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Why Game Rant Tried to Rewrite the “Boycott” of Hogwarts Legacy

DramaGaming News 2 Ayefkay October 15, 2025

Why Game Rant Tried to Rewrite Hogwarts Legacy Boycott History
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Game Rant’s Hogwarts Legacy 2 Take Got Ratioed

Game Rant decided to light itself on fire this week after posting on Twitter, the post getting immediately bodied with a Community Note correcting it:

In other words, the so-called “boycott” Game Rant referenced was about as effective as trying to cancel oxygen. Hogwarts Legacy wasn’t just successful – it dominated, becoming the best-selling game of 2023 worldwide and one of the biggest single-player launches in gaming history.

Even hilariously eliciting a Hogwarts Legacy fluff piece from Game Rant themselves at the time! So why is a major gaming publication trying to actively rewrite history? 

The answer’s actually pretty simple. 

It’s the same reason when we’ve seen this exact behavior before: journalists activists view gaming as a platform for pushing social and political agendas rather than celebrating creativity, talent, and the (heaven forbid) fun of games.

The Hogwarts Legacy Boycott That Never Was

Let’s be real for a minute, the so-called “boycott” of Hogwarts Legacy didn’t exist in any meaningful capacity.

It was loud screeching through the online corridors of Twitter, sure, but in a little place known as reality  –  millions of players lined up to play, stream, and share the game. Twitch was flooded with streamers despite mobs attempting to harass them into silence.

Video: Hogwarts Legacy Tops Sales Charts Again! It Beat Starfield?! | Clownfish TV

The real boycott happened after the sales numbers came in.

When the gaming press and award circuits collectively decided to pretend Hogwarts Legacy didn’t exist. Despite being the best-selling game of the year worldwide, it was snubbed from almost every major Game of the Year nomination list.

The Hard Game Awards Choice Hogwarts Legacy

Image: Game Awards Faced Choice of Giving Hogwarts Legacy Recognition or Ruining Their Credibility | imgflip.com

But this is where the political agenda kicked in – gaming journalists couldn’t stop the success, so they tried to rewrite the narrative around it. They didn’t want Hogwarts Legacy’s legacy to be remembered as the triumph of storytelling or design that it objectively was.

They wanted to reframe it as “controversial,” as if players should feel guilty for enjoying it.

Manufacturing Outrage and Controlling the Narrative

This isn’t the first time we’ve seen the press try to control which games are “acceptable” to praise. Late last year, Black Myth: Wukong faced the same treatment. 

Before the game even launched, dozens of articles popped up criticizing it – not for gameplay flaws, but for supposed “problematic” undertones, accusations of studio misogyny, or lack of female representation…in a game about fictitious,  anthropomorphic animals.

There were even allegations that Sweet Baby Inc. attempted to extort the studio for millions of dollars in the form of “guidance fees” along with targeted harassment aimed at streamers who dared to play Hogwarts Legacy for their viewers.

The irony is that Wukong was developed by a small Chinese studio that poured years of passion into it, drawing on the tale’s deep mythological roots. 

The game was an instant success, yet outlets like IGN and others seemed far more interested in whether the developers’ cultural or political leanings aligned with Western activist expectations, writing ridiculous hit pieces like “How Black Myth: Wukong Developer’s History of Sexism is Complicating its Journey to the West” by Rebekah Valentine.

With the outcome (once again) being Black Myth: Wukong having any chance of winning meaningful awards completely stripped away.

It’s a pattern that we’ve now seen time and time again. 

When a game doesn’t fit the “ideological mold”, journalists twist themselves into knots to downplay its achievements while hyper-focusing their Eye of Sauron on any dirt they can possibly leverage. 

Instead of reporting objectively, they try to reshape public opinion through selective coverage and moral grandstanding.

Rewriting History for Clout

The recent Hogwarts Legacy 2 post wasn’t journalism. 

It was damage control disguised as commentary. By implying that the first game’s “boycott” was meaningful, Game Rant was trying to reassert control over the narrative – a narrative they lost when millions of players ignored them and made Hogwarts Legacy a cultural moment.

Did they forget that even as recently as January 2025, Game Rant themselves were saying that they were shocked that Hogwarts Legacy didn’t win Game of the Year?!

Game Rant Can't Believe Hogwarts Legacy Didn't Win Game of the Year

Image: Game Rant Senior Editor, Tim_Lord | Game Rant Forums

The Community Note calling them out wasn’t just a correction – it was poetic justice.

For years, gaming media has counted on social media to amplify their messaging. Now, those same platforms are giving players the tools to gloriously fact check them in real time.

It’s not just about Hogwarts Legacy either. It’s about credibility. If the press can’t even acknowledge when a game factually succeeded beyond their expectations, why should players trust them on anything else?

When Awards Become Activism

Game awards should celebrate innovation, creativity, and impact. 

But over the last few years, they’ve started feeling more like political theater. The fact that Hogwarts Legacy was shut out of nearly every major award despite being the industry’s top seller says everything.

Compare that to The Last of Us Part II, which swept awards the year it released, even as it divided players and sparked massive backlash. 

Critics praised its “bold themes,” while actual players criticized its woke storytelling choices and unleashed a torrent of memes in protest.

The Last of Us Part II I'm a Bit of a Dad Myself Meme

Image: Last of Us Part II Spiderman Meme | 9Gag

Yet somehow, Hogwarts Legacy, a game universally praised by gamers, was completely ignored.

When games like Hogwarts Legacy and Black Myth: Wukong succeed without pandering to activist circles, it threatens the narrative that gaming “needs” their approval. 

And that’s why these smear attempts exist – to remind developers that if they don’t play along, the press will come after them next.

Why Game Developers Bend the Knee

If you want proof of how far gaming journalists will go to twist a story, just look at Kingdom Come: Deliverance. 

Warhorse Studios built one of the most grounded medieval RPGs ever made, and even Eurogamer’s Robert Purchese couldn’t deny it, saying “there hasn’t been a medieval world this real and substantial since The Witcher 3.”. But then…just about halfway through his overwhelmingly positive review, his perspective shifted.

He dropped the mask. 

From here on out, his review seemed like more of a leftist’s moral purity test, starting with accusations of the game not being “diverse” enough, complaining about the overwhelming whiteness of the characters…in a time period and geographical area where the people were historically white.

Purchese leaned on a single historian’s speculation that there could have been African people nearby, as if that somehow made the devs villains for being historically accurate and sticking to the known facts.

It’s not conclusive proof but it’s readily available doubt to undermine Warhorse’s interpretation.

  • Robert Purchese, Eurogamer

When that wasn’t enough, he turned his attention to creative director Daniel Vavra himself, painting him as a bad guy for supporting GamerGate…as if that had anything to do with the Kingdom Come Deliverance itself.

As if many people didn’t view GamerGate and inevitably GamerGate 2 as the embodiment of gamer outrage at the corruption pervading the industry and a demand for reform in ethics and disclosure.

Nope, just a hate campaign backed by “trust me bro” vibes. Obviously, we know your intentions more than you do.

RIP Daniel Vavra's Balls Gamergate

RIP Daniel Vavra’s Balls: 2024 | Techradar Interview

It’s the same playbook every time: if a studio refuses to bend the knee to social narratives, journalists will find something to moralize about until the art itself gets buried. 

And sometimes, it works.

While Eurogamer took the loud route, their sister company IGN (both coincidentally owned by Ziff Davis along with many other gaming publications) chose silence. During KCD1’s release between 2017-2018, IGN posted directly about the game only 4 times on Twitter – essentially equating to a shadowban of one of the best RPGs of its era. 

But don’t feel too bad for Warhorse just yet! 

Because fast forward to 2024, and suddenly Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 launches – but now complete with a gay romance option! 

IGN went from their previously mentioned 4 posts on KCD1 to a whopping 85 posts on KCD2 between 2024-2025, with more tweets solely gushing over how you can romance Hans Capon than they ever did about the original Kingdom Come Deliverance in its entirety between 2017-2018 during its release!

IGN Shoves Romancing Hans Down Your Throat in Kingdom Come Deliverance 2

Click to Enlarge Image: IGN Shoves Romancing Hans Down Your Throat in Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 | Twitter

Looks like Daniel Vavra and Warhorse ended up making a good ‘ol Faustian trade: artistic freedom for media approval.

And that’s what all of this all boils down to – you show them you can be a good boy and they might just throw you a bone. If you don’t – they’ll shock you faster than Hasan “reaching for some Zyn” when Kaya moves off her puppy publicity podium. 

It’s not about what’s fun, creative, or authentic anymore. It’s about obedience. If you play the game their way, you get the coverage. If not, they’ll either smear you as some sort of “-ist”/”-phobe” or just straight up banish you and your game to the shadow realm. 

The Bigger Picture: Gamers Remember

Gaming is supposed to be an escape, a creative outlet where anyone can explore worlds and stories without being lectured. But for too many gaming journalists, it’s become a battleground for activism. 

They’re not even pretending to critique games anymore without bias – they’re just outright policing them. And that’s exactly what we saw with Game Rant’s Hogwarts Legacy 2 post. 

It wasn’t just tone deaf, it was dishonest and even went against their own past perspectives. It’s a sad attempt to gaslight both developers and players into believing that some “boycott” that never worked somehow needs to be avoided at all costs next time – if they know what’s good for them.

But gamers remember. We were there. 

Video: Hogwarts Legacy Hitpieces Continue As Desperate Journo ATTACKS JK Rowling After Museum Incident | Vara Dark

We saw the streams, the fan art, the overwhelming hype. We saw a community unite around a game despite being told they shouldn’t. 

And we saw the media cry and seethe when it all worked out anyway.

When Game Journos Show You Who They Are - Believe Them

Game Rant’s post didn’t just expose their bias – it exposed just how far parts of the gaming press have drifted away from the audience they’re supposed to serve. 

They’re not reviewing games anymore, they’re gatekeeping fun at the expense of their own dwindling credibility.

Maybe instead of trying to “correct” developers or reframe history, gaming journalists should take a long look at why their influence keeps shrinking while players and creators grow more independent.

Because if Hogwarts Legacy proved anything, it’s that gamers don’t need their approval to find good games. 

We never did.

This was a commentary article based on publicly available information and personal opinion. Readers are encouraged to form their own conclusions based on the sources cited.

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About the author call_made

Ayefkay

Hi, I'm the founder and editor-in-chief of Report AFK, a gaming and anime site built for people who are tired of sanitized mainstream media coverage and toothless hot takes. I want to bring both the technical know-how and battle-tested gamer instincts to every article here. Whether I'm deep-diving into ARAM strats, roasting a broken patch, or side-eyeing the latest "diverse" but soulless AAA release, I write with one goal in mind: cut the fluff and tell it how it is. I've worked in digital marketing and spoke in conferences nationwide, but my heart’s always been in the trenches of gaming - whether that’s grinding ladders, theorycrafting late at night, or binge-watching the 38th questionable isekai this season. Follow my rants, insights, and updates on ReportAFK.com and let me know what you think in the comments - I read (and usually respond to) every. single. one.

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There are 2 comments

  1. ROASTED

    October 15, 2025

    Wow they got cooked

    Reply
    • Ayefkay

      October 16, 2025

      Lol well, they had it coming imho. Thanks for stopping by Roasted!

      Reply

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