Stand Up and Be Counted

Blizzard, I expect better of you. You are the company that challenged the great gamer/nerd prejudice that orcs are bad. To you, orcs were kind of cool. And then undead and trolls, too. But, apparently, not gay people.

Well, I'm sure you're happy to have gay people work for you and play your games. I bet you're a pretty progressive employer.

However, at the end of the latest Blizzcon, you showed a video featuring George "Corspeater" Fisher, from Cannibal Corpse talking about his love of the Horde, and also his hatred of the Alliance, which was described using homophobic language. If you follow this link, you will find a version of the video shown. If you watch it, be warned, it's so very, very NSFW.

What did you expect from a Death Metal head? It's pretty clearly meant to be a joke, just way, way too far over the top. But some people aren't going to be able to take it that way. There are lots of instances of that, and I've been on the other side, attempting a joke that others found hurtful.

And George clearly ascribes to the idea that if he doesn't use the word "fuck" or a derived form twice in a sentence, he wasn't being "authentic" or something. He's clearly of the "don't use a normal word when I can say something offensive" school of thought.

The video was bleeped out, but they showed it anyway. Does that make sense to you? How was this decision made? Let's offend over half of your audience? I can appreciate how someone just thought it was funny, and kind of mocking. There's a thread of self-mockery in George's tone, it seems to me.

But would someone who has been beaten for being gay hear that? Or someone who has been humiliated repeatedly for being not quite "manly" enough?

I'm not sure Blizzard has made an official response yet. It seems to me the Blizzard is a fairly progressive employer and fosters a gay-positive workplace. But WoW players, and particularly raiders, use some of the most vulgar language out there, including homophobic slurs. So, will they affirm their own values when doing so might upset some of their best customers?

I expect them to stand up for what they pretty clearly believe in.