Outcry after Call of Duty maker uses real footage of deadly Seoul crowd crush in new video game
Summary
Families of victims of South Korea’s 2022 Itaewon crowd crush have demanded that Activision remove real news footage of the disaster from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4. The footage appears in the game’s opening and depicts rescue efforts and victims during a fictional North Korean invasion; Activision said it did not intend to make light of the tragedy.Key Facts
- The Itaewon crowd crush killed 158 people, and two more have since been recognised as victims.
- The game’s opening cinematic includes seconds-long clips showing CPR, bodies in the street and a victim on a stretcher.
- The bereaved families’ council and civic groups said the footage could worsen trauma for survivors and witnesses and demanded its removal.
- The Korean Game Users Association called for Activision to apologise and replace the footage.
- Activision said it used actual news footage to support the fictional story and had no intention of treating the Itaewon tragedy lightly.
- Players in South Korea identified the footage after the game’s release, and local broadcasters compared it with recordings from the night of the crush.
- The game follows a South Korean marine fighting a North Korean invasion and reached the top of South Korea’s Steam sales chart within days of release.
Read the Full Article
This is a fact-based summary from The Actual News. Click below to read the complete story directly from the original source.
