Controversy has arisen from the recent Neopets TTRPG playtest document. The beta playtest, released as part of Geekify’s development of the tabletop game, was so full of inappropriate and unrepresentative material, that it was taken down by the owner’s request.
The Neopets TTRPG Playtest Controversy
The Neopets TTRPG playtest controversy started when the document became available to the public. Over several weeks, fans and tabletop enthusiasts poured over the material, curious to see how the family-friendly web series about raising adorable digital pets would be adapted.
The answer was not particularly well. The system was a derivative of Dungeons & Dragons and was very combat heavy. This is a major departure from the Kickstarter’s promoted original classless, point-based RPG system. Worse still, the scenario had some decidedly inappropriate subject matter for Neopets.
How inappropriate? According to some posts on Bluesky, the document had players face intoxicated/drunk bandits, gives them the option to potentially torture them for information, and contains lines with misogynistic and even homophobic connotations. There is even a section asking players their comfort levels about in-game sexual activity. In a Neopets RPG.
In fact, the Neopets TTRPG playtest controversy was such a debacle, the company recently released a statement addressing the issue on their website. The statement is critical of the RPG, stating that Neopets wasn’t “a generic fantasy dungeon crawler.” Furthermore, it states the document was made without their approval.
We want to be transparent with the community: the beta playtest document that was recently made public was not approved or reviewed by our team prior to its release. Under our licensing agreement, all content bearing the Neopets name must meet our quality standards and receive our written approval before it is shared publicly. Following an internal review, Neopets has determined that the content and themes contained within the document do not align with our brand standards, values, or the expectations we hold for experiences created under the Neopets license. Although the Neopets team has been steadily reviewing the TTRPG in sections as it is submitted, none of the aforementioned submissions was included in the beta document material released. We immediately requested the document’s removal and have been in direct communication with Geekify to address the matter.
Curiously, despite the Neopets TTRPG controversy, the company seems committed to the game’s development. The statement ends stating the company will take the time needed to ensure the project reaches its potential. But if this playtest is indicative of the attitude and approach Geekify has towards the property, it doesn’t paint a nice picture for the future.
Ever since he was small, Tyler Chancey has had a deep, abiding love for video games and a tendency to think and overanalyze everything he enjoyed. This… More about Tyler