Another day, another story of gamers behaving like idiots online. Rumours have been swirling that fresh God of War Ragnarok info would be shared before the end of June. But that hasn’t happened. And over the last couple of days, God of War fans have taken to Twitter to voice their frustration. In what’s become an all too common trend in gaming, some have taken it WAY too far. This has prompted a brutal response from God of War director Cory Barlog.
Initially, Barlog took to Twitter on 29th June and issued a reassuring statement to upset fans. He asked gamers to “please, be patient” and promised more information would be shared as soon as possible.
Interestingly, Barlog also pointed out that decisions to share details about Ragnarok weren’t up to him. “If it were up to me I would share all the information when I know about it. But it is not up to me.” He wrapped up the tweet with a heartfelt message, adding: “We make games for you. We get to make games because of you.” So, how did Twitter users respond? Many shared messages of support – but some reacted poorly.
God of War fans harass female developer
Things quickly escalated and unjustly angry ‘fans’ began harassing female God of War developer Estelle Tigani.
Sadly, this appears to have included the sending of unsolicited d*ck pics. Tigani – Cinematics Producer for God of War – offered her harassers a “pro tip”, insisting that such pictures won’t get her to reveal Ragnarok‘s release date. This was accompanied by a GIF stating: “Stop it. Get some help.”
Cory Barlog soon responded to Tigani’s tweet – and he didn’t pull any punches.
“Are you f*cking kidding me with this now???”, he said. “I cannot believe I even have to say this but don’t fucking send dick pics to ANYONE on this team, or anyone in this industry for that matter. They are busting their ass to make some for you to enjoy.”
In closing, Barlog told fans to “Show some f*cking respect.” We couldn’t have put it better ourselves.
This isn’t the first time Cory Barlog has defended a female colleague online.
Developer Alanah Pearce was subject to vile abuse on social media following God of War Ragnarok‘s delay in 2021. Barlog responded by asking angry Twitter users to “be angry with me”, adding: “I made the calls. I did this.”
Gaming journalists blamed for abuse
Attention quickly turned to the role video game journalists play in building unrealistic expectations for announcements and reveals.
Twitter user @its_eniebomedov responded to Barlog: “If they didn’t leak that there was gonna be a reveal on the 30th then people wouldn’t have built unrealistic expectations and there wouldn’t be all this extra pressure on you guys”.
The God of War director replied with a simple plea: “The answer is not to find someone to blame or focus hate on. Maybe just pay it forward and treat the people that make the things we love with some human decency and respect.”
Do you agree with Cory Barlog’s tweets in response to the latest God of War Ragnarok controversy? Let us know in the comment section below and don’t forget to check out our other gaming articles…
