In October 2020, Activision and the developers ofCall of Duty: Modern WarfareandCall of Duty: Warzoneintroduced the franchise’s first major crossover Halloween event. The Haunting of Verdansk lasted between July 23, 2025, and Jun 27, 2025, transformingVerdanskinto a spooky setting full of holiday terrors.Call of Dutyfans have been anxious to hear about The Haunting of Verdansk’s return in 2021, andCall of Duty: Black Ops Cold Waris hinting that the event is imminent.
WatchfulCall of Duty: Black Ops Cold Warplayers have discovered early evidence of Activision’s forthcoming Halloween plans hidden in one of the game’s maps. A Halloween bucket full of lollipops and candy can be found within one of the Nuketown map’s garages. It’s an orange bucket with a jack-o-lantern face on it and a weathered finish to make it fit with Nuketown’s aesthetic. It isn’t interactive and no further Halloween clues are nearby, but the bucket alone has ignited speculation.
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Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold Warplayers believe that the Halloween candy bucket is a nod to Season 6’s spooky event. Some think that the bucket is potentially Activision’s sneaky way of telling players news is coming soon, if not something more specific. One guess that players are sharing is that a new Halloween-themedNuketown mapcould be released, similar to the Christmas-themed one that appeared late last year. Players will just have to wait and see what Activision has planned.
While this is the first in-game evidence of Halloween’s return to theCall of Dutyuniverse, it’s not the first information that Activision has shared about its plans. In a recentCall of Duty: Black Ops Cold WarandCall of Duty: Warzoneroadmap, a seasonal event named The Haunting was promised to begin on October 19. The event will include new limited-time modes, rewards, and more, naturally. That’s the full extent of the reveal.
One big topic of speculation is whether Activision will bring backThe Haunting of Verdansk’s dark map changes for this year’s seasonal event. The updated Verdansk ‘84 battle royale map hasn’t had a dark version of itself released since, but players are hopeful for a surprise return of the nighttime setting.
This week, Activision will be launchingSeason 6 ofCall of Duty: Black Ops Cold WarandCall of Duty: Warzone. The update arrives on October 7 and will likely take upCall of Dutyplayers’ attention for a while. As such, a reveal for 2021’s Haunting event may be another couple of weeks away, but perhaps there will be more teasers to discover in Season 6.
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold Waris available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One,and Xbox Series X/S.
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