There’s been a bit of commotion today surrounding the funding of a bear-dating simulator (Bear Senpai). Yes, someone is actually trying to make a game like that. That’s weird enough, in and of itself. But the person behind the Kickstarter, also happens to run an organization known as GaymerX. Many of you have probably heard of them before, but, in case you haven’t, here’s a blurb from their convention page:

GX, or GaymerX, is an annual convention focused on games – Video Games, Tabletop Games, Card Games and creating a fun and safe space for gamers and gaymers of all identities to have fun and hang out with like minded folks.

This doesn’t sound too offensive, although it presumes that this space is needed in the first place. I’ve gamed with plenty of gay people, and even had my ass kicked by them one or two times. There was no issue with them playing with heterosexuals. It’s funny that I never see all this phantom abuse, but, at any rate. That’s what’s GaymerX is.

The president of GaymerX is a man by the name of Toni Rocca. He’s the Mattie Brice associate behind the bear dating sim I just mentioned. The game sounds like shit, but that’s not an issue. A lot of these people’s games are shit. What’s at issue, is that when you look at the backers, you see that GaymerX has backed his project. Could this be a way to funnel money back into these people’s pockets from GaymerX itself? This finding has raised a lot of questions around GaymerX, Toni Rocca, and Kickstarter.

As we’ve started to follow the money, even more uncomfortable issues have arisen. Rocca is also trying to get matching funds from Ouya for this tripe. How much money do you need to make a fucking bear dating simulator? I’ll let my associate and frequent panelist on TheRalphRetort LIVE, Shill Phish (SpellsFired.com) lay it out for you:

“It’s simple. The creator of the Bear Senpai Kickstarter, Toni Rocca, admits that his game, and I quote: “[is] participating in OUYA’s #FreeTheGames Fund, created by OUYA to support developers making new and creative console games. OUYA will match your pledge dollar-for-dollar up to your goal amount (and a max of $250,000), so help us get there and make a great game for everyone!” Anyone can look at his profile page and see that he “runs GaymerX.” And, if you click on the backers tab, you can see that GaymerX is a backer of the Bear Senpai project. Any amount of money donated by him or his assosciates through the GaymerX account is getting doubled by the OUYA team. He is literally investing into himself. I am not aware of any way to tell how much he has donated, but actions like this demand some sort of explanation or clarification.”

Sounds like a pretty sweet setup. I guess we see why a lot of these folks are starting to get uncomfortable. The questions that are beginning to be raised strike right at the heart of their cushy deals, and insider kickbacks. Thankfully, now that we have GamerGate, we can finally start to clean it all up.

UPDATE:

More from the 8chan thread on this topic…