Potential Flame-bait Journal Post on Gaming

Let me put this right off the bat: don't worry. I haven't left dA or anything. Just taking me a bit longer to post stuff than expected. And this time, it's not exactly work-related.

Lately, it's on something that on most ordinary circumstances I'd ignore. I shouldn't feel much about the matter known as either Gamersgate, the Quinnspiracy or some variation thereof, something that originated from the US and Anglosphere. Again, something that in some other context would be considered a first-world problem...BUT GOOD BLOODY GOD! The sheer madness of the whole affair is now becoming legend, only it's actually happening for real.

While the details can be looked up online and on multiple Youtube videos, an incredibly condensed version can be summed up like this. The current saga began with news surrounding an indie developer Zoe Quinn involving affairs with certain individuals including one within the game journalism circuit, her actions vs. a gaming group trying to promote female programmers for charity ("The Fine Young Capitalists") and allegations of conflicts of interest, eventually leading to allegations of corruption and dubious ethics on the part of certain game journalists and affiliated sites. At some point, it became an issue of feminism and misorgyny: trolls came into the picture and claims arose of death/rape threats on Zoe. Then came the torrent of vitriol from opposite, minority sides as trolls and "social justice warriors" went at it. That the recent video of controversial activist Anita Sarkeesian for her Feminist Frequency series on video games and sexism was followed by claims of similat death/rape threats from shady trolls (that it forced her out of her own house) only added fuel to a fire that was already burning for about two weeks.

The result of all this? Madness. Before long, certain game blogs and sites began pubishing article after article about the "death of gamers:" a tale of backward, bigoted malcontents and revived negative nerd stereotypes reifying an industry lost in sexism holding back against those showing the light. Unfortunately, despite attempts not to explicitly paint all those who play games as vile "Gamer" fiends, the sheer one-sided spitefulness and condescending undertones (not to mention the myriad interpretations of the term "Gamer") came across like a bitter jab by the game journalists involved at their own readers; apparently they dropped reporting on games and, well, fun explicitly for their own "loftier" interests. Needless to say, more vitriol ensured to the point that any conversation to be had (like the supposed dialogue and questioning Sarkeesian's work may have intended to open) quickly became nigh impossible.

Amidst the mud-slinging and what can only be described as a World War I-style battlefield worth of hate, the gaming community at large was pretty much placed in No Man's Land. Just about any moderate, legitimate criticism or even comment that wasn't in full support of the "social justice warrior" crowd was either censored or ignored. At worst, this led to people being associated with said vile "neckbeard" trolls or labled as/compared to sexists, bigots and terrorists groups like the Taliban or ISIS (yes, THAT terrorist group) because they disagreed at points with the game journalists, Quinn or Sarkeesian. Even when the people commenting and critiquing are by-and-large, diverse, well-meaning and nice individuals (which includes women) who try to be open regardless of your identity, race or whatever; in other words, people as far from the hate-spewing trolls of the dramatized "gamer" label as you could imagine. Still, one gets the impression that whoever wins, gamers lose. All while the issue of ethics or even the original questions vanish from view.

With all this anger and horrific publicity (which is something of an understatement), why is this something of a concern? To put it lightly, the repurcussions of all this on gamers, gaming in general and any association with games are massive. It's like the videogame violence scares of the 1990s-2000s all over again (terms like "Columbine" and "Jack Thompson" come to mind). I'm not white and as not as avid a gamer as I was 10 years ago. I'm a heterosexual, introverted male living in a culturally Catholic country who still enjoys videogames. As with many folks in the gaming community, I agree that yes, sexism is a present issue and that gaming can always be improved upon. And like them, I agree that the manner in which this whole affair was handled by the other side only serves to fuel trolls and does a disservice to real feminism, tolerance and gaming in general.

But I'm kind of worried, or dare I say afraid about the implications. Afraid that I or my interest in games would be seen as some mean-spirited abyss to be cured of. Afraid that I would be branded as some predator/rapist/terrorist/social threat/trigger warning waiting to happen simply because of an association with gaming or personal politics. Or worse, in some ironic twist, due to my own gender. Must like the sensationalized hubbub and social justice gone wrong cases elsewhere (like the incident with one Stephen Colbert), I ask myself at times: how did it EVER come to this? Does this make me, let alone gamers the villain in this fiasco?

If this post is offensive to your sensibilities, I apologize in advance. If you wish for further information, feel free to ask me and I'll try to look for links or videos. But to attempt to end of a better note, while I'm not much of a fan for online petition, this is as good as any given the circumstances: www.change.org/p/the-gaming-in…

So good ladies, and kind sirs, perhaps some civility is in order. Stop the hate. Let it end. 

*UPDATE* I've recently posted a second part to this entry. Granted, it's more of an epilogue of sorts, but feel free to check it out!