The Sweet Baby Blitz: Woke Gaming Media Begin Narrative Blitz for Upcoming Sweet Baby Inc. Influenced Game ‘Flintlock: Siege of Dawn’
In a move that’s becoming all too predictable, several 'woke' gaming outlets (yes, Kotaku is one of them, of course) have initiated a coordinated narrative blitz to promote the upcoming Sweet Baby Inc. influenced game, Flintlock: Siege of Dawn.
This pre-release propaganda is an obvious attempt to shield the game—and its controversial DEI-driven changes—from criticism. Here is proof, clear as day that there is a mafia ring behind the scenes...
Let's start with Kabrutus, the founder of the Steam curator lists Sweet Baby Inc. detected and DEIdetected.com, and how he exposed the influence of Sweet Baby Inc. and its CEO Kim Belair on Flintlock: Siege of Dawn:
His info, backed by an interview in Edge magazine (shown in the tweet above) with A44 COO Audrea Topps Harjo, confirm Belair’s involvement and the subsequent infusion of woke ideology into the game... But now, with the brushback of being associated with SBI, A44 is attempting to walk it back.
In the Edge interview:
“For Flintlock, it was Topps Harjo who brought on Kim Belair”
Harjo’s statements are the equivalent of deliberate insertions of woke themes, stating that the narrative reflects “a certain truth that resonates,” a nod to identity politics.
Furthering this agenda, Harjo then explained how the game's gods symbolize colonialism, and the protagonist’s journey mirrors struggles against systemic oppression. This kind of commentary makes me feel like there's a heavy-handed approach to infusing social commentary into what should be a fun gaming experience... But hey, that's juuuuust a theory!
Mark Kern on Twitter added to the controversy by revealing that the protagonist of Flintlock was originally white but was race-swapped after Topps Harjo joined the studio.
Kern’s anonymous sources claim Harjo’s agenda extended beyond the game, influencing HR policies and diverting resources to unrelated projects, like InclusionFX, an advocacy company she reportedly ran concurrently.
These revelations paint a grim picture for the future of a studio overtaken by woke politics at the expense of the game’s quality. Kern also alleges significant disruptions in development, including denied raises and postponed evaluations for developers, all under Harjo’s direction. This mismanagement culminated in the studio’s sale to Kepler Interactive, a move that Kern implied was a desperate attempt to salvage what was left of Flintlock. If this is indeed the case... YIKES.
In response to the growing backlash, Kepler Interactive's Lisy Kane launched a tirade on social media, decrying the criticisms as “pseudo-journalism” and dismissing the concerns as far-right hysteria. Her outburst underscores the defensiveness of those invested in the woke narrative surrounding the game. Thanks again to ThatParkPlace for the screenshot:
The Sweet Baby Blitz
Here's the craziest part about all of it... Predictably, several gaming media outlets have rallied to defend Flintlock.
Stacey Henley of TheGamer penned a piece titled “Flintlock: The Siege Of Dawn Is A Hit In Need Of A Crowd” (archive link) ironically admitting the game’s struggle to find an audience... How could it be a hit?
David Smith (already listed on Kotaku Detected demanding that game companies 'Hardware Ban' gamers for mean words in a lobby) at Kotaku Australia tried to draw comparisons to the ill-fated Forspoken, suggesting Flintlock is “actually good this time” (archive link) yet failed to provide any substantial information on the game's story or narrative... Yeah, I couldn't make this up if I tried...
Then we have IGN, notoriously known for their Rebekah Valentine running a smear campaign on Black Myth: Wukong, allegedly for not contracting with Sweet Baby Inc., using a different author for the puff piece on this game. Matt Purslow of IGN article (back in 2022) had his title state: "Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn Is, Genuinely, an Elden Ring and God of War Mash-up: The challenge of a Soulslike with the cinematic flare of a Sony first-party." (archive link)
or Mike Fraser from GodisaGeek titling his as "Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn has potential, and I want to play more | Hands-on preview" (archive link)... The examples go on and on... It really is quite something.
To be fair, contrarily, journalists like Brad Norton at Dexerto offered a more straight forward approach in their review, acknowledging the game’s rough demo and jumbled gameplay mechanics. Norton’s honesty highlights the game’s apparent shortcomings, further emphasizing the disparity between the woke media’s praise and the reality of Flintlock’s quality... and also showing us who is a part of this organized behind-the-scenes mafia blitz.
The concerted effort to push Flintlock: Siege of Dawn as a success story of woke ideology is right there for all to see. However, as gamers become increasingly skeptical of such narratives, the backlash against the game’s DEI-driven changes and the media’s complicity continues to grow... The big question still remains: will we embrace an overtly political game if it's somehow great, or will it serve as another example of how forced representation and ideological agendas can derail a promising project?
Only time will tell, but the cracks in the facade are already beginning to show...
HUGE special thanks to John Trent from ThatParkPlace for the scoop and research!
~Smash
