The revolutionary Cuban leader Fidel Castro died on Nov. 25, 2016, bringing back memories both in the real world and games. Players may remember the dictator to have appeared in "Call of Duty: Black Ops" in 2010.
Polygon explained that in the first mission of "Call of Duty," the main protagonist initially thought that he successfully killed the Cuban leader. However, Mason soon realized that he merely shot a body double. He was subsequently captured and sent to a Soviet Gulag.
Cubadebate, a Cuba state-run site, immediately noticed Castro in "Call of Duty: Black Ops" and described the game as a perverse piece of American propaganda. It was widely known that Castro has been the target of several assassination attempts by the United States for standing up against them.
The website continued to bash Washington for failing to eliminate Castro in the past several years. Cubadebate stated that the United States are only trying to virtually kill Castro in "Call of Duty," after failing to actually do so in over half a century. The site continued that "Call of Duty" turns children and teenagers in North America into sociopaths.
Before "Call of Duty: Black Ops," another game also required players to try and kill the dictator. In "Godfather 2," the mission was to try and kill the Cuban leader for Hyman Roth.
The outcome was basically the same in real life, with Castro surviving all attempts against his life. At the time, the Cuban state media did not comment on the game. "Call of Duty" may have garnered more attention because of its global reputation and connection with the U.S. military.
Overall, it cannot fully be said that "Call of Duty" with Fidel Castro was a means to bolster American propaganda. Otherwise, players should have been successful in assassinating the dictator, even fictionally.
Castro was featured again in "Call of Duty: Black Ops," where he aided Richard Nixon, John F. Kennedy and Robert McNamara battle hordes of zombies in the Pentagon. Considering how Castro's death is such a popular subject today, he might make a return in "Call of Duty: Black Ops," via a new DLC.
