Well, this Neil Druckmann saga just doesn't stop giving, does it? In case you missed out on the origin point of this whole thing, Sony featured an interview with the Naughty Dog boss on its official website last week. It contained a bunch of quotes that had people questioning the developer's tone, including a now infamous line about how the studio's next game will "redefine mainstream perceptions of gaming".
So outlandish were these quotes that Druckmann himself felt the need to clarify on social media. He claimed that in editing down his original, "rambling" comments, Sony had effectively misquoted him. Indeed, the aforementioned "redefine mainstream perceptions" line was never actually said by Druckmann — and was very much a case of an editor, or editing team, trying to get the message across in a succinct, and ultimately flawed, way.
Which brings us to the latest twist in this affair: Sony's gone and removed the interview from its website.
"In re-reviewing our recent interview with Naughty Dog's Neil Druckmann, we have found several significant errors and inaccuracies that don't represent his perspective and values (including topics such as animation, writing, technology, AI, and future projects)," reads a replacement post.
"We apologize to Neil for misrepresenting his words and for any negative impact this interview might have caused him and his team. In coordination with Naughty Dog and SIE, we have removed the interview."
It's been a fairly baffling chain of events, but the hope is that things have come full circle and everyone's happy again.
What have you made of this saga? Feel free to raise an eyebrow in the comments section below.
[source sony.com]
Comments 34
Removed - inappropriate; user is banned
If you’re going to post an interview why not just transcribe it verbatim. Trying to edit it down and maintain the ‘essence’ of answers just seems a silly way to do something.
@BearsEatBeets Because this was marketing, not an actual journalistic endeavour (even then, journalistic interviews are edited - though not usually to this degree).
@rustyduck remove Neil while you’re at it?
Can we remove this troll for being a clown PushSquare?
Just release the unedited recording and I'll believe you, Sony.
Sony were right to apologise. Neil gets enough abuse online as it is. Regardless of what you think of his games, people get way too personal
@Jacko11 He expressed his opinion which you might like it or not. Meanwhile you called him a clown without any direct provocation. You're in the wrong here, buddy. Ad hominem arguments never lead to anything constructive.
@BearsEatBeets @AK4tywill Also because, as his full response showed, there was a lot of rambling. Most people wouldn't read a whole interview of this. Soundbytes are usually what most are interested in. But it would be good to have both as context is important.
I recently did a video interview for internal communication at work on a fairly large programme of work…basically the video/media person pointed camera at me, and just asked me to give my thought for 45 mins. They used about 5 and it wasn’t bad but some points were not completely in context. So I can see how this happens. It’s not really a sensational piece of news just the organisational machine getting it wrong.
@Pat_trick I don’t recall reading an opinion tbh, more of a statement but I digress.
He’s in the same group of people on PushSquare and the internet that can’t provide justified reasons for Neil’s removal and slating his games outside of being part of some weird hate parade.
@Jacko11 Fair enough, not unreasonable to have that opinion.
I'm my case I don't like him because he defended crunch culture. But I do think he gets an overwhelming amount of hate.
@BearsEatBeets
Lmao such an innocent comment ☺️
@Pat_trick what hate is everyone talking about? I don't really follow individual developers, just keep an eye on the industry and games, so a bit ignorant here.
I will say I am a bit salty towards Uncharted 4 since they decided to gut the most fun experience in that series, the supernatural twists towards the end. You could tell that Amy Hennig's direction was not followed after she left (imo).
I wonder if this is another case of AI misuse, such as "Hey AI, summarize this interview with a marketing writing style".
That’s actually hilarious
@themightyant @AK4tywill They clearly did a poor job of getting a more concise answer out of him if they all they wanted was a quote for marketing. Instead it seems they too much liberty in their ‘editing’ to find an answer they liked.
@BearsEatBeets I get what you are saying, but most times we have an article with quotes from a developer/executive we rarely get the whole discussion printed. They are almost always edited down to be more bite sized, that is normal. What was different here is that they fundamentally changed the meaning of what he was saying, even stating things he never said, which is what caused headlines. That isn't normal.
@JuiceboxMeister There a few things that made him unlikable for some people and then others blew out of proportion.
Uncharted 4 is great example to start with. It was a light hearted series that never took its violence seriously and you can see the turn on the fourth game, having torture scenes and being overall grittier than previous entries. Druckmann said he wanted to make more grounded and serious games and that plus The Last of Us showed that he meant it.
Some people dislike The Last of Us as series calling it torture porn, especially because even though the first game was violent, the second one turns that up a lot. Some people hated him because of the death of a character in the Last of Us II and some people hated the depiction of queer characters in both games. There was some valid criticism towards the plot being exploitative and violent for the sake of it, but also there was a mix of prejudicial people trying to justify their behavior.
There was the news that Naughty Dog had excessive amounts of crunch and instead of apologising for it, his response amounted to what it seemed like a shrug saying it is inevitable and there's no good solution for it.
Also there's the fact that he seems to be a big Hollywood fan and some people accuse him of being a shill that wants approval from that industry.
These are the main facts that I can remember about Neil that make him a controversial figure.
My personal opinion about him is also negative, but never because of the human being he is. I don't like that he didn't speak out against crunch culture and I think his narrative devices can be exploitative. I also think that the end of The Last of Us II was incredibly unsatisfying and it didn't make sense with the rest of the narrative.
That's basically it. Sorry for the long reply.
@Pat_trick that was pretty spot on tbf, great comment 👍
This saga is great for publicity. It keeps many people talking about Naughty Dog and curious about what’s next without them having to say anything specific.
Misquoted or not, it’s an opportunity for Naughty Dog to share something substantial during the State of Play for potentially massive payoff.
If they share nothing, well… This will all just be a minor blip in the gaming news cycle.
I’m not getting my hopes up because of how notoriously secretive they are, but they know what they need to do. 👀
@Pat_trick thanks for the breakdown. I whole heartedly agree with the take on Uncharted 4 even though I still enjoyed the game immensely, was just saddened that they joked about "ghost pirates". Felt like a back-handed comment to the previous 3.
As for Last of Us, I absolutely loved those games. There's some narrative directions that I don't think would actually be present in a world like that because who has time for social issues when humanity is all but extinct. Hardly detracts from the experience though.
Had no idea about the crunch or hollywood shill stuff. Haven't really cared to watch the show as I do not prefer show adaptations of games.
I do hope that the next game Naughty Dog does goes with a new creative director. His influence is too heavy on the atmosphere of ND games currently.
@Pistolega basically my initial reply.
He said something like ‘good for removing the article/interview, not remove Neil entirely’. Can’t remember exactly.
Pretty embarrassing post regardless. Glad PushSquare removed it.
Or just maybe that's exactly what he said due to his ego and Sony have bailed him out
@Pat_trick
> Also there's the fact that he seems to be a big Hollywood fan
Do you see the problem in using both "fact" and "seems to" in one sentence? Where this perception of him being a fan of Hollywood (whatever that means) comes from?
@NeonTiger I wasn't stating everything as a fact. I'm saying what was the people's perception of him. He always talked about Hollywood and he's been to every red carpet event that he has every red carpet event he had the opportunity to. Also his games are written and played in a very "cinematic" way. Does that make him a Hollywood shill? Maybe, maybe not. But the person asked me why Neil Druckmann was hated by some. I gave him the reasons people use to dislike him, not undeniable facts.
@Pat_trick
> Also there's the fact that he seems to be a big Hollywood fan
> These are the main facts that I can remember about Neil
For someone so adamant about not presenting anything as facts, you sure do use that word frequently when presenting someone else's "perceptions" of the man.
> He always talked about Hollywood
What does that mean? I've listened to most of his interviews and podcast appearances, and he mentions certain movies and books and stuff that was influential to Last of Us, as much as any other game or film director that is open enough to share such information would. He loves certain movies, as all of us do, what's this "loving Hollywood" nonsense?
And how many red carpets one must attend to descend (or ascend?) to a "Hollywood fan/shill" title? Seems to me when stupid people search for a reason to hate on the guy, the reasons they come up with are stupid as well.
@NeonTiger It wasn't my intention. I write the same way I speak. I already said they are reasons people use to dislike him, not facts. You're clearly looking for someone to have an argument with and I'm not that person. I won't be replying to you anymore.
@Pat_trick no biggie, I was just getting the same energy from you as from these "other people" you were talking about, with all the facts dropping you did here. And I still kinda do.
@Pistolega not sure what you mean tbh.
Removing the comment gets a little bit of toxic negativity off one thread at least. I’ve wasted no time personally so its alright.
@Pistolega do you have an issue or something 😂😂 like what is this.
Get over yourself councillor its not that deep 💀
@Pistolega lol, another troll, “Grow up” 💀 maybe we can “let the community decide” on removing your comments? 😂😂
@Pistolega you didn’t call me a pansy, now you’re just lying to everyone including yourself.
GG. All the best x
@Kanji-Tatsumi thing is Neil has been plenty abusive to others himself. Including people who post legitimate opinions that he doesn't like.
@Pat_trick Uncharted 4 was fantastic. 3 was the black sheep in the series. It was awful but it's not easy following Uncharted 2 aka one of the best games ever made.
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