Activision's first person shooter franchise, Call of Duty, is no stranger to controversy. Its action-packed campaigns depicting the savage acts of war across various points in history are a hit with most fans of the genre, but with such an attention to detail, it's no surprise that it found its way under many a scrutinizing eye when showcasing some of the acts and consequences that war can bring.

One of its standout entries, the Modern Warfare series, cemented its place in the gaming world, but it's also been the subject of quite a bit of controversy. One need look no further than the infamous "No Russian" level from Modern Warfare 2. Now that there are rumors of a remaster coming soon, it's not surprising that this controversial mission is attracting attention again.

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In the "No Russian" mission, you play as Private First Class Joseph Allen, who goes undercover as a Russian by the name of Alexei Borodin. As Borodin, Allen meets up with Vladimir Makarov, a terrorist and one of the main antagonists of the series, at the Zakhaev International Airport. This leads to his group opening fire upon a group of unarmed civilians and security alike as they slowly make their way through the airport, no one escaping the sights of their guns. Things further escalate when you reach the runways. Reinforcements have been called in as you mow through solider after soldier to reach your escape vehicle, and the level slowly adopts a more traditional style.

The opening to the CoD MW2 level No Russian

The mission ends with Makarov thanking "Borodin" for the assist before promptly shooting and leaving him to die as he speeds off in the getaway van. As a result, the attack is pinned on the Americans, furthering the tension between Russia and the U.S. On top of being a downer of a mission ending, it also puts into perspective the mission title itself, which teases Makarov's knowledge of Allen's identity.

It's understandable why the mission was received the way it was. "No Russians" is unapologetic in its brutality, putting innocents in the line of fire while giving players full reign to mow them down if they so choose. This mission strikes suddenly, without warning, right as players are starting to look around, and crawls at a slow pace to give them time to absorb everything that is happening around them, before hitting them with more well-equipped obstacles.

At the time of release, the designers probably knew the content of "No Russian" would ruffle a few feathers. The mission was optional, and players could skip it completely if the graphic nature proved to be too much. The game also warned players at the start what was coming. With all of this in mind, it would have been easy to cut the mission completely in a remaster, which some players figured the developers would choose to do.

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However, this does not seem to be the case. In a leaked video of the German version of the remaster, the "No Russian" mission appears to be intact. The video shows Makarov and his men stepping out of the elevator at what is clearly Zakhaev International Airport. It has not been confirmed if the player can still choose to skip the mission, though considering the developers have chosen to keep it in at all, it is likely players will still have the option they did in the original.

By keeping the "No Russian" mission in the remaster despite the controversy surrounding it and the mission being optional from the start, the developers have shown they'd prefer to keep everything intact and as intended in the original. Some may argue that this allows players to determine for themselves what kind of content they wish to see out of what has been provided. But others, understandably, feel that the mission always went too far and think that keeping it in the game in spite of the criticism it initially received is tone-deaf.

Still, one could argue that controversy is a part of Call of Duty's identity. From weapons to combat scenarios, the franchise has always placed realism at the forefront in a way that critics have long argued glorifies war and fans have viewed as an unsanitized depiction of its savagery.

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