One Ghost of Yotei developer has been fired shortly after making controversial comments regarding the recent death of Charlie Kirk.
Sony confirmed to Kotaku that the developer, Drew Harrison, “is no longer an employee of Sucker Punch Productions” but did not elaborate further. According to Kotaku, Ghost of Yotei’s Drew Harrison, a nearly 10-year veteran at the PlayStation studio, posted “I hope the shooter’s name is Mario so that Luigi knows his bro got his back” in the hours after Kirk was shot and killed while speaking at an event at Utah Valley University.
The post caught the attention of Mark “Grummz” Kern, one of the producers for Diablo 2 and StarCraft, who has been actively speaking out against those online who have made light of the situation. His X (formerly Twitter) account currently contains screenshots of multiple game developers who have shared memes or not shown empathy towards the situation.
After it was confirmed that Harrison had been fired, Grummz shared screenshots from Harrison’s BlueSky account, where she posted: “If standing up against fascism is what cost me my dream job I held for 10 years, I would do it again 100x stronger.”
Harrison seemed to be taking the firing in stride, responding to another user who encouraged her to make a GoFundMe regarding the situation. “I don’t need any money!” she wrote. “Ghost of Yotei is an amazing game made by 200 people I love dearly. Donate to families in Gaza, the Trevor project or ACLU!”
Atsu from Ghost of Yotei
Image via SuckerPunch
Ghost of Yotei’s Sucker Punch Productions isn’t the only one facing significant criticism in the aftermath of Kirk’s death. On the other side of the political battlefield, Marvel Cinematic Universe star Chris Pratt has faced backlash after his own post in support of Kirk. “Praying for Charlie Kirk right now, for his wife and young children, for our country. We need God’s grace. God help us,” Pratt wrote, which saw social media users slamming him and even calling for him to be fired from Marvel.
Legendary horror author Stephen King also issued an apology after spreading misinformation online without fact-checking it first. A now-deleted post of King’s claimed Kirk advocated for the stoning of gay people. “This is what I get for reading something on Twitter w/o fact-checking. Won’t happen again,” King wrote, later adding: “I apologize for saying Charlie Kirk advocated stoning gays. What he actually demonstrated was how some people cherry-pick Biblical passages.”
Ghost of Yotei
Released
October 2, 2025
ESRB
Mature 17+ / Blood and Gore, Drug Reference, Intense Violence, Language, Partial Nudity, Use of Alcohol
Developer(s)
Sucker Punch
Publisher(s)
Sony Interactive Entertainment
Number of Players
Single-player
PS5 Release Date
October 2, 2025