Dr Disrespect Had a Controversial Game in Development, but Recent Revelations May Change Things

Content warning: This article mentions inappropriate sexual misconduct with a minor.

These days, Twitch streamers and controversy seem to go hand in hand. Many streamers have come under fire for inappropriate conduct during their careers. Few know this better by now than Herschel "Guy" Beahm, better known online as Dr Disrespect. The popular streamer first achieved popularity on YouTube providing harsh commentary over his gameplay of games like Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.

He would later gain a larger platform on Twitch playing games like Apex Legends, Fortnite, and PUBG: Battlegrounds. At the height of his massive popularity, however, he was banned from Twitch in 2020. It was later revealed that the ban stemmed from allegations that he was exchanging inappropriate messages with a minor in 2017, which he admitted to in June 2024. The subsequent revelation led to his removal from the game he was developing, which has its own controversial reputation.

In case you weren't aware, Dr Disrespect was in the middle of game development by the time his misconduct was revealed. In 2021, Dr Disrespect founded his own game studio called Midnight Society. Their first project was a free-to-play battle royale game called Deadrop. The game, which is still currently being developed, immediately sparked controversy upon its announcement.

Deadrop was made available in an aggressively-early prototype state and relied on the sale of NFTs and expensive microtransactions in order to fund the game's ongoing development. While the game has received several quality-of-life updates since it was first rolled out, players have already been driven away in droves by its consumer-unfriendly practices. The current state of Dr Disrespect's reputation will also presumably affect the game's production moving forward.

On June 24, 2024, shortly after Dr Disrespect's misconduct was revealed, Midnight Society confirmed that the co-founder was removed from the team.

In a statement tweeted on X, Midnight Society wrote, "We assumed his innocence and began speaking with parties involved. And in order to maintain our principles and standards as a studio and individuals, we needed to act. For this reason, we are terminating our relationship with Guy Beahm immediately."

As of this writing, the studio has made no mention of the state of Deadrop's development. This would suggest that production on the game is either ongoing or at least in flux as the studio strives to recalibrate from the staff change. However, supporters of Dr Disrespect have voiced their disapproval over his removal. One fan wrote, "This game is officially dead before it even came out."

Another responded to Midnight Society's statement, tweeting, "There is no Midnight Society without Doc."

Many have also demanded evidence over Dr Disrespect's misconduct, despite the fact that the streamer has all but admitted to such acts in a lengthy X post on June 25, 2024.

At this point, it's safe to assume that the future of Deadrop is being heavily discussed now that its controversial creator has been ousted from his own studio.