Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and Warzone Add Black Lives Matter In-Game Message

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and Warzone players found a new in-game message supporting Black [...]

By Tanner Dedmon

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and Warzone players found a new in-game message supporting Black Lives Matter appear when firing up the game and when they're playing through different modes this week. The screen showed a message from Activision and Infinity Ward that reminded players of racial injustices and conversations about the need for change that are currently being spotlighted across the United States and other parts of the world following the recent death of George Floyd and others in the Black communities. The message follows a recent commitment from the Modern Warfare developer to crack down on racism in-game.

The message in question started appearing in games recently and was shared online as it was found in Modern Warfare and Warzone. Players shared screenshots of the message on social media with many of them praising the decision to add the message.

"Our community is hurting," the message began. "The systemic inequalities our community experiences are once again center stage. Call of Duty and Infinity Ward stand for equality and inclusion. We stand against the racism and injustice our Black community endures. Until change happens and Black Lives Matter, we will never truly be the community we strive to be."

This message follows Infinity Ward's doubling down on racist behavior in its games whether that means racist communications from players or offensive names.

"There is no place for racist content in our game," Infinity Ward said recently. "This is an effort we began with launch and we need to do a better job. We're issuing thousands of daily bans of racist and hate-oriented names. But we know we have to do more – and we are."

The developer then laid out the steps below it intends to take. Those steps include making it easier to report offenders and increasing the amount of permanent bans dished out to those who repeatedly violate the rules and guidelines in place for Infinity Ward's online games.

Activision and Infinity War also opted to delay the fourth season of Modern Warfare and Warzone. The season was supposed to start recently, but the companies said like many others have that they'd be pushing back their plans to make room for more important discussions. Season 4 does not yet have a new release date.

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