Hayes Madsen’s Gaslighting Masterpiece: “Corinne Busche Is the Ruler of RPGs”
...Who Was This Written For?
Oh... The "Modern Audience"
The latest article by Hayes Madsen, titled "Corinne Busche Is the Ruler of RPGs, Conqueror of Haters" is an (expected) exhaustive exercise in gaslighting the entire gaming world. Published on Inverse, the piece tries its best to elevate BioWare’s Dragon Age: The Veilguard director Corinne Busche to a level of absurd reverence, ignoring (his) questionable leadership and the franchise’s declining reputation due to the poor reception from ACTUAL Dragon Age fans.
The Author’s Checkered Past
Before dissecting the content, it’s worth noting Hayes Madsen’s troubling history.
It's important to give a background for who we're dealing with, and why people like this need to get out of the video game industry altogether - there's no place for this in any way, shape, or form. A now failed Kotaku "journalist", Madsen has made a name for himself on Twitter with inflammatory and blatantly racist statements such as
“Boy I can’t stand white people”
and
“Hoo boy, seeing a lot of white dudes with ‘takes’ on Everything...”
His anti-white sentiment and over-the-top hostility toward real gamers already disqualifies him from being any kind of credible voice in gaming journalism.
...Yet here he is, pushing an agenda that only fuels division.
...WHY!?
Coronation Without Merit
Madsen’s crowning of Corinne Busche as the “Ruler of RPGs” is not only hysterically hyperbolic but... similar to the fantasy world a man cosplaying as a woman we have with Corinne Busche... outright delusional. This year alone has seen RPGs like Elden Ring's DLC "Shadow of the Erdtree" dominate the scene, setting new benchmarks in storytelling, player choice, and polish - or even the recent Baulders Gate 3 blowing gamers away! Comparing Veilguard’s middling reception to these titans of the industry is straight up laughable. The idea that Busche could even be considered a ruler of anything in the RPG space is an insult to developers who’ve earned their accolades through real innovation and quality.
The Gaslighting Continues
Madsen’s article is filled to the brim with ridiculous statements that seem tailor-made to only antagonize gamers. For instance, the claim that “Dragon Age’s exploration of identity” makes it uniquely superior to other RPGs ignores the fact that players have been rejecting this approach for years on end.
The audience has spoken, wanting meaningful gameplay and storytelling—not thinly veiled lectures on modern identity politics. The Metacritic score for the audience says it all right now. A 3.8/10 does not make Busche the "Ruler of RPGs"... not by a long shot.
Even worse... the piece claims that Veilguard’s lackluster performance is the result of a “hate campaign” and “culture war backlash” because heaven forbid there was ever such thing as accountability from the game studios. No. It's you. The GAMERS fault for not liking their woke slop...
This tired narrative reminds me of the same deflection techniques from actual criticism that Kim Belair of Sweet baby Inc. had attempted to frame. In reality, this approach is an attack on gamers themselves, portraying us as bigots rather than discerning consumers who recognize mediocrity and want better.
“It’s hard when you have to ask the question, is this game for me? Do I belong here? And games are better for it when we can say yes, you do belong here.”
By Busche framing any kind of legitimate criticism as harassment, he and Madsen alienate the very audience that RPGs were meant to serve in the first place. Games aren't for 'belonging'. They are for being enjoyed. If you need games to make you feel like you belong, chances are, you're an anti-gamer activist... and from what I've seen, many of these types may not even realize it.
Corinne Busche: A Troubled Figure
At the center of this mess is Corinne Busche, a director whose personal struggles, in my humble opinion, deals heavily with mental health and identity - and for whatever reason, have been made central to Veilguard’s marketing.
“I’m an openly queer, trans woman... It shaped everything about who I am, and it’s been the source of a lot of joy, a lot of difficulty, and perspective. For me personally, one of the greatest gifts about being trans is the amount of introspection it forces upon you. You spend a lot of time deeply examining who you are, and why that matters.”
Busche’s open admission of his severe mental health issues (above) raises even more questions about his ability to lead such a high-profile project at BioWare...
Who's This Even For?
Madsen’s article begs the question: Who's the audience for this kind of coverage? Certainly not me... Or anyone who I've ever encountered that plays videogames. By repeatedly attacking the gaming community, the piece undermines any 'message' that it attempts to make. The core audience of RPGs is already diverse, but Madsen’s approach here assumes that anyone not aligned with his ideology is unworthy of inclusion. Oh the irony. This approach serves absolutely no purpose beyond just virtue signaling to a small, insular group of activists.
Make no mistake what's really happening - They're coming for the kids, and trying to use video games as the avenue to groom them...
The Emperor’s New Clothes
What’s most troubling is the sheer audacity of Madsen and Busche to pretend that Veilguard represents the pinnacle of RPG design. The game’s focus on identity politics and introspection comes across as heavy-handed and out of touch in execution. Gamers don’t want to be lectured; we want to be entertained. This fundamental misunderstanding of the audience’s desires that keeps happening is EXACTLY why BioWare’s star continues to fade.
Point and Laugh
At the end of the day, articles like this are only good for one thing: pointing and laughing. Madsen’s gaslighting tactics and Busche’s self-congratulatory narrative fail completely with resonating with gamers because they’re NOT rooted in reality. The gaming community is smarter than these activists give them credit for, and at this point - we ALL see right through the fake toxic positivity.
Until developers and actual journalists start respecting their audience, the backlash will continue—and honestly? Deservedly so.
~Smash
