-
Hey Guest. Check out your NeoGAF Wrapped 2025 results here!
American McGee starting to work on a pitch for 'Alice: Asylum' to be presented to EA
- Thread starter FelipeMGM
- Start date
Can you link to some relevant quotes?
Best go find yourself a nice cozy hole to live in then, cause otherwise yes, yes you do.
Spring-Loaded
Member
He had some tweets thanking Gamergate advocates for raising donations to search for his sister and commented that the "defenders" of women hadn't done so.
It's a bit messier and more complicated than a typical stance. It's pretty ugly overall across the board.
Hero Prinny
Member
Oooh im so down for this! Hopefully if it does get made its not super padded out like the 2nd one.
rochellepaws
Member
Love his work, if this goes ahead I hope it isn't rushed this time.
Schopenhauerian
Member
Yeah, I included that passage (to which you're referring) precisely because it had suggested to me that his views would not possibly be compatible with those of Gamergate, and to thereby underline my surprise/disappointment in hearing what a number of posters here have (not incorrectly, it seems) indicated about some of his other expressed views:
That is truly awful to hear. I hope she is somehow OK.
Also very important to consider, in this context. Thanks for the additional clarification.
michaelius
Banned
I give this 0,0001% chance of happening with current EA direction unless he found a way to make multiplayer GaaS game with loot boxes out of it.
That's exactly correct. He does not have ownership of the IP. I do recall him saying that EA remains interested in a revisit, however, so that's probably why this pitch is happening.
PsihoPerihelion
Member
He went full "Trump blaming both sides" on this lol. Yeah, I'm never buying any of this guy's games again.
SleepingDragon
Member
So why exactly are people saying stuff about never buying his games again? None of the things he said really seemed to be harmful or mean to anyone in any way.
To his defense (as much as I am able), someone claiming to be anti-Gamergate threatened to kill him and his sister, and then his sister went missing and is currently presumed dead.
As I said earlier, doesn't excuse it his stance, but this is a messier case than most.
To be very clear, American McGee's views on censorship and criticism are different than many of ours, and he's a huge advocate towards free speech - even caustic and toxic views - in part because he's lived in China for many years and their own brand of censorship and speech suppression has given him quite a bit of pause. So when Gamergate swelled, he welcomed discussion on both sides and advocated for debate, defending the right to criticize but also saying those same critics needed to be willing to engage with the dissenting opinion, that both the portrayal of women as strong characters AND as big-boobed beach volleyball sex objects were equally valid displays of creator intent and art. The merits of that stance were... problematic, and he received a lot of death threats over his initial support of Gamergate advocates who wanted to debate critics like Anita.
The resulting fallout, however, I think entrenched him further in one corner than the other. His own personal views on women in games do seem contrary to the Gamergate manifesto, especially given how many of his coworkers and female players vouch for his design sensibilities when it came to Alice. But he got voraciously attacked for equating "both sides" as having valid points in an environment that demands you choose a side, and the disappearance of his sister shortly after receiving death threats explicitly calling her out and bragging about how they knew where she lived would warp anyone's perspective on the whole Gamergate ordeal.
PsihoPerihelion
Member
Oh crap, really? That's way messy to even discuss it in here. Like, it's either a really bad coincidence or some fucked up thing happened with that anti-GG guy, unless it was a GG posing as an antiGG, which is fucked up anyway.
I really don't give a shit about the guy's politics or positions on anything. I give a shit about him when he's developing games. Him being a shitty person shouldn't stop me from wanting another Alice game.
Simbabbad
Member
After one page of hate against the guy, some people finally show "evidence" of why he'd deserve hate and boycott... and we see perfectly calm, mundane, and balanced statements. Seems like the hate doesn't come from him.
If you add to that the stuff with his sister, the guy is remarkably calm.
For the record, I loved the first Alice game and hated the sequel, which lacked the balance and subtlety of the first game IMO.
If you add to that the stuff with his sister, the guy is remarkably calm.
Because for some people, if you're not 100% following their exact views, then you and your family don't deserve to work/exist/not be insulted, apparently.
For the record, I loved the first Alice game and hated the sequel, which lacked the balance and subtlety of the first game IMO.
And on top of that, nothing indicates he's a "shitty person". Lynch mob mentality is scary.
cj_iwakura
Member
From what I can tell, he sounds more like he's trying to be neutral. It's not great by any means, but it's not like he's gone full bigot.
And his creative stances in Alice have always seemed pretty feminist-leaning to me.
I loved both the first two games, and I'd have no qualms about supporting a third.
And his creative stances in Alice have always seemed pretty feminist-leaning to me.
I loved both the first two games, and I'd have no qualms about supporting a third.
Wow this situation doesn't sound as cut and dry as people want to make it sound... what ever the case, I hope his sister is fine, cause at the end of the day despite how much you might not agree with someone hoping for harm to befall that person and their family and friends is inexcusable...
On top of that, his game was used as a positive example in one of the episodes of Tropes vs Women in Video Games on Feminist Frequency.
Honestly, based on the stuff that's been posted in here, I don't think that he's said anything particularly terrible or unforgivable. I can see how it might be a bit controversial or why people may not agree with it but it's also not the same as "allying himself with GamerGate" and it's really no reason to boycott his games IMO.
humansarehorses
Member
Yep. Nothing he said is disagreeable unless you take an extreme position on either side of GG. And the people who do take those positions are typically nuts. The death threats made to him regarding sister (where her name, address, and other personal information were detailed in the threat) were made by someone who proclaimed to be anti-GG.
Also shocked by people calling him a bigot based on those posts. There's nothing bigoted about what he said.
FairFriend
Member
Having read the incriminated posts I'd say that some people should think twice before declaring the witch-hunt opened, metaphorically speaking.
Anyway, this news has put me in the mood of trying to finish Madness Returns, though it is quite the undertaking.
Anyway, this news has put me in the mood of trying to finish Madness Returns, though it is quite the undertaking.
Pilgrimzero
Member
I hope it works out this time. Madness Returns is one of my all time faves. I'd def play Alice 3.
ClosingADoor
Member
Hope it works out. Previous game was great. Will get a new Alice on day 1.
Merrydeath
Member
I'm So down with a third alice game with Frostbite or UE4 but since its EA...
There probably a higher chance of a remastered edition than a third one..
There probably a higher chance of a remastered edition than a third one..
Ban Puncher
Member
Only if someone draws an associated drawing for when you actually read the information and find out you were a little too quick to jump on the bandwagon.
Alexander DeLarge
Member
Did he ever find his sister? I remember hearing about how she disappeared and they assumed she was dead based on the crime scene.
Edit: https://www.doomworld.com/forum/top...erican-mcgees-sister-mercy-johnson-covington/
https://mobile.twitter.com/americanmcgee/status/755917660144046080
Edit: https://www.doomworld.com/forum/top...erican-mcgees-sister-mercy-johnson-covington/
https://mobile.twitter.com/americanmcgee/status/755917660144046080
To my knowledge, no... but I still hope for the best.
The thread is already fantastically derailed, good work.
Combichristoffersen
Combovers don't work when there is no hair
I love the Alice games above and beyond all reason, and have probably spent fuck knows how much money on merch. Sign me right up for this.
Revolutionary
Member
Here's hoping it comes to fruition. Though both games were flawed, I enjoyed them both immensely.
SleepingDragon
Member
I believe that was on Kickstarter and it did not get funded. Which is pretty sad since I'd love to see this type of game based off another story.
EA: Can we put microtransactions in it?
McGee: Well, that wasn't part of the idea-
EA: A season pass?
McGee: I hadn't planned on it, bu-
EA:
I would be ok with a season pass if it was the price to have a new Alice.
Similarly, if American wants to sell 100 different Alice outfits, that's fine with me. Alice: Madness Returns had great outfits, and none of them felt like pandering fan service.
harrisk954
Member
This is awesome. Loved the aesthetic of the first 2 games... But, I remember them to be pretty repetitive game play-wise. Still, fond memories of these games and how different they were. Looking forward to what they show of this!
TheSpaceBetween
Member
Jesus, I had no idea about the whole thing with his sister. It could be a coincidence, or not. Either way it's pretty fucked up.
Similar threads
- Poll