Call of Duty publisher apologizes for using real footage of Itaewon crowd crush

SEOUL, Oct. 30 (Yonhap) -- The makers behind the Call of Duty video game apologized Friday for using real footage of the deadly 2022 Seoul crowd crush in its latest installment of the game and agreed to remove the footage.

A short clip showing a paramedic performing CPR on a crowd crush victim lying on the street appeared in the opening moments of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4. The footage was used to depict a scenario of civilian casualties during a fictional war with North Korea.

"We deeply apologize to the victims and their bereaved families who must have suffered, as well as to everyone who we have caused concern," Activision Publishing Inc. said in a notice to local reporters. "The footage will be removed in our update set to be rolled out on Nov. 12."

The publisher added it had no plans to evoke tragic events, including the Itaewon crowd crush, when using news footage in its games, nor had it intended to ignore the pain caused by the accident.

A total of 159 people were killed in a narrow alleyway in Seoul's night life district of Itaewon during Halloween festivities on Oct. 29, 2022. Bereaved families of the victims have criticized the game publisher for "lacking common sense" by using such footage and demanded a complete removal of the clip.