'Call of Duty' and Nickmercs Face Heavy-Handed Backlash Following Pride Tweet Controversy

Best known for streaming Call of Duty games and Apex Legends to thousands of viewers on Twitch, Nickmercs has skyrocketed in fame as a skilled player since joining FaZe in 2019.

The creator has pulled in millions of fans and has some weight when speaking on issues relating to the games he has played. Though recently, Nickmercs expressed his opinions about Pride Month in response to a retweet with a video showing a big brawl in Glendale, California.

In the clip, pro-LGBT demonstrators stood outside of a school board meeting aiming to vote on recognizing June as Pride Month, which soon turned violent as anti-LGBT protestors appeared — a few even attacking the demonstrators.

"Americans are in a sad place right now," stated the retweeter on June 7, 2023. "Let people love who they love and live your own life." Nickmercs replied, "They should leave little children alone. That's the real issue."

Swiftly, Nickmercs faced a landslide of backlash from the gaming community and loyal support from fans. The streamer stated he "didn't mean to upset anyone" the next day; however, hours after that reply, Call of Duty maker Activision Blizzard confirmed it was removing the Nickmercs operator bundle from Modern Warfare 2 and Warzone 2.

Both sides now face massive criticism following the tweet, growing wilder as other creators and organizations weigh in and players en mass uninstall the shooter games.

Since making the decision, many Call of Duty players uninstalled Modern Warfare 2 and Warzone 2 in support of Nickmercs. Using the hashtag #IStandWithNICKMERCS on Twitter, these players protested against Activision Blizzard, and a few popular creators added to the outrage.

Counter-Strike streamer mOE stated, "I actually can't believe this. I'm ok never playing CoD again. F--k that s--t."

"This is where I uninstall all @Activision @Call of Duty games/products," said streamer RICKMA.

Even well-known streamers TimTheTatman and Dr Disrespect sided with Nickmercs over the developer's decision.

Like Mickmercs, TimTheTatman has an operator bundle in the Activision games, which he requested the developer to remove in support of his friend. Dr Disrespect initially led the charge against CoD by uninstalling the shooting titles, arguing he wouldn't return unless the developer "publicly apologize to [Nickmercs] or reinstate his bundle."

Leaders for streaming organizations Kick and Rumble have also jumped into the conversation to support Nickmercs as a stand against cancel culture.

Nickmercs seems to have profited the most from the backlash despite the infamy he has earned from viewers siding with Call of Duty and his operator removal. As noted by Dexerto, the FaZe member shot up over 12,000 followers on Twitter, and his Twitch metrics also show growth.

Call of Duty has not responded further about the Nickmercs operator bundle or if it would collaborate with the creator again. Although, we can assume the developer likely won't bring on personalities that don't identify with its beliefs.