Cheating and Pay-to-Win Skins: Is Activision Selling Out COD’s Legacy for Cash?
- Lynn Matthews
- Apr 15
- 2 min read
Call of Duty once thrived on skill-based combat. Now, it’s a playground for cheaters and paying customers who buy unfair advantages. Verdansk’s re-release should’ve been a celebration—but instead, it’s the latest proof that Activision has abandoned loyal players for profit.
Cheating Is Rampant, and Activision Lets It Happen
Activision claims it’s cracking down on hacks, yet every match feels rigged. Skeletal tracking aimbots guarantee headshots, while wall hacks turn games into a bloodbath. Some players have spent thousands on COD over the years—but instead of getting a fair fight, they’re stuck in a hacker-infested mess.
Despite banning 228,000 accounts, cheating remains a plague. X users mock the efforts, calling RICOCHET Anti-Cheat "a joke." Meanwhile, cheat providers sell "undetectable" aimbots for as little as $4. If Activision wanted to protect its loyal players, it would’ve fixed this years ago.
Is Activision ignoring player concerns while profiting off broken mechanics?
Activision claims players are part of the problem: over 60% of Warzone cheater reports target console players, often “inaccurate” due to “intel advantages” like Recon Scout Perks or Spy Cam pings, despite console cheating being a “low population” compared to PC. But if KillCams makes legitimate play look like hacks, that’s a design flaw—players report that they feel cheated, fueling distrust.
Pay-to-Win Skins Are Destroying Fair Play
As if cheating weren’t bad enough, Activision’s paywalls now offer unfair advantages. The T-800 Terminator skin blends into maps, making players nearly invisible when prone. The Squid Game Front Man skin? A direct callback to the notorious Roze skin, darkening players to near-invisibility.
Players are fed up. “COD is unplayable now,” one user vented on Reddit. “You either cheat or you pay to win.” This pattern isn’t new—Activision has been selling advantage-based skins for years:
Gaia (2023) took months to fix due to its camouflage effects.
Bomb Squad backpacks (DMZ mode) offered free gear for 1,200 COD Points—essentially pay-to-survive advantages.
Call of Duty Squid Game Front Man Skin
Activision’s Silence Speaks Volumes
Despite the frustration, Activision keeps cashing in. Pay-to-win skins rake in millions while cheating remains a crisis. Players once spent thousands supporting COD—now they’re quitting in droves. Steam player counts are dropping. X, Reddit, and many gaming platforms are flooded with complaints. And Activision? Still pretending everything is fine.
COD’s Soul Is at Risk
This is no longer about cosmetics or glitches—it’s a betrayal. COD was built on skill, strategy, and competition. Now, it’s a pay-to-win battlefield ruled by hackers and wallet warriors. The question isn’t just whether Activision cares—but how long until players give up entirely?
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