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The developer behind Yooka-Laylee, a Kickstarter-funded spiritual successor to the beloved Banjo-Kazooie series plans to remove the Youtuber Jontron (Jon Jafari) from the game's cast of voice actors via a Day 1 update after his recent series controversial tweets regarding ethnic minorities in America. Jontron was always a big, vocal fan of the series and was invited to collaborate on the project back in February 2015. Many might say that he was pivotal in reviving the interest in Banjo-Kazooie through his content, both on Game Grumps and his own Youtube channel. Playtonic explained their position in an interview with Gameindustry.biz:

"We recently became aware of comments made by voice artist JonTron after development on Yooka-Laylee had been completed (...) JonTron is a talented video presenter who we were initially, two years ago, happy to include as a voice contributor in our game. However, in light of his recent personal viewpoints we have made the decision to remove JonTron's inclusion in the game via a forthcoming content update. We would like to make absolutely clear that we do not endorse or support JonTron's personal viewpoints and that, as an external fan contributor, he does not represent Playtonic in any capacity. Playtonic is a studio that celebrates diversity in all forms and strives to make games that everyone can enjoy. As such, we deeply regret any implied association that could make players feel anything but 100% comfortable in our game worlds, or distract from the incredible goodwill and love shown by our fans and Kickstarter backers."

This recent development in the Jontron controversy raises an important question regarding Free Speech. I can fully understand Playtonic's position - they're distancing themselves from Jontron in order to prevent any damage to their brand. On the other hand, one could argue that Jontron is free to voice his views on his own platform and shouldn't be penalised for them elsewhere.

Naturally this is a very controversial issue, so I'm eager to hear your thoughts on the matter. What's your opinion? Tell us in comments below!

Update: Jontron acknowledged the decision via his Twitter and although he finds it unfortunate, he understands it and wishes the developers a successful launch.

"Unfortunate to see Playtonic remove me from Yooka Laylee, but I understand their decision. I wish them the best with their launch!"

~https://www.twitter.com/JonTronShow/status/845038284967493638

Source (Gameindustry.biz)

 

[SWRosetta]

I think the patch is mandatory.

It is a ''day 1'' after all.

 

[TobiasAmaranth]

This has odd parallels with 2 Ranting Griffon being removed as a performer from Anthrocon this year... ...

 

[Foxi4]

Imagine a game like Guitar Hero saying "Oh wait, we will remove any Kiss songs via a patch since Gene Simmons is a Trump supporter".

That's basically it. Playtonic is worried of a cascading "guilty by association" reaction from the audience. Thing is, a big section of that audience became interested in Banjo specifically because of Jontron and his constant promotion of the brand over the years, so they're between a rock and a hard place. Personally I think the whole thing will blow over eventually anyways, as all Twitter shitstorms do, so such a permanent penalty seems a bit excessive.

 

[SonicMC]

As much fun as Yooka Laylee looks; Playtonic seems to like to have lots of controversy surrounding them...
Dropping wii u version
Dropping Voice Actors

I mean they have 30 people on their team http://www.playtonicgames.com/team/

I guess we need to research each of these people and find their most different and controversial views so we can have playtonic remove each contributing member's code, talents, and more. That way we can have the lamest game at launch after the day one update...

 

[A7MAD]

While, I disagree with a lot of what he said, they just gave him more light and support. It is similar to pewdiepie getting the support of the internet when the media decided to paint him in a negative light.

 

[TesseractStorm]

Shrug.

Freedom of speech only really applies to government. If someone's speech is considered unnacceptable for a business, that business can refuse to work with them. And if that bothers people, they can refuse to purchase from that business. I'm guessing the thought is that the lost sales from being seen as supporting his speech likely seem greater than any they might lose by condemning it.

Freedom of speech never meant that speech would be without consequences.

 

[Sonic Angel Knight]

This is Micheal Jackson and sonic 3 music all over again.

I may not know who this jon tron person is (Up until a few days ago when someone here posted him on the front page) But this isn't fair to him nor is it good for his relations between people. Talent or "Artist" Shouldn't be represented by personal opinions of the matter. I personally lost someone i thought was my friend simply cause they didn't like that i felt it was unnecessary to censor fire emblem fates skin ship mini game and found it creep that they did or that i felt it didn't need censorship. I simply dislike censorship, weather i like the content they add is another opinion.

 

[DeslotlCL]

Oh no, my favorite youtuber got removed from a game i wanted to play, it's the end of the world!

And they called me whinny cry baby furry...

 

[Meteor7]

Oh no, my favorite youtuber got removed from a game i wanted to play, it's the end of the world!

And they called me whinny cry baby furry...

I think people are more upset over the principle of the thing rather than not being able to hear Jon's voice.

 

[Foxi4]

As much fun as Yooka Laylee looks; Playtonic seems to like to have lots of controversy surrounding them...
Dropping wii u version
Dropping Voice Actors

I mean they have 30 people on their team http://www.playtonicgames.com/team/

I guess we need to research each of these people and find their most different and controversial views so we can have playtonic remove each contributing member's code, talents, and more. That way we can have the lamest game at launch after the day one update...

I said it when the campaign was announced, long before the Jontron controversy, and I'll say it again - Yooka-Laylee seems like a total cashgrab to me. The developers are desperately clinging to their former glory and instead of making a brand-new, original game they're making a pretend sequel to a game they no longer have the rights to that's basically bordering on copyright infringement by replicating everything they can including the font and replacing the protagonists so they don't get sued. That's all they can do at this point because the flame of their creativity is long since dead. They're removing Jontron because he can damage the brand, and the brand is all they have left. Yooka-Laylee, like many other games of its kind, is an elaborate attempt to cash in on your nostalgia and squeeze the last bit of money out of your wallet. I know it because I fall for it too. Some companies do this well, like inExile, others fail miserably. This is not original content, this is desperation. It's C.P.R administered to a cold corpse of an IP.

 

[KingBlank]

So they liked his voice acting, but not after it turns out he has some unpleasant opinions. That's like firing your IT guy after you find out he likes Lucky Charms.

Too true.

 

[SWRosetta]

That's basically it. Playtonic is worried of a cascading "guilty by association" reaction from the audience. Thing is, a big section of that audience became interested in Banjo specifically because of Jontron and his constant promotion of the brand over the years, so they're between a rock and a hard place. Personally I think the whole thing will blow over eventually anyways, as all Twitter shitstorms do, so such a permanent penalty seems a bit excessive.

The funniest thing is that , given by most people's reactions , i honestly don't think anybody would have actually cared. I mean he was just a voice actor ... in a game in which all the characters make weird sounds , they dont even speak!

LOL this is really the definition of overreacting. Losing this gig over something like this is just too much.

 

[TotalInsanity4]

This isn't an issue of free speech, especially if the same people getting up in arms about this are going to turn right around and say "I wouldn't bake a cake for a gay wedding"

Playtonic is a private company. They can chose to add or remove whatever they want from their own products (as long as they aren't falsely advertising content). As a matter of fact, one could say this is also an expression of free speech

 

[Foxi4]

This isn't an issue of free speech, especially if the same people getting up in arms about this are going to turn right around and say "I wouldn't bake a cake for a gay wedding"

Playtonic is a private company. They can chose to add or remove whatever they want from their own products (as long as they aren't falsely advertising content). As a matter of fact, one could say this is also an expression of free speech

Of course they do, it's their product. It would be a gross violation of their rights as individuals and as a corporate entity to prevent them from doing so - that's not the topic. The topic is whether they should do it, and what's your reaction to it. They're free to alter their own product, and you're free to either support or denounce that.

 

[grossaffe]

This is Micheal Jackson and sonic 3 music all over again.

I may not know who this jon tron person is (Up until a few days ago when someone here posted him on the front page) But this isn't fair to him nor is it good for his relations between people. Talent or "Artist" Shouldn't be represented by personal opinions of the matter. I personally lost someone i thought was my friend simply cause they didn't like that i felt it was unnecessary to censor fire emblem fates skin ship mini game and found it creep that they did or that i felt it didn't need censorship. I simply dislike censorship, weather i like the content they add is another opinion.

He's not simply a voice-actor, though. He is a brand unto himself. He has made himself into a public figure, and as such, his image becomes baggage that becomes attached to a project in which he is involved for better or for worse.

 

[A7MAD]

This is Micheal Jackson and sonic 3 music all over again.

I may not know who this jon tron person is (Up until a few days ago when someone here posted him on the front page) But this isn't fair to him nor is it good for his relations between people. Talent or "Artist" Shouldn't be represented by personal opinions of the matter. I personally lost someone i thought was my friend simply cause they didn't like that i felt it was unnecessary to censor fire emblem fates skin ship mini game and found it creep that they did or that i felt it didn't need censorship. I simply dislike censorship, weather i like the content they add is another opinion.

The part about FE: Fates is really something alright, I never thought people would actually care about touching 2d characters with a stylus or think it is somehow creepy ... oh wait, pokemon anyone?

 

[sarkwalvein]

The part about FE: Fates is really something alright, I never thought people would actually care about touching 2d characters with a stylus ... oh wait, pokemon anyone?

Noes, what you imply is nasty. Don't dirty up pokemon you brute. /s

 

[eworm]

Playtonic is a private company. They can chose to add or remove whatever they want from their own products (as long as they aren't falsely advertising content). As a matter of fact, one could say this is also an expression of free speech

That's kinda true, but JonTron's opinions were his own, they were personal and they were expressed via words one could freely agree or disagree with, argue or ignore. This is a business decision that breaks promises to some audiences and fires a guy from a job.

 

[Sketchy1]

Can't say the guy deserved it exactly, but I can say he must be an assbag for saying it. Cause I mean, I understand that by the company putting him in the game, (even if implied) they are saying to some degree they support his viewpoint.


All I have to say is that his removal wasn't exactly just, but at the same time it was, for the sake of not losing money because of his mistake. It's still stupid all together though, because it's like saying it ok to cut someone from a hostess company because they like little Debbie better.

 

[grossaffe]

Can't say the guy deserved it exactly, but I can say he must be an assbag for saying it. Cause I mean, I understand that by the company putting him in the game, (even if implied) they are saying to some degree they support his viewpoint.


All I have to say is that his removal wasn't exactly just, but at the same time it was, for the sake of not losing money because of his mistake. It's still stupid all together though, because it's like saying it ok to cut someone from a hostess company because they like little Debbie better.

If it's a PR person posting such things on Twitter, yeah, you'd lose your job for posting such things.