New Call of Duty Tweet Sparks Outrage Amidst Ongoing Hacking Issues

Activision's latest Call of Duty promotion ignites player fury. A January 8th tweet promoting a Squid Game-themed store bundle has drawn intense backlash, amassing over 2 million views and countless critical responses. The outcry stems from Activision's perceived failure to address widespread game issues plaguing both Warzone and Black Ops 6, instead focusing on monetization.

The controversy highlights significant problems impacting the franchise. Both titles are grappling with rampant cheating in ranked play, severely impacting gameplay. Server issues and other bugs further exacerbate the situation, leading prominent players like Scump to declare the franchise's current state as its worst ever. This sentiment is echoed by a significant drop in Steam player count for Black Ops 6—a decline exceeding 47% since its October 2024 release.

Activision's Tone-Deaf Promotion

The promotional tweet, continuing the Call of Duty x Squid Game collaboration, showcased a new VIP-themed bundle. However, this marketing effort backfired spectacularly. Players, including prominent content creators like FaZe Swagg, criticized Activision for its apparent inability to prioritize fixing game-breaking issues over promoting new in-game purchases. The sentiment was widespread, with many echoing the frustration that broken ranked play and persistent server problems are overshadowed by the focus on new bundles. Several users, such as Taeskii, declared boycotts of future store purchases until the anti-cheat mechanisms are significantly improved.

The combination of persistent technical issues, rampant cheating, and Activision's seemingly indifferent response has pushed many players to abandon the game, leading to a dramatic decrease in player numbers on Steam. While platform-specific data for PlayStation and Xbox is unavailable, the significant Steam player loss strongly suggests a broader trend of player dissatisfaction and attrition.