Games

South Korean Families Demand Call of Duty Remove 2022 Stampede Footage

Is this a cruel reopening of survivors' wounds or legitimate storytelling grounded in public record?

4 hours ago·Updated 3 hours ago

South Korean Families Demand Call of Duty Remove 2022 Stampede Footage

Story

Above: A billboard for "Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 4" in New York City on Oct. 25. Image credit: Craig T. Fruchtman/Getty Images

The Facts

The council representing bereaved families of the 2022 Itaewon crowd crush and a coalition of civic groups issued a joint statement Wednesday condemning the use of real footage from the disaster in "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4," demanding its removal.
The Straits Times
The Korea Times
The seconds-long clips appear in the game's opening sequence, with one showing a person performing CPR on a victim in the street and another showing rows of bodies, used to depict civilian casualties during a fictional North Korean invasion of the South.
The Straits Times
The Guardian
Publisher Activision told Yonhap News Agency that some actual news footage was included in the opening cinematic to convey the game's fictional story, adding it had no intention of referencing or trivializing the Itaewon disaster or any real-life tragedy.
The Straits Times
CBC
The Korea Game Users Association called for an apology and an update replacing the disaster footage, saying it was unrelated to the game's progression. South Korea marked the fourth anniversary of the Oct. 29, 2022, crush on Thursday.
The Korea Times
VGC
Steam user reviews as of Oct. 28 rated Modern Warfare 4 "Very Positive" in Korean and "Mostly Positive" in English, and the game holds an average score of 85 to 87 on the aggregate site Metacritic, depending on the platform.
CBC
The CHOSUNILBO

Sources Split

LEFT

CENTER

RIGHT

ESTAB
CRIT

CENTER

PRO
ESTAB

The Spin

Narrative A

Real footage of dying people has no place in a video game sold for entertainment. Survivors who gave CPR that night are still carrying trauma, and seeing those seconds replayed for a fictional war plot reopens every wound. A quick patch and a sincere apology would cost almost nothing next to the harm already done.

VGC

The Guardian

Narrative B

While Activision is sorry for upsetting anyone and is currently considering its options, it's important to note that news coverage is a public record, and using a few seconds of that coverage to ground a fictional invasion in a recognizable world is standard storytelling. Treating every somber news image as untouchable would strip fiction of any power to show real stakes.

Rock Paper Shotgun