The hate campaign against The Last of Us Part II

• Philipe Melo UFMG
• Clara Pimentel UFMG

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5753/sbgames_estendido.2022.226031

Abstract

Hate speech is a problem on social media and many platforms look for means to fight this type of toxic behaviour, with automatic mechanisms or user feedback. However, users find ways to bypass these moderation systems and attack communities and people online. In this work, we explore one of the tactics used by online groups to spread hatred against marginalized groups while boycotting products and services: “review bombing”. For this, we collect user ratings and comments on Metacritic for the game The Last of Us Part II, as well as comments about the game on Youtube and Twitter, in order to measure the toxicity in them and understand how people coordinate campaigns guided by hate and what are the implications of this type of activism.

Keywords: hate speech, Last of Us, toxicity, metacritic, social networks, game reviews

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