Last week, publisher Wales Interactive unveiled Gamer Girl -- an FMV title in which you play as a livestream chat moderator. You're tasked with "guiding" the choices of up and coming streamer Abicakes99 while uncovering the identity of an "anonymous predator" who lurks in the chat. It sounds like a unique premise if nothing else, but the game's announcement was met with a lot of criticism here on the internet.
As such, Wales Interactive has pulled the trailer and its accompanying marketing materials. The company took to Twitter to explain its stance, writing: "Online abuse is real and is still happening every day — Gamer Girl seeks to raise awareness of this issue."
Gamer Girl was set to arrive on PlayStation 4 this September, but now it's unclear whether it'll release at all. Not everyone was against the announcement -- some saw potential in the concept, while others expressed interest in Gamer Girl as yet another entertainingly cheesy FMV title. But detractors were concerned that the game was capitalising on the abuse that streamers can face in real life. There were also worries that it was portraying female streamers in a damaging, stereotypical way.
Again, it's unclear what happens next. Perhaps the developer will alter its vision and try again -- only time will tell.
[source twitter.com, via News: Gamer Girl Is an FMV Game All About the Life of a Streamer]
Comments 43
@KratosMD Exactly, and in another article comment thread, people were accusing me of exaggerating the influence of social media and internet pressure on game development...
Even if the game looked absolutely terrible, no internet backlash based on some pseudo-morality should dictate what can or can't be published.
"But detractors were concerned that the game was capitalising on the abuse that streamers can face in real life"
It's not even released? How can you say this in advance? AND in such a manner that they're seriously doubting releasing the game... I think there is a very dangerous trend going on with self-censorship because of some extremely vocal (and frankly insane) people on the internet. It's not enough to voice your opinion anymore, no the person whom had the audacity to dare talk about a subject that is sensitive to you should be boycotted, ridiculed and outcast.
Stoooppppiiiidddd
I thought the games premise is interesting.
Yeah, let’s go back to our games where we hack people up, shoot people dead and, on some occasions, carry out mass murder on innocent bystanders on the streets. None of which gets much blowback.
Games shouldn’t be limited by outrage. If you don’t agree with something, don’t buy it. They won’t make anymore.
These games do not create predators or rapists any more than GTA creates criminal gangs or Super Mario creates moustached plumbers. Get a grip guys and let developers explore, experiment and create.
No surprise really. This game will never come out on PlayStation.
Hate, hate everywhere.
I think there's potentially a decent idea here but that initial reveal trailer was just plain creepy imo.
I can believe that the devs didn't intend for that to be the case, but they really should've known how to market it better.
The world just wasn't ready for Simp Sim, sadly.
People can not just say no thanks and walk away anymore. They have to take up a personal cause against any thing they don't like.
"Social media" has rapidly become one of the single most anti-social things in existence over the last few years.
Whatever the subject, it's increasingly difficult to share any thought or opinion which differs from the permitted 'groupthink' without being dogpiled, hounded, and labelled as all sorts of things.
Whatever you say, you're either a libtard, leftard, simp, cuck, racist, "...phobe", bigot, fascist, or Nazi. Differing opinions are not allowed. It started out as a great way to give everyone a voice; now it mostly seeks to take away the voice of anyone 'the mob' disagrees with.
It looks interesting so it's a shame there getting any backlash. I just wish some gamers would stop being entitled little snowflakes since they seem to have way too much influence over the smaller publishers/devs and its getting way outta control. If you dont like something then dont buy it.
If people wanna actually stop a game coming out then maybe they should focus they're attention on something like validate, which is more harmful than this 🤔
put my frickin trailer back up
Twitter mobs gonna twitter mob.
What disappoints me are the publishers who refuse to stand by projects they take on when the inevitable complaints start rolling in.
I don't want to play the game, but I'm sure someone did. And, if nothing else, it's clear there was time and passion put into the project.
I won't be supporting games published by these cowards in the future.
@Paranoimia People want to make connections, and most of them don't want to put the thought or the work in to make them secure.
On social media, everyone is tied together with a strand of string, and when it gets pulled in a direction, the chances it'll snap are likely.
In life, people thread connection, and secure them into ropes. You can pull and be pulled, but that rope won't be snapped unless severed.
However, whether you snap a connection on social media, or sever one in life, it still feels the same. That's why people that spend their lives on social media seem so frantic and desperate to fit into a set of labels, or set labels on other people. Their constant connection and disconnection has made them sick, and they spread that sickness as a digital disease.
Social media is a sanatarium that people bind themselves to voluntarily. It turns people from being people to just a mob of static voices that don't mean anything.
We're all just a drop of water in a sea of meaningless blather on the vapid platforms of social media.
@Xaessya simp level: infinity
I have to say, while I can see the value and the potential in an idea like this - i.e. having to literally deal with the dregs of the Internet who harass online personalities - whatever the original intentions of the developers were I can see why people kinda went "Yikes!" looking at it. And this is the Internet, so a "Yikes!" is quickly followed by people saying words like "problematic" and "cancelled" and then the Nazis inevitably end up involved. It's a whole thing.
Release the game and who ever wants it buys it and who don't just pretend it doesn't exist, seems like a simple concept to me 🤷
But I wanted to ask her to eat a banana!
....slowly ;op
Never was interested in this game, so I just wasn’t gonna buy it. I say just release it for those who want it.
The irony in watching the same fanbase who attempted to cancel The Last Of Us 2 try to talk about snowflakes and cancel culture.
Timeless.
Remember when Rockstar ended up changing Bully's title in several territories,(such as the colonials),to Canis Canem Edit just because the parental groups insisted the game would promote bullying & violence in children?
Nowadays we have social media of all sorts second guessing something based on a 1min trailer! My guess is of a cheesy Night Trap style FMV multiple choice game,but guess we'll never know.
@lordzand My thoughts exactly.
I can't imagine this sells well, even if it did launch
Is it because her name is Abi? The internet seems to hate that name recently.
@lordzand Both,this statement and its arguement,needs context.
So serial killer movies need to be banned?
GTA should never be released again.
Any media that features anything illegal or violent should be cancel and removed immediately.
The world has gone mad.
A game like this should highlight the issues: which is a good thing.
@lordzand I did wonder if many were just upset this had a female lead. A load of people hate that
@Paranoimia over recent years the company i work for has took the position of the less engagement with the public through social media the better.
What once was thought of as a new avenue to increase pr awareness quickly became troublesome and had the completely opposite effect.
I expect more companies to follow this trend as many already have.
My impression of the trailer and the topic of harassment:
My issue is people who cynically show their body to get views and then complain publicly about unwanted attention (maybe to get even more views?).
Unless the game wants to address this paradox, then I doubt it will move this conversation forward.
I know a few female streamers and they get some horrendous abuse and bizarre hassle from people online. The intentions of this game may well have been positive - it’s execution may also have been good but the marketing and even game name was very poor.
It was marketed as ‘here is a young buxom female streamer, be in control of what she does and doesn’t see’. At a time when so much abuse is surfacing in the industry, the reveal was tone deaf.
I hope the game devs are able to present this game.
Up next Crunch: The Game. Pretend to be a studio lead who creates a toxic culture and gives people ptsd.
@KratosMD The sad part is most of these self-righteous blowhards are likely not even gamers.
Where can i preorder just too piss off these people come its just a trailer what was so horrible about it? Its so funny that they want people too be free bit tell them how they should behave. I found the trailer quite tame too be honest. Its the same with some people with BLM by calling people racist for the smallest things and the only thing they are doing is hurting the real cause.
90% of female streamers are thots wearing skimpy clothes, milking poor suckers out of their money that can't get any action irl. Gamergirl is probably the dumbest concept for a videogame I've seen in years. I could honestly care less but to each their own.
This game does look like a cheap romp (which I think was the studios intention), but I do really like what studio whales has done to revive the interactive movie genre, and will continue to support them. I really wonder if they would have gotten similar backlash if this just released on Netflix as an interactive movie ala bandersnatch.
Simp: The Game
All kidding aside, we're in a worrying era where if something isn't considered morally pure by the twitter mob then they'll call for book burnings, and people keep bending the knee to their demands.
@darksoul77 Sounds like your company managed to wise up quicker than most. At some point, the hassle and grief surely outweigh any benefit of having a social media presence.
Good riddance i must say 😡
@3MonthBeef Ha yeah but if it isn't in a game it doesn't count!!
Woke pc cancel culture at work again.
I think the main problem was that the trailer was poorly executed. In my opinion the trailer sent the wrong message to people.
I hope Sony releases it still as I reckon sales will be steady.
Marketing wise, Wales Interactive need to hire someone else 🤗
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