TheQuartering [6/14/2023]
Twitch and YouTube personality NICKMERCS, also known as FaZe NICKMERCS, is facing backlash after he posted a controversial Tweet on June 7. The Tweet in question said, “They should leave little children alone. That’s the real issue” in response to a video showcasing anti-LGBT protestors getting violent with pro-LGBT demonstrators outside a school board meeting. This criticism quickly went viral with the Tweet now sitting at nearly 15 million views in just four days while the original video is at three million.
It was announced in May that NICKMERCS, alongside TimTheTatman, would be receiving their own Operator skins for Call of Duty: Warzone and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. NICKMERCS has consistently been one of the most watched Twitch streamers within the Call of Duty category, so it came as a surprise to some that Activision removed his skin on June 8 after the Tweet.
NICKMERCS’ contentious comment has divided many, with several content creators voicing their opinions. Keemstar tweeted in support of NICKMERCS on June 10 that it wasn’t Nick who was canceled but rather that “Call of Duty got canceled”. This opinion has sparked a larger conversation on cancel culture, though other Twitter users were quick to state that NICKMERCS wasn’t being fully boycotted since Activision didn’t ban him from the game, but that the company still didn’t want to be associated with his rhetoric, especially during Pride month.
On June 10, Dr Disrepect demanded an apology for NICKMERCS as he uninstalled Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 while calling it the worst game in the franchise.During the stream, he swore he wouldn’t consider playing the game again unless NICKMERCS’ Operator skin was reestablished or Activision issued him an apology.
On the same day, HasanAbi commented that Dr Disrespect was “more loyal to NICKMERCS having his skin than his own wife”. The day before he had responded to NICKMERCS’ original Tweet during a live stream, stating that “right-wingers” are taking information out of context. It seems that he is in favor of Activision’s decision and even commented that NICKMERCS moving on to stream Apex Legends was “even gayer than Call of Duty“.
However, also on June 10, a public request was made by TimTheTatman that Call of Duty remove his own Operator skin in support of NICKMERCS. He tweeted that NICKMERCS has been his friend for years and that “it feels wrong for [him] to have [his] and [Nick] no longer have his”. Activision granted his request on June 11 by swiftly removing his skin from both in-game stores.
In a response to TimTheTatman’s Tweet, Trainwreck, former Twitch streamer and now co-owner of Kick, spoke against Activision, writing “the vocal minority who pretend they are fighting for equality are just virtue signaling for clout”. xQc even reacted to the drama before cracking his own joke that Activision should “take the xQc Bundle out of the game” because he supports Tim.