Five Nights at Freddy's Creator Pens an Emotional Open Letter to His Haters

[Lizzy Finnegan]

Five Nights at Freddy's Creator Pens an Emotional Open Letter to His Haters

Five Nights at Freddy's creator Scott Cawthon shares an open letter with his critics.

Steam page [http://steamcommunity.com/app/388090/discussions/0/541906989414847401/] for the brand new title Five Nights at Freddy's 4, is as personal as it is emotional.

"It's true that there has been a lot of hate toward me lately; on the forums, on youtube, etc. And I'll be honest, it's difficult. It's difficult when people seem to dislike you only because you've found success with something," Cawthon wrote in the post. "I think some people have this idea that I spend my days swimming in gold coins like Scrooge McDuck, cranking out games with no effort, then laughing all the way to the bank. The reality is quite different, and I think that people who hate on me for being successful are misguided."

Cawthon then goes on to share his recent experiences working at both Target and Dollar General, as recently as one year ago, and how he has tried to maintain normalcy in light of his recent success. "I haven't had a successful life; and now that God has blessed me with some success, I'm doing my best to be responsible with that success. I don't party on weekends, I don't get drunk or sip martinis. I spend my evenings playing Megaman 3, buster only, with my kids. And I try to do good with what's been given to me."

Cawthon said he was sharing this because he wanted people to realize he is human, that both he and his games are imperfect, and that that is okay. He also encourages people to spend more time trying to create new things instead of just hating anything.

"People who make videos bashing other people are like people who run into a public square and scream into a pillow. They'll get attention, but they won't change anything. If you strive to be like them, then you'll spend your life screaming into a pillow as well, and your life won't mean anything... Don't fall into the pit of people who have given up on making something of themselves, and make sure you make EVERYTHING out of yourself."

"I'm getting too old for this. And when I retire someday, I'm going to want to sit down at a computer and play YOUR games, read YOUR stories, and watch YOUR videos. Don't fall in with the people who have already given up on themselves. You are tomorrow's next big thing."


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[Ragsnstitches]

Even if the FNAF games aren't for me, I still like Scott. Anyone who spends any time playing or watching his games can see a lot of effort goes into them.

I find it very encouraging when someone finds success just doing what they want to do. I'll never understand the mindset of someone who thinks ill of someone for finding success, especially when it's earned honestly.

EDIT: I think I'll preempt a particular retort that might appear here.

Scott is not talking about criticism. He's not talking about negative feedback. If anything the progression of the FNAF series has shown he is very much open to community feedback.

What he's talking about are people calling him a hack. Saying he's somehow a bad person for striking gold from humble beginnings. People even slam him because some of his earlier games were bad, as if you only have one chance and one chance only to do good work. Fail? Go home! Scott earned his success without taking the rug out from under anyone else. That is something that should be applauded, not discouraged.

 

[Weresquirrel]

Scott is the very model of how to react to criticism. I mean, the whole FNAF thing got started because of complaints from his other game's mascots looking more scary than cute. Massive props to him.

 

[LaughingAtlas]

"I haven't had a successful life; and now that God has blessed me with some success, I'm doing my best to be responsible with that success."

That seems like a really roundabout way of saying Thank God for Jim. Context: https://youtu.be/Hd0ulmT2qRw?t=10m12s

I know there's a difference between all of the games, but I think some people are a little miffed he's not coming up with entirely new material each and every time. Or are angry they didn't come up with this thing first. Or have serious issues with mascots. Or are typical people on the internet. Going with that last one, myself.

 

[Eric the Orange]

I always found the reaction "something I don't like is successful therefore I hate the person who made it" weird. It comes from the fallacy that an audience is a zero sum game in that, "if those people like that thing I don't like, that's less people that will like this thing I do like".

 

[tyriless]

I can understand hating game, but going after the creator is unnecessary. Unless he is doing something malicious (and no making a game you don't enjoy playing doesn't fit that) then the man should be left alone.

 

[RealRT]

Well that was refreshingly nice, I actually want to give one of the FNAFs a try now. Kudos to the guy, he's like a Negative Universe version of Phil Fish.

 

[antipunt]

Wait people are mad at him? Never even knew

 

[Parasondox]

Well. Fucking. Put.

I admire and respect his point of view and open honesty. Too much hate towards success nowadays. Just too much hate in general. Come on world!!

 

[JimB]

I never heard that anyone had a problem with Mr. Cawthon, and can't imagine why anyone would have one. What did he ever do to anyone?

 

[marioandsonic]

Say what you want about the FNAF games (I've never played them and never will, because I hate jump scares), I've never disliked Scott.

He found something popular, and he's making money off of it. Good for him. And while I don't play the games themselves, the story and lore around them are pretty intriguing.

Also, let's be honest: he could have gone the route that certain other indie devs have done: respond to any kind of criticism with hostility, flag Youtube videos for copyright infringement in an effort to silence his haters, ragequit by throwing a hissyfit on Twitter, and basically just act like a fuckwit. But no, he took the high road, and I applaud him for that.

"And when I retire someday, I'm going to want to sit down at a computer and play YOUR games, read YOUR stories, and watch YOUR videos. Don't fall in with the people who have already given up on themselves. You are tomorrow's next big thing."

Those last few sentences left me feeling a bit warm and fuzzy inside.

 

[Imperioratorex Caprae]

I don't have to be a fan to recognize success. I don't have to enjoy a game to realize people like it. I've been around the industry for so long now that I'll never give a creator crap for their successes, nor will I down anyone for the games they enjoy regardless of my personal taste.
That being said, the only reason to ever give anyone grief is if they're a terrible person. Phil Fish is an example of someone who may have been successful but couldn't handle success and all that goes with it. The guy from Digital Homicide is the opposite and yet a sort of milk-brother to Phil Fish in that he melted down over one guy's negative review and chose to blame Jim Sterling for all his post Slaughtering Grounds woes. Both guys reacted wrongly to the fame or infamy that comes with either large success (Fez) or large scale fail (aforementioned Slaughtering Grounds) and I don't feel sorry one bit for either of them.
Scott Cawthorn seems like a guy who just wanted to make games and stumbled upon a successful formula, through hard work, perseverance and all the tools that it takes to be successful. I give him as much credit as possible for being successful and graceful in success. Whether I'm a fan or not matters little.

 

[Sniper Team 4]

Well of course he isn't swimming around in pools filled with gold coins. Do you know how hard that is? Coins don't part like water. Cartoons aren't real life. Time to wake up, haters.

But in all seriousness, I understand where he's coming from. There are so many people out there that are just bitter, that just want to hate anything that gets popular, and are jealous of success. And while we all say, "Just ignore them," that is a lot harder to do in practice. I write stories for fun, and while the positive feedback and up votes I get vastly outnumber the down votes, I tend to only see the down votes and get depressed. And I'm a nobody. I can't imagine what it would be like to be popular and have just a small minority of people constantly saying you are the worst thing on the planet simply because you are successful.

I have no interest in the Freddy games. Not my cup of tea. However, I do enjoy the Game Theory videos made about them, and I certainly admire (and I admit, I'm a bit jealous) the level of success he has had, so I wish him the best.

 

[Karadalis]

Is this the same nonsense hate that people throw at pewdiepie because he made 7 mil last year?

Never get why people feel the need to hate on others because they made alot of cash with their hobbies...

 

[Shoggoth2588]

And here I am under the impression that Five Nights 4 was quite successful but apparently I am mistaken (or rather, I was unaware that FNaF4 was being heavily criticized). This kind of thing makes me really respect Scott and as others have said, this is an excellent way to deal with criticism.

 

[Upbeat Zombie]

Honestly the internet is so brimming with toxic people just waiting to criticize anything, and everything. That I don't understand how anyone with a creative job doesn't go crazy from the kind of people they have to put up with.

 

[The Almighty Aardvark]

I'm not sure I've seen any of the hate for this guy. Which is weird, because if anything reverberates quickly around here it's people being angry at things.

Hard to comment on this without the actual criticism to look at (Maybe there's not much and he's just really sensitive to it?), but I agree with the point that he's making. It's so easy to forget that people in the spotlight are people too, and so many people just treat them as outlets for their frustration.

Is this the same nonsense hate that people throw at pewdiepie because he made 7 mil last year?

Never get why people feel the need to hate on others because they made alot of cash with their hobbies...

For me personally, whatever dislike I have for Pewdiepie has nothing to do with the fact that he makes millions of dollars every year. Hell, I don't even hate him, all accounts I've heard of him as a person make him out to sound like a pretty great guy.

That being said, what I've seen of his videos was pretty awful and it's a little depressing to know that they're the highest demand on the internet.

 

[Hairless Mammoth]

It's pretty ignorant and rude for someone to hate on someone who built up a successful game franchise from scratch, no matter how fast the entries are coming out. He isn't a big movie star, rich politician, or business man being a idiot on twitter.

Scott Cawthon is a indie dev who was down on his luck until FNAF hit it big. Even the news of him working the minimun wage retail jobs not too long ago is news to me. I don't think the money from the game sales the movie deal[footnote]We're talking about greedy Hollywood types dealing with someone they likely see as "small time." The agreed royalties (if the film is ever made and released) could make him rich, but the initial payment for the story rights likely didn't pay much. That's just my pessimistic guess, though.[/footnote] are enough for him to even modestly retire. Maybe the the funds he has gained are enough to safely start a bigger project for when FNAF's popularity wanes.

I think his message is pretty good. Complaining about another person's success distracts you from pursuing your own goals. It's also smart to not spend your new found wealth on random luxuries.

 

[Fox12]

It's pretty ignorant and rude for someone to hate on someone who built up a successful game franchise from scratch, no matter how fast the entries are coming out. He isn't a big movie star, rich politician, or business man being a idiot on twitter.

Scott Cawthon is a indie dev who was down on his luck until FNAF hit it big. Even the news of him working the minimun wage retail jobs not too long ago is news to me. I don't think the money from the game sales the movie deal[footnote]We're talking about greedy Hollywood types dealing with someone they likely see as "small time." The agreed royalties (if the film is ever made and released) could make him rich, but the initial payment for the story rights likely didn't pay much. That's just my pessimistic guess, though.[/footnote] are enough for him to even modestly retire. Maybe the the funds he has gained are enough to safely start a bigger project for when FNAF's popularity wanes.

I think his message is pretty good. Complaining about another person's success distracts you from pursuing your own goals. It's also smart to not spend your new found wealth on random luxuries.

He's donated a few hundred thousand to charity (because of course he did) so I would say he's certainly not hurting. Of course, you factor in college funds for two kids and other expenses, and any success is welcome. The man is humble in the face of overwhelming success, and he's used criticism to actually improve his work. It's hard to have anything but respect for the man. He's model of behavior for other indie devs to follow. You could learn a thing or two Phil Fish.