Splitgate 2’s Political Firestorm Over 'MAGA' Hat

According to Proulx, viewers misinterpreted the entire presentation, which was a contextual joke. During an interview with The Thumb Wars, the Splitgate 2 creative director stands by his core message that the First-Person Shooter genre lacks innovation and has grown stale. Nevertheless, he defends his critique of the industry. While he acknowledges that he would’ve changed his approach in hindsight, he conceded that the execution of his message proved problematic.

Audiences were angered by Proulx’s hat design as it was reminiscent of politically charged “Make America Great Again” merchandise, which ignited accusations of unintended political messaging. As a result of online backlash, he repeatedly emphasized the hat was “not a political statement” but rather a “meme” reflecting industry frustration. He’d even cite Hideo Kojima’s similar past use of “Make TV Great Again” apparel to defend himself. Although he expected some level of controversy, he wasn’t prepared for the intensity of the backlash. For many players, however, his justification doesn’t adequately address concerns, as it trivializes sensitive political imagery.

Splitgate 2‘s $80 Bundle “News to Me”

Simultaneously, player outrage grew over Splitgate 2‘s $80 cosmetic bundle (later reduced to $40), contributing to “Mixed” Steam reviews at launch. Proulx stated that the former Call of Duty developer who served as the studio’s head of monetization was to blame for the increased pricing. Specifically, he claimed the bundle was a surprise to him, calling them “very aggressive on pricing.” Due to this explanation, fans raised questions about leadership oversight, particularly as Proulx admitted prioritizing server stability over monetization review during the beta-to-launch transition.

During early interviews, the CEO initially refused to apologize for his FPS remarks, stating that he didn’t regret his statement and wasn’t going to apologize. However, he’d change his mind and make multiple apologies following mounting criticism over the hat, deleted tweets targeting Call of Duty developers, and other microtransactions. Ultimately, the campaign’s “negative impact” led to Proulx conceding, where he specifically addressed the damage from community cohesion, stating that he hated seeing division and was truly sorry. This apology resulted in his renewed focus toward regaining trust by promising “authentic devs who listen” and refunding players who purchased the $80 bundle.

Splitgate 2 Triples Players Despite Controversies

Despite the controversies, Splitgate 2 has achieved a player base tripling since beta, peaking at 25,785 concurrent Steam players days after launch. Although Proulx framed this growth as validation of the game’s quality, he urged disillusioned fans to “reconsider” their stance. However, these ongoing challenges in reconciling the studio’s stated values with its actions haven’t changed its sustained “Mixed” reviews and community fractures. Consequently, the demand for balance in 1047 Games’ critique of FPS stagnation with transparent, player-aligned practices continues to increase.

Proulx promises fans an exceptionally fun and unique gameplay in Splitgate 2. While he emphasizes the current rarity of arena shooters, he also highlights the game’s battle royale innovation featuring massive 100-foot-tall portals that connect distinct worlds. Consequently, the CEO pushes players to seek comprehensive assessments through external review. Although the controversy doesn’t appear to have damaged the game commercially, Proulx confirms the player base tripled post-launch, with substantial growth across all platforms, particularly on Xbox and PlayStation. Given this commercial resilience despite initial backlash, it shows that controversy can sometimes amplify visibility for innovative titles.