You can’t please everyone when you’re making a game, and trying to do so will only get you in trouble. That’s partly due to the fact that every player has different tastes, and because some people shouldn’t be catered to at all. Large developers and publishers are slowly coming around to the idea that maybe they shouldn’t pander to the worst elements of their audience. The recent multiplayer fishing game Webfishing, on the other hand, is showing an impressively low level of tolerance for that kind of bullshit.
The patch notes for a big Webfishing update this week detail a number of new titles players can purchase to display above their characters. As of now, you can proudly display the words Non-Binary, Creature, or Cryptid above your head. But one entry stands out — the “Straight” title, which the notes point out costs $9999 of in-game money.
As spotted by Rock, Paper, Shotgun, that particular addition seems to have come due to a request from a player on the Steam forums, asking why the game offers titles including Gay, Trans, Pan, and Bi, but nothing for the poor, oppressed straights. The now-locked thread quickly devolves into exactly the kind of “just asking questions” nonsense and barely concealed homophobia you’d expect, with commenters attempting to paint queer players as intolerant for pushing back on the idea.
Rather than just ignoring the thread, Webfishing creator lamedeveloper opted for a bit of malicious compliance. The game now sports the “Straight” title — the quotation marks are included, and its description in the shop sarcastically reads, “mhm.” In addition to being the only in-game title that actively questions the sincerity of its wearer, the “Straight” title also costs more than 100 times the price of every other title, which cost $75.
It’s undoubtedly the funniest way the developer could have responded, and it’s also a surprisingly effective one. Replying directly could mean getting bogged down in bad-faith debate or giving Steam forum trolls an easy target to vent their rage. Ignoring it entirely would be a valid response, but could allow the discussion to fester into something more severe — and it just wouldn’t be as fun. Instead, Webfishing has turned a reactionary impulse among some players into a joke pointed directly at them. With its price at $9999, achieving the “Straight” title now seems like a fun challenge for players extra motivated to dunk on the bad take that got it added to the game.
By the standards of reactionary gamers, the thread that started it all looks rather innocuous. One person raising a fuss about queer visibility — then saying it was just a joke, then doubling down on it — is not enough to ruin a game’s community. But almost immediately, the conversation turned toxic, with more and more players coming in to air their supposedly reasonable concerns about their supposed mistreatment.
No matter how tamely the request was worded in the first place, allowing it the linger in the community is asking for trouble. The concept of “straight pride” emerged as an explicit reaction to the rise of gay pride in the 1980’s. Where gay pride is a slogan and ethos meant to empower a marginalized community, straight pride is about denying space for queer people. It’s no coincidence that “straight pride parades” or other manifestations of the idea are strongly tied to hard right-wing groups, as was the case with an infamous 2019 rally in Boston.
Cloaking these odious views in polite language is one way reactionaries and bigots can sneak hateful rhetoric past those who don’t want to cause a fuss by calling them out. That’s part of what’s made it so easy for them to gain a foothold in gaming communities, as publishers don’t want to alienate paying customers who’ve been careful to hide their intentions behind insincere concerns for free speech or historical accuracy.
Is all of that putting too much weight on what’s ultimately just a funny way to troll to an annoying forum poster? Maybe. But we’ve seen over and over that what first looks like an insignificant gripe about a game can spiral into harassment of developers and players if left unchecked. However silly of a solution it may be, Webfishing’s refusal to let reactionary elements take hold in its community is an example more developers should follow — and if you can turn them into the butt of the joke in the process, even better.
