The highly anticipated Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles crossover in *Call of Duty: Black Ops 6* has stirred up controversy within the gaming community due to its steep price tag. Activision revealed the Season 02 Reloaded content, set to launch on February 20, featuring a mid-season TMNT crossover. The event includes premium bundles for each of the four turtles—Leonardo, Donatello, Michelangelo, and Raphael—each costing 2,400 COD Points, equivalent to $19.99. If players wish to collect all four turtles, they're looking at a hefty $80 investment in COD Points.
Adding to the cost, Activision has introduced a premium event pass for the TMNT crossover, priced at 1,100 COD Points / $10. This pass offers exclusive cosmetics, including the coveted Splinter character, only accessible through purchasing the premium track. The free track offers lesser rewards like Foot Clan soldier skins.
While the crossover focuses solely on cosmetics without affecting gameplay, the community's reaction has been mixed. Many players argue that such crossovers are easily ignorable and cater to those willing to spend more. However, the high cost of these cosmetics has led to widespread criticism, with some feeling that *Black Ops 6* is adopting a monetization model similar to free-to-play games like *Fortnite*.
Community members have voiced their frustrations on platforms like Reddit. User II_JangoFett_II commented, "Activision casually glossing over the fact that they want you to pay $80+ if you want the 4 Turtles, plus another $10+ if you want the TMNT event pass rewards. Call of Duty's Gross greed strikes again... DESPICABLE!" Hipapitapotamus added, "Guess we can expect an event pass sold every season now. Remember when events were good and got you cool universal camos for free." APensiveMonkey humorously noted, "The Turtles don’t use guns. Their fingers wouldn’t even... I hate this..."
Activision's monetization strategy for *Black Ops 6* includes a new battle pass each season, costing 1,100 COD Points / $9.99, with an additional premium version, BlackCell, priced at $29.99. Alongside these, the game offers a continuous stream of purchasable cosmetics, topped off by the TMNT crossover's premium event pass. PunisherR35 expressed the sentiment of many, saying, "So they expect the playerbase to buy the game itself, buy the battle pass/black cell and now this? Na that's too much. If this is gonna be the norm moving forward, CoD needs to move to a FTP model (campaign, MP)."
The ongoing monetization tactics of *Call of Duty* have long been a point of contention, but the introduction of the premium event pass with the Squid Game crossover and now the TMNT event has pushed some fans to their limits. The comparison between the $70 *Black Ops 6* and the free-to-play *Warzone* has fueled calls for *Black Ops 6* Multiplayer to adopt a free-to-play model, especially as it increasingly mirrors the monetization strategies of games like *Fortnite*, *Apex Legends*, and *Marvel Rivals*.
Despite the backlash, Activision and its parent company Microsoft are likely to maintain their current strategy, given the overwhelming success of *Black Ops 6*. The game achieved the largest launch in *Call of Duty* history and set a new single-day Game Pass subscription record. Sales on PlayStation and Steam saw a 60% increase over 2023's *Modern Warfare 3*, underscoring the franchise's enduring popularity and financial success for Microsoft, which acquired Activision for a staggering $69 billion.
