Activision may be facing further legal troubles due to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II, which released last week with a campaign mode that takes players to various locations around the globe, including a mission to a faithfully recreated section of Amsterdam, Netherlands, that sees Task Force 141 members Gaz and Captain Price attempting to figure out who Hassan, one of the shooter’s antagonists, is working with.
One of the multiplayer maps that was inspired by that level features the “Breenbergh,” an apparently unmistakable replica of the real-life Conservatorium Hotel, but nobody at Activision or Infinity Ward thought to get permission to use the building, according to local reports, something that the owners aren’t too happy about, considering that it gets destroyed in gun fights.
Roy Tomassen, who manages the Conservatorium, says that the hotel is “considering possible steps” as a result of what he describes as “unwanted involvement.”
“We have taken note of the fact that the Conservatorium Hotel is undesirably the scene of the new Call of Duty,” Tomassen said in a statement. “More generally, we don’t support games that seem to encourage the use of violence. The game in no way reflects our core values ​​and we regret our apparent and unwanted involvement.’ The hotel is still considering possible steps.
From a Volkskrant.nl report:
The bullets are flying around in the Conservatorium Hotel, located in a monumental building in Amsterdam, a stone’s throw from the Stedelijk Museum. There is a large hole in the front facade, from which black smoke rises. In front of the building are a burning car and abandoned fire trucks.
The hotel is one of the sets of the video game Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II . There’s just one problem: no one has asked whether the Conservatorium Hotel appreciates being shot to pieces – virtually – by heavily armed commandos.
The buildings, the canals and the tour boats are indistinguishable from the real thing. There are street signs with ‘Oudezijds Achterburgwal’ and ‘Oudekerksplein’. But to avoid legal fuss, the names of bars, restaurants and sex clubs have been changed. The signboards of beer brands bear different names: Heineken is called Groeneveld, elsewhere Reybrouck is recommended. The Conservatorium Hotel has been renamed the Breenbergh.