It’s one thing to ban a cheater from a game, it’s another entirely to take down cheats at the source. That’s exactly how Activision is handling Call of Duty cheaters, by cutting off the supply. As one of, if not the biggest, multiplayer gaming franchises, Call of Duty cheaters have almost become a meme at this point, whether it’s aim bots that help skill-starved players get headshots, wall hacks that let players see through walls, or a variety of other cheats that put them at an unfair advantage, Modern Warfare and Warzone’s PC version has been plagued with people not playing a legit game. The issue is compounded by crossplay, which brings cheaters into the console experience.
Activision and Infinity Ward have worked tirelessly the combat cheaters. They’ve banned players in mass waves and forced cheaters to matchmake in lobbies with one another, but despite a zero tolerance policy for cheating, it’s an ongoing game of leapfrog nearly impossible to stay ahead of. So Activision has been going after the very people who manufacturer and sell cheat programs that players use in Call of Duty.
August saw a lawsuit against CXCheats for violations against the Terms of Use, and as a result, the company removed all Call of Duty cheats from its site and issued an apology. September has Activision going after another cheat manufacturer, GatorCheats. CharlieIntel reports that a cease and desist was sent to GatorCheats. First sent in May 2020, the site owner failed to fully comply, which led to another letter being issued this month. This time, however, the letter was hand delivered by a PI that showed up at the GatorCheats owner’s home.
GatorCheats posted a message in their Discord regarding the letter, vowing never to make or sell not just Call of Duty cheats, but cheats for any Activision Blizzard product in the future. Activision Blizzard’s attorneys had followed up to the PI’s delivery of the cease and desist with clear communication that failure to comply would result in litigation from the company. “I cannot afford to litigate with this company and I have a responsibility to my family as the only individual with income to not dive into avoidable lawsuits that I cannot afford to participate in.” The remainder of their statement urges GatorCheats users not to seek out cheats for Activision Blizzard products from any other sources, expecting similar legal action to be taken against them.
Activision hasn’t made any official comment recently regarding its pursuit of legal action against cheat manufacturers, but it seems pretty clear here that the company is applying a good amount of force to those who impede the experience of other players by offering illegitimate tools that provide an unfair advantage. With Modern Warfare the first game in the series to have full cross-play, the free-to-play Warzone at more than 75 million players, and Black Ops Cold War to offer an even more expansive cross-play, Activision clearly wants to nip these issues in the bud rather than just continue an endless pursuit against individual players who cheat.
