A San Francisco tech developer has apologized for creating a video game that turned the city’s notorious Tenderloin neighborhood into a zombie-killing zone. “Targeting people struggling with addiction or homelessness was never my intention” Pierre-Louis Biojout @plbiojout wrote in a post on X (formerly Twitter), further adding that he has taken down the game. The development comes after critics of the game argued that it allowed players to target homeless drug users. In addition to shutting down the game, the developer said that he has refunded all advertisers and also made a personal donation to a drug treatment and recovery service.
“I built and posted a zombie game set on San Francisco streets. The setting and the way I promoted it showed poor judgment. Targeting people struggling with addiction or homelessness was never my intention,” the techie said.
“I’ve taken the game and promotional posts down, refunded all advertisers, and made a personal donation to treatment and recovery services by Delancey Street equal to the game’s total revenue,” he further added.
Developer says the game was built using AI tools
Pierre-Louis Biojout released a free, multiplayer browser game last week, describing it as a “Call of Duty style zombie shooter on the real SF streets.” The developer claimed that he built the game in just one weekend using the AI tools.
He further revealed that he had taken $300 in advertising revenue.
However, critics soon called out the game. “You think you’re being edgy but you’re just a huge piece of s–t,” one person wrote on social media. “Bring back shame. This is atrocious PR,” another fumed.
City Supervisor Bilal Mahmood, who represents the Tenderloin told the San Francisco Chronicle: “Turning violence against real people, including unhoused people, into entertainment is dehumanizing and should never be normalized”.