Splitgate 2, 1047 Video games’ “Halo with portals”, launched simply final week, marked by a celebratory announcement of a battle royale mode at Summer season Recreation Fest. However whereas this could have been a triumphant second for the studio and the neighborhood, the launch has as a substitute been marked by not one, not two, however three completely different controversies which have led to mixed Steam reviews, disappointed fans, and a recreation neighborhood divided between those that assist the studio’s actions and people who have been delay from enjoying Splitgate 2 in any respect.
First, on the recreation’s massive battle royale reveal at Summer season Recreation Fest, Proulx wore a hat that learn, “Make FPS Great Again” onstage, which drew criticism for its reference to U.S. President Donald Trump’s signature “Make America Great Again” hats, which come with significant political baggage. Then, Proulx referred to as out Name of Obligation in his speech onstage, saying he’s “uninterested in enjoying the identical Name of Obligation yearly,” which drew ire from builders and followers of Name of Obligation. After which on prime of that, as the sport launched, followers instantly referred to as out a $145 microtransaction bundle on the sport’s retailer that appeared to fly within the face of the whole lot 1047 Video games claimed it stood for.
I spoke to recreation director Ian Proulx within the wake of all this, and located him surprisingly sanguine for an organization chief at present within the highlight.
“So, I’m shocked, to be trustworthy, to dive proper into it, we did not anticipate this to be almost as controversial because it was and we did not intend for it to be,” he stated. “When it comes to the numbers, there have been good numbers, there’s been numerous negativity, but additionally positivity to match that folks love the sport. We simply crossed the 2 and a half million participant threshold, we tripled our participant depend. So there’s good and dangerous, I believe time will inform blended feelings for positive, however general feeling good.”
Clearly, I had to begin by asking him in regards to the hat. What was that every one about?
“I will begin by saying, we talked rather a lot about this, we didn’t intend for this to be any kind of political assertion,” Proulx replied. “I imply, I believe we meant for it to be taken at face worth, which is, we’re not pleased with the state of FPS video games. I personally, as a gamer, my buddies and I, we discuss how bored we’re. We thought this was… It is one thing that is been meme’d to loss of life. Even (*2*)’ And his hat was purple and there was no controversy there, so we talked about it, and we thought, okay, perhaps some individuals will take it the fallacious method, but it surely’s been meme’d to loss of life. It form of says what we really feel, which is we wish to simply make an superior recreation and we’re not pleased with the state of FPS.”
I identified to Proulx that the MAGA hat and its message have develop into related for many with emotions of discomfort and even concern due to present political occasions. I additionally noted the protests going on just a few miles away from Summer Game Fest, the place Los Angelenos have been taking to the streets to defend their immigrant neighbors from ongoing raids by ICE beneath President Trump’s orders, and the place the Nationwide Guard is being deployed despite protests remaining largely peaceful. What does Proulx say to Splitgate followers and neighborhood members who felt genuinely emotionally distraught seeing the hat, in mild of all that?
“I believe the perfect I can say is we’re not attempting to ship any kind of political message and we’re shifting on from this,” he replied. “Our intent is, we simply need to make an ideal recreation, we wish to hear to the followers, we have all the time been all in regards to the neighborhood. And that is not simply neighborhood by way of listening to suggestions to make the sport higher, but it surely’s additionally by way of making a neighborhood that folks need to be part of the place the devs are participating with the gamers, it is a optimistic neighborhood and in order that’s our ambition. Clearly, proper now, it does not really feel that method however we’re getting again to our focus and that is what our focus is. So we’re placing this behind us, we’re shifting ahead, we’re simply going to maintain listening to the neighborhood and making an ideal recreation.”
I pushed yet another time on this subject, noting that in a tweet Proulx said he was “not here to apologize”, and right here he appeared to be intentionally avoiding apologizing as nicely. He confirmed that was the case.
“I do not remorse what I stated to be candid. I believe that I stand by it and my intent is I am talking my fact and my intent is to make an ideal recreation for all people.”
My interview with Proulx, the place he dedicated to not apologizing, happened on Sunday. Immediately, nevertheless, Proulx posted one other video… apologizing.
“I need to apologize. And genuinely, you don’t have to consider me. However the fact is I’m sorry. And the rationale I’m sorry is due to what this has executed to the neighborhood. An important factor to me proper now’s I need to have an incredible neighborhood… I hate seeing division. And that’s what I’m seeing now, on each side. There’s division locally, and for that I’m actually sorry. And once more, I’ll reiterate, I do stand by the intent of this, which is, the intent actually is, take it at face worth. We do need to enhance this style. We do really feel that the style is in a nasty state. And we wish to make FPS video games as superb as potential. However I additionally perceive that it’s not nearly intent, it’s about influence, and the platform that we now have had has had a unfavorable influence, and for that I’m actually sorry.”
No excuses, I am sorry. pic.twitter.com/4dgOxrSXUJ
— Splitgate 2 (@Splitgate) June 10, 2025
Again to our interview, we moved on to the second a part of the controversy: Proulx’s feedback on the shooter style and particularly his point out of the Name of Obligation franchise. Throughout his speech onstage on the occasion, Proulx stated, “I grew up enjoying Halo. And I am uninterested in enjoying the identical Name of Obligation yearly, and I want we may have Titanfall 3.” In response, he’s obtained criticism from Splitgate followers, Name of Obligation followers, and builders each for utilizing his platform on the present to disparage different video video games, in addition to for calling out Name of Obligation when Splitgate 2 accommodates lots of the identical options, together with the free-to-play battle royale mode Proulx revealed onstage.
On this entrance, Proulx admits his studio went too far in a response on Twitter to a Name of Obligation developer who criticized his remarks. The developer tweeted, “‘make fps nice once more’ and its splitgate”, prompting the official Splitgate account to quote tweet it with, “Which Name of Obligation does your crew make once more? I can’t inform them aside.” Each tweets have since been deleted, and Proulx stated he was not the particular person behind that specific comment.
“Yeah, so I’ll say there was a tweet that we put out that we now have since deleted, and I’ll apologize for that one. I imply, the whole lot is on me after all because the CEO, that was not my submit. My posts are me, proper? They’re movies of me, I strive to be actually simply trustworthy and off-script and simply discuss to the followers straight, however there isn’t any excuse for that one and we did take it down.”
Regardless, Proulx stood by what he stated onstage. He stated he doesn’t have a selected beef with Name of Obligation, however misses the “good previous days” of the sport. I requested him what meaning, and he stated he misses the “newness and the innovation”, citing Name of Obligation 4. “After which Trendy Warfare 2 taking it to the subsequent degree, whether or not it was the marketing campaign, the multiplayer, all of the skins to grind for, the dearth of skill-based matchmaking the place you simply felt prefer it was very natural. And it appears like there’s kind of an absence of innovation now that they are placing out high quality and polish, however they are not essentially pushing the bar ahead.”
Lastly, there’s the microtransactions. Splitgate 2 is free-to-play with microtransactions, and when it launched on June 6, gamers instantly started expressing their displeasure over one specific microtransaction: a $145 bundle, discounted to $80 for launch. 1047 Games cut the price dramatically down to $40 almost immediately, together with the costs of quite a lot of different objects.
Then, in a video printed simply earlier than our interview happened, Proulx apologized for the pricing state of affairs, saying he solely discovered in regards to the bundle pricing shortly after he acquired offstage at Summer season Recreation Fest. He attested that 1047 Video games’ former head of monetization, who “occurred to come from Name of Obligation”, had been “very aggressive on the pricing,” and that costs had been even larger earlier than. After his departure from the corporate, Proulx claimed 1047 management did a reevaluation of the pricing and lowered most costs, however “issues slipped by the cracks.”
Why we went from $80 to $40. pic.twitter.com/8VC7Ku1qHQ
— Splitgate 2 (@Splitgate) June 8, 2025
I requested him how he, as head of the corporate, was unaware of the pricing of bundles for the sport he was launching. Proulx reiterated that he took duty for what occurred, saying he had been “very centered on getting by the beta.”
“We acquired by beta, we had different fires to attend to so I used to be centered on servers and simply attempting to get us by that. I used to be not pondering in any respect about monetization as a result of I used to be identical to, we’re not going to make any cash, it does not even matter if individuals cannot play the sport. And in order that was the place my head was at for the final two weeks was like, we acquired to simply make sure that this recreation is nice, repair the servers, maintain the lights on, repair the problems. Okay, we have made it barely, now we have to go launch this recreation. After which it was a form of, what the fuck second, like how did we not catch this?”
I pointed to Proulx’s remark within the video that the particular person he alleges is accountable had beforehand labored on Name of Obligation, which appeared to match with accusations that he was taking pictures on the recreation. Proulx replied that it was “a humorous coincidence, however 100% the reality.”
We talked a bit extra about what occurred, with Proulx reiterating that 1047 Video games by no means intends to do something like that costly bundle ever once more, and that they’re refunding gamers who already bought it.
“Whether or not you want my authentic assertion or not, that’s what I’m attempting to accomplish right here, and I do not want to discuss in regards to the assertion anymore,” he says. “What I am attempting to accomplish right here is I need to construct a model, and a neighborhood, and a product that folks need to assist the place we’re listening, that is one of the best ways to do it. That is not the way it’s executed anymore, and that’s how I need to do it. You inform us your suggestions, we’re going to take that to coronary heart, we’re going to iterate, and we’re going to really take motion rapidly. We’re not going to sit round and wait for the correct PR assertion. That is why numerous instances once we discuss to the gamers, I haven’t got a script, I simply flip my telephone on and we simply discover out what comes out of my mouth and that is what we go together with.”
To wrap it up, I requested Proulx if he’s discovered something from this trifecta of incidents. He’s made it clear 1047 Video games doesn’t intend to supply costly bundles sooner or later, however what in regards to the Name of Obligation feedback and the Make FPS Great Again hat? Will this incident inform how he presents himself sooner or later?
“Sure,” Proulx stated. “So I would say the largest lesson, simply form of realizing the platform that we now have, it is acquired much more weight than we realized and in addition simply the seriousness of the whole lot these days. We supposed to put out a meme, we supposed to put out one thing that summarized how we really feel, actually, but additionally it was a joke. It is a joke that is been executed to loss of life and has actually been executed by Hideo Kojima, and we thought, nicely, this can be a good knowledge level for how the same response will happen. We additionally particularly selected to do a black hat as a substitute of a purple one, not that that, I do not know if that makes a distinction. So I believe I’ve simply form of discovered simply the influence that little issues like this will have on individuals and so we’re attempting to be very considerate about it going ahead. And we’re attempting to get again to focusing, there’s all these items within the air I simply need to transfer on, I need to make a enjoyable recreation. That is what we’re going to do.”
Regardless of all of the criticism, Proulx doesn’t really feel that any of the problems over the past week have impacted Splitgate 2 as a recreation. “I believe there’s so many video games which have executed nicely over time which have had controversies, no matter it’s. I believe it did get us numerous consideration, whether or not good or dangerous and now it is on us as builders to enhance and truly act on suggestions. And so if we do this, I believe we’re going to succeed. And if we do not, I do not assume any of this might’ve mattered.”
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. You could find her posting on BlueSky @duckvalentine.bsky.social. Obtained a narrative tip? Ship it to rvalentine@ign.com.