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The creator of a Twitter account that shares animal-petting game animations has described "a new low" for the project after the ability to interact with animals in Hogwarts Legacy was revealed.
Yesterday, several Hogwarts Legacy previews (including our own) were published, revealing some smaller gameplay details, including features like swimming. Potter-focused Twitter account HarryPotterFilm noted that players can stroke cats in-game, tagging the official 'Can You Pet the Dog account' in their discovery.
That connection wasn't well-received by the account's creator, Tristan Cooper, who quote-tweeted to say that it was "a new low for CYPTD." Cooper said that he'd put "so much time into something that people like, only for it to be absorbed into the marketing machine" for a game that benefits Harry Potter series creator JK Rowling, who Cooper describes as "abominable."
This is a new low point for CYPTD. I put so much time into something that people like, only for it to be absorbed into the marketing machine benefitting an abominable TERF. https://t.co/dWzePAXHQkJanuary 25, 2023
Cooper goes on to praise the animation itself, but says that "in the end, the game lines the pockets" of someone "awful," who they say is at the "forefront" of a recent rise in negative sentiment against trans people; "I just can't see how that's in any way redeemable."
While Hogwarts Legacy seems likely to sell very well, the run-up to launch has seen a spate of protests about the game, ranging from creative use of Steam's tagging system to an outright ban on all discussion of the game on one of the internet's biggest forums.
Although she is not involved in the development of Hogwarts Legacy, GamesRadar+ acknowledges the role of J.K. Rowling in the creation of the Wizarding World, as well as her publicly-stated, harmful views regarding the rights of transgender people. If you'd like to learn more, we've attempted to outline the controversy around Hogwarts Legacy here. If you'd like to offer your support to the communities affected by Rowling's rhetoric, consider donating to the National Center for Transgender Equality in the US, or Mermaids in the UK.
