Has Activision copied the Warzone Loyal Samoyed skin?

Activision has been accused of copying a fan’s work for the new Warzone Floof Fury skin after the artist pointed out that the two designs are very similar. Unfortunately, plagiarism is not uncommon in esports. 

Just like every other battle royale game out there, Call of Duty: Warzone has plunged into the world of cosmetics with a plethora of skins for weapons, characters, vehicles, and other purchasable add-ons.

While many Warzone skins were developed by Activision itself, some are the result of crossovers with other popular franchises. However, there is a new skin that has caused a lot of discussion in the community. Revealed with the Warzone Season 4 Reloaded update, the Floof Fury Tracer Pack includes a skin design that might have been created by an independent artist over two years ago.

Artist claims Activision stole design

Sail Lin, the concept artist in question, pointed out the similarities between the new Warzone Loyal Samoyed skin and his Samoye medical concept, which was posted to ArtStation in December 2019. Besides the most obvious resemblance between the two, there are other details suggesting the design has been plagiarized. 

As the artist showcased in their Twitter post, the Warzone Loyal Samoyed skin has a gun on the character’s back as well as a bandana around the neck and a pouch on the hip — all in a similar design and colour scheme as the dog in  Sail Lin’s artwork. 

“While I am a Call of Duty player, I am very disappointed that my work is being copied in this way by a large company like Activision,” tweeted the artist, noting that they were reaching out to the publisher for answers.

Many Warzone fans have expressed their compassion for the artist and urged Activision to set things right. Others have suggested that this cosmetic should not be released at all. As of now, the artist has not commented further on the situation and it remains to be seen what the developers will do or if they will comment on the allegations at all.

More plagiarism allegations

Unfortunately, when it comes to designs, there are always cases when plagiarism is included and not only in gaming. While nearly everyone knows that various large fast fashion brands keep stealing from small labels, many people in gaming have no clue about stolen designs. Recently, Atlanta FaZe also made headlines due to alleged copying of their logo from a fashion brand named Alpha Forward. The designs there were too strikingly similar, but Alpha Forward’s logo was designed years before Atlanta FaZe.

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