The event fans have been waiting for is almost here, as Verdansk makes its return to . The Verdansk map is making a comeback as part of , which made its debut earlier this week. With the launch of Season 3 out of the way, Call of Duty publisher Activision is finally ready to bring Verdansk back to the popular Battle Royale mode, complete with a special launch event packed with rewards.

As confirmed in a Call of Duty blog post, Verdansk has an April 3 release date and a 5pm BST UK launch time.

"Equip your Kilo 141, CR-56 AMAX and HDR, and drop in on April 3 at 9AM, one day after the launch of Black Ops 6 Season 03 on April 2!" Activision confirms.

That's a 9am PT launch time for fans in the US and a 5pm BST release time for players from the UK.

The map launches alongside the Return to Verdansk event, which is exclusive to Call of Duty Warzone.

As part of the event, players are tasked with finding hidden safes scattered across each of the map's 12 zones. These safes are said to contain exclusive rewards, including the event-exclusive TrailBlazer Operator Skin.

Activision explains more: "The actual missions you're undertaking during this Event is to choose a Zone and thoroughly explore it, looking for Hidden Safes.

"There are multiple Safes across each Zone. You and your Squad can open as many Hidden Safes as you can find during a match.

"Each Safe can only be opened once, and when opened, expect an explosive indication (visible to rival teams) that the Safe has been cracked!"

According to Activision, there are three different outcomes when opening a safe. On the one hand, you could walk away with some ground loot to help you potentially win your current game of Warzone.

If you're lucky, however, you and the rest of your squad will unlock an exclusive event reward, which includes the 'Let's Plan Something!' loading screen, the 'Back Adjustment' finishing move and the 'With Fries, Please' weapon charm. Earning all 12 rewards automatically unlocks the 'Kali Sticks' melee weapon.

If you're really lucky you'll come across the third outcome, which is the 'TrailBlazer' operating skin.

The Return to Verdansk event runs from April 3 until April 15. Outside of the hidden rewards listed above, players will unlock six items just for logging in during this period.

According to Activision, the release of Verdansk will coincide with changes to the gameplay. Fans can expect a "back to basics" approach to certain gameplay elements, including the game's omnimovement system.

Omnimovement will be fine-tuned to "better align with the unique demands of Call of Duty: Warzone's map and engagement styles".

The Warzone developer will scale back some of the increases in movement speed and will also adjust slide friction to make the experience feel more like the early days of Warzone.

Elsewhere, Verdansk will support 150 players at launch and will feature the return of the original announcer and cinematics. You'll also be able to fire your weapon when dropping into the map.

Additional features will be introduced during the mid-season update later this year.