Infinity Ward pulls "OK" gesture from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare
Sign has become known as a white supremacist gesture; developer has yet to comment
Developer Infinity Ward appears to have removed the "OK" gesture from both Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and Warzone.
The OK gesture was formerly part of a number of other gestures -- including thumbs up and down, a beckoning gesture, and a salute -- that players can use in online play to visibly communicate with others. It has now been replaced with a gesture called "crush," reports Eurogamer.
The studio has yet to comment on the removal, but it is possible that the gesture was taken out due to growing recognition of the "OK" sign as a white supremacist hate symbol.
Though initially a harmless gesture indicating acknowledgment or understanding, the sign was added to the ADL's list of hate symbols after a 2017 push by members of 4chan to falsely promote it as a sign for white power.
As a result, the sign was gradually adopted first as a trolling gesture, and later in a more sincere capacity as an actual white supremacist hate symbol, leading to its 2019 inclusion in the ADL's index -- though it is still also frequently used in its original context.