Video game fans are passionate, no doubt, but sometimes that passion bleeds over into less-than-savoury behaviour. Take, for instance, the case of game developer Sean Murray — he’s the guy in charge of Hello Games, the studio that’s making “No Man’s Sky.”
Never heard of it? It’s this gorgeous game right here about space exploration:
Hello GamesIn ‘No Man’s Sky,’ you’ll explore a near-infinite universe with billions of planets, each with their own geographical landscape and wildlife.It’s coming to the PlayStation 4 and PC this August. But that’s a new development — the game was originally scheduled to launch on June 21. Its delay was officially announced on Friday evening, but the delay was reported earlier this week by Kotaku; that’s an important detail to pay attention to, because there was a period of uncertainty between the Kotaku report and the official announcement of the delay. During those few days, Hello Games and Sony stayed silent on social media regarding the report; they also didn’t respond to press requests for a statement.
In that period of uncertainty, Hello Games received a number of death threats from aggrieved fans who wanted answers. Murray tweeted about the experience on Saturday night:
I have received loads of death threats this week, but don’t worry, Hello Games now looks like the house from Home Alone #pillowfort
— Sean Murray (@NoMansSky) May 28, 2016
Murray is a congenial, shy gentleman. He’s nice enough that he’s quick to make a joke about the experience of receiving death threats over the delay of a video game. But let’s be clear: what Murray’s dealing with is far from an ok response to — again — the delay of a video game. Should Hello Games have responded to the rumour earlier? Perhaps.
Murray acknowledged that as well:
Sorry I haven’t been able to say anything til now. With retail games, there are legal/external reasons why you can’t talk freely about dates
— Sean Murray (@NoMansSky) May 28, 2016
But that minor mistake is nowhere near a reasonable justification for threatening someone’s life. Murray didn’t respond to request for comment, but he did issue another goof on the death threats via Twitter:
Tell me when its safe to remove the marbles and oil from the stairs. It’s getting really cumbersome, and I need the toilet
— Sean Murray (@NoMansSky) May 28, 2016
Here’s hoping that he’s made it to the bathroom. “No Man’s Sky” launches on the PlayStation 4 and PC on August 9.
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