‘Ooblets,’ The Epic Games Store, and Toxic Discourse

In yet another tirade, the gaming community has inflicted its most toxic behaviors on a small indie developer for the upcoming game called Ooblets. I have been following the Twitter account for Ooblets for about a year, as I was drawn in by the beautiful art style, wholesome nature, and quirky design that the developers have shown off over time. But then their world got turned upside down by the kryptonite of entitled gamers everywhere: an announcement that Ooblets was headed to the Epic Games store as an exclusive title. 

Frankly, the outrage around Epic exclusivity is absurd. Popular commentators on gaming news, both on Twitter and YouTube, fume to hundreds of thousands of followers each time a title is bought by Epic for an exclusive deal. There are some unique cases where these people are justified in feeling frustrated or betrayed, for instance, when a Kickstarter campaign that actively advertises itself as being available on Steam later goes back on their initial pledge because they needed the extra financial support. But we’ve reached a zenith of hyperbole regarding the outrage culture around Epic exclusivity. It has become trendy and cool to dunk on any developer who makes the leap into the Epic store.  

When a developer like Glumberland, the developer behind Ooblets, joins forces with the Epic store, I honestly don’t see what the fuss is about. I have gone down the rabbit hole of reactions to this news story and yet I can’t help but notice a pattern to the contrived nonsense people blather on about. The pattern seems to be that as soon as a game becomes an Epic exclusive, commentators go on twenty minute rants about a handful of other games that made the same move. In other words, very little of the outrage has to do with the title itself – and I do wonder how many of these “outraged” gamers knew about Ooblets before this announcement – and instead with a pseudo-punk “stick it to the man” style rhetoric that reinforces the idea that Epic exclusivity is bad.  

I own roughly 300 games on Steam, the Epic store’s most notable competitor, so I don’t think I’m veering too far out of my lane when I criticize gamers for getting so bent out of shape over the idea that they have to download an additional launcher for their PC. I have been using GOG, itch.io, Origin, Uplay, and many others for years at this point and have never batted an eye. When I downloaded the Epic launcher onto my PC, it was because the Epic store started giving away free (and actually desirable) games at a regular rate. Maybe that means I’m a sucker or a shill for defending them, but it’s kind of awesome to broaden my library without thinning my wallet. That being said, it got me in the door as a “customer” in their store, and they succeeded in persuading me as a consumer to deal with – gasp – another launcher.  

With Ooblets, it is no factor to me what storefront they publish the game on, because I am a fan of the game. Everything I have seen about Ooblets appeals to me. I am not going to roll around on the ground crying about it because Ooblets is a game I want to play. When I saw that the game was going to become an Epic exclusive, I moved on with my day – until I saw the incendiary backlash from the broader gaming community who took it upon themselves to effectively ruin the developers’ day.  

In a heartbreaking but heartfelt article, one of the developers wrote about their experience on the receiving end of the Epic hate train. From their perspective, Glumberland is a two person team that is brand new to the gaming sphere. They had the creativity to envision the game, the courage to make it, and the financial savvy to protect their best interests by partnering with Epic Games. And yet they are far from the first developers to receive blowback from this decision to go Epic exclusive – except this is the first time a team so small, so candid, so personable, has had to bear the brunt of the toxicity on their own.  

I won’t reproduce the kind of vitriol sent towards the developers here, but suffice it to say that it was a grim reminder about the degree of vile narcissism that still lurks within the gaming community. I was grateful that the developers deliberately praised the gaming community as a whole, even as they simultaneously worked through some of the most disgusting language I have seen levied at a developer – on Twitter or otherwise. I can’t fathom the amount of emotional strength that must have been required to endure the flurry of toxic, blind hatred they received.  

One of the problems with this whole situation involving the relationship between Epic and Ooblets is the way their announcement was characterized by internet provocateurs. Many apparently viewed their announcement as condescendingly written, which honestly proves how thin-skinned and ready to bleed these critics are. Ooblets knew they were driving into a torrential downpour when they partnered with Epic and so they winked and nodded through their announcement. I thought it was pretty funny, actually. But others obviously didn’t.  

There is no excuse to berate a developer for making decisions that offer them better financial security without compromising the vision of the game, especially when it involves ensuring that the game releases as scheduled. Just because it is trendy to lament Epic Games every time they acquire a new title doesn’t mean it’s okay to throw a tantrum at the human beings behind the scenes. Hate Epic Games if you’d like, but the reaction to Ooblets was just pure, despicable malice.  

Ultimately, when a game goes Epic exclusive, you are being duped by some internet provocateur if your response is to flip a table. With console exclusivity, these reactions might feel less ridiculous given the immense cost of investing into each console. With PC exclusivity, I am convinced that people who cry about these Epic stories have nothing better to do than complain. They must lead miserable lives.  

Ooblets is a beautiful game that I can’t wait to play. This controversy surrounding the game actually produced more commitment to Ooblets than I had initially had. Out of pure spite, I want to buy a dozen copies of the game, just to say thank you to the developers for being so strong amidst this poisonous rhetoric being lambasted at them. If you can’t be bothered to install an additional launcher and would rather shriek into the void, get a life. In the meantime, I’ll be enjoying Ooblets when it releases.  

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