Greetings from Drillimation Systems.
If you read the news over the past few days, you may have heard of multiple big-name Super Smash Bros. players being accused of sexual assault, and may be making a new step in the #MeToo movement. We’ve seen a similar milestone in the film industry when Harvey Weinstein was convicted of the same crimes back in February.
To quote Sonic the Hedgehog from the original Sonic cartoon in the early 90s, “sexual assault is no good.” We’re saying this kind of predatory behavior has no place in our studio. Drillimation Systems is a participating member of Super Smash Bros. eSports programs. As with the case of Smash, two male players said they were assaulted by fellow competitors.
In response to the assault, many eSports tournaments, including EVO, cancelled their events, just like what the coronavirus pandemic was doing to other tournaments over the past few months. Sexual assault, including solicitations against a minor, is a serious offense and is punishable by up to more than 15 years in prison. Major publishers such as Nintendo, Bandai Namco, Capcom, and Netherrealm Studios have pulled their games from the tournament in response to the incident.
Companies like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, YouTube, and Twitch take these offenses seriously, and they often work with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to take action against any post or video that poses a threat. We do the same as well. If you received a sexual solicitation on social media or a video sharing site, we encourage you to report the offending posts and block the offending user as well.
We encourage you to share this article on social media and tell your followers that these criminal acts are not to be committed. However, this is still a developing story, and we will update this article once we get more information if they get charged.
Drillimation Systems 