Sadly,
Hogwarts Legacy’s launch was always going to be rocky for trans people, especially for those with a sense of nostalgia for the franchise buried deep. Every tweet from J.K. Rowling is like a twist of the knife. But many approached the issue with dignity and grace.
In the lead-up to
Hogwarts Legacy’s release, the trans VTubing community operated on a policy of “prevention is the best cure.” Speaking out, explaining why it was harmful before launch, politely asking people to not play it.
It was probably effective in changing the minds of some—those educating comments at least made me more than indifferent. But wider than that? As it stands,
Hogwarts Legacy’s launch is
one of the most popular in Twitch history. And if social media debate is anything to go by, trans harassment has only gotten worse with the game’s release, not better.
There has been reporting on streamers getting harassed for ‘playing the game’. The level of harassment varies. There are a minority of comments that are toxic and should be condemned. But most of the commentary is educational in nature, and conveyed with an air of disappointment and displeasure more than hatred.
The VTubing space has not been immune to this. Popular Japanese-English VTuber
Amano Pikamee canceled her first
Hogwarts Legacy stream after being ‘bombarded’ with hate on Twitter for it. Hololive talents
Hakos Baelz,
Moona Hoshinova, and
Usada Pekora have faced similar comments. And yes, they were hit with some horrible messages.
But as one VTuber streams the game, more become comfortable with following in their footsteps, especially so as the bigger ones take part.