Treyarch: If you don’t like it don’t play it

Every game has the “opportunity to offend somebody” but no one is being forced to play something they don’t like, Treyarch community manager Josh Olin told VideoGamer.com at gamescom last week.

Asked about the possibility of Black Ops’ Cold War setting causing offence, Olin said: “There’s always an opportunity to offend somebody – there’s always somebody who is offended by our games, whether it’s making a game where you kill imperial Japanese soldiers or you’re making a game where Russian soldiers are dying. Any era has this potential to offend somebody.

“But we don’t look at it like that. We look at it as we’re making a game. We’re making an entertainment product that is supposed to be fun, it’s supposed to be entertaining for players. And if you don’t like it then don’t play it.”

Olin continued: “Treyarch’s always believed in freedom of speech and expression – we don’t want to feel like we’re being censored out of that stuff. It’s unfortunate if it does offend people but it’s never our intention.”

The community man also defended accusations that Call of Duty trivialises wars, stating that many soldiers are regularly playing titles in the franchise.

“People say, you know, ‘Does it trivialise war? Is it an offence to enlisted soldiers?’ We get letters all the time from soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan who are playing Modern Warfare and World at War as often as they can in their barracks,” he explained. “It’s a real stress relief to them and they really enjoy it.”

Call of Duty: Black Ops is scheduled for release on November 9, 2010.