Warzone 2 expert IceManIsaac hits out at “smug” devs allegedly mocking movement players
ActivisionWarzon
Warzone 2 content creator IceManIsaac has taken issue with a “lead developer” on the CoD Battle Royale after they allegedly poked fun at movement-based players.
With the original Warzone, we saw countless new personalities breakthrough into recognizable stars, in large part, due to their impressive gameplay skills. Be it the ability to slide cancel with ease, or simply to manipulate map geometry in unique ways, many gained an audience through their innovative approach to movement.
In Warzone 2, however, with many of these systems no longer in place, the same can’t be said. Rather, viewership has only been dwindling since the sequel arrived, hitting a new all-time low of 37,518 peak viewers on Twitch on March 3, according to data on SullyGnome.
In light of these changes and a more limited ceiling for innovation, IceManIsaac has taken issue with a “lead dev” as they supposedly mocked players who preferred the original and its movement systems.
“There’s a developer on Twitter who was liking posts making fun of movement players,” he said during a March 8 broadcast. In the moment, Isaac refused to announce the particular employee directly, as to keep them anonymous. However, after some digging, it appears the dev in question is Infinity Ward Game Director Jack O’Hara.
In short, one particular post O’Hara allegedly liked on Twitter, one that has since been unliked, argued against the skills of movement-based Warzone players.
“Basically, it said ‘what am I gonna do without slide cancels and movement?’ and the response was basically ‘if you were only good with movement, maybe you weren’t good at all.’”
A developer being in favor of this mentality, seemingly goes against a vast majority of the game’s biggest figures, most popular content creators, and thus, a good chunk of the remaining player base.
“It’s this smugness…” he continued. “They’re just thinking, ‘these f***ing kids, they’re gonna play my game, this is a man’s game. I’m like, no motherf***er, you’re not creating something new and interesting and engaging, your game sucks. You’re not more talented for being good at Warzone 2 because you couldn’t keep up in Warzone 1. You’re lowering the common denominator.”
Having recently been invited to a group chat with select developers, Isaac and Repullze both spilled the beans on particular comments from those involved. Namely, devs solidified their stance for good, stating there are no plans to “change movement anytime soon” in Warzone 2. “They think it’s balanced,” Repullze said.
“What needs to change…there needs to be a drastic change at the top. If they’re seeing this and they’re okay with that, something’s wrong.”
