Call of Duty: Next

This large-scale streaming event was conceived to show off exciting new content in the Call of Duty video game franchise, including new information on Call of Duty: Warzone and Modern Warfare III. To do this, 250 streamers were invited to play the games live in an immersive location. Broadcast to audiences from a warehouse in Los Angeles, this experience set the gamers up for success in promoting these new chapters of Call of Duty.

This event presented many fun challenges for the Lightswitch team. Because the invited gamers constituted both the audience as well as the onscreen talent, our goal was to impress them with a jaw-droppingly immersive experience that would encourage them to hype up the game to their audiences. We achieved this through three major components:

First, the experience began when the streamers were dropped off at what appeared to be a ramshackle warehouse in a seedy block of Los Angeles. The players were then escorted inside through a tunnel made of old shipping containers. We filled this hallway with smoke and immersive lighting effects, creating a portal that removed the gamers from the outside world and transported them into the world of the game.

Next, the streamers emerged into the Player Lounge. This space was modeled after a nightclub interior from Call of Duty, and our team contributed greatly to the ambience with colorful lighting and moving beams of light. We also lit nearby shops containing sponsored items like clothing, energy drinks, and snacks. The moody colors of the Lounge encouraged the gamers to take pictures and livestream, while the shops were well-lit and allowed vendors to promote their wares.

At this point, the gamers weren’t aware of the main streaming area, which was hidden through a bank of faux elevators. After a handful of hours spent in the Player Lounge, we surprised them with one huge, final reveal. Upon entering the massive space, they saw desks for each of them, fully equipped with gaming consoles, PCs, and more. Every station also featured a ring light, which our team was required to balance for the camera. Fifty of the streamers sat in a two-story “Hollywood squares” structure, the front of which was a “blow through” video wall. Additionally, we designed a system of strip lights that totaled over half a mile and lined every surface of the event. All of these lights were controlled by a media server which ran custom content based on what was happening during the show. In full, the event boasted 251 video broadcasts, all of which we were responsible for lighting.

This exciting project certainly came with its own set of challenges: With hundreds of subjects to light at once, our team had to make sure our design was flexible enough to light an interview anywhere on the gaming floor at a moment’s notice. Lightswitch jumped right in – crafting an incredibly immersive show for the invited gamers by transforming a low-ceilinged Los Angeles warehouse into a soaring streamer’s paradise.

photography by Joseph Finn