All XDefiant game modes explained – Escort, Zone Control, Domination, Occupy, and Hot Shot

XDefiant is now live, offering players the chance to experience the variety of game modes on offer, many of which will be familiar to you if you’re an experienced FPS player. Here’s every game mode available in XDefiant and how they work.

All game modes in XDefiant

Escort

The first game mode in XDefiant is Escort. In it, you are tasked with either moving a robot to a delivery point as part of the attacking team or stopping the attackers from making progress as the defending team, similar to Overwatch 2.

Several checkpoints along the robot’s path change the spawn points for both teams and extend the timer for attackers. If attackers are not around the robot while it is moving, it will retreat in the opposite direction. 

After the first team gets the robot as far as they possibly can, the teams switch. The team that manages to move the robot the farthest wins. If one team gets the robot to the end, the opposing team has to do the same, but faster.

Zone Control

In the Zone Control game mode, you are tasked with attacking or defending various control points, which makes it similar to the Domination and Occupy game modes but with a few key twists.

In Zone Control, there are five zones for you to capture and defend, with only a few available at the start of the match. Attackers should capture all the available points to unlock the next set of zones. Meanwhile, defenders have to stop their progress.

Just like in Escort, after the time ends or all the zones are captured, the teams switch and play again to see who’s the best. This mode reminds me a lot of Battlefield, which had a similar mechanic for attacking and defending objectives, so it should be fairly easy for experienced players to get to grips with.

Domination

A game mode that should be familiar to almost any FPS player, Domination has three zones on the map, and teams have to control them to earn points. Having two or more zones held at any time will give you an advantage, and the first team that reaches the point target wins. 

Domination has been a staple for Call of Duty players for years and is an easy game mode to pick up, particularly as it offers a lot of mobility and is a go-to option when farming weapon experience.

Occupy

Occupy is another game mode that might be familiar to you, with both teams fighting for control of a single capture point over the course of the game.

The capture point changes locations during the game, and you will either be attacking or defending the point, depending on whether your team holds the capture point. If you’re experienced with Call of Duty, this game mode is essentially the same as Headquarters.

Hot Shot

The last game mode in XDefiant is Hot Shot, and it’s similar to Kill Confirmed from Call of Duty. When killing an enemy, they drop Bounties you have to collect to earn points.

Collecting a certain number of Bounties without dying makes you a Hot Shot, granting increased movement speed. Every Bounty you collect as a Hot Shot also grants bonus points. The team that reaches a target number of points first wins.