Activision's TMNT Crossover Sparks Debate on Black Ops 6 Going Free-to-Play

The latest crossover event in *Call of Duty: Black Ops 6* has stirred up quite a conversation among fans, especially with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMNT) themed content. Activision announced the Season 02 Reloaded update, set to roll out on February 20, which includes a mid-season TMNT crossover. However, the price tag attached to this crossover has left many in the community feeling uneasy.

The crossover features premium bundles for each of the four turtles—Leonardo, Donatello, Michelangelo, and Raphael. Each bundle is expected to cost 2,400 COD Points, translating to $19.99. This means players looking to collect all four turtles would need to spend a whopping $80 in COD Points. But the expense doesn't stop there. A premium event pass, similar to the one introduced during the controversial Squid Game crossover, will cost an additional 1,100 COD Points or $10. This pass is the only way to unlock Splinter, while the free track offers less enticing Foot Clan soldier skins among other cosmetics.

While the TMNT crossover focuses primarily on cosmetics without affecting gameplay, the high cost has not gone unnoticed. Many players argue that it's easy to overlook such crossovers, leaving those who wish to splurge on cosmetics to do so. Yet, the community backlash has been significant, with some fans feeling that *Black Ops 6* is being monetized as aggressively as a free-to-play game like Fortnite.

"Activision casually glossing over the fact that they want you to pay $80+ if you want the 4 Turtles, plus another $10+ if you want the TMNT event pass rewards," criticized redditor II_JangoFett_II. "Call of Duty's Gross greed strikes again... DESPICABLE!"

Another user, Hipapitapotamus, lamented, "Guess we can expect an event pass sold every season now. Remember when events were good and got you cool universal camos for free."

APensiveMonkey pointed out the absurdity of the crossover, stating, "The Turtles don’t use guns. Their fingers wouldn’t even... I hate this..."

Activision's monetization strategy for *Black Ops 6* goes beyond just the TMNT crossover. Each season introduces a new battle pass costing 1,100 COD Points or $9.99, with a premium BlackCell version priced at $29.99. Additionally, there's a continuous stream of cosmetics available in the store. The TMNT crossover and its premium event pass add yet another layer to this monetization model.

"So they expect the playerbase to buy the game itself, buy the battle pass/black cell and now this? Na that's too much," said PunisherR35. "If this is gonna be the norm moving forward, CoD needs to move to a FTP model (campaign, MP)."

The aggressive monetization of *Call of Duty* is not a new development, but the introduction of the premium event pass with the Squid Game crossover has pushed some fans to their breaking point. The uniform monetization approach across the $70 *Black Ops 6* and the free-to-play *Warzone* has led to increased scrutiny. What might be acceptable for *Warzone* due to its free-to-play nature is seen as less justifiable for *Black Ops 6*, which requires a significant upfront purchase just to access multiplayer.

This has fueled calls for *Black Ops 6* Multiplayer to transition to a free-to-play model, as it increasingly resembles other free-to-play titles like Fortnite, Apex Legends, and Marvel Rivals, not to mention *Warzone* itself.

Despite the backlash, Activision and its parent company Microsoft are likely to continue their current strategy, buoyed by *Black Ops 6*'s record-breaking launch and significant sales increases on PlayStation and Steam compared to the previous year's *Modern Warfare 3*. The game's success is a testament to its enduring popularity, which is undoubtedly a positive for Microsoft, given their substantial $69 billion investment in acquiring Activision.