Published , by TJ Denzer
Published , by TJ Denzer
In the current landscape of gaming, it’s pretty much undeniable that influencers and content creators have had a major impact on signal boosting and marketing of video games. That said, do influencers get special privileges? That seems to be the crux of Tyler “Ninja” Blevins' take on the permanent banning of FaZe Clan’s Jarvis Kaye.
In response to Epic’s recent decision to permanently ban Jarvis from Fortnite for use of aimbot cheats in recreational matches, Ninja voiced his opinions on Jarvis in a recent stream. In a collection of clips gathered by YouTube channel Daily Clips Central, Ninja brought up the matter, starting with the sentiment that Jarvis’s ban shouldn’t have been a permanent one.
“He’s still super young. I think it’s just a stupid kid making a stupid decision,” Ninja said. “It wasn’t in a tournament. It wasn’t in a cash cup. It wasn’t in anything like that. I think it should have been like a six month ban in competitive.”
You can see the full collection of Ninja’s opinions on Jarvis below.
Notably, Ninja goes on to say that Jarvis’s position as an influencer and content creator makes a difference in the matter.
“Let’s be a little realistic,” Ninja opined. “There are people who get favoritism… Without your content creators, there’s a negative impact on your game.”
Despite the statement, Ninja still claims he’s not cutting Jarvis any slack. He would go on to say that he doesn’t feel sorry for Jarvis and that the player was still at fault for cheating, but doubled down on the idea that content creators get a little bit of favoritism, and that the punishment that Jarvis received was too severe for the crime.
“There are people who have done worse things on the internet and haven’t gotten banned,” Ninja continued. “I use Logan Paul as a reference. The dude literally filmed someone hanging in a forest and the channel didn’t get banned and he’s been perfectly fine. He uploaded an apology video and he was set.”
Ninja is referring to an incident in early 2018 in which popular YouTuber Logan Paul uploaded a video of a visit to an infamous "suicide forest" in Japan, complete with footage of the discovery of a dead body. Despite the incredibly offensive nature of the video, Paul still uploaded it. In the wake of the incident, Paul saw some pushback, including demonetization of that particular video, but the YouTuber continues to be an active presence on the platform.
Regardless of Ninja’s opinion on Jarvis, Epic doesn’t seem likely to change their decision anytime soon, having reaffirmed a zero-tolerance policy in the case of any cheater. Even so, Ninja brings up a major point. Are influencers and content creators privileged? Do cases like Logan Paul set a precedent that makes Jarvis’s case more dicey or is Jarvis’s punishment an example of how the situation should properly be handled? Share your thoughts with us in the Shacknews Chatty comment section below.