CoD Vanguard January 31 patch totally misses mark with Search and Destroy audio fix

While Call of Duty Vanguard’s January 31 update looked to address a long-standing Search and Destroy audio issue, the patch completely missed the mark and actually did the opposite of what players expected.

Three months out from CoD Vanguard’s launch and a number of early problems still linger. Although regular patches have been rolled out since Activision’s apology for the state of the game, some have ended up doing more harm than good.

A surprise January 31 patch appears to fit that description once again. While the update addressed a range of Xbox-crashing bugs, it came with a secret change to the S&D game mode.

Players have been able to hear enemies planting and defusing since the staple game mode went live. Looking to fix this oversight once and for all, the latest Vanguard patch ended up flipping the script in a hilarious misstep.

Rather than muting these crucial audio elements for opposing players, the latest attempt from Sledgehammer Games went in the opposite direction. As ‘ItzSteaLthy’ uncovered shortly after the patch, “Activision didn’t fix anything.”

Instead, this noise is now silent for those engaging in the action. If you happen to be planting or defusing, you no longer hear the relevant audio cues. Everyone else in the near vicinity can still hear it just fine, however.

“Am I being trolled?” the player questioned. “You guys ‘fixed’ the bomb plant and defuse sound backward.”

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While a step up from the earlier visual bug that broke S&D, the mode is evidently still far from perfect in Vanguard. 

Given this adjustment was months in the making, there’s no telling how long it may be until a follow-up patch comes into effect. With criticism piling up already though, there’s a good chance we see this mis-fired change reverted sooner rather than later.

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With the Call of Duty League’s first matches of the 2022 season getting underway this weekend, there’s also no telling if pros will be able to compete on this patch.