Prolific Call of Duty Cheat Developer Insists It's Shutting Down — but Players Are Skeptical

Phantom Overlay, a prominent provider of cheats for Call of Duty, has announced its immediate shutdown via a statement on Telegram. The company emphasized that this closure is not an "exit scam," and it will maintain its services online for an additional 32 days to ensure users with 30-day keys can fully utilize their purchases. Furthermore, Phantom Overlay has committed to providing partial refunds to those who purchased lifetime keys. This move is significant because many other cheat providers rely on Phantom Overlay's systems, suggesting a potential ripple effect across the cheating community.

The gaming community has reacted with a mix of surprise and skepticism. One player expressed disbelief on X, wondering if this could mean a more effective anti-cheat update for Season 3. Others, however, suspect a rebranding strategy, pointing out that cheat providers often operate under multiple names. As one user put it, "They're just rebranding. They have the same provider under multiple names/brands. The cheaters won't stop."

Activision recently acknowledged that its anti-cheat efforts for Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 were not as effective as hoped at the launch of Season 1, particularly in Ranked Play. Despite initially promising to remove cheaters within an hour of their first match, the company admitted its systems fell short. However, Activision reassured players that it has since stepped up its efforts, with the Ricochet Anti-Cheat system now banning cheaters at an increased rate, alongside over 19,000 account bans.

The issue of cheating in Call of Duty has been a persistent concern, exacerbated by the release of the free-to-play battle royale, Warzone, in 2020. While Activision has invested heavily in anti-cheat technology and pursued legal action against cheat makers with notable success, player skepticism about the effectiveness of the Ricochet system persists. In response to the severity of the problem, Activision allowed console Ranked players to disable crossplay with PC players starting with Season 2.

In other news, excitement is building as more details about the return of the beloved Verdansk map in Call of Duty Warzone are expected to be revealed on March 10.