Compulsion Games: A Dying DEI-infected Studio Surrounded By Complete Chaos...
Compulsion Games, once celebrated for their ambitious title We Happy Few, has now instead become a reminder of what happens when politics, misguided corporate intervention, and disastrous management converge onto itself. Their upcoming project, South of Midnight, is already being touted as a near-guaranteed flop, and the reasons behind its impending failure paint a grim picture of a studio in turmoil. Instead of addressing the obvious issues, they choose to lash out and block critics to embolden their already ridiculous echo chamber.
Exodus of Talent and Studio Mismanagement
The core team behind We Happy Few, which propelled Compulsion Games into the spotlight, has all but vanished. Less than 10% of the original team remains, with many departing after becoming completely disillusioned with the studio’s direction post-acquisition by Microsoft. Reports coming in have told me that the extremely talented developers were hamstrung by poor hiring decisions and promotions based on DEI rather than merit. Unqualified staff have been elevated to leadership roles, creating absolute chaos within the project itself. As one former developer bluntly put it, "They have no idea how to make a game." - and as I've discovered during my research, it only goes straight down hill from here...
Sweet Baby Inc. and Microsoft’s Influence
The downfall of South of Midnight can be traced back directly to their involvement of Sweet Baby Inc. (SBI) and Microsoft. Former developers have come forward with shocking info about the project. Huge shoutout to @Grummz on X for the insights. The once-promising fantasy story inspired by the Creative Director’s upbringing in the Deep South has been transformed into a disjointed mess due to misguided external influences. SBI’s focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives have now taken precedence over the actual game development, leaving the project in a ...poor state.
Race-Swapping and Token Representation
Among a TON of wild decisions that were made, the most controversial one was to race-swap the main character, trying to somehow better reflect a tale set in the Deep South. Butttt... this change—reportedly pushed by SBI and Microsoft—feels more like pandering than any kind of authentic storytelling. Whenever stuff like this happens, I can't help but immediately jump to the, what if the roles were reversed, and they race swapped a black character out of the game for a white one. Of course, being a 'consultancy agency', groups like Sweet baby Inc. who cosplays as the 'experts' in the room aren't allowed to be questioned.
Compounding this ridiculousness is the fact that the development team is almost entirely white ...and based in Montreal, Canada, with extremely limited experience or understanding of the culture they are trying to portray. Sweet baby Inc. is also based in Canada. How exactly are they supposed to be the historical and moral arbiter of truth when it comes to portraying the deep south of the United States? According to Grummz, A black writer was brought on board to lend 'authenticity'... but the lack of the actual genuine cultural knowledge amongst the broader team at SBI and Compulsion has left many developers feeling uncomfortable with the direction, and rightfully so. You gotta ask the obvious elephant in the room question, why are they injecting race as the main focal point of a video game that had literally nothing to do with it prior to Sweet Baby Inc's involvement in the project? The game itself should be all that gamers actually care about. The social/political messaging isn't a welcome one, and has been rejected wholeheartedly by the vast majority of the community at this point.
As far as the game itself (above), IMHO it looks like a bland, generic and very basic/safe Crash Bandicoot clone that takes place in the deep south. If this interests you, have at it, but as far as I'm concerned, the game previews don't wow me whatsoever, and in addition, I've been completely turned off by how the game company themselves have treated me personally, all along the way. They can't take criticism, and feel threatened because of being called out for it. The classic victim mentality...
A Toxic Community Manager
One of the most egregious examples of poor hiring decisions is the promotion of Katie Robinson, the Community Manager, known online as @Pikachulita. Katie has a history of, instead of focusing on her talents and creativity, using her race and sexual preferences to define her characteristics. It's what people who have literally nothing to offer the industry have found success in recent years gravitating towards, but now that gamers have woken up to what's happening, it doesn't work anymore...
Openly stating via an interview on refinery29 in 2022 that she hates white men, specifically "White male gamers were a mistake" as I stated on X:
PikaChulita, aka Katie Robinson, Community Manager for South of Midnight is an extremely racist, anti-white individual that @CompulsionGames & Microsoft's @XboxP3 felt would be a great representation to assist them in selling their upcoming game.
Her CRYSTAL CLEAR disdain for gamers, coupled with extreme racist remarks like "White male gamers were a mistake," has alienated the very audience Compulsion Games should have been trying to reach. Ironically, and I know this will sound silly based on everything I'm about to go into about her, but I don't necessarily blame Katie. She's been placed in a position to ultimately fail. It's not her fault. It falls squarely on the agenda pushing coming from the top down at Microsoft, enabling hateful people like Katie to feel empowered and in control in a position they have no business being in.
Instead of fostering a positive and engaging community, the official @CompulsionGames social media account has devolved into a platform for DEI-related retweets and promotions for other DEI games and agendas, with some slight side mentions along the way of South of Midnight.
Her behavior and lack of focus on the game have sparked outrage among gamers everywhere - not just from myself.
Based on everything I've researched on this individual, they strike me as a very negative, hateful, and spiteful person. Not someone I'd want to associate with at any organization.
A Glimmer of Hope Amid the Chaos?
Despite the grim outlook due to some of these employees, some developers within Compulsion Games are still trying to be hopeful for the project. These people, described as passionate and well-intentioned by Grummz, have been reportedly working tirelessly to salvage whatever they can of remains of South of Midnight. Unfortunately, their efforts are currently being undermined by a culture of fear that prioritizes DEI initiatives over quality and merit, alongside people being hired on that are actively making the customer base not want to support them. The culture being formed here not only stifles creativity but also - drives talented developers away, leaving projects like South of Midnight to fail. Just like nearly EVERY game Sweet Baby Inc. gets involved with. Who knows. The game has yet to release. It could be great for all we know - but I'm, just pointing out the patterns that have become all too recognizable over recent years... and anyone knee deep in this industry knows exactly where this project is headed.
What Needs to Change
For Compulsion Games to turn things around, drastic action is needed immediately. I fear that it's already too late, and South of Midnight will be the death of the studio...
Clean House: The studio must replace underqualified staff with experienced professionals who can lead the project to success.
Fire Sweet Baby Inc.: Cutting ties with SBI would signal a commitment to quality over performative gestures.
Hire a Gamer-Friendly Community Manager: The studio should hire someone who genuinely loves the game they're creating AND its audience, not someone who alienates fans with divisive rhetoric to push ideologies.
Refocus on Merit: Promotions and hires should be based on skill and experience, not DEI checkboxes.
The Bigger Picture
Compulsion Games’ struggles are symptomatic of a broader problem in the gaming industry. DEI and ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) initiatives ALWAYS come at the expense of merit and quality. This culture being created has left many talented developers feeling silenced and undervalued, while less qualified people are being raised up to be 'heard' - resulting in projects that fail to meet their potentials. If the industry doesn’t course-correct soon, more studios will follow in Compulsion Games’ footsteps.
South of Midnight could have been a groundbreaking title, blending fantasy with the rich culture of the Deep South. Instead, nope. It’s shaping up to be a disaster, undone by mismanagement, poor hiring decisions, and misguided priorities. Compulsion Games has to change and act swiftly to try and regain the trust of their audience and salvage their reputation... But I'm not holding my breath, because based on everything I've witnessed here, South of Midnight will go down as yet another reminder of what hiring the wrong people does to a company, and how prioritizing politics and incompetence always overshadows creativity and passion.
~Smash
That game has ORIGNIAL characters created for it, so not sure where your getting your woke nonsense. Seriously did you even do your research?
kys racist🤡