Tfue Is Unbanned and Yeah I Was Probably Too Harsh (But Streamers Are Still Annoying)
[UPDATE] Yesterday I wrote about how Embark Studios was holding the line by banning Tfue for 30 days but that line dissolved faster than my patience because Turner "Tfue" Tenney is already back in ARC Raiders.
The 30-day suspension lasted less than 24 hours. When the news first broke I admittedly went straight for the jugular because nothing annoys me more than the "rules for thee but not for me" vibe that streamers give off. But after looking at the actual footage and seeing the community foam at the mouth demanding his head on a spike I have to walk it back a little bit.
The Reality Check
Let’s look at what actually happened without the rage goggles on. Tfue wasn't running around in high-stakes matches ruining people's day. He was mostly in the practice range or doing a "naked run" to demonstrate a lighting exploit that broke the game. He explicitly said he was doing it to raise awareness and ironically he was right because it got patched immediately.
Yet you look at the subreddit and people are still screaming for a permanent ban. There is a mob mentality right now that ignores context entirely. Banning a guy for life because he showed a bug in a practice range isn't justice. It is just being vindictive because he is rich and famous and you aren't.
Why We Lash Out
I think the reason I and so many others reacted so aggressively is just pure fatigue with streamer privilege. We are so used to seeing these guys get away with murder that when one of them finally gets a slap on the wrist we cheer. It blinds us to the nuance.
The frustration is valid because we know deep down that if "Average Joe" did the exact same thing to "raise awareness" nobody would care. I would be serving that 30-day ban and my support ticket would be ignored. That disparity sucks. It is genuinely annoying to watch someone skip the queue of justice just because they have a verified checkmark.
Embark Made the Right Call (Technically)
As much as I hate the optics of it Embark probably made the right call here. Tfue wasn't cheating to win. He was being a "white hat" in a very public way. Keeping him banned for a month just to satisfy a bloodthirsty Reddit mob would have been petty.
So yeah I was too harsh yesterday. Tfue didn't deserve the gulag for this one. But let's not pretend that the instant VIP unban service doesn't leave a bad taste in your mouth anyway.
Got a hot take on this? I know you do. Head over to r/neonlightsmedia to discuss it.
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