The new $20 "COD Warzone" Doomsayer skin has been accused of being a ripoff from streamer Dr. Disrespect's upcoming FPS, "Deadrop." And perhaps those accusing it of being one are up to something.
As reported by PC Gamer, a few "Warzone" players online have been calling out Activision Blizzard for the Doomsayer skin's design, which looks quite similar to the character design "Deadrop" early access players' avatars. The main hook of the skin is a glowing, holographic skill that many people say looks similar to the "Deadrop" Visor skin, which were given to Variants - people who bought the first round of early access passes to the shooter.
But it's not just a general resemblance, too. Allegedly, the Doomsayer skin design was ripped directly from the design of Midnight Society dev Robert Bowling. He acknowledged it on Twitter as a reply to this post by user @ModenasHD, saying "at least name it after me":
I think @fourzerotwo (Robert Bowling) is going to be happy to see that Activision just added his own skin in #Vanguard π€‘
— π‘π' -Hotel Six- π§Όπ₯ (@ModenasHD) August 16, 2022
Maybe not... ->π pic.twitter.com/vZTyWIp2pZ
Variants get what is called a VisorCortexID each. This bonus is an NFT that gives Variants unique visor skins. And as you can see here from this image from developer Midnight Society, "COD Warzone's" Doomsayer skin looks very, very similar:
These Visors being NFTs basically mean they cannot be legally replicated because they're supposed to be unique. They're on the blockchain. So it's fairly understandable that Bowling would not be impressed with what Activision is trying to pull off.
But according to Bowling himself, he says he "doesn't have anything else to add" on the matter (via Kotaku). He said that he only caught wind of the issue after a lot of people started blowing his inbox up with tags. Then, Kotaku says they got sent an image of a "Call Of Duty" rifle called "Corporate Theft," as Bowling's one last act of defiance against the "COD Warzone" Doomsayer skin.
Not The First Time For Activision
The allegedly plagiarized "COD Warzone" Doomsayer skin does look quite similar to what is in Dr Disrespect's "Deadrop." One can argue that it is, in fact, a plagiarized design. But it would be far from the only one that Activision Blizzard has done in recent times.
Just over two weeks ago, the embattled publisher/developer had to apologize for apparent plagiarism of a dog (Samoyed) operator skin for (via PC Gamer). The skin was intended as part of the "Mercenaries of Fortune" patch for "Warzone's" fourth season. It was packaged in the "Floof Fury" pack and featured a cute Samoyed clad in fatigues and clutching a rifle.
"Here's how their apology went:
"We have the utmost respect for creativity and content creation. We love the Loyal Samoyed, but regrettably we erred in our process and have removed this imagery from the game. We apologize for the misstep."
As you can see there, the skin and anything else relating to it has been removed from the game's website. But as you know by now, it looks like they might've not learned their lesson.
This article is owned by Tech Times
Written by RJ Pierce
