Delta Force has been out on Xbox Series X|S for a little more than three months. Available for free, the game provides three distinctive modes for players of various taste palette: Operations, the game’s accessible, Operator based Extraction Shooter; the Black Hawk Down PvE campaign; and Warfare mode, where players engage in vehicle and/or infantry skirmishes taking place on a growing roster of maps, with its latest addition: Monument. It’s big, with lots of POIs and routes, meaning it’s packed with gameplay opportunities. But this map is more than just a new playground with a new look. It’s delivering a vibe. I spoke with two developers from the team to find out what this map was all about, and why it was so special for the team.

The making of this map took a rebellious turn. Gameplay-first has always been Team Jade’s go-to recipe but with this map, the team decided to flip the script. “I think it really started with a tribute,” said Kai, Level Designer at Team Jade who worked on this map. “We really liked ‘Operation Monument,’ the first mission from Delta Force: Land Warrior. We were discussing what to make next, and someone tossed out: ‘Why don’t we do a pyramid?’ and instantly, everyone just knew—that’s it!”

“This wasn’t just about a simple remake,” he continued. “With modern tech, we finally had the power to actually deliver the desert atmosphere and pyramid experience we’d dreamed of. This was very much a continuation of that classic experience. Getting the opportunity to build content around this really fired us up.”

“We wanted this map to let players truly immerse themselves in the unique atmosphere of the local culture, and this became our top priority for this map,” Wei, the 3D Environment Artist, chimed in. “So, our team actually made the trip out there for hands-on research—to experience the real sand dune terrain and pyramid architecture for ourselves.”

The caveat here, is that the team had already built a prototype of the map, in a bunch of grey boxes as you’d imagine in the engine editor. The team thought the trip would just add some cherries on top, but they were wrong. This trip, as it turned out, changed everything.

“Honestly, picturing something in your head and seeing it with your own eyes are two completely different things,” Wei laughed. The already built “greybox” version of Monument, designed with a traditional gameplay-first, hand-crafted approach, “showed promising results in internal playtests, but when we actually stood among the pyramid complex, we realized the real terrain’s elevation changes and sheer scale far exceeded anything we’d imagined. The desert environment really amplifies the grandeur and mystery. This vibe is something that we must, we have to deliver with this map.”

After the team got back, they effectively redesigned the map, drawing inspiration from the actual terrain. This “authenticity-first” approach, bolstered by photogrammetry scanning done back in the HQ office, created natural combat spaces that felt more organic than anything they could have “hand-designed” from scratch. “It’s like every grain of sand, every brick carries a story,” Wei said.

But getting the look and feel right is only half the job for a map. That’s where level designing shines. “Overall, Monument is a map that combines the diverse combat experiences from… Warfare mode while showcasing distinctive regional culture,” Kai remembered. The battlefield is split into four sectors, each with its own feel, from an abandoned town in Sector A to the dunes of Sector C.

“Sector D brings us inside the pyramid itself, with a maze of passages,” he beamed with excitement. This is where the “vibe” and the “gameplay” truly merge. “Besides the orderly corridors built by craftsmen… there are also secret passages carved out by tomb raiders over the centuries. So if a frontal assault gets too tough, try switching things up and taking a different route; you might stumble onto something unexpected. Players want big maps filled with POIs and routes, and this map really just speaks to that.”

I asked Kai what the team was most excited for players to experience. “I can’t spoil too much,” he chuckled a bit, “but there’s this feeling as the battle progresses. You gradually move from the distant town, across the dunes, closer to the pyramid, and finally step inside, with each stage offering a totally different feel… It’s those moments where you breach that final interior, with sand trickling from the crevices and the distinct sound of the Ney flute in the music… that’s the stuff that sticks with me. Like, this is so cool. You don’t usually get to experience this in a shooter.”

“Players may have already seen pyramids in movies or history books,” he finished, “but this is their first chance to really explore one… running freely, driving at full speed, and fighting in its shadow. We hope everyone has a blast playing it.”

Delta Force is now available for free on Xbox Series X|S. Season Ahsarah, featuring the Monument map, is available now. On top of this new map, the game is to introduce a new Engineer Operator, Gizmo and more content to the game. Delta Force will support console only cross-play with this new season, and native mouse and keyboard input, among other console-specific improvements.