Garry Newman, the founder of Facepunch Studios, has issued an extensive response to criticism surrounding the development and current state of s&box, the spiritual successor to Garry's Mod. In a lengthy YouTube comment, Newman addressed several key points raised by content creators and the community, including the game's controversial character design, a perceived lack of quality content, and the overall launch reception.
Newman acknowledged that the platform's initial launch was problematic, stating, "The launch was shit. The free weekend was shit." He admitted that the team "weren't ready and we fucked it," leading to negative sentiment and strained relations with the Garry's Mod community. He also touched on the persistent criticism of the game's distinctive "citizen" character model, a design he has previously defended but now intends to remove.
"I like the citizen, I have liked the citizen and I will like the citizen," Newman wrote. "It gave the game and the platform an identity. Some people like it, most people don't like it." However, he conceded that the negative reception has led to a decision to move away from the design. "I think I'm done trying now and we're just going to get rid of it and push the human characters forward." This shift to human characters is expected to occur over the next month.
Regarding the influx of low-quality content, particularly AI-generated games, Newman confirmed that Facepunch has plans to address the issue. "There being too much content is a problem. It's no good having 20 good games on the platform when they're swimming in the sea of 500 tech demos and clickers," he stated. The company intends to change its Playfund system to disincentivize low-quality submissions and will transition to a Workshop subscribe/install model for maps and games, moving away from the current system where players must choose from a large selection.
Newman also discussed the community's perception of Facepunch's lack of outreach, acknowledging that content creators like Eridium, who produced a critical video on s&box, play a vital role. He stated that while the idea of hiring Eridium was considered, the team concluded he is more valuable as an independent critic. "We don't want you thinking you can't make videos like this calling us out. We don't want you to stop holding us to account," Newman said, expressing appreciation for Eridium's extensive coverage and willingness to engage.
Despite the challenges, Newman expressed his stubbornness and desire to find solutions, stating, "I don't like giving up on things, I am stubborn." He recognized the current landscape of user-generated content platforms, particularly with the rise of AI, as a potentially make-or-break period. "Right now with AI it's either the worst time in history to launch a UGC platform or the best time in history to launch a UGC platform," he mused, suggesting that the next few months will be crucial in shaping the platform's future.