Wait, the article said that he was "forced to step down" without offering a source, I cant find any news about this.
The only official word I found was from the statement given to Venturebeat:
“I can confirm that John Smedley will be taking some time off from the company for the near-term and transitioning to a different role to be determined,” a spokesperson for Daybreak told GamesBeat. “Upon finalization of his plans, further communication will be provided.”
Could someone who has REAL journalistic talent link where it has been confirmed that he was forced out for me please?
I kinda have mixed feelings about Smed, he have done great things and really bad as well.
I think he works best teamed up with someone like Brad, as the realistic guy who keeps him on level while Brad spurts out wild ideas (which in some cases are great while others just can't be implemented). Alone neither of them have done anything near what they can do together, like Simon & Garfunkel.
Leaving Daybreak might have been a good idea anyways, working so many years for the same company is rarely good for anyone.
It kinda annoys me though that it was because of threats from hackers, the worlds becomes a very bad place if someone on the net can decide who keeps or loses their job.
As for the NGE it was hardly just Smedleys fault but he does share the blame, the entire team thought it was a good idea without getting any feedback whatsoever from the players (and so did Lucasart). It is true that the game was losing players and something needed to be done but it was the worst misjudgement of what the players wanted any MMO company ever made. It was an blunder of Jar-Jarian magnitude.
Results speak for themselves,he put SOE into the ground,now he is stepping down and managed to piss off a lot of people over the past several years,more so than any CEO i have ever seen.
You probably weren't born before the Enron scandal. Forgot about the "Too big to fail" era for all but one US auto manufacturer? Bernie Madoff? Jim Jones? I wish I had your ignorance.
I dont know...The guy always rubbed me the wrong way....Always felt like I was listening to a used car salesman....he didnt make the industry better, he made it worse.....
Originally posted by booniedog96 Originally posted by WizardryResults speak for themselves,he put SOE into the ground,now he is stepping down and managed to piss off a lot of people over the past several years,more so than any CEO i have ever seen.
You probably weren't born before the Enron scandal. Forgot about the "Too big to fail" era for all but one US auto manufacturer? Bernie Madoff? Jim Jones? I wish I had your ignorance. Oh trust me you do. You just don't know it.
Results speak for themselves,he put SOE into the ground,now he is stepping down and managed to piss off a lot of people over the past several years,more so than any CEO i have ever seen.
You probably weren't born before the Enron scandal. Forgot about the "Too big to fail" era for all but one US auto manufacturer? Bernie Madoff? Jim Jones? I wish I had your ignorance.
The auto manufacturers are a fair comparison, Smed did get EQ to us after all, before it no-one I know had heard of MMOs (and were all thinking me strange for playing M59). No EQ and it is very possible MMOs would have died out 15 years ago.
But just like the auto companies can't you live on past successes forever.
Madoff and Jones on the other hand feels unfair, as far as I know have Smed neither stolen loads of cash from investors or talked them into killing themselves.
Smeds merits is Everquest and SWG who did very well the first year. Yeah, that got messed up later but getting around 450K players at it's peak back then still impressive.
Smeds list of failures is however pretty large, the largest is probably EQ2 who was a pretty good game but the crappy engine and lousy state at launch turned it into a very easy fight for Wow. If it would have been in the state Wow was at launch it would have at least been a very good second largest MMO for years to come. In fact most people including me thought it would be the next big thing until we saw the shape it was in.
Seeing how none of us seem to be Sony shareholders or investors and thusly have little to no insight in to exactly what was going on from mid-90´s up to today beyond what little we could put together from our outside view... Saying that Smed ran SoE in to the ground is perhaps a bit speculative.
But no matter... I can not prove he did not do it either so each to his own on that matter.
What i can not understand is how ANYONE can stand up and smirk like a smug *bleeeep*ng punchdrunk posterior primate over the fact that someone had his life, his family´s life and his *bleeeep* dearly departed disturbed OVER.... A.... FEW... ***********.... VIDEOGAMES... .. . VIDEOGAMES.... Jesus F Christ... Arn´t we doing the very best to prove people that we are in fact socially and mentally disturbed... The abandoned army ready to topple the world....
Well *bleeeep* me up the *bleeeep* and call me charlie... But by all means, sit there and feel smug... After all it does not directly impact you, so why bother.
I like to think i remember when there was a time we knew what appropriate response was... I know it is an illusion but i like to think it existed.
Seeing how none of us seem to be Sony shareholders or investors and thusly have little to no insight in to exactly what was going on from mid-90´s up to today beyond what little we could put together from our outside view... Saying that Smed ran SoE in to the ground is perhaps a bit speculative.
Smed was the CEO of SOE.
Sony sold the SOE division to Daybreak Games.
You don't sell off a division that's making you money hand-over-fist. You sell off poorly performing divisions while they can still be sold; before they have to be liquidated entirely. I'm not trying to be rude, or sarcastic, but do the math. It was his ship to sink and he sunk it.
He co-created two of the best early MMO's and then he turned around and knifed one of those MMO's in the back. That should have been his last decision at SOE. This departure is ten years too late, no matter current the circumstances.
I don't think his departure had anything to do with the whole lizard squad thing. He was handed his hat because his time is up. Sony didn't sell off the company because it was doing well. SoE was a collection of dead games that were not making any money. EQN is kind of a mess with no real clue where they were going with it. Once Omeed bailed on them, I knew it was over.
H1Z1 was nothing but a quick cash grab off of other peoples ideas. Daybreak really has nothing to offer unless they somehow find a way to make something out of EQN. Smedly was responsible for the dumb design and business decisions that caused the company to be such a failure it was dumped off to some investment firm. It is no surprise that he was fired.
CEO lies to you every day for ten years and no one bats an eye.
CEO is finally forced to step down and everyone loses their minds.
No one deserves to be harrassed / stalked. Lizard Squad may have succeeded in getting Smed to step down, but from the nastiness of their actions, Smed will now be immortalized as a gaming god.
I have not liked the way Smed has done things but i believe what he has done was for the best for the company, just not the best for us gamers, so Smed has done no wrong where the companies have been concerned, and that the sole reason for him stepping down, was to get out of the lime light, to protect his and his famllys safety, and reduce attacks on the company, from Lizard Squad
Can you imagine your life being turned upside down by a hateful group of anonymous people? Your parent's grave defaced; an airplane you're on being forced to land; fraud frequently enacted in your name. Countless other harassment.
+10
No matter your feeling towards John Smedley. This kind of thing is utter bullshit and the kind of thing done by faceless pussies.
Except, its not that straightforward, one of the first lessons of being an adult, is not to get into senseless arguments with children, this is a lesson that Smedley earned himself an epic fail at.
To all the people lamenting how bleak the world is "today" and how vile some people are in "today's world": the world has always been like this., you just didn't get to read about it on the Internet before.
Can you imagine your life being turned upside down by a hateful group of anonymous people? Your parent's grave defaced; an airplane you're on being forced to land; fraud frequently enacted in your name. Countless other harassment.
+10
No matter your feeling towards John Smedley. This kind of thing is utter bullshit and the kind of thing done by faceless pussies.
Except, its not that straightforward, one of the first lessons of being an adult, is not to get into senseless arguments with children, this is a lesson that Smedley earned himself an epic fail at.
But the thing is these "children" was not conducting senseless arguments... they where committing actual crimes and if any of them are US citizens also terrorism... These are not cute little pranksters and this is not a "boys will be boys" thing. Could he have been smoother... Yes... But at the same time not saying anything just grant these "children" more power and a even bigger power bone.
You sound like a child yelling at the interwebz to behave
Because that's such a terrible thing - to be outraged by the malicious, sociopathic behaviour of the same crowd that spends half their day wishing death on people and the other half posting that there's no community anymore?
There isn't a "right" or "wrong" way to play, if you want to use a screwdriver to put nails into wood, have at it, simply don't complain when the guy next to you with the hammer is doing it much better and easier. - Allein "Graphics are often supplied by Engines that (some) MMORPG's are built in" - Spuffyre
Except, its not that straightforward, one of the first lessons of being an adult, is not to get into senseless arguments with children, this is a lesson that Smedley earned himself an epic fail at.
It's really sad that you can't see the difference between someone firing back harsh words and someone doxing, harrassing, DDOSing, hacking, swatting, vandalizing graves, and filing false tax returns that negatively affect not just him but his family, his coworkers, and hundreds of thousands of gamers.
It's just so absurd that you feel since he's an adult he should expect that kind of attack or that such behavior is even remotely warranted. You live in a really fucked up world, bro. FUCKED. UP.
There isn't a "right" or "wrong" way to play, if you want to use a screwdriver to put nails into wood, have at it, simply don't complain when the guy next to you with the hammer is doing it much better and easier. - Allein "Graphics are often supplied by Engines that (some) MMORPG's are built in" - Spuffyre
Can you imagine your life being turned upside down by a hateful group of anonymous people? Your parent's grave defaced; an airplane you're on being forced to land; fraud frequently enacted in your name. Countless other harassment. . . What filth live among us today. They are dangerous and vicious criminals, and I hope the world gets their act together in terms of finding people like them and closing the gaps. John joins a long list of those suffering injustices; and I fear they all feel alone in their suffering; but they aren't alone. The silent masses are with them. I am with them. . . Smedley's achievements are ground breaking; WoW would not exist if not for John Smedley. While true I don't like how he served one master (the latest crowd), I don't hate him for it. I resent Dominos a lot more for changing their pizza from the deliciousness of the 1990s to the utter garbage we have today.
i wholeheartedly agree with your first two paragraphs. These scumbags are low life criminals and Smed had every right to speak out against them. Anyone who considers themselves a member of the "GAMER" community should be saying the same things that he did.
You cannot "provoke" criminals they are solely responsible for their willful behavior. No one has the right to commit a crime against you because of or in response to your opinions. I stand with Smed 100% in regards to these Lizard Squad chowderheads.
As to your third paragraph i have to strongly disagree there. Smed has been a fairly cruddy CEO in general that has made a lot of bad decisions regarding my favorite games over the years. It is also likely that his "demotion," or position change was a planned part, of the corporate restructuring at Daybreak and would have happened regardless.
Can you imagine your life being turned upside down by a hateful group of anonymous people? Your parent's grave defaced; an airplane you're on being forced to land; fraud frequently enacted in your name. Countless other harassment.
+10
No matter your feeling towards John Smedley. This kind of thing is utter bullshit and the kind of thing done by faceless pussies.
Except, its not that straightforward, one of the first lessons of being an adult, is not to get into senseless arguments with children, this is a lesson that Smedley earned himself an epic fail at.
But the thing is these "children" was not conducting a senseless arguments... they where committing actual crimes and if any of them are US citizens also terrorism... These are not cute little pranksters and this is not a "boys will be boys" thing. Could he have been smoother... Yes... But at the same time not saying anything just grant these "children" more power and a even bigger power bone.
to those that are excusing this despicable,disgusting behavior on the part of these criminals,you cannot "PROVOKE" criminals. They are 100% responsible for their willful behavior. No one has the right to commit crimes against you because of or in response to your opinions.
Also no person has an obligation to sit back and be quiet when subjected to this level of harassment and criminal victimization. WE should all be vocal about this crap as members of the gamer community.
Smed especially had the right to voice his opinion and concerns as the direct victim of these crimes as well as because of his unique position as a leader in the gaming developer community.
I sincerely hope his employment change was just part of the corporate restructuring plan already in place. If his position suffered because of his righteous indignation then that's just sad. Smed had the absolute right to say what he did to those people and Daybreak should stand behind him 100%.
Seeing how none of us seem to be Sony shareholders or investors and thusly have little to no insight in to exactly what was going on from mid-90´s up to today beyond what little we could put together from our outside view... Saying that Smed ran SoE in to the ground is perhaps a bit speculative.
But no matter... I can not prove he did not do it either so each to his own on that matter.
What i can not understand is how ANYONE can stand up and smirk like a smug *bleeeep*ng punchdrunk posterior primate over the fact that someone had his life, his family´s life and his *bleeeep* dearly departed disturbed OVER.... A.... FEW... ***********.... VIDEOGAMES... .. . VIDEOGAMES.... Jesus F Christ... Arn´t we doing the very best to prove people that we are in fact socially and mentally disturbed... The abandoned army ready to topple the world....
Well *bleeeep* me up the *bleeeep* and call me charlie... But by all means, sit there and feel smug... After all it does not directly impact you, so why bother.
I like to think i remember when there was a time we knew what appropriate response was... I know it is an illusion but i like to think it existed.
1) Smed was in charge of SOE for its entire existence, so it is hard to pass the buck of its failure onto anyone other than him.
2) I don't see anyone cheering for Lizard Squad and saying that the cyber attacks he is under are a good thing.
There are 2 different issues here and that really needs to be kept in perspective.
First issue is that Smed is in a war with scummy hackers. Everyone seems to agree that those things being done really suck and no one deserves that. However Smed isn't making the situation any better by raging like a giant man baby on twitter and making the problem worse for his employer, customers and his career.
There is some assumption that this event lead to his departure and anyone seeing his leaving is a positive thing for gaming is somehow an endorsement of Lizard Squads actions. It isn't. The mess he is in with Lizard Squad is separate issue and doesn't negate all the other issues he has.
Second issue, is that Smed has pissed on a lot of his customers over the years and people resent him for that. He has been a habitual liar and his attitude/words can often be pointed to as a direst reason driving players away. Anyone saying that he was long overdue in being replaced isn't wrong, nor does that mean they support his problems with lizard squad.
Notice how no one is saying they don't understand why John faces so much criticism, even to the point of hackers willing to do things that bring them to face criminal charges? No one is surprised that he is no longer in a leadership position? No one is saying that Daybreak games is going to be worse off without him running the show?
I'm speaking in huge sweeping strokes there speaking for "everyone", but honestly I don't think we can find anyone, but the most blind rabid fan who would not also echo those same exact statements.
Can you imagine your life being turned upside down by a hateful group of anonymous people? Your parent's grave defaced; an airplane you're on being forced to land; fraud frequently enacted in your name. Countless other harassment.
+10
No matter your feeling towards John Smedley. This kind of thing is utter bullshit and the kind of thing done by faceless pussies.
Except, its not that straightforward, one of the first lessons of being an adult, is not to get into senseless arguments with children, this is a lesson that Smedley earned himself an epic fail at.
But the thing is these "children" was not conducting a senseless arguments... they where committing actual crimes and if any of them are US citizens also terrorism... These are not cute little pranksters and this is not a "boys will be boys" thing. Could he have been smoother... Yes... But at the same time not saying anything just grant these "children" more power and a even bigger power bone.
to those that are excusing this despicable,disgusting behavior on the part of these criminals,you cannot "PROVOKE" criminals. They are 100% responsible for their willful behavior. No one has the right to commit crimes against you because of or in response to your opinions.
Also no person has an obligation to sit back and be quiet when subjected to this level of harassment and criminal victimization. WE should all be vocal about this crap as members of the gamer community.
Smed especially had the right to voice his opinion and concerns as the direct victim of these crimes as well as because of his unique position as a leader in the gaming developer community.
I sincerely hope his employment change was just part of the corporate restructuring plan already in place. If his position suffered because of his righteous indignation then that's just sad. Smed had the absolute right to say what he did to those people and Daybreak should stand behind him 100%.
Smedleys future in the company was questionable the moment that it parted ways from Sony, and is largely irrelevant at this point anyway, nobody is condoning btw, the behaviour of the hackers or the things they did, this is instead a comment on the behaviour of Smedley in response to those things, he effectively 'joined the schoolyard' in a slanging match with a bunch of juvenile hackers, that is not the sort of behaviour you expect from a responsible adult, especially one who is the CEO of a company. Which btw, is exactly the point i was making.
Originally posted by Loktofeit Originally posted by Phry Except, its not that straightforward, one of the first lessons of being an adult, is not to get into senseless arguments with children, this is a lesson that Smedley earned himself an epic fail at.
It's really sad that you can't see the difference between someone firing back harsh words and someone doxing, harrassing, DDOSing, hacking, swatting, vandalizing graves, and filing false tax returns that negatively affect not just him but his family, his coworkers, and hundreds of thousands of gamers.
It's just so absurd that you feel since he's an adult he should expect that kind of attack or that such behavior is even remotely warranted. You live in a really fucked up world, bro. FUCKED. UP.
What's really fecked up is that women in general are regularly treated much worse and that's business as usual. But I digress.
Comments
Wait, the article said that he was "forced to step down" without offering a source, I cant find any news about this.
The only official word I found was from the statement given to Venturebeat:
“I can confirm that John Smedley will be taking some time off from the company for the near-term and transitioning to a different role to be determined,” a spokesperson for Daybreak told GamesBeat. “Upon finalization of his plans, further communication will be provided.”
Could someone who has REAL journalistic talent link where it has been confirmed that he was forced out for me please?
Thanks.
I kinda have mixed feelings about Smed, he have done great things and really bad as well.
I think he works best teamed up with someone like Brad, as the realistic guy who keeps him on level while Brad spurts out wild ideas (which in some cases are great while others just can't be implemented). Alone neither of them have done anything near what they can do together, like Simon & Garfunkel.
Leaving Daybreak might have been a good idea anyways, working so many years for the same company is rarely good for anyone.
It kinda annoys me though that it was because of threats from hackers, the worlds becomes a very bad place if someone on the net can decide who keeps or loses their job.
As for the NGE it was hardly just Smedleys fault but he does share the blame, the entire team thought it was a good idea without getting any feedback whatsoever from the players (and so did Lucasart). It is true that the game was losing players and something needed to be done but it was the worst misjudgement of what the players wanted any MMO company ever made. It was an blunder of Jar-Jarian magnitude.
You probably weren't born before the Enron scandal. Forgot about the "Too big to fail" era for all but one US auto manufacturer? Bernie Madoff? Jim Jones? I wish I had your ignorance.
First Yu Suzuki announces Shenmue 3, then this. 2105 is shaping up nicely for video games.
Oh trust me you do. You just don't know it.
The auto manufacturers are a fair comparison, Smed did get EQ to us after all, before it no-one I know had heard of MMOs (and were all thinking me strange for playing M59). No EQ and it is very possible MMOs would have died out 15 years ago.
But just like the auto companies can't you live on past successes forever.
Madoff and Jones on the other hand feels unfair, as far as I know have Smed neither stolen loads of cash from investors or talked them into killing themselves.
Smeds merits is Everquest and SWG who did very well the first year. Yeah, that got messed up later but getting around 450K players at it's peak back then still impressive.
Smeds list of failures is however pretty large, the largest is probably EQ2 who was a pretty good game but the crappy engine and lousy state at launch turned it into a very easy fight for Wow. If it would have been in the state Wow was at launch it would have at least been a very good second largest MMO for years to come. In fact most people including me thought it would be the next big thing until we saw the shape it was in.
Seeing how none of us seem to be Sony shareholders or investors and thusly have little to no insight in to exactly what was going on from mid-90´s up to today beyond what little we could put together from our outside view... Saying that Smed ran SoE in to the ground is perhaps a bit speculative.
But no matter... I can not prove he did not do it either so each to his own on that matter.
What i can not understand is how ANYONE can stand up and smirk like a smug *bleeeep*ng punchdrunk posterior primate over the fact that someone had his life, his family´s life and his *bleeeep* dearly departed disturbed OVER.... A.... FEW... ***********.... VIDEOGAMES... .. . VIDEOGAMES.... Jesus F Christ... Arn´t we doing the very best to prove people that we are in fact socially and mentally disturbed... The abandoned army ready to topple the world....
Well *bleeeep* me up the *bleeeep* and call me charlie... But by all means, sit there and feel smug... After all it does not directly impact you, so why bother.
I like to think i remember when there was a time we knew what appropriate response was... I know it is an illusion but i like to think it existed.
This have been a good conversation
Smed was the CEO of SOE.
Sony sold the SOE division to Daybreak Games.
You don't sell off a division that's making you money hand-over-fist. You sell off poorly performing divisions while they can still be sold; before they have to be liquidated entirely. I'm not trying to be rude, or sarcastic, but do the math. It was his ship to sink and he sunk it.
He co-created two of the best early MMO's and then he turned around and knifed one of those MMO's in the back. That should have been his last decision at SOE. This departure is ten years too late, no matter current the circumstances.
I don't think his departure had anything to do with the whole lizard squad thing. He was handed his hat because his time is up. Sony didn't sell off the company because it was doing well. SoE was a collection of dead games that were not making any money. EQN is kind of a mess with no real clue where they were going with it. Once Omeed bailed on them, I knew it was over.
H1Z1 was nothing but a quick cash grab off of other peoples ideas. Daybreak really has nothing to offer unless they somehow find a way to make something out of EQN. Smedly was responsible for the dumb design and business decisions that caused the company to be such a failure it was dumped off to some investment firm. It is no surprise that he was fired.
So was it actually about some pointless stand off with some "hackers"?
Or about lack of any perspectives for the studio's games?
IMO new owners just kicked him out for not doing his job and making them money _(••/)_/
>>SMITE<<
>>Strife: best ever MOBA<<
>>Rift: FREE Ally of the Ascended Pack<<
No one deserves to be harrassed / stalked. Lizard Squad may have succeeded in getting Smed to step down, but from the nastiness of their actions, Smed will now be immortalized as a gaming god.
I have not liked the way Smed has done things but i believe what he has done was for the best for the company, just not the best for us gamers, so Smed has done no wrong where the companies have been concerned, and that the sole reason for him stepping down, was to get out of the lime light, to protect his and his famllys safety, and reduce attacks on the company, from Lizard Squad
Star Trek Online - Best Free MMORPG of 2012
Except, its not that straightforward, one of the first lessons of being an adult, is not to get into senseless arguments with children, this is a lesson that Smedley earned himself an epic fail at.
Justice for SWG and SWG players.
I don't agree with bullying anyone either...
But the thing is these "children" was not conducting senseless arguments... they where committing actual crimes and if any of them are US citizens also terrorism... These are not cute little pranksters and this is not a "boys will be boys" thing. Could he have been smoother... Yes... But at the same time not saying anything just grant these "children" more power and a even bigger power bone.
This have been a good conversation
Because that's such a terrible thing - to be outraged by the malicious, sociopathic behaviour of the same crowd that spends half their day wishing death on people and the other half posting that there's no community anymore?
There isn't a "right" or "wrong" way to play, if you want to use a screwdriver to put nails into wood, have at it, simply don't complain when the guy next to you with the hammer is doing it much better and easier. - Allein
"Graphics are often supplied by Engines that (some) MMORPG's are built in" - Spuffyre
It's really sad that you can't see the difference between someone firing back harsh words and someone doxing, harrassing, DDOSing, hacking, swatting, vandalizing graves, and filing false tax returns that negatively affect not just him but his family, his coworkers, and hundreds of thousands of gamers.
It's just so absurd that you feel since he's an adult he should expect that kind of attack or that such behavior is even remotely warranted. You live in a really fucked up world, bro. FUCKED. UP.
There isn't a "right" or "wrong" way to play, if you want to use a screwdriver to put nails into wood, have at it, simply don't complain when the guy next to you with the hammer is doing it much better and easier. - Allein
"Graphics are often supplied by Engines that (some) MMORPG's are built in" - Spuffyre
i wholeheartedly agree with your first two paragraphs. These scumbags are low life criminals and Smed had every right to speak out against them. Anyone who considers themselves a member of the "GAMER" community should be saying the same things that he did.
You cannot "provoke" criminals they are solely responsible for their willful behavior. No one has the right to commit a crime against you because of or in response to your opinions. I stand with Smed 100% in regards to these Lizard Squad chowderheads.
As to your third paragraph i have to strongly disagree there. Smed has been a fairly cruddy CEO in general that has made a lot of bad decisions regarding my favorite games over the years. It is also likely that his "demotion," or position change was a planned part, of the corporate restructuring at Daybreak and would have happened regardless.
to those that are excusing this despicable,disgusting behavior on the part of these criminals,you cannot "PROVOKE" criminals. They are 100% responsible for their willful behavior. No one has the right to commit crimes against you because of or in response to your opinions.
Also no person has an obligation to sit back and be quiet when subjected to this level of harassment and criminal victimization. WE should all be vocal about this crap as members of the gamer community.
Smed especially had the right to voice his opinion and concerns as the direct victim of these crimes as well as because of his unique position as a leader in the gaming developer community.
I sincerely hope his employment change was just part of the corporate restructuring plan already in place. If his position suffered because of his righteous indignation then that's just sad. Smed had the absolute right to say what he did to those people and Daybreak should stand behind him 100%.
how about no? smed leaving is a good thing for all I know
and btw care to share whatever you are smoking? to defend smed it should be a really good one
1) Smed was in charge of SOE for its entire existence, so it is hard to pass the buck of its failure onto anyone other than him.
2) I don't see anyone cheering for Lizard Squad and saying that the cyber attacks he is under are a good thing.
There are 2 different issues here and that really needs to be kept in perspective.
First issue is that Smed is in a war with scummy hackers. Everyone seems to agree that those things being done really suck and no one deserves that. However Smed isn't making the situation any better by raging like a giant man baby on twitter and making the problem worse for his employer, customers and his career.
There is some assumption that this event lead to his departure and anyone seeing his leaving is a positive thing for gaming is somehow an endorsement of Lizard Squads actions. It isn't. The mess he is in with Lizard Squad is separate issue and doesn't negate all the other issues he has.
Second issue, is that Smed has pissed on a lot of his customers over the years and people resent him for that. He has been a habitual liar and his attitude/words can often be pointed to as a direst reason driving players away. Anyone saying that he was long overdue in being replaced isn't wrong, nor does that mean they support his problems with lizard squad.
Notice how no one is saying they don't understand why John faces so much criticism, even to the point of hackers willing to do things that bring them to face criminal charges? No one is surprised that he is no longer in a leadership position? No one is saying that Daybreak games is going to be worse off without him running the show?
I'm speaking in huge sweeping strokes there speaking for "everyone", but honestly I don't think we can find anyone, but the most blind rabid fan who would not also echo those same exact statements.
Smedleys future in the company was questionable the moment that it parted ways from Sony, and is largely irrelevant at this point anyway, nobody is condoning btw, the behaviour of the hackers or the things they did, this is instead a comment on the behaviour of Smedley in response to those things, he effectively 'joined the schoolyard' in a slanging match with a bunch of juvenile hackers, that is not the sort of behaviour you expect from a responsible adult, especially one who is the CEO of a company. Which btw, is exactly the point i was making.
It's really sad that you can't see the difference between someone firing back harsh words and someone doxing, harrassing, DDOSing, hacking, swatting, vandalizing graves, and filing false tax returns that negatively affect not just him but his family, his coworkers, and hundreds of thousands of gamers.
It's just so absurd that you feel since he's an adult he should expect that kind of attack or that such behavior is even remotely warranted. You live in a really fucked up world, bro. FUCKED. UP.
What's really fecked up is that women in general are regularly treated much worse and that's business as usual. But I digress.