When “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II” was released on Oct. 27, game developer Activision did something a bit different.
Some of the “Call of Duty” games have been based on various wars such as World War II and the Cold War. For the new game, part of the campaign mode takes place in Mexico and includes Hispanic/Latino characters.
According to Call of Duty’s website, Activision sold pre-orders to of the game to get early access by imploring would-be buyers to: “Take the full Early Access period to learn about Task Force 141, its ties to the Mexican Special Forces, and the overall foundational narrative to the next chapter of the Modern Warfare universe’s story.”
Hispanic/Latino characters are a key part of the game according to a MeriStation article by Vladimir Arteaga Figueroa, a video game website. “However, as already revealed in May, Special Forces 141 will integrate Colonel Alejandro Vargas, a Mexican who will have a major influence on the storyline. In fact, in an interview we had with Jeff Negus, Narrative Director and Brian Bloom, Lead Writer, it was confirmed that the Latino presence will play a key role in CODMW2. In fact, in the gameplay trailer we were shown, the Latin presence was hinted at with the song ‘Wherever I May Roam’ that Metallica and J Balvin worked on together.”
Some of the influence from the Hispanic/Latino community goes beyond gameplay.
One of Mexico’s biggest bands, if not the biggest, Banda MS also released a song for the video game.
“It’s a huge step for the game and the community,” said the game’s senior franchise manager Rodrigo Pérez in a Billboard.com interview.
A ‘Vents’ Magazine article by RJ Fromenta noted that Senior Brand Manager Latin America for “Call of Duty” Rodrigo Perez wanted to take advantage that a chunk of the campaign of the game would take place in Mexico.
“With a portion of the single player campaign set in Mexico, we knew that we had a unique opportunity in the Mexican/Hispanic market with Modern Warfare II,” said Pérez. “It has been exciting creating something special for the fans of Call of Duty and Banda MS, that we have never done before.”
“141” is a song made by Banda MS, featuring the traditional corrido pattern commonly used in Mexican regional music. “141” represents the name of the crew in the video game, Special Forces 141. The cover art also features one of the main characters of the game, called “Ghost”
Banda MS received a lot of positive feedback but part of the Hispanic/Latino community thought they weren’t the best ones suited for it. Banda MS is known for their love songs and sad songs and some of the community thought they weren’t the best fit and thought that other Mexican regional artists/groups like Luis R Conriquez, El Fantasma, Codigo FN would’ve fit better because they sing about things that happen in Call of Duty but also in real life.
Banda MS is more popular than all of these artists and would boost the game by a lot. Banda MS is the safer option too because these other artists that make more aggressive types of Mexican corridos also have ties to cartels and organizations in Mexico so having them would cause tension.