In the United States, a lawsuit was filed against Activision, in which the creators of the Call of Duty series were accused of «popularizing assault weapons in the United States». The statements were sponsored by the families of those killed in the 2022 Texas school shooting.
The tragedy occurred in the city of Uvalde. An armed 18-year-old boy broke into an elementary school and went on a shooting spree, killing 21 people, including 19 students. The shooter himself was killed by the police on the same day.
The families of the victims recently filed a lawsuit against Activision. The latter was accused of advertising the Daniel Defense M4 V7, a rifled carbine with which the teenager was armed. The weapon was introduced in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, which was often played by the assassin. According to the relatives of the victims, it was the game that prompted the guy to purchase a carbine.
In this regard, an Activision representative gave a statement to The Times in which he expressed his condolences and protested the accusations:
Millions of people around the world enjoy video games without turning to horrific acts.
In addition to the authors of Call of Duty, relatives of the victims filed lawsuits against Instagram and the manufacturers of the Daniel Defense M4 V7. They were also accused of «reckless advertising».
Earlier, the first teaser of the new Call of Duty with the subtitle Black Ops 6 appeared.