Activision has issued a statement in response to player protests regarding the alleged apply of generative AI graphics assets in multiple areas of Call of Duty: Black Ops 7.
Players today took to social media to complain about in-game images that they believe are AI-generated, focusing primarily on business card images that they believe refer to the Studio Ghibli style, following the trend of AI-Ghibli images from earlier this year.
I haven’t looked that closely at the multiplayer and zombie calling cards, and I’m willing to bet they apply AI on those too, but only the campaign and endgame calling cards feature this type of blatant Sora/Grok art style pic.twitter.com/5qmEXhoQkJ
— Kume (@Kumesicles) November 14, 2025
In response to this outrage, Activision released a statement to many stores stating that including a computer playerwhich confirms the problem… in a sense: “Like many people around the world, we use a variety of digital tools, including artificial intelligence tools, to empower and support our teams in creating the best possible gaming experiences for our players. Our creative process continues to be guided by the talent from our studios.”
It’s worth noting that the Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 Steam page also includes the following disclaimer: “Our team uses generative AI tools to assist in the development of some game assets.” Not very descriptive!
This isn’t the first time Call of Duty has come under fire for this reason. This exact scenario played out in February, when Activision admitted that it used generative AI in the development of Black Ops 6, including in a Zombie Santa loading screen that furious fans called an “AI slop.”
Then, last August, Black Ops 7 associate original director Miles Leslie further explained the team’s stance on the technology:
“We live in a world now where AI tools exist. I think our official statement that we made last year with Black Ops 6 is that everything that goes into the game is 100 percent controlled by the team. We have generative AI tools to help us, but none of it ends up in the game.
“And then you say, ‘Yes, but that’s what happened.’ I will say it was by accident. And it was never intentional. We came out and made it clear that we were using them as tools to facilitate the team, but they weren’t going to replace any of the fantastic team members we have who are putting the finishing touches and creating the content to put it into the game.”
“So everything you play: human-made and touched. AI tools in the world we live in: how do we improve it? That’s really the goal. Not to replace, but to improve.”
In response, IGN asked why zombie Santa and other images of generative AI had not been removed from the game yet, to which Leslie replied that it was not his department and that “the team is actively looking into these matters.” It’s unclear if, why, or how Activision’s stance on the matter has changed over time.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 is now available. We tried the campaign and didn’t really like it, with our reviewer saying it’s “an incredible campaign for the scope of its ambition, but the gigantic changes it requires don’t always work out, resulting in an uneven decline compared to last year.”
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. Her posts can be found on BlueSky @duckvalentine.bsky.social. Have a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.
