Call of Duty Online Is Testing A New Battle Royale Mode

It seems that "Battle Royale" is the next big thing in gaming. It's helped catapult PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds to new heights in terms of sales, and also did wonders for Epic Games' Fortnite when it was introduced last year. And even talk about a Battle Royale mode in Red Dead Redemption 2 is making the rounds, though nothing is confirmed just yet. But now, a huge franchise is giving the mode a try, and it could mean bigger things for it in the future.

Call of Duty Online, an exclusive online game that's getting huge numbers in China, has begun testing out its own version of a Battle Royale mode, according to Segment Next. Testing it overseas first makes sense, since the mode is probably getting the largest draw over in China, though it's not doing too shabby at all here.

But don't expect 100 players to be running around like crazy in Call of Duty. Instead, it appears that Activision is going for a more concentrated version of the game, with up to 18 players fighting in a winner-take-all match-up.

The rules for the mode are about the same, though. Players are dropped into the map not having a thing on them, and they'll need to scavenge to pick up weapons and other goods to be used against their adversaries. The last man (or woman) standing wins.

Though the mode is currently in limited access beta, players have noted that they've been quite pleased with it. This could be big news for Activision, as its popularity could grow and maybe even spread over into more mainstream Call of Duty releases. Imagine if Treyarch was able to successfully add a Battle Royale mode to its forthcoming 2018 game. Or perhaps Sledgehammer could even create such a mode for WWII. It'd certainly help grow a bigger audience for either game, that's for sure.

You can check out content from the mode in the video above (originally posted by YouTube user Zhenya COD) to get a better idea of how it works. Again, that doesn't mean we're going to see Battle Royale in Call of Duty right away, but considering it's already a huge draw, don't be surprised if it eventually gets added.

Call of Duty Online isn't available for play in the U.S, but you can get your multiplayer fix with Call of Duty: WWII, which is available now for Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC.