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[iMax]

I bet Nintendo didn't expect Shufflegate to become an actual -gate.

 

[Zombie James]

After seeing the video clip, this is clearly a Watergate reference. Combine that with the old "fun guy = fungi" mushroom joke and you just have a fun pop culture nod.

 

[-Pyromaniac-]

No matter the arguments in here, someone at Nintendo is really dense to be making any -gate joke within a video game, and especially from them, at the time being. Regardless of intent.

wtf

watergate and the use of _____-gate is part of culture now. It has been used as long as I've been alive.

Fucking NIPPLEGATE for gods sake.

 

[Oxn]

She thought.... How can I make myself relevant again?

 

[Trigonometrize.]

I don't see how it should be changed. If it were a coincidence, sure. As in, "Five Guys" instead of "Five fun guys" for the obvious toad pun and if the jokes were side-by-side. But not only is a stretch to make it a coincidence, it's a stretch to make it a coincidence based on screenshots out of context.

 

[massoluk]

I'm giving Nintendo a benefit of doubt and say it is an unfortunate pun (fun guys) + ~Gate suffix combo.

 

[Enter the Dragon Punch]

regardless of how people read this, the fact remains that Nintendo is completely tone-deaf. It shows that no one at Nintendo is watching or are informed enough to care irrespective of what thing they tried to reference.

or they figured that enough people knew watergate to make the distinction

 

[hampig]

regardless of how people read this, the fact remains that Nintendo is completely tone-deaf. It shows that no one at Nintendo is watching or are informed enough to care irrespective of what thing they tried to reference.

I wouldn't have caught it. All the evidence here could very clearly be referencing Watergate as well.

 

[RK9039]

Has there ever been a Watergate related joke like this in gaming? As in where the character says "-gate".

Well I've seen one that isn't a joke from MGS1. Snake refers to the Watergate scandal during his conversation with "Deep throat".

 

[Waylon Drums]

I've been on her side since the beginning but she's being a shithead right now.

 

[Staf]

Nintendo themselves have used a similar pun before. In Mario Party 8 (released in 2007), if you pair Mario and Toad together the team is called "Fungi Fun Guys".

So we have proof that Nintendo is in control of a time-machine? If so, why is Wii U still a thing?

 

[maxcriden]

#FiveGuys was the hashtag they used before #GamerGate

There's zero fucking coincidence the translator used a Five Guys and -Gate joke together like that.

I don't know that there's zero coincidence. The five fun guys as others have said could just as easily be the whole fun guy/fungi thing.

It really could just be an unfortunate coincidence. Is that really so unlikely? It seems the five guys thing was unknown by many of us as any connection to gamergate.

Sincerely positing this. Not meaning to be contentious or ignoring the possibility.

 

[Lime]

"Cut it out with referencing political scandals known all around the globe guys, social media drama with -gate has been around'.
Nintendo is so out of touch.

or they figured that enough people knew watergate to make the distinction

I wouldn't have caught it. All the evidence here could very clearly be referencing Watergate as well.

they're a fucking game company, they should know about one of the worst things that has happened to the games industry

hell, they even fired one of their employees because of those bigots

 

[Gabriel_Logan]

Some people are still missing the core part of "FIVE GUYS".

With Watergate, they were never known as "Five guys", it was "Five burglars".

A core part of the GamerGate controversy was specifically "Five Guys" usage, it was used in the hashtag, it was a hashtag itself, if you even google "gamergate five guys" or "zoe quinn five guys" you will find tons of evidence of this.

Yes the the five fun guys etc is a fungi pun. We get it, that doesn't change anything. I'll refer to that in a bit

Why do some people think the person doing this for Nintendo would use "Five Fun Guys" when it was "Five burglars", when GamerGate controversy had specifically "Five Guys", which is much, much, much, MUCH, less obscure to gamers than trying to use "Five burglars" and trying to turn that into a pun just because the "five burglars" were men and thus "guys".

This was taking advantage of the parallels of the two, but what really makes this obvious that it was hinting towards GamerGate and Quinn is the "Five Fun Guys". I'm sorry but trying to say that is a reference to Watergate is perhaps one of the most obscure references you can get when "FIVE GUYS" regarding GAMERGATE that more gamers would know about is MUCH LESS OBSCURE than when "five burglars" were used in Watergate which were "guys". That is an insane leap to try and make a pun and say Watergate was its context, the pun was made in context of "five guys" in relation to GamerGate. Come on.

lol its a pun for fungi.

 

[JackDT]

Douche move by someone on the localization team.

 

[SneakersSO]

regardless of how people read this, the fact remains that Nintendo is completely tone-deaf. It shows that no one at Nintendo is watching or are informed enough to care.

You would be absolutely amazed at how much of the going-ons of the internet, especially events that are multiple years old at this point, are completely unknown by the rest of the world.

And honestly, why should Nintendo care? They are a corporate entity that is literally not at all involved with any of this. Also, they're a corporation - they only care about making money. No one concerns themselves with this type of thing.

 

[FunkyMunkey]

That's probably something added by the localisation team that wasn't in the original version so you're a bit reaching here.

i don't believe in catering to people who are literally looking under every rock to find crap to get offended about

hopefully five guys burgers and fries changes their name as well to make everyone happy

it is amazing to me that people are saying that gamergate is more widely known, on a global scale, than watergate. our educational system has failed

 

[Ploid 3.0]

I feel sorry for all of the crap she has to put up with, and what she's going through. It can't be easy dealing with it all. I do think this isn't about the gamergate situation, but if I was the devs I would take that out. I see how it can be seen as a gamergate reference, easily, though I also see what it was going for that's not related to GG.

 

[Darcotik]

That's quite a nasty comment to be honest.

Hey, cannot be helped if Zoe Quinn never heard of Watergate before today and thinks that the -gate suffix was made for her.

 

[kirblar]

Jeez this thread is horrible. Let's make something clear no-one is saying gamergate invented the -gate suffix, accusing people of this is showing your own stupidity for not reading the thread.

#fiveguys was the twitter handle of gamergate before they became gamergate, coupled with the gate suffix joined with the ruined career, all adds up to an incredibly unlikely coincidence.

Tbh I'm disappointed in Nintendo.

The Five Guys part is obscure- I knew a bunch about it but not that.

It's also a deliberate reference by the gobbledygookers to the original WG scandal - it's not coincidental.

 

[kamineko]

The photos in the OP would make for an interesting psychological experiment.

In truth, the text applies equally well to Nixon and #GuhGuh (spoiler: there's no big "ah-ha" at the bottom of that wikipedia article that's been linked a kajillion times. I mean, if you don't know American history, I guess so, but otherwise lol). The argument is either "SMDH you ppl don't know about watergate" or "that was the OG hashtag you guys!"

In the end, you have to infer meaning based on your own perception of the parties involved.

I myself can't imagine Nintendo making gamergate jokes in their own products, though I suppose somebody from Treehouse could be clowning them.

So far as ZQ goes, I dunno. I figure her life got turned to shit in a way I can't fully imagine and she has a right to take shit the wrong way from time to time if that's what it comes down to, you know?

 

[MoonFrog]

Ummm. Five mushrooms in a stage act...Five fungi in a stage act. five fun guys in a stage act. A very obvious pun. Acts often refer to the number of people involved, e.g. the Jackson Five. Moreover, how is the fact that five mushrooms are in on a conspiracy together a reference to gamergate?! Also the -gate suffix is incredibly common. They are just two common and obvious turns of phrase situated near each other. Someone would have to be really subtle about making a bad joke in bad taste that seems to completely lack a punchline. More likely it is that some people are just seeing what they expect to see both where it is and where it isn't. Not everything is meta- and coded reference.

 

[Scizzy]

I haven't watched the Treehouse stream, so I'm not going to comment on the entire thing, but that Watergate Exposed book is super-obscure and definitely not being referenced. It has all of 10 reviews on Amazon!

 

[Joey Ravn]

I don't want to believe this was intentional. It seems impossible that anyone at Treehouse could do something so unbelievably tasteless. But I don't know how else to interpret this. It's too spot on. The only thing that even gives me pause is my own incredulity.

Have you seen the whole scene? It's been linked quite a few times now.

 

[naitosan]

Actually it's definitely Watergate.

Didn't that have something to do with 5 guys in it?

I think Zoe needs to realise she isn't the centre of the universe.

Agreed. Watched the streaming part and am familiar with Watergate scandal. Unfortunately Zoe seems to be overreacting. :/ What doesn't really help that alot of her followers and people here aren't familiar about it.

 

[The Silver]

doesn't even need to go that far.

just drop the number in the text.

"The Fun Guys" makes as much sense as "The five fun guys"

Nah people would still think it's a super hidden veiled joke simply because they're five of them and the word guy.

Dropping or adding to the number is the only way but translators weren't responsible fur the number of toads.

 

[evrecheto]

Some pretty ignorant outrage on Quinn's part. Wonder if she will recant?

 

[diaspora]

Some people are still missing the core part of "FIVE GUYS".

With Watergate, they were never known as "Five guys", it was "Five burglars".

A core part of the GamerGate controversy was specifically "Five Guys" usage, it was used in the hashtag, it was a hashtag itself, if you even google "gamergate five guys" or "zoe quinn five guys" you will find tons of evidence of this.

Yes the the five fun guys etc is a fungi pun. We get it, that doesn't change anything. I'll refer to that in a bit

Why do some people think the person doing this for Nintendo would use "Five Fun Guys" when it was "Five burglars", when GamerGate controversy had specifically "Five Guys", which is much, much, much, MUCH, less obscure to gamers than trying to use "Five burglars" and trying to turn that into a pun just because the "five burglars" were men and thus "guys".

This was taking advantage of the parallels of the two, but what really makes this obvious that it was hinting towards GamerGate and Quinn is the "Five Fun Guys". I'm sorry but trying to say that is a reference to Watergate is perhaps one of the most obscure references you can get when "FIVE GUYS" regarding GAMERGATE that more gamers would know about is MUCH LESS OBSCURE than when "five burglars" were used in Watergate which were "guys". That is an insane leap to try and make a pun and say Watergate was its context, the pun was made in context of "five guys" in relation to GamerGate. Come on.

The five toads were pulling a con, a theft through their game the way the 5 watergate thieves were. The scene unto itself, the motivation of the toads, and what they said all parallel Watergate, they don't parallel gamergate.

 

[gai_shain]

Ask a non american about watergate, and they would told you about Deepthorat, the 2 Washington Post journalist,... but not the 5 guys who were arrested.

Hell, I watched All the President's Men and never made the connection.

Ask a dude about GamerGate and they'll know that the "Five Guys" thing is basically what started it all.

Some of you should really look outside of your hardcore gaming bubble from time to time.
I am 100% sure that more people know about watergate than gamergate.
I never heard about five guys before and many people in this thread didnt either even though they knew what gamergate was.

 

[Cromwell]

Nintendo being "ultra conservative" is exactly the reason I'd expect them to make a pro-GG statement like this.

Not conservative in the context you're thinking of. They're conservative as in ultra-safe to insane degrees. They fired Alison Rapp at the slightest wiff of controversy. To think they would willingly welcome controversy with this is complete insanity.

 

[Plasma]

Everyone knows about it, I was querying whether it had been taught in most other countries at a universal level though. I'd surmise from this thread that the answer is generally not.

I'm from the UK it isn't taught but I don't know it just seems like one of those bits of knowledge that you just pick up (Thanks Metal Gear Solid).

 

[Mediking]

No offense, Zoe... but.... but.....

 

[burn this down]

Yo, but how wild is it that this could easily be both things? Both involve five guys, ruining careers, and the '-gate' suffix. That's nuts.

I don't think this was intentional GG reference, I think it's a Watergate reference. Nintendo isn't really one to stir the pot on subjects like this. Plus, in context this is more befitting of a Watergate joke than a Gamergate one. I understand why Quinn has reacted the way she has though.

Also, a significant portion of NeoGAF didn't pick up on it possibly being a Gamergate reference. I fail to see why the localization team would put in a joke that would only be understood by a very small group, and found funny by even less.

 

[DannyDanger]

Yep. The ease with which you can misinterpret the joke is the main issue.

easy to misinterpret that IF you hand pick two screenshots

the video of that scene mirrors the events of watergate pretty obviously

 

[A Link to the Past]

She thought.... How can I make myself relevant again?

Doubtful; I've seen people come to this conclusion for a while now before Zoe brought it up. It's just a matter of seeing those two scenes and taking a context out of it that likely isn't there.

 

[Ten]

Genuine question: Has she mentioned whether she came across this screenshot or took it herself while playing?

 

[Fisty]

quote

Yeah Nintendo is probably referencing the major political scandal from 40 years ago, not the major gaming scandal that is ongoing that they were also swept up in...

 

[qtpie]

these watergate references are too old for kids clearly

 

[Huge Succeeded]

I don't want my conduct in this thread to be construed as though I'm not sympathetic for Zoe Quinn. My beef is with the people in here who are unable to discern that their entire analysis is based on two cherrypicked images that support their argument, as opposed to the entire scene in question which decidedly doesn't, for the record.

I'm all for the dialogue being changed, if only to eliminate the association entirely.

 

[DR2K]

Some of Nintendo sure isn't a fan of women in video games.

 

[VexMythoclast]

To be fair, those people aren't mushrooms

Wait...so you're telling me the Mario games don't have 100 percent historical accuracy. That is it Nintendo, this is where I draw the line.

 

[Tagyhag]

Has anyone translated the Japanese text yet? I'd be very curious to see what that says.

 

[Eolz]

Can the OP be updated with the whole video at least?
It's a lot more honest, even if you disagree with the tens of quotes about how this is clearly a Watergate joke.

 

[AlteredBeast]

Zoe Quinn shot herself in the foot...

 

[Inferno313]

Genuine question: Has she mentioned whether she came across this screenshot or took it herself while playing?

Yeah she was playing this unreleased game.

 

[HawthorneKitty]

did you all know that a squad of five guys led by president nixon stole the constitution from the watergate hotel

Gamergate is not the only gate lmao

Didn't Nicholas Cage steal it with like one other person?

 

[Aaronrules380]

People also ignore that coincidences are incredibly common. Even a 1 in 1,000,000 chance of happening in a day happens to thousands of the people in the world daily.

 

[Audioboxer]

Probably understandably PTSD from the whole GG mess causing unfortunate upset in her mind.

Remember for the most part GG is most well known about in America, not Japan. I knew only a little about GG till GAF educated me more, and I knew nothing of five guys till this topic (remember Nintendo pun is five fun guys). If the Japanese text references things the same way then it's clearly just a pun and a pop culture reference.

Some people in here are getting a bit nasty, which is a shame, as I've read every page and there's some GAFers I like going all in to drag Nintendo through the mud with what is currently very circumstantial evidence given the Ocams razor explanation.

Considering this has already blown up Nintendo should just give a short PR statement distancing them from Zoe/GG and keep the joke in if the intention is as thought. Removing it from the game if it's not this internal dev decision to actually do what many in here are saying seems possible will just seem in poor taste for creative freedom at Nintendo if they now need to censor certain puns or pop culture jokes if they in anyway seem similar to some other scandal.

Either way that's my feelings and I hope Zoe gets what assurances she needs in the end.

 

[Enter the Dragon Punch]

Some of Nintendo sure isn't a fan of women in video games.

THAT'S what you get from this?

 

[Pai Pai Master]

I would be cool with her mistake if she just tapped out and went "I'm sorry, I fucked up", but she's not. She's being a real asshole about this, not accepting anything but her own truth. Just read her twitter.

Yeah lol I regretted that as soon as I saw her follow-ups.

Again, I empathize with her situation here and can see the initial reaction happening if anyone went through what she did. But her doubling and tripling down on it is unfortunate.