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Woke Capitalism Infects Video Games In 'The Last Of Us: Part II'

Woke Capitalism Infects Video Games In ‘The Last Of Us: Part II’

By

newguardstaff

May 8, 2020

By Kevin McMahon Conservatives are all too aware that progressives exercise almost complete control over the entertainment industry and Hollywood. We’ve also become used to big tech companies giving differential treatment to progressives, often coupled with open hostility and even censorship of conservative ideas. Together, these two sectors could severely limit conservative expression. Well, that’s exactly what’s happening, and this time around, the progressives’ target is the video game industry. The Last of Us is a zombie adventure game set in a post-apocalyptic world that was published in 2013 by Sony, and developed by Naughty Dog. The game was an instant hit, selling more than 1.3 million copies in the first week of its release. Fans of the game waited years until it was announced in 2016 that it would be receiving a sequel. Following a series of leaks and rumors recently, the game drew heavy fire from various content creators and gamers who were rightfully frustrated with the heaping amounts of progressive identity politics that the developers had supposedly forced into the game. Though this is not an unusual trend in the entertainment industry, it is certainly an unwelcome one. A shift away from the previous game’s main character in favor of focusing on a lesbian relationship riddled with scandal and a surprise pregnancy from a third party and rumors of transgender characters have certain fans concerned about the developer’s priorities. The progressive themes are obvious enough without mentioning the portrayal of Christianity as a death-cult whose supposed mission is to kill all of the LGBTQ characters stuffed into the game. At a certain point, creative coincidences morph into a clear effort to inject as much progressivism into the game while checking off a multitude of boxes on the diversity checklist. Fans picked up on it and began to question the game’s direction. The developer, Naughty Dog, then threw water onto the grease fire and decided to toss anyone who dared to discuss the game’s themes into YouTube’s virtual gulag by abusing the copyright strike system. Dozens of content creators reported that their videos on the topic were pulled down, regardless of whether or not leaked images were displayed. This has gone beyond an attempt to rein in leaks in anticipation of the game’s release. Naughty Dog is churning out copyright strikes on YouTube for creators that dare even discuss the controversy that the game has found itself in. It was even rumored that employees of Naughty Dog would often self-censor their own opinions on the game’s material over concerns that their jobs might be in jeopardy should they upset the wrong crowd. It seems apparent that Naughty Dog is doing everything in its power to shut down any criticism of its product. Remember, the Left hates capitalism.* *Unless it affects the bottom line of their crappy product that seems to be overflowing with leftist identity politics.
Kevin McMahon is a program assistant at Young America’s Foundation.

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