The Sports Xchange

Seattle Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch has long been a fan of the video game “Call of Duty.” Now he will be a character.

“Call of Duty: Black Ops III” — the latest version of the game by Activision and Treyarch — will feature a character based on Lynch, who recently took part in the motion-capture process in Activision’s studio in Los Angeles.

“Marshawn Lynch is the perfect match for ‘Call of Duty,'” Activision CEO Eric Hirshberg told ESPN The Magazine. “I mean, he’s a guy who fills stadiums, crushes competitors and has a Beast Mode. What could be more COD than that?”

Lynch, who has been playing the game since his college days at California, said, “It’s a fun-loving way to let off some stress. You’re shooting up everything but always fighting for a bigger picture. The whole game is Beast Mode.”

“For Marshawn’s role, we needed an imposing figure,” Treyarch studio chief Mark Lamia said. “When we learned he’s a huge fan, we thought it’d be awesome to have him inside our game.”

Lynch spent a day wrapped in LED lights, going through a cyberware scanner and having 360-degree images taken so the creators could put his likeness in the game.

Lynch listed his requirements for the character: “He better have dreads, gold teeth and my distinctive walk. Then people will be like, ‘Oh, that’s really Beast Mode right there!'”

After that, Lynch participated in the motion-capture acting, creating the words and action for a scene. He was thrilled to be immortalized in the game, which is set for release in November.

“I’ve been in the Super Bowl, movies, music videos, Madden,” he said, “but to have your own character in Duty is, I mean, it’s almost like you arrived.”