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In maybe the swiftest escalation of 2022, gaming YouTuber and experimental rapper IShowSpeed was banned from Valorant (and other Riot Games titles) and potentially YouTube for demeaning a female player in Riot’s tactical hero shooter. IShowSpeed has since apologized for his behavior, saying he was “not having a good day” in the clip that went viral and appears to have sparked the ban. While moderation was speedy, the entire debacle has sparked discussion around trash talk in games, and who gets a second chance when they’re young and reckless.
IShowSpeed is best known as a variety streamer that primarily plays Fortnite and NBA 2K games, though he streams other things like Five Nights At Freddy’s and Super Meat Boy, too. He’s been on YouTube since at least 2016, uploading gameplay videos here and there, but rose to prominence in 2021 after memes of his explosive behavior—often filled with physical or verbal violence toward the game, his teammates, the camera, or all of the above—proliferated online. This is what IShowSpeed’s become known for: an eccentric personality with a tendency to blow up in stereotypical gamer rage. And, it’s worth noting, IShowSpeed is one of the biggest and fastest-rising streamers on the platform.
Unfortunately, it’s that gamer rage that got IShowSpeed in trouble this week. Esports commentator Jake Lucky spotted an old clip of IShowSpeed screaming at a female Valorant player. In the video, IShowSpeed told the player to “get off the fucking game and do your husband’s dishes” at the top of his lungs. It’s a tense exchange, occurring moments after an enemy player killed him. Kotaku has reached out for comment.
I now understand why Valorant queues are so unbelievably toxic. You got one of the most popular streamers on YouTube IShowSpeed saying crap like this and getting nothing but praise and laughs. Crap is whack pic.twitter.com/grEghVotUF
— Jake Lucky (@JakeSucky) April 6, 2022
The video caught the attention of an assortment of folks, including YouTube’s global head of gaming creators Lester Chen and a Valorant game producer named Sara Dadafshar. Dadafshar said she “went ahead and permabanned” IShowSpeed from Valorant and every other Riot game, while Chen said he was “on it” in response to Lucky’s tweet calling out Speed.
Read the full article on Kotaku
