Ready or Not devs ‘won’t apologize’ for controversial school shooting level

Ready or Not, VOID Interactive’s tactical shooter, drew criticism for a developer’s comments on a proposed “school shooting” level. In an interview with Dexerto, the developer confirmed it “won’t apologize”, but understands the need for “a great deal of responsibility.”

Ready or Not has gained popularity during its Steam early access period thanks to an unflinching portrayal of police armed response units.

Inspired by the likes of SWAT, it’s a title that deals with active shooters and hostage situations in a variety of environments, but a developer’s response to a fan question on Reddit in 2021 suggested it could go further. In response to one fan’s query about whether the game would deal with the realities of a school shooting, a developer comment read “You better believe it’s gonna.”

As part of Dexerto’s recent interview with Guinevere Parsley, VOID Interactive’s community manager, we touched on the controversial comments, and whether the reaction to them had caused any shift in content plans.

Ready or Not devs ‘won’t apologize’ for controversial school shooting level

“Ready or Not is a tactical police shooter, and that means showcasing elite police units engaging in their duties – which sometimes include uncomfortable realities that the world faces today,” Parsley explained as part of the interview.

• Read more: Ready or Not developer reveals vision for the game: “We didn’t feel the genre was well-represented”

“We don’t apologize for this, as we want the game to be an honest interpretation, but we are aware that this is something that requires a deal of responsibility. We know that we need to be careful in how we portray things like an active shooter, and that includes consulting with those who have been impacted by these traumatic events.”

“While we do not intend to change our vision for Ready or Not based on controversy, we will always listen to our community to try and understand how we can best tackle difficult issues in a respectful manner.”

The developer’s prior response had been a lengthy statement through its Twitter page, which you can see below:

Ready or Not is currently available in early access through Steam.