Activision has removed controversial in-game advertisements featured within Black Ops 6 and Warzone loadouts, claiming they were accidentally published as part of a "feature test."
Following Season 4's launch last week, weapon bundle promotions appeared in Black Ops 6 and Warzone's build and weapon menus. Players encountered these ads unavoidably while customizing their loadouts.
The community reacted with intense backlash, with some treating this as a breaking point. "Unacceptable in a premium $80 game - this belongs in free-to-play titles at most," wrote one frustrated player. Others questioned Activision's priorities: "When menu navigation starts feeling like scrolling through a mobile game's shop, something's fundamentally wrong."
Activision subsequently tweeted acknowledging the removal while offering justification: "A UI test displaying store content in Loadout menus was unintentionally included in Season 04. This has now been corrected."
The gaming community remains skeptical about Activision's explanation, with many interpreting this as calculated market testing. "Standard corporate playbook - float an invasive monetization attempt, then retreat behind 'human error' when players revolt," observed one commenter.
While Call of Duty's monetization strategies have historically courted controversy, players note escalating aggressiveness post-Microsoft's $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard. The situation raises questions about potential advertising implementations in the forthcoming Black Ops 2 sequel.
