We’ve all heard the n-word in a foreign accent from a player who was mad at virtual heroes who were better than them at fighting virtual bad guys. But even here, toxic people from around the world are in these fandoms. Usually when those fandoms surround a cartoon about good, welcoming spaces. Yes, fan cultures are often bad, unwelcoming spaces. Prince Philip’s lunch club was just 4chan for rich dipshits. I’m gonna make a safe assumption and say we’ve all seen The Crown. Toxic people who need an insular fan culture to feel comfortable with spewing hate have always existed. Video game communities are regularly nightmare worlds of terrible people, but the games aren’t causing that. Saying a man shot up a school or a grocery store or a church or a concert (it’s been a horrifically busy few years in America) because he played video games is like saying he did it because he watched Seinfeld or ate at McDonald’s. If the mass shooter played video games, then clearly there was an issue there, right?īut everyone fucking plays video games now.
An ill of society put entirely on something only tangentially related.
Video games are obviously different from that book - although I fucking guarantee you Werther himself would demand Lotte name her five favorite video games if she said she played them.
