Deadmau5 apologizes for homophobic slur on Twitch and the meltdown that followed

Update: In a new message posted to Reddit, Deadmau5 said that after cooling down and reflecting, he realized that both his initial outburst, and his "non-apology," were out of line.

"I realize that trying to somewhat dismiss it as 'gamer culture' was even worse. I don't know why I did that. But I do know it was stupid and insensitive and I feel even more ashamed. This was my worst moment," he wrote.

"As for twitch, they had every right to ban me for that, it was clearly in violation of their terms, even if it wasn't ... it was all around an incredibly irresponsible and insensitive thing to say nonetheless. Especially for someone who has a reach. What I said was incredibly stupid, and I don't actually hold those beliefs, at all. I let some gamer get the best of me, and in that moment I completely lost control. And me lashing back with some knee-jerk post about how it may have seemed unjustified... was completely unfair to twitch and its viewers. So I apologize for that as well."

Despite his change of heart, it doesn't sound like Deadmau5 will be returning to Twitch anytime soon: He said he's going to "keep things quiet" while he learns to be a better person, and "focus on cubes and music."

Original story:

EDM star Joel Zimmerman, aka Deadmau5, has announced he will no longer use Twitch, after he was suspended from the platform for using a homophobic slur during a PUBG match.

During that PUBG match, Deadmau5 reportedly accused a player of stream sniping, adding that they were a "fucking cock-sucking stream sniper f**". Shortly after the Twitch suspension Deadmau5 took to his subreddit where he posted a now-deleted screed. Within the very lengthy diatribe, Deadmau5 appears to rule out any further dealings with Twitch.

"i knew it was a fun place to connect and fuck around... but im not going to stand for twitch’s double standard when it comes to censoring and suspending me for harmless shit. While we’ve had some fun partnerships here and there, and they were a great company to work with... im gunna have to cut this one short. I dont have the capacity to deal with that kind of shit."

He continued later, in the very lengthy reddit post: "while it was intended to insult a fuckin asshat who was being a fucking asshat.... it wasn’t “directed at an entire group of people who have a sexual orientation that differs from my own” fuck off with that shit. i know who i am, and i dont have to fucking sit here and cry and defend my fuckingself with the obligatory “IM NOT THAT PERSON, I AM SORRY” reflex. If im sorry for antying, im sorry that we live in a world where bottom feeding pieces of shit can sit there starring at a monitor, watching me play videos games, and just waiting for someone to get tilted so he can get a few fucking clicks. thats what i’m sorry for."

That message is now deleted, so who knows: maybe Deadmau5 has already reconsidered. Back in July, PUBG offered a limited-time Deadmau5 crossover crate, which featured in-game clothing emblazoned with the Deadmau5 brand.

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Shaun Prescott is the Australian editor of PC Gamer. With over ten years experience covering the games industry, his work has appeared on GamesRadar+, TechRadar, The Guardian, PLAY Magazine, the Sydney Morning Herald, and more. Specific interests include indie games, obscure Metroidvanias, speedrunning, experimental games and FPSs. He thinks Lulu by Metallica and Lou Reed is an all-time classic that will receive its due critical reappraisal one day.