Wardogs devs rush to fix XP exploit allowing players to quickly unlock tanks and stomp competition on Season 2’s first day
Wardogs’ Season 2 launch exposed an XP exploit that let players unlock tanks within hours, giving them a major advantage over players who had not progressed far enough to obtain anti-tank equipment. Developer Bulkhead quickly patched the progression bug and the exploit, while acknowledging that changes intended to improve the game had caused problems.
The exploit involved driving just outside the HQ, dropping off pallets and returning, with faster Driver XP gains accelerating progress. Bulkhead also removed cash and XP bonuses for the blue team; technical designer Mark Tadros said fewer than 1,000 of the most extreme exploit users would receive 24-hour bans. Community reactions were mixed, including disappointment among players who missed the brief opportunity.
- A Driver XP exploit let players unlock tanks rapidly.
- Bulkhead patched the bug and removed blue-team bonuses.
- Fewer than 1,000 extreme users face 24-hour bans.
Both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
A swift patch and short bans can protect fair competition when an exploit lets some players unlock powerful tanks far earlier than intended, especially if opponents lack anti-tank equipment. Limiting penalties to the most extreme cases and making them temporary may help restore balance while recognising that the developer’s changes contributed to the problem.
The case against
Players could argue that exploiting a progression route the game allowed, particularly during a launch disrupted by the developer’s own changes, should not bring bans without clear rules and consistent enforcement. They may also see removing bonuses and punishing only some users as uneven treatment, and feel that a brief chance to gain XP should have been handled through a reset or compensation instead.