The leading raid guild in Blizzard’s smash hit MMORPG World of Warcraft struggles to stay afloat following back-to-back allegations of sexual misconduct.
Method—a World of Warcraft (WoW) competitive guild—once stood atop the Massively Multiplayer Online Role-playing Game’s (MMORPG) raiding world, with big names like Red Bull backing them up.
Unfortunately, the once-mighty guild has been reduced to merely a shadow of its former self, after several victims came forward accusing Method members of gross sexual misconduct.
Congratulations @Method, because of your headassery in dealing with Josh and Sascha everyone rightfully hates you and wants nothing to do with you anymore. I'm glad that we can actually have some competition in the world first races, and that you will never be a part of warcraft.
— noramed (@noram3d) July 2, 2020
Dominoes begin to fall for the World of Warcraft raiding guild
Method has been under the microscope since early last year, following multiple accusations of inappropriate behavior against one of their most high-profile members—MethodJosh.
According to gaming website Kotaku, a number of underage girls came forward accusing the World of Warcraft streamer (whose real name remains unknown) of regularly interacting with female fans of similar age in a lewd and often aggressive manner on Discord.
The victims reportedly provided Kotaku with screenshots of Discord chats and messages that corroborated their accusations. MethodJosh also allegedly referred to women using derogatory terms on a regular basis.
One of the victims supposedly reached out to Method regarding the matter but was told to gather solid evidence and to submit a police report before the guild would take any sort of action.
If you haven't read the Kotaku article, please do.
This response is complete and utter GARBAGE.
"The next time somebody came up to me and was like, ‘Josh, I want to fuck your sister,’ I just said, ‘Me, too.’" – methodjoshhttps://t.co/8M0nrbLPYJ
— Cher Scarlett (@cherthedev) June 25, 2020
Method CEO Scott “Methodsco” McMillan’s recent Twitter statement lends some truth to the claims, where he mentioned how the guild’s management received an email about the allegations in January of last year.
MethodJosh was subsequently banned from Twitch for reasons undisclosed within the same year, as more and more screenshots and videos of him making misogynistic and even racist comments began to circulate the internet.
What proved to be one of Method’s biggest mistakes was their lack of action and investigations towards the streamer despite the mounting number of claims against him, choosing instead to blindly believe Josh’s every denial.
MethodJosh finally gets axed
Method could no longer turn a blind eye to the accusations against the WoW gamer after fellow streamer “Poopernoodle” publicly shared her account of being sexually assaulted by Josh.
The guild would finally cut ties with him on June 24 though the damage to the group’s reputation may already be irreparable.
Poopernoodle speaks out about what happened between her and Method Josh https://t.co/CPC8of6eoD
This is the her Tweet
For those who don't remember, Poopernoodle stayed at Josh's house last year and streamed with him, but the next day she left and when she streamed on her chan…
— Djinn FurFur (@DjinnFurFur) June 25, 2020
Co-CEO also under fire
MethodJosh isn’t the only member of Method to be accused of sexual misconduct, as several members also pointed their fingers at guild co-CEO Sascha Steffens.
Steffens allegedly made inappropriate advances towards some of Method’s female members, prompting the organization to place the executive on unpaid administrative leave pending an ongoing investigation.
Wow! #esports and #gaming in general is accelerating its #metoo moment as @Method puts CEO and co-founder Sascha Steffens on unpaid leave amid misconduct allegations. Via @DotEsports https://t.co/gOCZF1q4UU pic.twitter.com/sZQwiQ4PDf
— Kaelon (@Kaelon) June 27, 2020
Method members abandon ship
Following the allegations of abuse, a significant number of members bailed on the guild, including renowned Twitch streamers Kjetil “Zizaran” and Sophia “Djarii” White.
Method’s European World of Warcraft player-vs-player squad, North American Mythic Dungeon team, and Path of Exile team have all also quit, along with nearly 30 streamers previously partnered with the guild.
Featured image courtesy of Method/Twitter