Cheating Service Claims Shutdown, Gamers Doubtful
Call of Duty cheat provider Phantom Overlay is reportedly shutting down its operations.
In a Telegram announcement, the company declined to explain its immediate closure but stated, "This is not an exit scam. No external party could ever force me to deceive our customers. All services will remain updated, secure, and accessible for an additional 32 days."
Phantom Overlay is extending service for 32 days to ensure users with 30-day subscriptions receive full value. The creator also mentioned partial refunds for lifetime key holders.
Since many other cheat services rely on Phantom Overlay's infrastructure, this sudden shutdown may significantly disrupt the broader cheating ecosystem.
"I can't believe it!" exclaimed one player on X (formerly Twitter, via Dexerto). "Does this mean the Season 3 anti-cheat update will actually be effective?!"
Other commenters remained skeptical, with one remarking, "This is just a rebranding tactic. They operate multiple services under different names. The cheating won't disappear."
Activision recently acknowledged that its Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 anti-cheat measures fell short during Season 1's launch, especially in Ranked Play, despite earlier promises to remove cheaters within one hour of their first match.
The company assured players it now routinely bans offenders thanks to enhanced responsiveness from multiple Ricochet Anti-Cheat systems, alongside the recent removal of over 19,000 accounts.
Widespread cheating is seen by many as damaging competitive multiplayer, and Activision has faced criticism for its slow response. The situation escalated last month when Season 2 introduced an option for console Ranked players to disable crossplay with PC users.
While cheating is not exclusive to Call of Duty, it has grown more challenging for Activision since the 2020 free-to-play release of Warzone. Despite investing heavily in anti-cheat technology and achieving several notable legal victories against cheat developers, the Ricochet system continues to face player skepticism.
In related news, earlier reports suggest more details about the return of Call of Duty Warzone's popular Verdansk map will be revealed on March 10.
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