One of the world's most popular gaming forums and regularly a source for leaks and gaming industry news, NeoGAF, has gone dark for several days following the publishing of a story about its owner, which claimed he'd sexually assaulted the author. The post, part of the #metoo campaign surrounding sexual abuse claims in a variety of media industries was published on Facebook and was widely shared on gaming forums and blogs.
In the wake of the story's popularization, users on the NeoGAF forums bombarded it with posts for ban requests, many suggesting they would never return because of owner Tyler "Evilore" Malka's actions. Other made jokes that were typical of the forum's often dark tone, suggesting that Nintendo's next direct show would focus on respecting women in the industry.
With the users themselves striking against the site, the mod team followed suit and almost to a man quit their posts. This lead to the site itself disappearing from view in the days that followed. In the current climate, it's not clear whether it will ever return.
Although there has been little proof of Malka's actions beyond the official Facebook post, several other stories corroborating evidence against him have cropped up on Kotaku and elsewhere. They could make it hard for NeoGAF to ever return, especially as it once was. Even if it did, its community has scattered to the wind.
That's not to say they're gone forever though. Some community members have stayed in touch and plan to put together some sort of space for NeoGAF orphans, though what that will be or when it will launch is anyone's guess.
