Hype announcement for the Trivia Battle being awaited: Square Enix dared to announce some late news. And silent was never the internet after that. There was hardly a thought on the trivia itself. The company tweeted to stir some excitement about what appeared an innocent competition, but it was swamped by replies: many less-uplifting than Square Enix’s Pride Month celebrations, ironically.
So, what was the issue? The original tweet was, in fact, pretty simple: inviting gamers to tune in on June 18 at 1pm PDT / 9 pm BST and latch onto some trivia face-off with two competitors. Bragging rights, jokes, giveaways—sounds like all fun, yeah? Scroll through the replies if you want to see otherwise.
Not much hype was given. The comment section became a battlefield over Square Enix’s Pride Month sweepstakes that they’ve been shoving into everyone’s face. Some players were outright claiming the company of “going woke” and alienating their fan base. One user, @MoonbeamBoxer, even offered their own trivia: “What company is losing money and fan support because they cater to the non-existent ‘modern audience’?” Ouch.
Others, including @Long__Claw, said that most “don’t give a shit about Pride Month” and accused Square Enix of pandering to a “very loud minority.” Meanwhile, @SupercoolAAA ripped Final Fantasy VII Remake and referred to it as “Nomura’s Kingdom Hearts wet dream but for adults.”
A few good ones remained, like @TheDavidVinc, who claimed he was… actually hyped for this: “a ton of fun!” Too bad it was drowned out in a sea of “go woke, go broke” takes.
The biggest outbreaks of flak this month from the Square Enix trenches? Beforehand, the replies had to be locked behind a Pride-themed post after players incorporated great criticism. So when the floodgates opened for the trivia tweet earlier, well… the gamers more or less shot their shot.
Some were outright antagonsitic; @mega_mannen called Pride supporters “disgusting vermin,” while @peepeepopoX joined the usual “go woke go broke” choir. Others like @Robin87668217 sarcastically asked if the trivia would be about “how much money a company can lose because they choose degenerate activism over their players.”
Then there were… rather bold suggestions on the opposite end. @SupercoolAAA straight-out wished for “Square Enix [to] sell the Final Fantasy franchise to Nintendo.”
So, what’s the trivia even about? No one probably knows! At the moment, the drama itself has taken precedence away from the actual content. If your interest remains, watch tomorrow’s stream and find out if the competitors will be quizzed on Final Fantasy lore, gaming history, or hell, maybe even corporate PR disasters.
Whatever else may be said, Square Enix’s social media team sure-are-weighed down again this week. And with that, proving an unfashionable mix are politics and gaming. So, whether you’re for the trivia or the chaos, the streams tomorrow will… be interesting.
Until then, consider avoiding those replies unless you’ve got an itch for a digital shouting match. Or, y’know, grab a bucket of popcorn and jump down. They’re fasten-your-seatbelt worthy, one way or another.
