I have a video I’d like you guys to see before you continue reading onward.

You know … I really want to play Aliens: Colonial Marines. I really, really do. However, I will ultimately be refusing to pick the game up since it’s published by Sega. This also goes for any future Creative Assembly titles such as the Total War series, and even their possible work with Warhammer, along with any other title that Sega is affiliated with.

There seems to just be some serious disconnect between some developers/publishers and the people they want to buy their products. If you swat, bite, or piss on the hand that feeds you, that hand might just hit you back.

We’ve had Capcom completely derail the Resident Evil franchise, then argue that the relationship between them and their players was like two bickering parents. Now we’ve got Sega, seemingly in an attempt to improve their latest announcement’s SEO, causing a massive amount of problems in, if not outright damaging, the lives of some YouTubers.

Some people forget that such individuals as John “TotalBiscuit” Bain and Jesse “OMFGCata” Cox, amongst many others, actually make their income and living off of royalties off of YouTube ad revenue – though, admittedly, the mentioned topic isn’t being monetized in most cases.

Another often looked fact is that some people will buy games entirely because someone made a Let’s Play or other form of video about it. Other games, no matter how much PR they get from straight-up gaming websites, might be forgotten by a gamer unless a YT channel showcases it in a good light.

A good example of this is Hell Yeah: Wrath of the Dead Rabbit, a game that Sega published; I never would have heard of this title except for TotalBiscuit‘s first impressions video of it. I was intending to buy the title before, but now will not until Sega changes their conduct.

Sega‘s actions hurt everyone all the same; YouTubers won’t cover their titles, some players might not buy the title, then not only does the publisher not make back their investment, but the developer loses a sale on a product they worked their asses off over. Nobody wins, unless the guilty party actually learns from their mistakes and maybe doesn’t try to make amends, but at least stops trying to beat everyone down.

One commonly overlooked fact is that, whether independent or mainstream, all publishers and developers answer to their audiences. Neither would sell or provide anything if the people are against them. That goes from as large as Sega to as small as myself.

There’s also the fact that, in some cases, what Sega is doing is flat-out illegal. Flagging videos for copyright infringement when said video only contains someone talking about their time with a game title? Such practices are not a valid form of copyright infringement, so enforcing a punishment on the video’s creator is a complete and total lie and fallacy of the worst kind.

So, ladies and gents, I hope you’ll join me in boycotting Sega and their titles from any purchases you make. I’ve already gone through my upcoming titles list and cancelled my orders for titles such as Aliens: Colonial Marines, which Sega is publishing, as an act of protest. I refuse to aid a company which violates copyright laws and punishes its own consumer base.