This article contains material that may disturb some readers. Please read this at your own risk.
KO OP revealed Goodbye Volcano High, a story-driven adventure game, at Sony’s Future of Gaming event on June 11. The news sparked the interest of many people, including mine, as the game has a non-binary protagonist, Fang (voiced by Lachlan Watson), and promises a storyline rich in LGBT representation, with studio head Salemm Dabbous tweeting , “This game is queer like [f***].”
However, some fans are outraged after learning that Goodbye Volcano High’s narrative director and screenwriter Kate Gray used to write about pornography and sex in video games for video game website Kotaku, and that one of his articles featured NSFW graphics depicting minors. characters.
The article in question, titled “Animated Video Game Porn Could Be A Lot Sexier And Less Gross,” was posted on Kotaku on September 24, 2019, and appears to be Gray’s finale to the platform.
Gray recounts how she and a friend set out to see bad computer-rendered videos of fictional characters performing things that were never mentioned or even contemplated in the article’s source material. She then goes on to vividly depict graphic elements from Harry Potter, The Legend of Zelda, and Pokémon videos.
The article drew criticism when first published due to the explicit computer-rendered graphics from the recordings. Many people were quick to condemn the footage, which included characters who weren’t the age of the original material, such as Ash from Pokémon and Hermione and Draco from Harry Potter. Others were nonetheless offended by the written content, with one user, afriendtosell, writing:
You immediately hit us with underage gender portrayal in more than two situations (questionable for LoZ characters; non-questionable for HP or Pokemon characters), and the payout for this full-face NSFW is… what, exactly?
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Some, however, seemed to assume the crisis was exaggerated because the photos were of animated characters rather than actual humans.
This piece originally included screenshots of many porn parodies with a disclaimer that they weren’t safe for work, as part of our regular coverage of the intersection between sex and gaming. These photos have since been deleted.
While the purpose of this piece was to give you a taste of the current state of gaming and geek porn, obviously we made a mistake in terms of the visuals and feedback you expect from us.
These portrayals of characters often portrayed or considered to be teenagers make readers understandably uncomfortable. I am the same and I apologize. We can and will do better. Editor Stephen Totilo
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Following the announcement of Goodbye Volcano High on Sony’s stream, the piece was quickly revived on Twitter. “Everyone is all ‘wow super non-binary main character’ as Kill Bill sirens come to mind,” wrote Twitter user @BluestRose430, who voiced his concerns in a tweet.
In a Twitter chat, Kate Gray responded to the criticism and addressed the Kotaku article (full transcript at the bottom of the article). Gray apologized for not responding to the article earlier and admitted that she had made mistakes in it, saying: “The article, the pictures and my uncritical take on it were all mistakes. major.”
Gray continues, “I regret a lot about this article, but the fact that it hurt people is my worst regret,” noting, “I regret a lot about this article, but the fact that he hurt people is my biggest regret of all.Gray claims to have walked away from journalism, though it’s unclear if this was due to the anger Kotaku’s story sparked.
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Finally, Gray tries to reassure readers about Goodbye Volcano High:
For GVH, we have a team of consultants with a wide range of ideas and experiences, and we are passionate about what we create. We are all committed to representing our LGBTQ and marginalized identities in games the way we want to see them represented, as well as representing and uplifting players.
Although Gray’s statement has received few responses to date, the majority of those who have seen it seem to praise her for the way she handled the situation, with some pointing out that this is not the first time that Internet uses someone. passed to criticize them. However, since the story was released in late 2019, many people are understandably upset and scared of Goodbye Volcano High.
While I disagree with the substance of Kotaku’s article and think creating and publishing it was a bad decision, I strongly believe in people’s ability to learn and improve. There’s a complexity to the matter, and it’s clear to me that Gray had no intention of hurting anyone.
I will always be reporting on Goodbye Volcano High, and I’m always excited for its release, knowing that the development team is full of brilliant individuals and consultants. But I want to ask the question to you, the audience. Let us know what you think in the comments section or on Twitter @HolyYuriMother:
1. What do you think of the debate? Are you offended by the Kotaku coin? Do you feel any different now that you’ve read Gray’s apology and think she’s matured since then?
2. Does the issue in any way affect your opinion of Goodbye Volcano High? Did you plan to buy the game next year, and does this story influence your decision?
