Movement

“On your feet soldier! We are leaving!” – Capt. John Price, Call of Duty®: Modern Warfare®.

In a mode with split-second engagements, knowing when to run – and when not to – could be the difference between victory and defeat. Or knowing what your ideal controller sensitivity is for looking around could be key to elevating your game.

Whether this is your first-time playing Call of Duty, or you are a seasoned veteran, there’s likely to be something helpful to learn through this extensive guide on controlling movement and sight in-game for Warzone:

(For the purpose of all basics guides, all commands will reference those on a PlayStation® 4 controller, so translate these guides according to your platform of choice).

You’re Now Free to Move About the warzone

Standing

Are you not touching anything on your controller or keyboard? Then that means your Operator is standing in the game.

Okay, why is this important to point out?

In any scenario, being stationary allows you to potentially fire a weapon more accurately, as a weapon will be less accurate when fired on-the-move than when it is fired while not moving. So, when you walk right into an engagement, consider stopping to get a better chance at hitting those first few shots on an enemy.

Standing still can also leave you vulnerable to attacks whether in an active engagement or scoping out an enemy. So, consider remaining still during engagements where the enemy can’t see you or when landing shots on target is more important than evading bullets.

Accuracy while standing is the baseline accuracy for any weapon, so consider that when choosing between weapons for a loadout.

Walking

This is the most basic movement command in-game; pushing the left stick in any direction will move your Operator in that direction. This does not change where your Operator is looking which is a separate control.

Walking offers a minimal movement penalty while firing a weapon and produces the standard amount of noise while moving for an Operator.

As the “average” movement speed, it may not seem like walking has its uses, yet the minimal movement penalty to accuracy can come in handy during an engagement. Plus, in scenarios where stealth and speed are both needed, this offers a great middle ground within the range of movement options. 

Sprinting

Pushing in the left stick (L3) while moving in a direction will cause your Operator to break into a sprint.

With this boost in speed comes some drawbacks: it amplifies footsteps, slows aim down sight (ADS) speed, and you are unable to use weapons while sprinting. If you want to fire a weapon, you must break your sprint and take a slight delay before you can use it.

Also, unless you have the Dead Silence Field Upgrade activated, sprinting will increase the sound of your Operator’s footsteps. For an enemy who pays attention to in-game acoustics sprinting could give away your location, so sprinting behind enemy lines may not be the best idea when trying to avoid confrontation.

Conversely, you could use this knowledge to your own advantage in-game; turn up those headphones (to a reasonable volume, of course) and pay attention to where sprinting footsteps are coming from to potentially catch an enemy by surprise.

Tactical Sprinting

Tactical sprint is an even faster sprint; a short burst of speed that sees your Operator use all their energy to rush forward. To tactical sprint, click L3 twice and hold forward.

Outside of vehicles, tactical sprinting is the fastest way of moving, but you are unable to aim down sights without losing this sprint.

During a tactical sprint, your Operator holds a carried weapon towards the sky, making it even slower to ready that weapon for firing after a sprint. Furthermore, unless it is refreshed by way of a perk, the Stim Tactical Equipment, or Field Upgrade, there is a long cooldown between each use of tactical sprint. In other words, make it count… But how?

Consider using your tactical sprint in the very beginning of a game to potentially beat an enemy to an objective. Or, use your best judgement in deciding when that extra speed boost is absolutely necessary, even if it is long after spawning into a map.

On the Subject of Auto Tactical Sprint…

Commonly used by some of most elite Warzone players, Auto Tactical Sprint is a setting within the Movement section of the Options menu.

When enabled, moving forward while standing will make your character automatically activate tactical sprint, removing the need to double press the button mapped to the sprint command.

This has its pros and cons.

Having this enabled removes the need for a double button press, which some players might find more comfortable to their playstyle. This may be especially true for aggressive players who often find themselves sprinting from point-to-point, or who use advanced movement techniques often.

However, enabling Auto Tactical Sprint may make more subtle movements more difficult while standing. This may be an issue when trying to not give away a position by sprinting, which is louder than walking. Furthermore, it may take some time to get used to automatically tactical sprinting from a standstill, especially when it comes to getting around objects.

Again, some elite Warzone players use it, but not all do; it’s all down to personal preference.

Crouch Walking

Think of crouching as the inverse of sprinting; by crouching, you are sacrificing speed for the sake of accuracy, a lower profile, and softer movement acoustics.

To crouch, press the O (circle) on your controller. To get out of a crouch, press that button again.

In a crouch, your Operator gets an accuracy boost and recoil reduction bonus. This may be great when using a weapon with a wilder recoil pattern, such as a submachine gun (SMG), or any weapon in general, as being able to accurately place that first shot can help lead to victory in any engagement.

Crouching also softens the sound of footsteps, allowing for stealthier movement across the map. Whether you are behind enemy lines or trying to move closer to an objective, crouch walking could be a viable solution to having some speed while still being stealthy.

The other benefit to crouching is how it physically lowers an Operator’s profile, allowing them to potentially take better cover behind objects. A well-timed crouch could also foil an enemy’s attempt to get a headshot in the middle of a gunfight, which could offer a few split-seconds of an advantage while they re-adjust their aim.

Going Prone

The final basic movement technique is going prone, which is done by holding down circle.

Going prone allows for precision accuracy with weapons, the softest movement volume and the lowest profile, but at the cost of the slowest movement speed.

Firing a weapon while prone offers the most recoil mitigation and accuracy buff out of all movement stances. This benefit may be great for picking off enemies at long distances, as your Operator will use the ground to offer more stability even while using the highest magnification optics.

Going prone also drops your movement volume down to its lowest levels. This movement type may be perfect for those attempting to creep on an enemy squad or stealthily approach a Buy Station, as an undisciplined enemy team may not expect someone to shimmy up to the objective.

Shimmying is the best way to describe the movement speed while prone; however, moving while prone might be painfully slow, which may make this movement technique only viable in situations where covering long distances isn’t needed. Dropping to prone in the middle of an engagement can also work, as an enemy will most likely have to adjust their aim to an extreme degree to continue landing shots on target.

One additional minor benefit to going prone, and in some cases crouching, is the ability to fit into tighter spaces for potential shortcuts. There are multiple locations in Verdansk that are only accessible while in a prone or a crouch position, which could be unique ways to tackle an objective or flank around an enemy team.

Sliding

All the above movement types only require a button press to activate – or even none at all – but sliding is a bit trickier. To slide, hold O (circle) while sprinting. This will have your Operator perform a slide, allowing you to cover a short amount of distance and lower your profile.

Sliding offers a short movement boost and an irregular movement pattern that gives you a lower profile along with accuracy and recoil buffs.

For this reason, sliding could be a great way to end a sprint, as it could throw off an enemy who expects to face-off against another Operator at eye level. Learning how to slide effectively may take time, but when you do master the slide it could be very helpful to your gameplay.

For those that wish to tweak their settings, the slide action can be adjust from ‘hold to slide’ to ‘tap to slide’ in Settings. Depending on how often you use this movement mechanic, the hold to tap adjustment might be worth it. 

Advanced Movement Technique: The Slide Cancel

A technique that is used by elite Warzone players, the slide cancel is a unique way to move across Verdansk. Combining speed with a constantly shifting profile between standing and sliding, the slide cancel allows aggressive players to get to engagements quicker while also having some evasiveness and readiness for the fight ahead.

To perform this technique, you must first start sprinting – or ideally, tactical sprinting – forward. Next, begin sliding (using tap to slide). While in that slide, press O (circle) again to stop sliding, then immediately press the X (cross) button to come back up.

If performed correctly, your Operator will temporarily sprint forward, duck down for a slide, and pop back up. This can be chained together indefinitely, although at some point, you may want to stop and actually fire your weapon.

Leaps and Bounds

Jumping

Pressing the X (cross) button will make your Operator jump, with the height of your jump progressively getting shorter if this command is executed multiple times in short succession.

Jumping could be necessary to get across short gaps in order to access unique routes across the map, and otherwise is a potential way to throw off enemy fire.

Study your preferred locations; it’s possible to not touch the ground through some locations, like the train carriages of the Train Yard, by hopping across ledges, tin roofs, and even boxes. These kinds of routes might surprise an enemy who may expect an Operator to merely walk across the playing field, which could lead to a unique advantage in combat.

While jumping greatly decreases accuracy while firing weapons – that’s why those who can hit jump shots with sniper rifles get serious cred around the community – this movement technique is still an important part of your Operator’s mobility arsenal.

Mantling

During your time in Warzone, there may be times where you need to get over a box, ledge, or ridge. That’s where mantling comes into play; pressing cross (X) when prompted near a grabbable edge will allow your Operator to boost up and over, or on top of the object in question.

Mantling could be key to accessing locations and can even save you from death in certain scenarios but will leave you temporarily exposed without a way to fire back at enemy forces.

For example, let’s say you take a leap of faith across a gap and barely miss. Mantling up on the edge of a platform when prompted to could be the difference between making it across and certain death.

There are also a few places where mantling could lead to unique shortcuts or irregular routes around the map. Pay attention to your surroundings, and consider experimenting with gaps, ledges, and other areas that feel right for a bit of battlefield parkour.

Unfortunately, mantling comes with a major drawback. While mantling, you are unable to use any weapons. Before doing this movement technique, just be sure that you aren’t in the middle of a gunfight, lest you give the enemy a few free hits.

Climbing

The final movement technique within the trio of verticality is climbing, which is done by jumping onto or walking into a ladder on a map.

Climbing may be necessary to move up in certain areas, and while climbing, you are able to fire a handgun if you have one as a secondary weapon.

While moving up or down a ladder, your Operator can stay on a rung while firing any pistol, if you have one in your loadout. This could offer enough self-defense to protect you while climbing up and out of a lower ground area, which makes it even more important to consider outfitting that pistol with some attachments.

Note you can also let go of a ladder and choose to descend quicker by holding the same command used to crouch, as well as sprinting and jumping to grab a higher ladder rung to quicken your ascent and descent. Just ensure you don’t drop too far!

Parachuting

Every Warzone Operator comes equipped with an unlimited supply of parachutes.

When falling at a height that can be lethal – such as during infiltration – your Operator will enter a free-fall towards the ground. Opening the parachute (L1 while in the air) will not only save an Operator’s life, but also slow falling speed and allow movement in the air.

Your parachute is also available once you’ve landed on the ground, and you’ve subsequently explored and ascended to a high point on the map, such as a cliff top or roof; simply jump off and you’ll be able to open that parachute.

Cut Parachute (Circle): If for some reason you need to fall faster – we’ll get to reasons why in our Parachuting section of this guide – you can cut your parachute with another button press. Doing so will allow your Operator to use their weapon for a few seconds before re-entering free-fall, at which point you can open another parachute.

Exterior Ascenders and Elevator Cables

Select structures around Verdansk and Rebirth Island have Exterior Ascenders – long ropes hanging off an orange platform at the top – or have a broken elevator shaft with the car stuck at the bottom and multiple Elevator Cables in-tact.

Both of these environmental objects can be ascended and descended by use of a powered ascender device, which every Operator infiltrates into the warzone with. Usually, this acts as an alternate way of climbing up to a set of stairs or ladder, or in the case of an elevator shaft, going down as opposed to parachuting off the structure.

These ascenders allow operators to get to other areas in the structure more quickly or can be used to get onto the level of a sniper while potentially avoiding the traps they set.

However, just like any other route on the structure, these ascenders are in set places that can easily be watched over or rigged up with traps. Furthermore, unlike a ladder, an Operator is completely defenseless while using an Exterior Ascender or Elevator Cable, and the powered ascender device makes an audible noise that a keen enemy could easily pick up on.

In other words, consider these cables one of many risky options when dealing with enemies on higher ground.

Putting it All Together – Parkour Across Verdansk ‘84

Using all of the above movement techniques, you are able to turn Verdansk into a parkour paradise.

Look at the above gif as an example; normally, entering that building at the ground floor and going up the stairs would be an easy win for Stone, but by using the environment around him, Adler is able to hop through the second floor window and gain the advantage.

In short, advanced Operators are able to use the environment to their advantage, knowing which gaps they can jump across, what can be mantled upon, and most importantly, why taking the extra seconds to move unexpectedly can catch enemies off guard. Vehicles can also be used to make some unexpected movements, such as parking a Cargo Truck next to a building and hopping from its cab to an open window.

Use the Atlas section to learn more about the 400-plus points of interest in Verdansk, and visit them yourself in game to figure out some incredible movement techniques that might just help you earn a well-deserved victory.

Looking Around and Ahead

For all movement options that exist, where you move is based on what direction your Operator is facing. The right stick will turn your Operator in that direction, with left and right acting as the X axis, and up and down acting as the Y axis.

Looking around in game is determined by your vertical and horizontal sensitivity settings, which are set up in the Options menu on a 20-point system. By default, both these values are set to 3, with 1 being low and 20 being insanely high.

Other than knowing what movement techniques are best for each battle situation, knowing what sensitivity you are comfortable with could result in a massive improvement to your overall skill.

Let’s reiterate that: there is no perfect sensitivity setting combo, as the best sensitivity setting is the one you are most comfortable with.

Looking (Low Sensitivity)

Take the lowest sensitivity settings, for example: having a 1-1 sensitivity makes it easier to make precise movements while aiming. That may be great for those who love to snipe at long distances and want to only make micro adjustments for aiming in order to hit targets with pinpoint accuracy.

Looking (High Sensitivity)

As for the other end of the spectrum, a 20-20 sensitivity allows for extremely quick turns with only a simple flick of the control stick. This may be great for those who run-and-gun, as being able to turn on a dime could help a submachine gun user snap onto an enemy going on the flank.

While a good portion of the Call of Duty community may never change their sensitivity settings past the default 3-3, we recommend experimenting around the scale to find out your ideal speed for looking around in-game.

Vehicles of Warzone

The Vehicles team at Infinity Ward rebuilt the way Call of Duty players can drive around the map, with the goal of making these war machines realistic, yet easy and fun to use in combat.

Driving a vehicle, in most cases, is as simple as pressing R2 to accelerate, L2 to brake or reverse, and the left control stick to turn. The right control stick can be used to look around or could be a necessary part of the turning process, depending on the vehicle being used.

Vehicles are the fastest way to get across the map, but of course, the hum of an engine is substantially louder than boots on the ground.

All vehicles can also be boarded, and the number of seats available depends on the vehicle in question. Whether it’s an ATV, SUV, Heli, Cargo Truck, or Tac Rover, any and all vehicles may be necessary for travelling long distances across the Warzone map. Plus, they could be used as weapons against enemies who dare cross your path on foot.

Click here to visit the Vehicles chapter and find out the types of vehicles you will encounter in the Warzone and how they can be effective.

Useful Links: Other Guide Chapters:

Welcome to the Warzone: Basic Training

Pre-Game Preparation

Infil: Tactics in the Warzone

Exfil: After Action Report

Tac Map: Atlas of Verdansk

Tac Map: Atlas of Rebirth Island