Popular Call Of Duty and Fortnite streamer Aydan "Aydan" Conrad caused quite the stir earlier this week when he claimed to have been banned from Call Of Duty: Warzone mid-tournament.
As it turns out, however, the young pro was simply screwing with us in an effort to drum up attention for an incoming announcement.
On March 15 Conrad made the announcement that he would soon be announcing the organisation he was signing on with. As a talented player with a good following, it's no secret that he could end up pretty much anywhere he wants. There's also the fact that he regularly plays alongside 100 Thieves' Rhys 'Rated' Price, leading to speculation that he could be joining Price and his teammates.
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With the official announcement set for later today (March 17), Conrad took last night as an opportunity to get the impressions going. Because social media is an endless, exhausting game. "Wtf... Banned mid-tournament," he wrote on Twitter, sharing an image that seemed to show he'd been blocked from Warzone's servers. He went even further on Twitch, with the title: 'Banned Mid-Tourney So I'm On An Alt.'
This unexpected ban was swiftly picked up by a number of publications, mostly because it absolutely looked like the real deal. Conrad's screenshots aside, Activision had literally just unleashed another banwave that evening. Conrad certainly wouldn't have been the first player to be swept up in a mass-ban despite having done nothing wrong. To the casual observer, it looked legit. Conrad and his fans knew better, of course, and continued to play into the deception on social media for a good few hours.
It wasn't until quite a few people started to grow concerned that Conrad came clean. "Yes," the streamer admitted to his Twitch Chat. "I'm trolling. I'm trolling. I'm trying to get the impressions going." Given the numbers on the tweet and the amount of articles covering the ban (including this one lol hi), it's safe to say his plan worked. It's also worth noting that this is the same guy who once paid off his mum's debts live on stream so, you know, there are better ways to get our attention mate.
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Incredibly, this isn't the first time a Warzone player has trolled/tricked/lied/whatever you want to call it in an effort to get people to pay attention. Late last year the team behind popular six-year-old streamer 'RowdyRogan' were met with criticism in the wake of a viral stunt that falsely claimed he'd been banned from the game.
Featured Image Credit: ActivisionTopics: Call of Duty: Warzone, GAMING, News, Twitch, Activision
