When creating a lot of artwork for games, sometimes questionable imagery slips through the cracks and it seems Call of Duty: Warzone is the latest game to include a message it might not have mean to. A Redditor has spotted a symbol in the game that looks suspiciously like a real Neo-Nazi symbol carried by the Azov Battalion of the Ukrainian national guard.
Reported on by PC Gamer, but originally spotted in this Reddit post, a symbol used in the Chimera Pack in Warzone is closely associated with far-right groups. The cosmetic emblem you can purchase has a purple background and distinct three diagonal lines with a central line intercepting them. This symbol is also the logo of the Azov Battalion, a far-right nationalist regiment of Ukraine's national guard and has been seen elsewhere, like in Chile, at far-right protests.
This symbol is a modern interpretation of the Wolfsangel which originally looked more like a hook during Nazi Germany. Traditionally a runic symbol, it was adopted by the Nazis as part of the divisional insignia of several Waffen-SS unites. The most notorious of which was the 2nd SS 'Das Reich' Panzer Division.
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Although the colours on the Warzone version of the emblem are inverted from the real logo, the likeness is undeniable. According to the original poster on Reddit, there are some far-right individuals already considering this imagery to be a dogwhistle which should worry Activision. The screenshot the original poster uses shows a YouTube comment with Nazi references identifying the emblem as part of the Azov Battalion.
Interestingly, as the logo is Ukrainian associated, it should be noted that of the Chimera squad, the Ukrainian operator (Yegor) is the only one who doesn't have the logo on his uniform.
As PC Gamer notes, Destiny 2 had an occurrence not dissimilar to this problem when they included Gauntlets which had a striking resemblance to an alt-right flag. Bungie removed the item immediately and said it was an accident.
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Activision, by extension, may decide to remove the symbol or alter it so it's no longer closely associated with a real far-right organisation. It's possible that when researching symbols that might be associated with Chimera, the symbol came up without the history being researched.
Featured Image Credit:Topics: News, Call of Duty Warzone