There are many positive stories of gaming communities coming together for great causes and creating strong bonds in real life after they started online. But there’s always the unsavory reminder thatpeople use the anonymity of social media for terrible reasons. Unfortunately, one such negative incident could lead to theOverwatchcommunity losing one of its most positive voices, SVB.
Allegedly a person assumed to be around 14 created Twitter andDiscordaccounts under the name “NiaPlaysOW,” claiming to be a 17-year-old Black girl. They joined multiple Discord channels and built a foundation around the persona. Then they made a tweet with a Twitlonger link labeled “About SVB.” In it, they made false claims that started with a request for coaching and ended with claims of SVB soliciting nude photos of an underaged “victim.” Two hours after the initial fervor, the account revealed that it was all a hoax aimed at showing “how easy it is to ‘cancel’ someone and how cringe this community xd.” The perpetrator, “SwagTortoiseOW,” has deleted all the accounts they used in the scheme and has virtually disappeared.
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SVB made a video days after the initial reactions died down, detailing his side of the entire ordeal. He stresses the fact that there are manywomen that have been victims of grooming and sexual misconduct in the gaming spaceand that his case is not a reflection of the majority of claims made against high-profile figures. He goes on to describe his emotions as he went through the whirlwind of finding out about the claim and the abuse and condemnation he received from individuals, including esports and gaming journalists, fans, and other streamers that were quick to react to the allegations. His video included a clip of his live reaction because he happened to be streaming at the time. He concludes by announcing that he’ll be stepping away from streaming and gaming content indefinitely and is unsure about his future in the space.
TheOverwatchcommunity’s reaction has been highly sympathetic towards SVB and also angry that the streamer was subjected to this “social experiment” and that this person won’t face repercussions. It’s been discussed that SVB could take legal action against the person, but it’s complicated because the accounts no longer exist, and it can be a tricky process to track them down.
This incident does shed light oninternet culture’s propensity for toxicityand the need to be first to react to a situation. Within minutes of the claims, SVB said he received many nasty messages on Twitter and in his DMs calling him many things that he was not. Notable streamers he would not name, journalists, and editors from online gaming publications were quick to condemn him, and he saw himself temporarily ostracized without cause.
Overwatchis a game that has fostered a sizable community of POC, women, and LGBTQ+ individuals that care about furthering the diversity of the game and gaming as a whole. They often rally around each other in a male-dominated spacewhere they can temporarily shelter from harassment. In the case of SVB, an individual on the internet preyed on social media’s standard of “believe victims” and used a community against theOverwatchcontent creator, who has been a vocal supporter of marginalized groups in the community.
