Chivalry 2 co-developers condemn Tripwire Interactive over president's anti-abortion comments
"We cannot in good conscience continue to work with Tripwire"
Shipwright Studios, co-developers of Chivalry 2 and Maneater, are cutting ties with Tripwire Interactive after Tripwire president John Gibson voiced his support for the stringent new Texas abortion law. Shipwright say they're starting to cancel contracts with Tripwire "immediately", while Chivalry 2 creators, Torn Banner Studios, have also released a statement condemning Gibson's views.
On Friday, Tripwire president John Gibson, posted a statement on Twitter supporting Texas' barbaric new abortion law, which bans people from having abortions after six weeks of pregnancy (or when cardiac activity is detected). Private individuals can also enforce the law, and earn a bounty of at least $10,000 for successfully suing those who provide or aid people seeking abortions.
"While your politics are your own, the moment you make them a matter of public discourse you entangle all of those working for and with you," Shipwright said in a response to Gibson. "It is regrettable, but we feel it would be doing ourselves, your employees, your partners, and the industry as a whole a disservice to allow this pattern to continue without comment.
"We started Shipwright with the idea that it was finally time to put our money where our mouth is," they add. "We cannot in good conscience continue to work with Tripwire under the current leadership structure. We will begin the cancellation of our existing contracts effective immediately."
Torn Banner Studios also took to Twitter to condemn Gibson's comments, saying: "This perspective is not shared by our team, nor is it reflected in the games we create. The statement stands in opposition to what we believe about women’s rights."
For context, Torn Banner are the main developers on Chivalry 2, which was published by Tripwire Interactive. Shipwright Studios are contractors, like devs for hire, and they helped co-develop the medieval hack and slash, though it's unclear exactly how much involvement they had. Shipwright have also worked on Tripwire's own game, Maneater.
I've contacted Tripwire for comment and will update this article if I receive a response.