Call of Duty Mobile teases new large Battle Royale map, Gulag returns

Call of Duty: Mobile is about to shake up Battle Royale in a way it has not in years. Activision’s Head of COD Mobile, Jeff Gullett, confirmed during the first Inside CODM developer discussion that a brand-new large BR map is in development, and that Gulag is returning.

That is a meaningful change for a mode that has leaned for years on Isolated and Blackout for its biggest fights. Gullett’s answer also points to timing that could matter even more than the announcement itself, with more details expected around the game’s anniversary season later this year. If Activision uses that window to unveil the new map in full, the update would land as one of the clearest signals yet that Battle Royale is getting a real push instead of another minor tweak.

Gulag’s return is the nostalgia hook, but it is also the mechanic that could alter how squads play every match. In Call of Duty: Mobile’s earlier implementation, first introduced as a limited-time Battle Royale event in Season 7: Phantom Current, eliminated players were sent into a 1v1 deathmatch for a chance to redeploy. Each player got one default Gulag attempt, with extra chances tied to Gulag Tickets bought at Buy Stations. That setup gave every fight a sharper edge, because a bad push no longer meant the end of the match for certain.

Season 7: Phantom Current launched on July 23, 2025, and Gulag’s removal left a gap for players who wanted a more classic second-chance system in mobile BR. Its return suggests Activision heard that feedback, and the developers made that connection clear by pointing to community response as part of the reason the feature is coming back. For squads, that means more calculated plays around buys, revives and late-circle survival, especially if the new map is built for larger engagements than the recent smaller-scale additions.

Those recent additions, including Rebirth Island in Season 4: Eternal Prison in April 2026 and DMZ: Recon support, kept Battle Royale moving, but they did not answer the demand for a totally new big-map experience. Activision later framed Season 11 as the game’s 6th Anniversary celebration, and that gives the coming BR changes a natural spotlight.

Call of Duty: Mobile launched worldwide on October 1, 2019, as a free-to-play mobile game that brought together Modern Warfare and Black Ops content alongside a sprawling Battle Royale mode. Now, with a new large map in development and Gulag back in the mix, that original BR promise looks set to matter all over again.