Am I high, or did my opponent just laugh?
The Call of Duty community is currently smoking with rage – and not because of lag or balancing issues. The trigger: Seth Rogen is now an operator in the game. And there are loads of weed jokes to go with it.
Activision Had One Brownie Too Many
We recently reported in an article about the departure of former creative director Ted Timmins and raised the question of whether Call of Duty would continue with its colorful and often criticized crossovers. Activision seems to have lit up a joint and asked themselves, "What if we make Seth Rogen playable?"
And that's exactly what happened, complete with his iconic laugh, a freaky suit, and skin that looks like he fell straight off the couch into a war zone. But what was meant to be a fun stunt has been met with anything but good vibes by many fans. "The in game store starting to look like that one sketchy gas station that sells all the bongs behind the front counter" wrote one player on Reddit.
Fans On A Bad Trip
The criticism is not new, but has been reignited by the event. In particular, the accompanying event, in which players can unlock their laughter through challenges (no joke), is causing some frowns. Some are wondering whether the development team may have been smoking more than they thought.
I thought I was hearing things – but it really was Seth Rogen laughing in my face in the kill cam. I feel like I'm in “Pineapple Express 3: Warzone Edition.”
There are even some players who think that Rogen himself is simply being misrepresented. Because even though the actor has appeared in so many films, the whole event revolves around cannabis and 4/20 jokes.
The Best Road To Becoming A Circus
Sure, Call of Duty is supposed to be fun, but many fans would rather have beads of sweat on their foreheads than blades of grass in their HUD. Some fans make it clear that they have nothing against smoking weed in principle, but that the game loses its seriousness with crossovers like this.
Fans have long criticized the colorful skins, as many want a return to a genuine military feel. There have been anime skins, colorful laser weapons, and Santa Clauses with machine guns before, but the current event surrounding Rogen is simply too wild - which for many is the final straw.
Chill Out!
Some players, however, see the whole thing as no big deal: they emphasize the long connection between Call of Duty and stoner culture and point to other weed crossovers, such as the Clerks characters Jay and Silent Bob and the stoner comedy duo Cheech & Chong. They say that players should just chill out a bit because Call of Duty hasn't been taken seriously for years.
How do you see the current situation in Call of Duty, and what do you think Activision has been smoking?