Gamergate and the Quinnspiracy

The independent games community has been in uproar lately over a giant conspiracy, known as Gamergate. The conspiracy began when the ex-boyfriend of independent game developer Zoe Quinn leaked information online of how she was allegedly able to sleep her way to the top of the independent video game world; ranging from video game journalists, to other video game developers. After this “information” was brought to light, everything imploded, and the effect is rippling through the internet.

After the leak, the indie community was blowing up. Nearly everybody who was somebody within the community was making a comment about the debacle that would soon become known as the “Quinnspiracy.” It all came to a head after Zoe Quinn’s personal information was published online. Phil Fish, the creator of the game FEZ, took to Twitter to defend her, and had all of his companies personal information leaked on the internet, including social security numbers, development notes, and information regarding the people working at Polytron, his game company. After this, Fish announced his exit from the gaming industry. And that isn’t even the worst of it.

At the heart of this Quinnspiracy was the website 4chan. Discussions on the site sparked a movement to donate money to a campaign that Zoe Quinn didn’t support, as most users on 4chan believed that Zoe Quinn was a horrible person. As a result, a crowdfunding campaign ran by The Fine Young Capitalists raised about $5,000, garnering a lot of backlash from hipsters with cultural studies degrees, such as Anita Sarkeesian. Don’t get me started on her.

The Fine Young Capitalists appreciated the support from 4chan, and even let the site create a character to be included in the project, known as Vivian James. However, somebody on Zoe Quinn’s side didn’t like this at all, and as a result, The Fine Young Capitalist’s information was leaked online, and the project was shut down by more internet vigilantes.

The debate still rages on, even though the majority of this happened over a month ago. Right now there is still discussion, as many of the video game journalism outlets are refusing to cover the story at all, leading Quinnspiracy theorists to believe that the allegations of Zoe Quinn sleeping her way to the top were true, as the online source told everyone that some of the people involved worked at outlets such as Gawker Media. There is even speculation that the website 4chan is under new moderation, as any topics regarding the Quinnspiracy and Gamergate as a whole are being deleted, and users are being banned.

Now, what is my opinion on this?

I think everybody involved with this is on crack. It blows my mind that these people take video games this seriously! I’m not picking sides here. If Zoe Quinn did sleep her way to the top, who gives a crap?! That’s nobody’s business! And it doesn’t help anyone when people like Zoe Quinn and Phil Fish are being sent death threats. That doesn’t help your cause! It makes people not like you! If you want to have a civil discussion about this, then do it, but you can’t just run around the internet talking smack about people you don’t even know.

Also, why the hell are people blowing this out of proportion? Gaming journalism is in second-to-last place on the chart of reliable journalism, just barely beating out the tabloids.

If you like video games, just play video games! Quit being some pathetic keyboard warrior and get on with your life!