ActivisionBlack Ops 6 received a ton of backlash for its collaborations that didn’t fit with the game’s identity, such as the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and cel-shaded Beavis and Butt-Head. For Black Ops 7, they’ve actually turned down “big brand” collabs.
Call of Duty has added plenty of weird and wacky Operator skins over the past few years, but Black Ops 6’s cartoony Beavis and Butt-Head and American Dad skins seem to have been the straw that broke the camel’s back.
Following the backlash, the devs have scrapped Carry Forward for BO7, so only the Zombies and final Prestige reward skins can be used in Black Ops 7, and they’ve redesigned the Vault Edition skins.
In an exclusive interview with CharlieIntel, Treyarch’s Senior Director of Production, Yale Miller, explained that they’re not necessarily aiming for “grounded” cosmetics, but rather for things that “make sense for Black Ops 7,” and have rejected collabs because of it.
Treyarch turned down big collabs following BO6 backlash
“There are opportunities that we have had lined up that, after some of our conversations, we straight up turned down. Big, big brands, big things, and we’re like, ‘No, we’re not gonna do that because it just doesn’t fit,'” said Miller.
He used the Nuketown Block Party event’s mannequin skins as an example of something that’s not grounded, but “feels right for the game.”
The same applies to Zombies cosmetics, such as the BO7 Vault Edition T.E.D.D. Operator. “That is not grounded, but it feels like when we show it to people and talk to people about it, they’re like, ‘Oh, yeah. Of course. That’s Black Ops,’” he said.
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“All intentions [are] to stick to stuff that we can hand on our heart, say, ‘Yeah, that feels Black Ops,’” Miller continued. “That’s really our goal. And I think that’s a good clarification versus grounded.”
They didn’t rule out collaborations entirely, but it seems they’re aiming only to include those that make sense for Black Ops 7.