Several studios are cutting ties with video game designer and writer Chris Avellone after allegations surfaced on Twitter that claimed he sexually assaulted and harassed multiple women.
Dying Light 2 developer Techland has terminated its relationship with Avellone and Bloodlines 2 publisher Paradox Interactive says none of the content he produced will be used in the game.
One accuser alleged Avellone had gotten her drunk, taken her back to her room with two other people, and then “pounced” on her. The accuser said she had seen him do the same thing to other girls and heard stories of the practice for years.
“The actions I witnessed myself occurred between 2013 and 2015,” she wrote. “Those I was told by friends who remained around him occurred up until 2017 or 2018. This was recent. Who knows how long it had been occurring before then.
“Chris Avellone is an abusive, abrasive, conniving sexual predator,” she continued. “People tried to get him help. He refused it and continued. Stop glorifying him.”
On Twitter, Avellone acknowledged the accusations.
“I should have been better, and I apologize,” he said, adding that one relationship “ended badly, yes.”
“Was it a bad relationship, I hope not, I didn’t feel that way, but that’s only my perspective, and should not be considered the truth,” he wrote.
Avellone has been a presence in the video game industry for decades. He’s best known for his work as a designer and writer on Planescape: Torment, Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 2, and Fallout: New Vegas. Lately, as a freelancer, he has served as a writer on RPGs including Wasteland 2 and Torment: Tides of Numenera.
Techland, upon learning and looking into the accusations, issued a statement Monday afternoon saying Avellone was no longer working on Dying Light 2.
“We take matters of sexual harassment and disrespect with utmost care, and have no tolerance for such behaviors — it applies to both our employees as well as external consultants, Chris among them,” the developer said. “This is why, together with Chris Avellone, we’ve decided to end our cooperation.”
Gato Studios, where Avellone contributed to The Walanders, said his work was a small part of the game had already been completed and would now be revisited.
The team here at Gato Salvaje spent the past few days reading the stories shared online and reflecting. We have prepared the following statement with regards to the allegations made against Chris Avellone. pic.twitter.com/GTPjJcXfOs
— Gato Studio (@GatoStudioGames) June 22, 2020
Acer’s Predator Atlas 8 finally has a US release date and price, several months after the company first showed off the handheld in May. The highlight is the Intel Arc G3 Extreme chip inside, which has been adopted by only a couple of other consoles besides the Atlas 8. This version will go on sale exclusively at Best Buy on November 1 for $1,299.99.
Acer originally said the Atlas 8 would arrive in North America in October, but left pricing open at the time. The launch came amid the ongoing DRAM crunch, which has made memory more expensive across the PC industry and complicated pricing for hardware makers.
Gaming laptops and I have a complicated relationship. One of my first gaming rigs was an Acer Predator that was already outdated when I bought it. I was a broke college kid, and that was the best I could afford. So trying out high-end gaming laptops is always fun. But ASUS' ROG Zephyrus G14 is a lot more than a laptop that can run AAA games. It is portable, so you're not lugging around a 2.5kg machine everywhere you go. It is built well, none of that plastic chassis, and can even function as a normal laptop outside of just gaming.
Google Play is borrowing one of the Nintendo Switch’s most useful little tricks. A new Sidekick tool called Playbacks captures a short clip after something interesting has already happened, sparing players from running a screen recorder throughout an entire game.
Playbacks is part of Google Play Store v53.8 and keeps saved clips on the phone. Google first announced it earlier this month, but the new Play Store update marks its arrival for players. Anyone who has watched a perfect win vanish because the record button came too late already understands the appeal.