Activision removes Seoul tragedy video from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4

Following outrage and backlash in South Korea from victims’ families, Activision was forced to remove a video from its Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 campaign because it was based on a real-life disaster that occurred in Seoul in 2022. 

In Oct. 2022, a crowd surge occurred during Halloween celebrations in Itaewon, Seoul, killing 160 people and injuring 196 others. The incident was dubbed one of the deadliest disasters to hit South Korea in recent times. The crush happened due to the large number of people who attended the celebrations four years ago. Over 100,000 people went to the area.

The backlash erupted when Modern Warfare 4 featured real-life news coverage of the 2022 disaster to portray a fictional North Korean invasion of South Korea.

Victims’ families said that they were “appalled” to see footage of people being transferred on stretchers with body bags on the street. In response, Activision apologized and confirmed that it would remove the video in the game’s next update set for Nov. 12, 2026.

The families launched a statement on Thursday and said that the disaster “was a tragedy that caused hundreds of casualties, and citizens who took part in the rescue or witnessed it have suffered from trauma until now.”

They added, “We cannot help but be appalled that the chaotic and desperate scene, in which many citizens at the site performed CPR to save one another and victims lay on the freezing street, was used to create a scene in a game. Using such an event as material for a game made for entertainment is in itself highly inappropriate and senseless.”