Popular streamer Guy “Dr Disrespect” Breahm, who’s largely built his brand on playing and trashing Call of Duty in equal measure, has had his CoD account suspended for a week after being disrespectful in proximity chat. His connection to the series is not just streaming, but includes a stint at Sledgehammer Games in the early 2010s, during which he worked as a level designer on Advanced Warfare. As any viewer of his streams may know, Dr Disrespect is perhaps the ultimate exemplar of bro-hard culture: swearing and trash talk are a huge part of his brand and appeal.
Which of course is not a licence to behave however you will, though the streamer gives an “I’m not bothered” re-telling that makes clear he is probably quite bothered: the suspension was apparently for calling one or more players a “pussy”. An insulting term and a misogynistic one at that, though it also feels like a harsh thing to be banned for, though it is against Call of Duty’s new code of conduct which explicitly targets “derogatory comments based on […] gender identity”. Players must now agree to this document before playing any of the games.
(Image credit: Activision Blizzard)
“I should probably chill on this account champs,” Dr Disrespect says while playing Warzone 2. “I mean with the proximity chat. This is not even my account. They banned my other one for seven days for proximity chat use. Believe it or not champs.”
In a stream on November 24, Dr Disrespect said he was playing on an alternate account, and “wasn’t gonna say anything [about the ban] really because I don’t really care champs, I really don’t.” He goes on to say how much he doesn’t care several more times, while his viewers ask for some clarity on why he was suspended.
Dr Disrespect then puts on a childish voice and says “ya can’t say that, ya can’t say that, let’s make an example,” criticising the community team responsible for banning him.
He then responds to a question in chat about the reason for the ban. “It wasn’t the pussy one was it? Yes, yes it was,” said Dr Disrespect. “These people are just so out-of-touch.”
Dr Disrespect is fighting a squad as he says this, and at this point you very clearly hear one of his opponents shout over the proximity chat (referring to the streamer): “There you go, kill that n***** let’s go.”
The streamer then lets out a little of the frustration he clearly feels over the decision: “But you’re gonna ban me right before a $100,000 tournament for seven days? Over a fucking clip, that is just…. it’s insane how out-of-touch these people are.”
It’s worth emphasising that Dr Disrespect’s business model is based on playing Call of Duty and taking shots at Call of Duty: so he has an interest in saying provocative stuff about the game and, in the past, has never been shy of criticising it. So this is just another grievance to add to the pile.
Warzone 2 incorporates anti-toxicity tools that were introduced with Modern Warfare 2, and which Activision Blizzard says are “foundational” for the series’ future (opens in new tab). Essentially this is an overhauled in-game reporting system, combined with new tools for the publisher’s moderation teams to deal with problem players, and allows complaints to add some context. Other games are going further, however, with Valorant analysing voice chat files to weed-out harassment: maybe Dr Disrespect should stay away from that one.
