In recent days, hundreds of women in the gaming industry have posted on social media about their experiences of sexual assault and harassment by coworkers and colleagues. In many cases, their allegations are quickly echoed by others with similar experiences, reinforcing a pattern of inappropriate behavior. These experiences coincide with a spate of similar allegations of abuse in the comic book, professional wrestling, and other industries.

A post on Medium titled "Survivors' Stories of Harassment/Abuse/Assault in the Gaming Live Streaming Industry" collects allegations of sexual misconduct posted on Twitter by victims since June 17, primarily by Twitch streamers and other content creators. The list already includes dozens of individual accounts involving more than 60 men, shared primarily on Twitter.

Some of the victims' claims have already prompted responses summarized in the same Medium post: Destiny streamer SayNoToRage posted two apology videos in response to accusations of sexual harassment from several women. He deleted the first one, stating that it "was not a good response."

Vanessa Vanasin, Bungie's community manager and PR director, shared her solidarity with the victims.

Streamer ActaBunniFooFoo posted a response to a 2013 tweet condemning the rape, calling it a "huge error in judgment," and then issued a lengthy statement saying she was "leaving social media and content creation indefinitely."

Dauntless development company streamer BlessRNG, who worked as a community coordinator for Phoenix Labs, posted in response to the allegations of abuse: "I take responsibility for this and I hold myself accountable."

The company's website, which is available at

Several women have accused Ubisoft employees of sexual assault and harassment. On Tuesday, Ubisoft issued a brief statement to PC Gamer. We take any allegations of abuse or harassment very seriously and are scrutinizing the allegations to determine our next steps."

Noted RPG author Chris Avellone has also been accused by several women of sexual misconduct, to which he responded on Twitter with an apology. Techland, the developer of Dying Light 2, announced on Monday that Avellone is no longer involved in the project.

There are too many stories of abuse to count. The number of allegations, especially within the streaming community, has led to the advocacy of the hashtag #TwitchBlackout, which encourages streamers to avoid streaming all day Wednesday, June 24, and viewers to avoid watching or donating.

Twitch tweeted Sunday night, "We take accusations of sexual harassment and misconduct very seriously. We are actively investigating accounts related to streamers affiliated with Twitch and will work with law enforcement if applicable." The hashtag that followed the company's response did little to convince the streamers that serious action was being taken.

At least one former Twitch employee responded to the statement by pointing to past incidents in which Twitch downplayed sexual harassment complaints filed against both the human resources director and Twitch CEO Emmett Shear.

Shear publicly posted an email he sent to Twitch employees on Monday night, but the email did not mention specific incidents or provide details on how Twitch plans to address the sexual harassment issue.

Allegations of harassment and abuse continue to appear throughout the gaming industry. Many of the assault allegations occur around conventions and industry parties such as PAX, spurring some to suggest that alcohol may make these events more dangerous for women. "Networking" often puts pressure on drinking, especially for those trying to break into the gaming industry. Spelunky developer Derek Yu summed it up on Twitter: "Alcohol is just a front for predators who abuse their positions of power and I think men in particular need to be aware of this dynamic and call it out when it is used to harm others. I think it is important to ask how studios and events are trying to address this issue."

In many cases, victims point to reasons why they waited years to speak out against their abusers: fear of retaliation, blacklisting from the industry, or not being believed when they spoke up about their experiences. Almost without exception, men accused of sexual assault or harassment have large fan bases, deep professional connections, and positions of power that allow them to escape repercussions.

Until serious action is taken to root out abusers and change the culture that has allowed abuse, we can expect more of these harsh revelations.

Update (June 25): Ubisoft has released a new statement promising a full investigation into allegations against employees, including former "Assassin's Creed Valhalla" creative director Ashraf Ismail, and said it will take "appropriate disciplinary action."

"Regarding the recent allegations raised against certain team members at Ubisoft: First, we apologize to everyone affected by this matter. We are dedicated to creating an inclusive and safe environment for our team, players and community. It is clear that we have failed to do this in the past. We must do better

We began by initiating an investigation into the allegations with the assistance of a professional outside consultant. Based on the results, we are committed to taking all appropriate disciplinary action. Because these investigations are ongoing, we are unable to comment further. We are also auditing our existing policies, processes, and systems to understand where they are failing and to better ensure that improper conduct is prevented, detected, and punished.

In the future, we plan to share with our team the additional measures we are putting in place. Our goal is to foster an environment that our employees, partners, and community can be proud of - one that reflects our values and is safe for everyone."

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