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Kotaku reports that SWAT-inspired tactical first-person shooter Ready or Not from Void Interactive is parting ways with its publisher, Team17. The separation comes after a controversial response from the team to a Reddit post asking whether Void would be putting in a school shooting level in a future update. The response was “you better believe it’s gonna”.
The reason for the split was all but confirmed after news of this response started gaining steam and Void put out a statement meant to diffuse the situation.
Of note is mention of reminding team members to treat touchy subjects with care: “We have recently had to remind certain team members of the required care in discussing this material now and on an on-going basis.” That’s the closest the statement gets to flat-out admitting someone on the team messed up. The statement also reiterates how it’s working closely with law enforcement to make the game as real and considered as possible. Given that many people’s relationship with the police has grown more and more contentious, it could be argued that the entire concept of the game is fraught. Add to that the additional trauma of the United States’ school shooting epidemic and you’ve got an explosive set of themes that even those treating them with the most care would likely fumble.
Ready or Not was announced several years ago and was picked up by Team17 this past March, with an early access stint on Steam without a release date being announced along with it. This was the same formula that Team17 used for its other squad shooter Hell Let Loose. Now the future plans for the game are in doubt, though Void is confident it can forge a path on its own.