Scump & FormaL mock CoD Vanguard’s ridiculous Exploding Rounds
While the Call of Duty Vanguard Alpha is just an early glimpse at this year’s title, competitive legends Seth ‘Scump’ Abner and Matthew ‘FormaL’ Piper both agree that Exploding Rounds already need to go.
It’s been a dizzying week in the competitive CoD scene withteams falling apartand organizationsreportedly joining forces, but all through the chaos, players have finally had their first chance to test out Vanguard.
Scump has been active on Twitch since the Alpha test kicked off, grinding through Champion’s Hill for hours on end each day.
While he’s racked up his fair share of wins, The King isn’t all too pleased with one thing in particular: Exploding Rounds.
When these bullets hit you — or even just hit the air around you — it becomes increasingly difficult to see and thus, fight back. Both Scump and his former T2P duo FormaL took to social media to express their disdain for this year’s controversial feature.
Yep good year to skip
— OpTic FormaL (@FormaL)July 16, 2025
“Exploding rounds make me frown,” Scump said in an August 29 clip.
Having made it through to the final round of a Trios match, there was just one team left in Scump’s path to victory. Before he even got a chance to secure the win, exploding rounds came into play.
“I can’t even see,” he said mere seconds after spawning in. “I can’t even see this dude, I can’t see him.”
As Exploding Rounds connected from across the map, damage piled up and Scump’s screen turned almost pitch black. “What the f*** is that?” he yelled. “What is this?”
Nadeshot worried for CoD’s future & fears Verdansk won’t save Warzone
Call of Duty League fans urge Scump to come back after amazing BO6 play
Call of Duty legend Scump tells young players to pursue other games
“Yep, good year to skip,” FormaL joked in the replies, one day after fromannouncing his retirement.
Exploding Rounds come as part of the Death Machine unlock in Champion’s Hill Buy Stations. They appear to deal more damage with each hit but also apply lingering damage as well, wounding foes over time.
With Vanguard’s release still a few weeks out, there’s every chance this could be tweaked prior to launch.
For the Alpha at least, it’s clear Exploding Rounds are a huge gripe.
