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Real-world disaster footage in Modern Warfare 4 opening cinematic will be removed following complaints from victims’ families
Developed over time first seen 5 days ago
Activision says it will remove footage of the 2022 Itaewon crowd crush from the opening cinematic of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4. The brief clip shows rescue workers performing CPR after the disaster in Seoul and appears in a sequence depicting the aftermath of a fictional North Korean invasion. The crowd crush killed 159 people. The footage is due to be removed in a game update scheduled for 12 November.
Bereaved families and civic groups called for its removal, saying the use of scenes from a real tragedy in an entertainment game was inappropriate and distressing for people affected by the disaster. Activision apologised to the families and others hurt by the footage. It said the news material was intended to establish the game’s fictional story and that it had not meant to refer to or diminish the Itaewon disaster.
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In short
- Real footage of the Itaewon crowd crush appears in the game’s opening cinematic.
- Victims’ families and civic groups called for the clip to be removed.
- Activision apologised and scheduled its removal for 12 November.
How this story developed
- 4 hours ago Activision says it will remove footage of the 2022 Itaewon crowd crush from the opening cinematic of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4.
- PC Gamer Real-world disaster footage in Modern Warfare 4 opening cinematic will be removed following complaints from victims’ families
- The Korea Herald ‘Call of Duty’ publisher apologizes, says will remove Itaewon crowd crush footage
- The Korea Herald Families demand removal of alleged Itaewon disaster footage from Call of Duty
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Families and civic groups can argue that recognisable footage of people receiving emergency care during a deadly real-world disaster is deeply distressing and should not be repurposed as entertainment. Removing it respects those affected and avoids making their loss serve as dramatic material without their consent.
The case against
A case for retaining the clip could be that documentary footage can convey the human consequences of a fictional conflict and give the scene a sense of realism, without intending to comment on the Itaewon disaster. If the footage was used briefly and without reference to the tragedy, some may see removal as unnecessary, provided the families’ distress is taken seriously.
Explained simply
Call of Duty is a video game series built around military conflict, with fictional stories set in imagined wars. Modern Warfare 4 opens with a scene of a city after an invasion, and briefly includes real news footage from Seoul.
The footage shows rescue workers performing CPR after the Itaewon crowd crush in 2022, which killed 159 people. Bereaved families and civic groups said that using images from the disaster in an entertainment game was distressing and inappropriate; Activision apologised and said it had not intended to refer to or diminish the tragedy.
Coverage · 3 sources
- PC GamerReal-world disaster footage in Modern Warfare 4 opening cinematic will be removed following complaints from victims’ families
- The Korea Herald‘Call of Duty’ publisher apologizes, says will remove Itaewon crowd crush footage
- The Korea HeraldFamilies demand removal of alleged Itaewon disaster footage from Call of Duty
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