Authorities in Kuwait have blocked the release of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 just days before it was due to launch.
Black Ops 6 was set to hit store shelves globally on October 25, including in Kuwait, but regulators have prohibited its release.
A spokesperson for Activison told IGN that it remained “hopeful” that the authorities in Kuwait would reconsider. Here’s the statement in full:
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 has not been approved for release in Kuwait. At this time, the title will not be available for release in region. As a result, all preorders in Kuwait will be cancelled and refunded to the original point of purchase. We remain hopeful that local authorities will reconsider, and allow players in Kuwait to enjoy this all-new experience in the Black Ops series.
Activision failed to explain the reason for Black Ops 6’s Kuwait ban, but it probably had something to do with its setting. Black Ops 6 is set in the 90s amid the Gulf War, which kicked off when Iraq invaded Kuwait on August 2, 1990.
Indeed, promotional material for Black Ops 6 features world leaders from the time period, including Bill Clinton, Margaret Thatcher, George H. W. Bush, Colin Powell, and Saddam Hussein.
This week, Microsoft pulled its $1 for 14 days of Game Pass trial ahead of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6’s release date. Mirroring a tactic it employed ahead of last year's launch of Bethesda’s Starfield, Microsoft has now made the $1 introductory offer unavailable. It was previously available only to those who hadn’t subscribed to Game Pass before. Black Ops 6 is of course the first Call of Duty game to launch straight into Game Pass day one, following Microsoft’s $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard.
We've also got confirmation of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6's launch Multiplayer maps, modes, and Operators, and Call of Duty: Black Ops 6's preload and global launch times.
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at [email protected] or confidentially at [email protected].
