Sweet Baby Inc. Faces Backlash and Harassment Over Diversity in Video Games
Sweet Baby Inc., a narrative development and consulting company based in Montreal, has recently come under fire from certain online communities who accuse the company of being responsible for the “wokeification” of popular video game titles. The accusations began around the release of high-profile games and quickly spread across social media platforms and online forums.
The Rise of Sweet Baby Inc Detected
In the wake of the controversy, a Steam curation group called Sweet Baby Inc Detected was founded on January 29, claiming to be “a tracker for games involved with” the company. The group’s Discord server has become a hub for hateful comments, transphobia, homophobia, racism, and sexism. The group’s creator, who is based in Brazil, expressed concerns about the inclusion of diverse characters in video games, claiming that games are being used for “political agendas.”
Misrepresentation and Accusations
However, many of the games Sweet Baby Inc. has been accused of influencing, such as God of War Ragnarök and Alan Wake II, do not actually touch on political topics in their stories. Instead, these games feature diverse casts and prominent roles for characters of color and women. Sweet Baby Inc. cofounder Osobe Belair believes that the company is facing ridicule because their harassers cannot fathom that game developers would genuinely want Sweet Baby’s input in creating diverse characters.
“There are a lot of games that we have been accused of working on, especially if they include characters of color or queer characters, that have nothing to do with us. I think that makes it very, very obvious what they think the pattern really is.”
The Impact of Industry Turmoil
The video game industry has experienced significant layoffs and studio closures over the past year, leading to a growing movement for workers to unionize and protect their jobs. Despite this, the Sweet Baby Inc Detected Discord shows little concern for the challenges faced by game developers. Cofounder David Bédard finds this dissonance jarring, noting that “they love games but hate the people who make them.”
Harassment as a Serious Problem
A recent poll conducted by the organizers of the Game Developers Conference revealed that more than 75 percent of game developers surveyed believe harassment from players is a ”serious” or “very serious” problem. Sweet Baby Inc. has become a scapegoat for anything players dislike in games, particularly when it comes to diversity and inclusion.
The Call for Authentic Representation
Belair emphasizes that Sweet Baby Inc. does not want tokenization or forced diversity in video games. Instead, the company aims to make characters more authentic and dynamic within their worlds, focusing on strong character development and realization. While there may be room for positive and interesting conversations about representation in games, Belair believes that engaging with conspiracy theorists and hateful individuals is unlikely to change their minds.
Moving Forward
Despite the harassment campaign, Sweet Baby Inc.’s founders say that their business has not been significantly impacted, as their clients are supportive and familiar with online abuse. The company remains hesitant to directly address which characters or storylines they have worked on to avoid potential harassment of other developers involved in those projects.
“You shouldn’t be sending this kind of hate to anybody. If you didn’t like something, that’s just fine. Deal with it. Don’t buy another [game] if you don’t want to, but you don’t need to launch a whole campaign about it.”
As the video game industry continues to evolve and strive for more diverse and inclusive representation, it is crucial to foster open and respectful dialogue while condemning harassment and hate speech directed at developers and consultants working to create authentic and engaging characters and stories.
5 Comments
Here we go again, another tiny spark igniting a massive gaming controversy; will we ever learn
History repeats itself in the gaming universe, now with a tiny firm at its epicenter – buckle up, folks!
Gamergate 2.0, because the gaming world clearly needed another controversy to debate over endlessly!
Grace Turner: And just when we thought the gaming community had seen it all, a tiny firm tosses us into the depths of Gamergate 2.0!
Looks like the gaming world never really gets a break from drama, does it? Tiny firm, huge controversy.