Stolen valor in the gaming industry isn’t a new phenomenon, especially given how the Western gaming industry often operates like a revolving door.
Employees are frequently let go after a game’s completion, only to find work at another studio soon after. This fluidity makes it rare but not unheard of for individuals to falsely claim involvement in game development to boost their credibility online.
However, it’s quite uncommon to see people, particularly on social media, pretend they worked on specific titles for clout. Recognizable figures in game development are usually limited to key, influential individuals, making it hard to fact-check such claims without digging through the credits of a particular game.
The situation changes if someone with influence at the studio directly calls out the fraud. This was the case when Thomas Mahler, CEO of Moon Studios (creators of Ori and the Blind Forest and its sequel, Ori and the Will of the Wisps), publicly exposed false claims. Unsurprisingly, Kotaku journalist Alyssa Mercante, known for her feminist advocacy and previous work as a sex worker, was also involved in this controversy.
This particular episode first kicked off on October 3rd when Twitch user Rachel Cherry, perhaps better known by her handle xIngenue, took to her personal Twitter account to author a lengthy thread decrying the influence DEI initiatives and consultancy companies such as Sweet Baby Inc have on the industry, as consumers are entirely fed up with tokenized “representation” of characters with “marginalized” ethnic backgrounds and or sexual preferences corrupting the industry from within.
“THE DISCOURSE IS BULLSHIT, SHUT THE FUCK UP,” the loud, obnoxious flesh tuber declared, as her lengthy tirade conveniently ignored the harsh reality of 2024’s gaming landscape.
A surprising number of game releases have turned into monumental commercial failures, including Sony’s Concord, hailed internally as the future of the PlayStation brand, but ultimately costing the company well over $200 million
“Nobody is coming to save you,” she proclaimed, before muttering that “incel” gamers wouldn’t band together to gatekeep the industry for themselves. She quickly added that the “external dread” gamers feel is “all because you weren’t loved enough, and most people find you insufferable.”
Given her audacious and abrasive tone, Cherry’s thread soon became a hot topic on Twitter, with activist supporters flocking to cheer her on as she “owned the chuds” by flaunting her ideologically charged rant.
Thomas Mahler’s involvement stems from a resurfaced claim by xIngenue, where she had previously boasted about working in the gaming industry. Despite her strong ideological stance, Mahler exposed her for never having actually worked on his games, debunking her narrative entirely.
Given the politically charged nature of xIngenue’s rant and her harsh language, any association with Thomas Mahler’s company and its products would inevitably tarnish the studio’s esteemed reputation.
Before protecting her account, she had pinned a post from June on her profile, where she claimed to work in UX (User Experience) R&D and game production. She mentioned contributing to Dota’s International event in 2023, as well as software and hardware for XBOX. She even shared an image of Ori and the Will of the Wisps, implying she had worked on the title.
However, her credibility quickly crumbled when Thomas Mahler, the CEO of Moon Studios, which developed the Ori games, directly debunked her claims. Mahler responded, “I’m the director behind both Ori games, and I don’t know who you are or how you were affiliated with Ori.”
This immediately undercut her authority on the subject, exposing her falsehoods.
Unlike her lengthy DEI-fueled rant, xIngenue’s response to Mahler wasn’t narcissistic or detached from reality. She simply stated that she had previously worked with Xbox User Research and the URA for global publishing from 2018 to 2020.
Mahler, in turn, replied, “That could explain it. I didn’t want to cause you any trouble – I just saw you posting that you worked on Ori and I had no idea who you are.”
He added, “Since you’re calling people names online, I thought it was important to inform people that you never actually worked for Moon Studios and that you didn’t ever directly engage with anyone at Moon.”
Mahler’s straightforward clarification soon drew the attention of Alyssa Mercante, the controversial whore turned journalist infamous among gamers for her cancerous egotistical nature.
Mercante, previously known for her past as a prostitute and later for stirring controversy with her journalistic agenda, jumped into the fray. She became a polarizing figure during what some have labeled “Gamergate 2.0,” especially after writing an article defending Sweet Baby Inc, a consultancy firm known for assisting on games pushing woke ideology.
The company itself at the time was involved in a failed cancel campaign against a Steam curator negatively listing games associated with Sweet Baby Inc, using publicly available information.
Alyssa Mercante became a public enemy among gamers after publishing a gaslighting article defending so-called “woke” consultancy services, in which she boldly claimed it wasn’t possible to be racist toward White people.
Since then, she has consistently antagonized gaming consumers, continuing her provocations over the months. Mercante has even mocked the assassination attempt on Donald Trump while advancing her queer agenda, criticizing heterosexual-focused games like Stellar Blade and promoting LGBT representation in titles such as Hades 2.
Alyssa Mercante has also been an outspoken advocate of bullying, a tactic she frequently uses against individuals on social media, however when the boot is on the other foot she cries tales of woe and issues cease and desist orders as seen from her legal disputes with SmashJT.
Despite portraying herself as an eternal victim in her articles, often claiming to be the target of harassment campaigns, her actions tell a different story. In reality, she’s a controversial whore who thrives on attention, despite consistently failing to win any argument she engages in.
True to form, when she didn’t like Mahler’s tweet, her response was predictably crude, resorting to the only method she knows: simply calling him a “dickhead.”
Unfazed by the insult, Mahler directly stated to the Kotaku staffer, “I don’t know who you are.” In response, Alyssa Mercante fired back with a snippet from a hit piece aimed at Mahler, Moon Studios, and his game projects, captioned, “Maybe you forgot.”
The snippet was taken from a Venture Beat article titled “Despite its beautiful Ori games, Moon Studios is called an ‘oppressive’ place to work.” The piece criticized Moon Studios and its work culture, alleging that it was sexist and oppressive toward female employees, citing leaked chats between staff members abusing workers.
Naturally, the hit piece was regurgitated by other media outlets, such as Kotaku seen above.
Former employees of Moon Studios reported to Venture Beat that the studio fostered an oppressive environment and a toxic culture. They claimed that the open and honest workplace initiatives advocated by founders Thomas Mahler and Gennadiy Korol were abusive, noting that the founders often criticized employees in public chats and were reluctant to offer praise.
Mahler responded in a lengthy and thoughtful post, mocking Alyssa’s credibility as a gaming journalist. He proclaimed that she likely lacks any genuine experience in game development, which renders her unable to impose her queer perspectives and political ideologies on consumers.
Instead, she tends to criticize and vilify anything that contradicts her narratives from the safe confines of her journalistic role, much like how I’m free to call her a disgustingly ugly tattoo-riddled whore.
Thomas noted that the snippet references a hit piece targeting his company from several years ago. He openly admitted that he embodies everything described in the original image, emphasizing that this reflects the normal creative process at Moon Studios.
Mahler and Gennadiy Korol brought in experienced talent for the production of their first two games, a common strategy for small, aspiring studios seeking to leverage the skills of seasoned professionals. However, it’s important to acknowledge that not everyone can work harmoniously together or share the same vision, nor can they easily adapt to shifts in workplace philosophy, that’s simply a part of life.
Thomas Mahler asserts that he and his team are deeply passionate about their creations, designing games that he himself wants to play, an approach that embodies the essence of game development.
Released in 2015, Ori and the Blind Forest enjoyed remarkable sales and critical acclaim, achieving a 94% rating on Steam from over 47,000 reviews.
The debut title from the previously unknown Austrian indie studio was a significant success, leading to the launch of a “Definitive Edition” two years later, which received an even higher 95% positive rating from over 56,000 reviews on Steam.
By March 2024, the game had sold around 10 million copies, with Mahler noting that had it failed, Moon Studios would have likely gone bankrupt.
The follow-up, Ori and the Will of the Wisps, released in 2020, was another triumph for the small Austrian team, selling over two million units within just three and a half months of its release.
Mahler continues in his lengthy thread, noting that there have been clashes among the talents at Moon Studios, resulting in disagreements due to differing visions and passions among employees. He emphasizes that these arguments, which occurred during the development process, are actually a strength.
Forget the fact that Thomas is the co-founder of the studio in question. Is he really expected to just roll over and let his project be hijacked with minimal say or input regarding its direction?
While the creative and development process can be challenging, the role of a good director such as himself is to have a clear understanding of the situation and to make the right decisions.
Given the acclaim and monumental financial success of both of his titles, it’s fair to say Mahler made the right decisions, unlike Alyssa Mercante, who has made a name for herself by being abrasive slut and will be forgotten amid the inevitable collapse of the gaming industry which will take countless journalist publications down alongside it.
Mahler continues by acknowledging that Moon Studios made a mistake by hiring individuals who couldn’t adapt to their work culture, resulting in their swift termination. This, he claims, led to the negative hit piece from Venture Beat.
For someone of Mahler’s caliber, starting an up-and-coming studio only to see his name and the company’s reputation tarnished by disgruntled former employees is particularly disheartening, stating that those individuals shouldn’t have been part of the team to begin with.
He concludes by expressing hope that those individuals are happy wherever they ended up. He then nonchalantly questions why Alyssa Mercante, a so-called gaming journalist, felt the need to interject and criticize game developers specifically before signing off his message with her insult of calling him a “Dickhead.”
The response was excellent and far more gracious than someone like Alyssa deserves. It’s quite unusual, especially considering that many Western game developers today often take to social media to rant about feminist bullshit or to insult consumers in defense of such views. It’s refreshing to see a modern game developer who isn’t caught up in that kind of rhetoric.
As expected, Mercante did not respond to his post. The “sex worker” of high esteem turned journalist tends to throw random jabs for attention, only to later lament her experiences in articles, treating Kotaku like her personal soapbox.
This behavior highlights how little journalist publications like Kotaku actually value their business by employing and retaining individuals who rely on rage-inducing clickbait to drive traffic.
