‘Halloween game’: CoD players are sick of all the ‘expensive’ killstreak, equipment skins

Call of Duty players are just about fed up with the addition of killstreak and equipment cosmetics in the game, with many today declaring the franchise has well and truly sold out as expensive microtransactions invade every corner of the first-person shooter.

Discussion about the addition of skins for killstreaks and equipment like smoke grenades and shock sticks was sparked on the Modern Warfare 3 subreddit on March 4, with many players frustrated that valuable dev time has been taken up by something they see as so trivial and tacky. “I think they need to spend more time making the game enjoyable rather than crap like this,” one player surmised, with many adding CoD is now being milked for every dollar.

Several CoD bundles have popped up that offer interesting alternate cosmetics for items that have never been customizable. The Lunar New Year bundle, which costs around $30, includes bright red and gold skins for several pieces of equipment and even a skin for the Wheelson killstreak. Other bundles with varied themes and at different prices also include skins for grenades.

It’s yet another part of CoD that Activision has sourced out for microtransactions—and while some players don’t mind the skins, the price tag is a big turnoff. One player said they don’t mind seeing a uniquely colorful helicopter massacre them in multiplayer, but when you have to fork out as much as it costs for entire games, it’s far too predatory.

“I would like the ability to buy just a turret skin, or proxy mine, or helicopter as others have mentioned,” another said, but as these skins come as part of a set, you’d need to buy the entire bundle to add them.

Ultimately, the majority admitted simply “couldn’t care less,” instead just wanting a game that works consistently and could be seen as properly stable. Between an endemic cheater issue, exploits causing weapons or gear to be disabled temporarily, and tech issues bringing the entire game down, players feel Sledgehammer and Activision have enough on their plate to worry about than a new zombified grenade skin.

One feature players have been pleading for is an option to turn off cosmetics entirely, but it is obvious that adding a setting like that would go against the very idea of cosmetics in the first place. “CoD is a 24/7 Halloween game: Everyone and everything is dressed up.”

We’ll see what Activision and Sledgehammer are cooking up next with the MW3 season two Reloaded update dropping later today, on Tuesday, March 5.