Activision removes Nickmercs' Call of Duty skin over anti-LGBTQ+ tweet

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The streamer's comment about an attack on Pride supporters was widely criticized, but he says he will not apologize.

Nickmercs Call of Duty operator skin
(Image credit: Activision)

Activision has removed the Nickmercs skin from Modern Warfare 2 and Warzone, following an anti-LGBTQ+ comment the streamer made earlier this week.

On June 7, retired Halo pro and MLG executive Chris Puckett tweeted a video of an attack on pro-LGBTQ+ demonstrators outside of a school board meeting in Glendale, CA. 

"This happened 4 blocks from my Overwatch League apartment," Puckett tweeted. "Americans are in a sad place right now. Let people love who they love and live your own life."

In response, Nickmercs tweeted, "They should leave little children alone. That’s the real issue."

As noted by Dexerto, the tweet sparked an immediate backlash. "Who is this they and what terrible act is everyone afraid of?" Puckett replied. "I think/hope the goal of most of 'them' is to reduce child suicides. This is done through acceptance and removing the stigma of feeling/being different."

Others shared similar responses:

(Image credit: Twitter)

(Image credit: Twitter)

(Image credit: Twitter)

(Image credit: Twitter)

During a stream the day after making the comment, Nickmercs denied holding anti-LGBTQ+ beliefs and said he didn't mean to upset anyone, but he also said he would not apologize for the statement or take down the tweet.

Earlier today, Call of Duty site CharlieIntel reported that the Nickmercs skin had been removed from the Modern Warfare 2 and Warzone store without notice or comment. Activision then confirmed that the skin had been removed because of Nickmercs' tweet.

"Due to recent events, we have removed the 'Nickmercs Operator' bundle from the Modern Warfare II and Warzone store," the official Call of Duty account tweeted in reply to Charlie Intel. "We are focused on celebrating PRIDE with our employees and our community."

Nickmercs has not yet commented publicly on the removal of his Call of Duty skin. I've reached out to Nickmercs for comment and will update if I receive a reply.

Andy Chalk
Andy Chalk
US News Lead

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.