in his spare time, as well as World of Warcraft and any game he is obsessing over at the time.