Days after defacing the walls of universities across England with orange paint, members of Just Stop Oil interrupted the final game at EGX 2023. Organized by Gamer Network and held annually in Germany and the United Kingdom, EGX is a trade fair for video games.
At least three members of Just Stop Oil emerged on stage and disrupted the winners final of Tekken 7 at EGX 2023. One of the protesters was seen shooting orange paint into the air using a water pistol while another used his hand to cover the monitor used by the players with orange paint. The players sat and watched in awe.
The group posted a video of the disruption on the X social media platform with the caption “This is not a game: Just Stop Oil disrupts UK’s biggest gaming convention. 3 supporters of Just Stop Oil have disrupted the winners final of Tekken 7 at #EGX2023, covering the equipment in orange paint. We’re fighting for our lives.”
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The incident happened around 15:58 p.m. on Sunday, October 15, the final day of EGX 2023. The invaders of ‘The Arena’ stage in London’s Excel conference center cosplayed as ‘Ghostbusters’ characters. The three members of Just Stop Oil were escorted out of the stage by security and were later arrested by the Metropolitan Police for Criminal Damage.
“Video games let us escape into new and exciting dimensions, but real-world physics is about to deliver the deaths of billions,” said a Just Stop Oil spokesperson. “Put more carbon into the atmosphere at this point and it’s game over. Gamers cooperate to win, and we need these skills to survive.”
The spokesperson for the group further called on everyone to “join in civil resistance” against new oil and gas projects by the government. At GameBaba Universe, while support responsible actions against climate change, we totally abhor the destruction or defacing of properties. There is no justification for that!
Just Stop Oil actions are winning them more enemies
While Just Stop Oil is trying to bring awareness to the devastating consequences of the continued injection of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere by human actions, the way they are going about it appears to be counterproductive.
“It is vital that we draw as much attention as possible to the genocidal decisions the government is making,” said one of the protesters after defacing the gaming equipment. “I won’t stand aside while billions are sentenced to death and neither should you.”
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Just Stop Oil claims that EGX23 is sponsored by Barclays Bank, “Europe’s number 1 financier of the climate crisis”. The group also claims that the bank has financed over $167 billion in fossil fuels. They also mentioned that “Shell sponsors popular game Fortnite as well as gaming influencers”.
While the group may have a strong case, the way they are going about their protest has earned them more enemies than allies in the fight against climate change. We scrolled through the comments left on their post on X and the vast majority were against the group’s actions.
One of the most sarcastic comments was from @ArshVal who said, “Never knew PC needed oil to run. Protesting while destroying someone else’s property and fun should be made illegal”.
Another comment from @CorvusHCS said, “Biggest losers on earth, going to donate to every company that works against [your] interest now”.
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One comment that echoed the views of many when it comes to climate change was from @JustHun_ who said, “You know if you acted in a more mature way, and actually spoke to people, you’d see you have people on your side. This is just making people see you as the bad guys!”
The implication of EGX’s partnership with TikTok
Beyond the disgraceful show by the members of Just Stop Oil, one interesting feature of this year’s EGX was the presence of TikTok logos. Interestingly, TikTok is now the main sponsor of the show after they signed a three-year deal.
TikTok has been working hard to bring games content to the platform, a rapidly growing niche on the platform—alongside music and films. The company revealed that gaming posts garnered 3 trillion views in 2022. A few months ago we reported about an NPC challenge that suddenly became a goldmine on the platform.
The Chinese-owned app still struggles with negative image including ban threats in the United States. It’s hard to tell if sponsoring game events will help the brand attract gamers to the platform. At the moment, YouTube and Twitch remain the biggest platforms for gamers. It’s hard to see that change any time soon.
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