Activision has concluded its Call of Duty: Modern Warfare charity campaign raising money for the Australian bushfire crisis, racking up over $1.6 million in total. The Australian bushfires have been burning since mid-2019, becoming one of the worst ecological disasters in modern history.
Modern Warfare began fundraising for Australia in January through sales of the in-game “Outback Relief” pack. The original “Outback” DLC pack was part of the base game, but was converted into the Outback Relief pack and used to raise money at the urging of many players. For about $18 USD, it included the “Bushranger” operator skin, a koala charm, and blueprints for a legendary sniper rifle, along with a new sticker, gun art, operator quip, and finishing move. 100 percent of the proceeds have been given to crisis relief efforts, and developer Infinity Ward has stated that any purchases of the original Outback pack have also been donated.
According to Activision’s blog, the campaign has raised a big chunk of change. The Modern Warfare community contributed over $1.6 million to Australian bushfire relief in January, all of which will go to the Direct Relief organization. Charity sales of the pack have officially come to an end as of January 31st. Activision and Infinity Ward both thanked fans for their inspiration, generosity and support, and the companies “look forward to putting this donation into action.”
Direct Relief is a humanitarian aid organization active in all 50 US states and more than 80 other countries. Activision says Direct Relief has now received the money and is “already starting to provide much-needed emergency and health supplies in coordination with local aid groups across the country.” This includes distributing crucial equipment like smoke masks for community members and fire crews as they “respond to the pressing needs of millions of Australians affected by these tragic conditions.” Activision’s contribution is an effective one that will aid efforts across Australia as the continent is still reeling from a bushfire period unlike any other the nation has experienced in recent memory.
Modern Warfare is the most-played Call of Duty of this generation, and Activision and Infinity Ward are doing well to leverage its popularity for a good cause. The companies join numerous political and industrial figures around the world in contributing to the Australian bushfire relief efforts, including other game developers like Bungie with its own Destiny 2 fundraiser. Of course, the Call of Duty community is still the driving force here; they’ve showed their generosity in the past with the Call of Duty Endowment, and their direct suggestion to help Australia also reflects well on them, especially for fans of a game that has historically been the target of many activist campaigns surrounding the negative impacts of violence in video games.
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Call of Duty: Modern Warfare is available now on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.
Source: Activision
