Blackout’s blinding flashbang, the 9-Bang, has been excised from Call of Duty: Black Ops 4’s battle royale mode. Its removal might just be temporary, as Treyarch says that it will “evaluate its place in the gameplay loop”. It’s been the bane of many a player, though, so there will probably be a bit of celebrating going on. The patch also tunes Blackout generally, along with introducing the handsome fella above. That’s the Blightfather.

If you’re au fait with Black Ops 4’s Zombies mode or played Blackout during the beta, you might recognise this toothy guy. He’ll show up during your battle royale shenanigans until November 13, when he’ll return to whatever gross place he spawned from.

If you manage to kill the Blightfather, Treyarch promises you’ll be “rewarded handsomely”. Just keep an eye out for a red pillar of light and, of course, other players waiting to take you out.

Elsewhere, new playlists have been thrown into the mix, including a whole bunch of moshpits. Do you prefer your moshpits to be tactical? Hardcore? Do you even have a preference? Anyway, you should be covered. The full patch notes has a breakdown of what’s featured in each playlist.

On Friday, Black Ops 4’s first 2X Tier Boost Weekend will kick off at 10am PT, finishing at the same time on Monday, November 12. Anyone duking it out across the weekend will get twice as much Contraband Tier progression, while Zombies players will get twice as much Nebulium Plasma.

A few days ago, Black Ops 4 got its first PC-only balance patch.