Black Ops 7 Teams Up with Dave Chappelle for Half Baked Tracer Pack, but Fans Are Underwhelmed

Call of Duty is gearing up to celebrate 4/20 with a nod to a nearly 30-year-old classic film. One of the most anticipated titles on Steam has announced its Early Access launch date, and whispers about a new PlayStation handheld have portable gaming enthusiasts buzzing. Here’s your Morning Checkpoint for April 1, 2026. Unlike some in the gaming industry, we’re not here to pull any pranks or share cringe-worthy gaming news jokes.

Instead, let’s dive into the viral sensation of crows attacking Rapunzel’s hair at Tokyo Disney. Following the incident, she was taken down from her tower. The animatronic characters are facing some serious malfunctions, but the internet is having a field day with fresh footage of these mishaps. Thankfully, Olaf is back in action today—or is it just a stand-in?

I initially thought the news about Black Ops 7’s 4/20 pack was another silly April Fool’s joke, but it turns out to be real. “There’s something brewing at Frankencense & Burr Pharmaceutical, and Thurgood Jenkins is right in the thick of it,” the announcement states. “The master of custodial arts seizes the moment to have some fun and save a friend, all captured in this Bundle inspired by the 1998 comedy classic, Half Baked.”

The pack features the “Smoke ‘Em Dead” VST SMG Blueprint, “Lickity Clean” Animated Calling Card, and “Trippin’ Green” Animated Emblem, among other cosmetics. Interestingly, the announcement doesn’t mention Dave Chappelle by name, even though the promotional art clearly showcases him in two “Thurgood”-themed Operator Skins.

Last year’s event included Seth Rogen, and while fans were already skeptical about the branded skins in a top military shooter, there was at least more content to enjoy, including additional limited-time modes. This year, Activision is already on the defensive. “We know many players enjoy these events, but we’ve scaled back the 4/20 celebrations to a single bundle for fans of Half Baked,” the official account stated. “No events or LTMs this time.”

This decision has only fueled frustration among players. “You are scaling this back the wrong way… nobody remembers these 4/20 events because of the lackluster collaborations; people appreciate the effort put into LTMs like High Trip Resurgence in MW3/BO6 Warzone,” one player pointed out.

According to reports, a highly anticipated open-world action-adventure game was nearly finished before its parent company pulled the plug after seven years of development struggles. The protagonist, River, was part of a group called Spiritbounds, who could fend off evil spirits with magical staffs and ride mythical creatures. River’s companion was a giant moose-like creature named ‘Redhear,’ which players could ride to traverse the map more efficiently.

The Crown 603, as it’s known, was uncovered during the company’s quest to locate its first-ever crane game, the Crown 602. Although the sequel is in rough shape, the company plans to see if it can restore this vintage arcade relic.

Fans are buzzing about the upgraded costumes, which look significantly more detailed and polished. Previously, the studio denied that the poorly designed cosmetics were created using generative AI but has since patched them to address quality concerns. Many are left wondering why they didn’t just wait to release the improved versions.

This week’s Flashpoint update introduces new content, but an intriguing change in the patch notes addresses how the game handles players with custom loadouts versus free kits. “As part of our ongoing review of free loadout usage and its impact on gameplay, we’re adjusting matchmaking to favor players with custom loadouts in fresh servers,” the developers explained.

They added, “This won’t be a guarantee, as factors like map choice, time of day, and region will still influence matchmaking availability. This change may affect overall matchmaking times, so we’ll monitor it closely. Free Loadouts are primarily intended as a safety net for players’ personal economies. With these kits, those who play strategically should have enough resources to rebuild, complete tasks, or make progress.”

The strategy revival is set to hit Steam Early Access on April 30, with Game Pass PC subscribers able to access it for free on day one.

A hardware leaker has claimed that the next-gen GPU is slightly ahead of the Xbox Series S in raster performance and significantly superior in ray tracing and path tracing capabilities.