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Developer from Precursor Games (Shadows of the Eternals) arrested for child porn

ALN1031

Member
Unlike some people in this thread, I'm going to say I feel sorry for the guy. It must be hard, especially since you don't choose what you're turned on by. Assuming of course, that he truly had child porn with real children.
 
So mind boggling that you can be arrested for viewing something and how many people advocate death for it. It is nuts. Yet you can never have a civil discussion about it because it is so emotionally driven for people that they cant discuss it logically.
 

freddy

Banned
So mind boggling that you can be arrested for viewing something and how many people advocate death for it. It is nuts. Yet you can never have a civil discussion about it because it is so emotionally driven for people that they cant discuss it logically.
You know that viewing child porn makes it more like people will abuse children to meet that demand? I'd like to hear your logic.
 
You know that viewing child porn makes it more like people will abuse children to meet that demand? I'd like to hear your logic.
Logic? That was an insane assumption. That you think there are rapists out there with cameras getting excited at their view count rising, so to keep up with this demand they go rape more kids? No. Rapist rape because they like rape.

And then by that logic all death videos should be just as illegal if not more, cause it will encourage more killings. Yet you can easily find a video of a person getting murdered. But That's ok.

And also Childporn is not exclusively a toddler getting raped. It is classified in Usa as someone under 18 that is naked.
 
Okay, the game is dead now. He's not just anyone, but the person who wrote Eternal Darkness together with Dyack. Without his involvement I have no faith in the game's quality, even if it ends up being made.

That being said, hopefully the charges turn out not to be true.

Yes, it's horrible that he was arrested for being a child predator because now a video game will suffer for it.

And it's hilarious that people are defending child porn.
 

remnant

Banned
And also Childporn is not exclusively a toddler getting raped. It is classified in Usa as someone under 18 that is naked.

This is true, but is rarely brought up.I'm willing to bet a lot of people in this thread have seen "child porn" once in their life. Especially if they like their amateur streaming porn sites.
 

ALN1031

Member
Logic? That was an insane assumption. That you think there are rapists out there with cameras getting excited at their view count rising, so to keep up with this demand they go rape more kids? No. Rapist rape because they like rape.

And then by that logic all death videos should be just as illegal if not more, cause it will encourage more killings. Yet you can easily find a video of a person getting murdered. But That's ok.

And also Childporn is not exclusively a toddler getting raped. It is classified in Usa as someone under 18 that is naked.

While I generally agree that I doubt a guy posting child porn for free is going to go giddy at his view count and and abduct more children, I would argue that a guy selling child porn would definitely do it more if more people buy his stuff to view it.

As for the death video comparison, it doesn't hold up as death can easily be simulated with effects and such realistically, if people want to see more deaths, it can happen without harming anyone. It's pretty hard to simulate realistic child porn without actual children.
 
This is true, but is rarely brought up.I'm willing to bet a lot of people in this thread have seen "child porn" once in their life. Especially if they like their amateur streaming porn sites.
And that is actually the most common arrest and also teens posting pics of themselves or girlfriends online. It is more rare for "actual child porn" viewers to be arrested because of how deep they are burried (under encryptions and proxies). The law is really nuts, but it is impossible to discuss because it is such a sensitive subject.

Even some psycologists have been shunned when they have researched the subject and written papers about it.
 

freddy

Banned
There are criminal gangs involved in creating child porn. Anyway this topic and the people defending the act is making me sick and question the motives, so I'll pass on further discourse.
 

CTLance

Member
Unlike some people in this thread, I'm going to say I feel sorry for the guy. It must be hard, especially since you don't choose what you're turned on by. Assuming of course, that he truly had child porn with real children.
That's why as a responsible adult you go see a shrink to get help.

You don't start downloading random child porn off the net. You. Just. Do. Not.

We're not animals anymore. Neither is this a sudden development where you wake up one morning and find child porn has materialised on your HDD. This requires a conscious effort to seek out and obtain that stuff. Anyone not getting help and instead fueling that abominable industry deserves whatever they get.

(Not saying he did. Or didn't. That's another can of worms entirely.)
 
There are criminal gangs involved in creating child porn. Anyway this topic and the people defending the act is making me sick and question the motives, so I'll pass on further discourse.
This was exactly my point! Too emotional for people to discuss and always turns into a witch hunt. If someone disagrees with it they are classified as such. Nice one

That's why as a responsible adult you go see a shrink to get help.

You don't start downloading random child porn off the net. You. Just. Do. Not.

We're not animals anymore. Neither is this a sudden development where you wake up one morning and find child porn has materialised on your HDD. This requires a conscious effort to seek out and obtain that stuff. Anyone not getting help and instead fueling that abominable industry deserves whatever they get.

(Not saying he did. Or didn't. That's another can of worms entirely.)
Seek help from where? It is still legal for a therapist to report anyone that claims these feelings and it is an acceptable practice. Why would someone go to someone with those feelings knowing how easy it is to be accused or arrested for it? Look at this thread, people dont take too kindly even to the assumption
 
it's true. A lot of porn on the internet is stolen footage from people, some underage, some not.

it's a problem, and attitude like yours is partially why it won't be solved. No one wants to talk about it.

Oh, that's cute. You assumed I'm against talking about the ethics of porn, but rather I'm against your implied theory that he "just happened to watch child porn".

That's like when I say I didn't write this post, my little brother got on the computer suddenly.
 
rot in hell scum

May you be anal raped eternally in prison, Kenneth McCulloch.

edit:
(If proved guilty :p)

I know, I know, I know, that it may not be the place for it and I really try to stay out of these threads, because topics like these are dicey at best when discussing, but I really feel the need to point this out.

A)Wishing these things upon someone in this fashion makes you no better the person you're talking about(personal opinion and all that sure) I don't feel its appropriate atleast. :/

B)I saw a lot of people jump on the guy who talked about rape way more then the person who suggested the accused rot in "eternal damnation." Again neither are something to wish upon a person but its just odd to me that this was the case.

Again I'm sorry for this sort of post and just to keep things on topic; I just feel really bad for Dyack and his crew, they really can't seem to get away from all the negative attention. Okay, I'm done, back to the animal crossing thread I go.
 

Abandond

Member
I find people that think he should be raped in prison, rot in hell or be put to death more disturbing.

These people need help. Rehabilitation.
 

wrowa

Member
Yes, it's horrible that he was arrested for being a child predator because now a video game will suffer for it.

And it's hilarious that people are defending child porn.

What is your problem? There is nothing to say about this case since we absolutely don't know any details. I'm not going to speak someone guilty just because if that is what you wish for. And how the fuck am I defending child porn? Because I'm saying that I hope the accusations aren't true? There has to be something wrong in your head if you actually want someone to have consumed child porn.

Seriously.
 

Cheerilee

Member
I really hope it's a false charge or that it's something harmless like hentai, but his life is pretty much over now regardless, so it feels weird to hope that he's not guilty... so I'll just offer my condolences to any and all of the victims here, whoever they might be.
 

CTLance

Member
Seek help from where? It is still legal for a therapist to report anyone that claims these feelings and it is an acceptable practice. Why would someone go to someone with those feelings knowing how easy it is to be accused or arrested for it? Look at this thread, people dont take too kindly even to the assumption
Wait, so you're arguing that the risk of being reported as a pedophile outweighs eventually being arrested for possession and distribution of child porn?

If you have a clean conscience and go to a shrink and that gets you in hot water, well, fuck. That shouldnt happen, and I weep for America once more if that's the case.

I'd rather believe that any sane doc will decide on a case by case basis and only tattle on those that have already given in to their urges. "Healing" an early onset pedophile will net the doc a good amount of money and the good feeling of having prevented a horrendous crime. Reporting that poor sod will only get the guy in trouble and not fix the underlying problem. It's counterintuitive to have them reported by default.
 
Logic? That was an insane assumption. That you think there are rapists out there with cameras getting excited at their view count rising, so to keep up with this demand they go rape more kids? No. Rapist rape because they like rape.

And then by that logic all death videos should be just as illegal if not more, cause it will encourage more killings. Yet you can easily find a video of a person getting murdered. But That's ok.

And also Childporn is not exclusively a toddler getting raped. It is classified in Usa as someone under 18 that is naked.
I have first hand knowledge of situations where a group of people have shared home made child pornography and have literally taken requests from each other. It's not an insane assumption; it's a fact.
 
I watched a documentary on the proliferation of porn on the web a few years ago. One memory that has stood with me since was how easy it was (according to the female presenter) to stumble across an underage girl in these videos and the legal implications that brings for unwitting viewers.
 

Portugeezer

Member
Those are all classic defenses. An alternate explanation is he could have been into child porn.

I think the most likely (except for him actually having knowingly downloaded child porn) is that someone stole his internet. Seems like something a paedophile would do.
 
I hope he gets the justice that he deserves, whether that is acquittal or conviction. It is unfortunate that his arrest has tarnished an already less than credible company, and I doubt this Precursor Games will complete and release Shadow of the Eternals any-time soon, even if he is deemed innocent.
 
If he's guilty... disgusting. If he's innocent... well, his life is ruined anyway because of the way these accusations work.

Also just because it's just one count, doesn't mean it's just one file that was found. It's just easier to charge the guy for that initially, they can add more later.

Question if you don't mind sharing your expertise:

Is this task becoming much harder going forward?

I have a little knowledge of cryptography, but it seems that the methods and tools to hide data are becoming increasingly sophisticated, and readily available to anyone with minimal skills.

The kinds of news stories you tend to hear about are the guy who got his PC repaired and the tech found all sorts of images in plain sight, rather than particularly tech savvy individuals. The one personal anecdote I have on the matter about an old teacher would also seem to support this.

It's just hard to imagine that if someone knows what they're doing that they could be proved guilty, at least through a forensic examination of their PCs (unless you try to time an arrest to catch them in the middle of something *shudder*), even if you have a very strong suspicion due to IP logs and suchlike.

And even getting those would seem to be much more difficult these days with the way such sites are hidden.
 

ArjanN

Member
Oh, that's cute. You assumed I'm against talking about the ethics of porn, but rather I'm against your implied theory that he "just happened to watch child porn".

That's like when I say I didn't write this post, my little brother got on the computer suddenly.

I don't think he's technically wrong though. I'm pretty sure lots of people have unwittingly run into cp online.

Similar to how pretty much everyone who searches for regular porn has probably seen at least thumbnails of things like goatse or women blowing horses despite not actively looking for them.
 
Question if you don't mind sharing your expertise:

Is this task becoming much harder going forward?

I have a little knowledge of cryptography, but it seems that the methods and tools to hide data are becoming increasingly sophisticated, and readily available to anyone with minimal skills.

The kinds of news stories you tend to hear about are the guy who got his PC repaired and the tech found all sorts of images in pain sight, rather than particularly tech savvy individuals. The one personal anecdote I have on the matter about an old teacher would also seem to support this.

It's just hard to imagine that if someone knows what they're doing that they could be proved guilty, at least through a forensic examination of their PCs (unless you try to time an arrest to catch them in the middle of something *shudder*), even if you have a very strong suspicion due to IP logs and suchlike.

And even getting those would seem to be much more difficult these days with the way such sites are hidden.
Well there's a saying among law enforcement and it pertains to this kind of stuff in particular: we only catch the dumb ones. The smartest guys are the ones we'll probably never even learn about. Fortunately there are tons of people who are into this stuff who use peer to peer file sharing programs, forums, and other sites that make it very easy to track them down using IP address. And then the vast majority of these guys don't make any effort to hide the stuff once it's on their computer. 9 times out of 10 it's in a folder on their desktop, or the default location where they saved it to using P2P or their browser.
 
Well there's a saying among law enforcement and it pertains to this kind of stuff in particular: we only catch the dumb ones. The smartest guys are the ones we'll probably never even learn about. Fortunately there are tons of people who are into this stuff who use peer to peer file sharing programs, forums, and other sites that make it very easy to track them down using IP address. And then the vast majority of these guys don't make any effort to hide the stuff once it's on their computer. 9 times out of 10 it's in a folder on their desktop, or the default location where they saved it to using P2P or their browser.

I suppose we can be grateful for the number of stupid people, if anything.

In any case, thank you for the response, and for the work you do. To say I imagine it's very difficult to deal with being exposed to such content would be a gross understatement.
 

Uthred

Member
If he's broken the law he deserves to be punished, no question about that. However the idea that a newly revealed crime somehow impinges on his previous work strikes me as odd. People need to seperate the art and the artist. If this guy does end up being convicted of the things he's accused of it doesnt make Eternal Darkness or Blood Omen retroactively worse.
 

freddy

Banned
If convicted, I sincerely hope the people that boycotted Shadow Complex for Orson Scott Card's involvement do the same with anything current from Precursor Games, included all previous games from Silicon Knights.

Orson Scott Card is one person(who doesn't like gay people, if I recall). Precursor games is the company who fired the person arrested on child porn charges. I don't see the connection here. Precursor games isn't to blame for the guying allegedly viewing kiddy porn and by buying any current or past games you're not supporting that guy. He would have been paid a salary or wage. Unless I've missed something?
 

disap.ed

Member
If convicted, I sincerely hope the people that boycotted Shadow Complex for Orson Scott Card's involvement do the same with anything current from Precursor Games, included all previous games from Silicon Knights.

This is one of the dumbest posts I've ever read in here.
So if an employee of a car manufacturer is convicted because of cp nobody should buy a car from said manufacturer?

I don't know why Precursor Games is in the headline to begin with, they have nothing to do with the crime.
 

Squire

Banned
If convicted, I sincerely hope the people that boycotted Shadow Complex for Orson Scott Card's involvement do the same with anything current from Precursor Games, included all previous games from Silicon Knights.

Damn man, this isn't even an apples/oranges comparison. It's like kiwi/mango or something.

Absolute false equivilancy.
 
If convicted, I sincerely hope the people that boycotted Shadow Complex for Orson Scott Card's involvement do the same with anything current from Precursor Games, included all previous games from Silicon Knights.
Well one major difference is people didn't want to buy Shadow Complex because they don't want any of their money going to support Card and his batshit ideas. If you bought SotE, none of the money would go to this guy because he was fired.

I don't get what you're trying to do here.
 

H2Yo

Member
Orson Scott Card is one person(who doesn't like gay people, if I recall).

Yeah he's a Mormon apologist, his ideals are batshit, but then that's Mormonism.

I guess with my comment, I was brushing in broad strokes, super broad strokes even.
I didn't mean it to be dumb, but then I suppose I didn't put much thought into the actual post. I just wonder if people are feeling dirty knowing that Kenneth McCulloch has been paid for the work he has done in the past.

Well one major difference is people didn't want to buy Shadow Complex because they don't want any of their money going to support Card and his batshit ideas.

Is it fair for Chair not to get paid for the ideals of one person though? Do the people boycotting Shadow Complex know that Orson Scott Card wrote some of the dialog in The Secret of Monkey Island and that he was paid for doing so?
 
Is it fair for Chair not to get paid for the ideals of one person though? Do the people boycotting Shadow Complex know that Orson Scott Card wrote some of the dialog in The Secret of Monkey Island and that he was paid for doing so?
I don't think it's a matter of being fair or not, people can do what they want with their money. If they're that offended by Card they have the right not to buy the game. (I did not boycott SC by the way). As for him writing parts of Monkey Island I did not know that, that's very interesting.
 
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