There are a number of YouTube content creators that have hitched their wagons to Elite: Dangerous. One of them is a YouTuber by the name of Yamiks, whose videos about the game very frequently enter NSFW realms in terms of language and references. It’s, ultimately, for this reason that he was bluntly denied a free key to the game’s upcoming Odyssey expansion.
The brouhaha started when Yamiks posted a video complaining about the fact that Frontier Developments denied him a key to alpha. In the response to his initial request, which was read in the video, an FDev representative explained that alpha keys were limited in number and that they were being allotted to “core content creators and the press.” The rest of the video effectively explained the process of press and influencer access as well as assertions from Yamiks that FDev is using media, press, and fans as a marketing wing, and claiming that he was being treated differently because he provides “detailed critique” or “uses [a redacted word] a few times.”
It would appear to be that the latter reason is what drove FDev’s decision, according to another shared official response from the developers after the video went live:
“For clarity, please understand that we are unwilling to support creators who use references of terminal illness, abortion, drug use, sexuality and other offensive topics with the sole purpose of causing upset.
“We welcome constructive and considered feedback, and will continue to work with many fair, balanced and unbiased creators. You are free to take part in the upcoming public Alpha, alongside the wider Elite Dangerous community.”
Yamiks replied with objections to the assertions that his language was being used specifically to cause upset while once more claiming that his coverage is “unbiased.” Reaction to the whole fiasco from the community appears to be a bit mixed, with some calling out Yamiks’ content as deeply negative and his reaction to the rejection as “entitled,” while other fans of his content believe that Frontier is humorless and trying to stymie negative press.
We’ve embedded the original video below so you can be the judge for yourself, just be warned that it is NSFW for language.
