Call of Duty players are outraged that Activision has decided to introduce a humanoid feline monstrosity into the live service shooter. The Whisker Tango Bundle is now available on the Warzone store and bags you a couple of horrifying new operators alongside a selection of equipment, charms and cosmetics. It’s par for the course, but some think the game has gone too far.
The Reddit community is filled with players believing the ability to play as a cat able to wield assault weaponry and fire evil laser beams from its eyes is going a little far, but hasn’t Call of Duty been leaning into this random absurdity for years now? It sure seems like it from my perspective. While mainline games such as Modern Warfare 2 and Black Ops Cold War are relatively serious in their campaigns grounded in the context of real history and military tech, once you stumble into multiplayer or the wildly changing world of Warzone, anything goes.
Ever since the release of Fortnite, most major existing properties have been building on its model of licensed crossovers, battle royale, and seasonal passes filled with goodies bound to keep players not only engaged, but also spending money at a regular clip. Call of Duty is no different, and in the past few years has included collaborations with King Kong, Rambo, Terminator, The Boys, Scream, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Godzilla, Judge Dredd, and even beloved Christmas movie Die Hard. Activision understands the appeal of these things, and how they can naturally introduce distinct cosmetics and limited-time events that the likes of Fortnite capitalise on so effectively.
Outside its licensed ambitions however, things are just as ridiculous. Real world sporting icons like Lionel Messi have their own playable characters, while I wouldn’t be surprised if additional celebrities are folded into the game in order to promote future products. It is the way this genre of game works in the modern era, and the bread-and-butter military shooter Call of Duty used to be just doesn’t cut it in a world where the competition is always trying new things. It can’t afford to be complacent, even if that means annoying purists with a few absurd skins. Besides, the Whisker Tango skins are terrifying, and I love the idea of a giant cat shooting me from afar before rocking up to execute me, eyes unblinking as he stabs me to death or blows my body to pieces with a shotgun. Kitty doesn’t mess around.
Besides, I’m not sure demanding Call of Duty adamantly stay within the confines of military realism is in especially good taste anyway. Modern Warfare might have started life as a relatively grounded depiction of contemporary combat, but in the years since has willingly adopted an over-the-top personality defined by a cast of larger than life characters and set pieces so ridiculous they’d make Michael Bay blush. Black Ops,
Advanced, Infinite, and Ghosts trade in their own brand of ridiculousness that the franchise as a whole has willingly embraced for decades now. A walking, talking cat creature in a new Warzone content pack isn’t pushing the boat out. We should be embracing it, not complaining about lack of realism.
Don’t even get me started on Nazi Zombies...