Activision Defends Use of Real Footage in Modern Warfare 4

Activision acknowledged on October 28 that it incorporated genuine news footage into the opening cinematic of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4, following backlash over the inclusion of material from a deadly crowd crush incident.

The campaign, which launched on October 23, features a fictional news sequence that contained approximately three seconds of video depicting emergency responders administering CPR during the October 29, 2022 Itaewon crowd crush in South Korea, which killed nearly 160 people. The publisher stated it used real broadcast clips as narrative elements to establish the game's fictional storyline, emphasizing there was no intention to trivialize or reference the actual tragedy.

In a statement, Activision said the development team approached the game's subject matter carefully and that the real news segments were incorporated solely to support the fictional narrative. The company stressed it had no aim to make light of any genuine tragic event, including the Itaewon incident.

The Korea Game Consumers Association rejected this explanation and demanded the footage be removed or replaced. The association's chairman argued that using video of an unrelated real disaster caused harm to bereaved families and called for Activision to issue an apology and update. He urged the publisher to engage responsibly with those affected and replace the problematic material.

The association formally requested that Activision take voluntary corrective action by either removing or replacing the video and establishing communication with victims' families. The dispute highlights ongoing concerns about how video game developers handle real-world tragedies in their content.