Activision revives controversial Call of Duty tagline for 20th anniversary

“There’s a soldier in all of us,” the ad reads, the text emblazoned over a shot of a ragtag army led by a teenage boy, preparing to engage in battle. Some of the members are wearing tactical gear, others are shirtless or dressed casually, but all have an assault rifle in their hands and a determined look on their faces. Check out the latest Ad Age events and award programs The scene is meant to be the emotional climax of Activision’s new ad campaign, which is both a promotion of its latest first-person shooter game, “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3,” and a celebration of the franchise’s 20th anniversary. For Activision and agency of record 72andSunny, the goal has always been splashy marketing. NBA star Devin Booker and rappers Central Cee and 21 Savage make cameos in the spot, each exchanging words of motivation with the young protagonist as he moves through an underground weapons market. The setting is meant to simulate a real-life version of the virtual lobby in which Call of Duty players assemble before beginning a battle. (Hence the spot’s title, “Lobby.”) “It’s kind of a love letter to the community,” Tyler Bahl, VP and head of marketing for Call of Duty, told Ad Age. “Lobby” hinges on creating a nostalgic connection, Bahl said, through references to beloved maps and appearances by in-game characters. Perhaps the clearest shoutout for die-hard fans will be the revival of the tagline “There’s a soldier in all of us,” which Activision first used to promote “Call of Duty: Black Ops” in 2010—and was most recently used in 2016. The tagline generated controversy at the time for what critics saw as a cavalier, even whimsical attitude toward war. Its accompanying film, depicting doctors, businesswomen and other non-military professionals (as well as Kobe Bryant and Jimmy Kimmel) engaging in battle, drew some criticism as well. Activision’s new ad, meanwhile, drops at a time of mounting global violence. With the war between Israel and Hamas less than two weeks old, the question is raised that makers of violent video games have long struggled with—whether they risk backlash from consumers amid the trauma of real-world events. Bahl said the tagline is meant to evoke a kind of sports analogy, of being a team and entering a situation together, as well as connecting to the idea that anyone can play Call of Duty, and have fun doing so. “People come to the game to build friendships, to play with their friends, to leave what's going on in the world and have fun, and we really wanted to double down on that through our creative,” he said. But if an ad too strongly echoes painful situations in the real world, the reverse can happen, said Dr. Richard Gretz, an associate professor of marketing at the University of Texas at San Antonio, who has researched video game marketing. The Israel-Hamas war is a case in point—a conflict that is top of mind for people around the world, who may potentially view the Call of Duty campaign in a different light as a result, Gretz said. Check out the latest Ad Age events and award programs “If consumers make the connection to those current experiences, they might punish the brand,” he said. As part of a supplementary montage of Call of Duty moments to celebrate its 20-year run, Activation also included a scene from its infamous “No Russian” mission in “Modern Warfare 2,” in which players assume the role of a terrorist and murder scores of civilians in an airport. The scene, depicting four armed men in an elevator, is briefly shown at the 1:00 mark below. As for Activision’s connection to real-world events, Bahl said, it’s “something we’re always thinking about, making sure we are showing up in the right places and being sensitive to the situation.” “Lobby” will run on national TV in 13 markets, including the U.S. and U.K, as well as social and digital channels. The montage will run on digital channels only. The campaign drops less than a week after Activision Blizzard, the parent company of Activision, was officially acquired by Microsoft for nearly $69 billion. The deal went through almost two years of regulatory battles, but was finalized after Microsoft restructured the terms to the approval of the U.K.’s Competition and Markets Authority.

Activision revives controversial Call of Duty tagline for 20th anniversary

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