The next season for Call of Duty will undergo a delay. Updates for Modern Warfare and its battle royale feature, Warzone, will not come June 3, with the devs noting that “now is not the time.”
According to a Twitter announcement, they note that the Call of Duty games will move to a later date. Modern Warfare is on its 4th season, while COD: Mobile is on Season 7.
Activision is on a hot streak at the moment with Warzone, but that does not matter right now.
Black Lives Matter more important than video games
Social unrest is sweeping across the United States, with protests and riots left and right. People are speaking up for equality, end to racism, and the “right to be seen and heard.”
https://twitter.com/CallofDuty/status/1267626497902174208
With the video game industry being among the most progressive, devs and publishers are joining the call.
“While we all look forward to playing the new seasons of Modern Warfare, Warzone and Call of Duty: Mobile, now is not the time,” says the announcement tweet. “We are moving the launches of Modern Warfare Season 4 and Call of Duty: Mobile Season 7 to later dates.”
“Right now it’s time for those speaking up for equality, justice and change to be seen and heard. We stand alongside you.”
The appeal to social justice relates to the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis, MN police officer Derek Chauvin. Footage of the arrest shows the attack on Floyd, with a knee down his throat until his death.
People from all over the United States and even in other countries are protesting against such racism.
Other game publishers also stand with protestors
Even with all the ruckus, video game publishers are finding time to unite in sentiment with the protesters. Call of Duty and its publisher Activision are not the only ones offering their sentiments.
For starters, Sony delayed their June 4 reveal event out of respect to all the protests. The company also notes that this is not the time to celebrate video games and video game hardware.
EA Sports is also doing the same with its Madden NFL 21 event in solidarity with Black Lives Matter.
An official statement from EA SPORTS pic.twitter.com/MKdgJjvKJB
— Madden NFL 24 (@EAMaddenNFL) May 31, 2020
“Tomorrow, we had committed to celebrating Madden NFL 21 with you, but we’re not going to do that now,” said the statement.
Call of Duty is regaining its goodwill from the gaming community with its quality offering. The fresh take on the Modern Warfare franchise and the upcoming Cold War theme will likely grow the player base.
Featured image courtesy of Activision/Youtube Screenshots