Activision and Waste Creative Launch "Stories of Verdansk" to Celebrate the Return of Call of Duty

Mar. 31, 2025

Activision Publishing, Inc., in collaboration with creative agency Waste Creative and its animation studio This Thing of Ours, has unveiled Stories of Verdansk, a global campaign celebrating the much-anticipated return of Verdansk to Call of Duty®: Warzone™. The video series taps into the personal and unforgettable moments of players, including a host of celebrity fans, as they relive their most iconic Verdansk stories

The campaign aims to engage both current, new, and returning Call of Duty: Warzone players, reigniting their passion for Verdansk and inspiring them to create and share their own stories.

Waste Creative and This Thing of Ours have orchestrated a full-scale production, blending authentic storytelling, live-action, multiple animation styles to create a visually compelling and culturally relevant launch moment.

The campaign kicked off with ‘La Escopeta Loca’ (Spanish for ‘the crazy shotgun’), a launch film starring Mexican footballer Chicharito (Javier Hernández). In the spot, Chicharito crashes into a barn in Verdansk, coming across a supply crate containing a simple revolver and a crazy looking shotgun. Ambushed and low on health, his squad encourages him to try the shotgun. The shotgun is so ‘OP’ (overpowered) it sweeps up the entire enemy squad into an epic scale explosion.

More trailers feature a number of other high-profile UK, US, LATAM and EMEA talent, each sharing their own unforgettable Verdansk moments. Every story is brought to life through a unique animation style, crafted to reflect the individual personality and experience of each player.

The campaign is running globally across Call of Duty’s social channels and the featured talent’s own platforms.

Lee Godfrey, Call of Duty Live Ops Senior Manager, EMEA at Activision, commented: 

"Verdansk holds a special place in the hearts of Call of Duty players, and bringing it back is a huge moment for the community. With ‘Stories of Verdansk,’ we wanted to tap into the passion and personal experiences that make this map so beloved. Waste Creative has done an incredible job crafting a campaign that not only celebrates Verdansk’s return but also puts the players’ own memories at the heart of it."

 

Sam Whiffing, Associate Creative Director at Waste Creative, said: 

"This campaign was about more than just nostalgia. It was about orchestrating a full-scale creative spectacle, uniting world-class talent, cutting-edge production, and a vision that does justice to Verdansk’s return. We blended live action, animation, and authentic storytelling to deliver something truly unforgettable for Call of Duty: Warzone players worldwide."

 

Alex Robinson, Head of Animation, Waste Creative, added: 

"This project has been an absolute dream for our studio. We take pride in the variety of flavours and styles we bring to our work, and it’s been incredible to see Ben Sayer’s, aka Babe Splat’s, wild illustrations come to life. Watching our director, Jacob Reidy, inject his own artistic touch into a stunning style has been nothing short of amazing!"

 

Call of Duty®: Black Ops 6 Season 03 Multiplayer and Zombies content arrives on April 2nd. Players can jump in and get locked and loaded prior to Verdansk officially launching in Call of Duty: Warzone™ the following day on April 3rd.