Call of Duty video game franchise has been accused of stealing an image from Goblin Slayer anime.
An anime themed in-game pack titled “Notice me IV” is available for purchase in Call of Duty: Warzone. This pack includes various anime themed items and skins, which you can purchase for ~$9 USD.
A twitter user noticed that “Notice me IV” banner which features a blue eyed girl looks a lot similar to an anime girl from Goblin Slayer.
Twitter user @HUSK3RGAM3R pointed out that this Warzone pack banner is an exact replica of a frame from the Opening of Goblin Slayer. Here is the cover from Call of Duty: Warzone pack:
Here is the screenshot taken from Goblin Slayer opening around the 40 second mark:
The most surprising thing is that this anime pack was added in the game last year in September. For almost 1 year nobody noticed this similarity.
Apparently this is not the first time that Call of Duty franchise has traced someone’s else artwork. Another Twitter user shown a comparison between an artwork from a Japanese illustrator and Call of Duty Mobile game cover.
Some fans have pointed out that it should be considered plagiarism towards the animators who made the opening. Other users said that this falls under the fair use policy as this is not the heart of the work, so this should not be a problem.
Here is the video showing “Notice Me IV” bundle in Call of Duty: War Zone:
What do you think about this apparent tracing done by such a big game franchise? Do you think this falls under the fair use policy or is this should be considered plagiarism?
