GDC 2007: Chris Hecker apologizes for calling Wii a “piece of sh*t”

Big “Whoopsie!” moment brought to you by the 2007 Game Developers Conference in sunny San Francisco. And you thought the GDC, for all it’s overblown theatrics, couldn’t be as dramatic as the Oscars. Let this be a lesson to everyone folks: if you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all, okay? Chris Hecker, from Maxis, shot to controversial stardom a few days ago, when words escaping from his lips formed “The Wii is a piece of…”…well, you know the rest.

Word spread throughout the Internet like a brush fire, and soon he was rant fodder for the fanboys. So it wouldn’t be surprising if someone higher up the food chain executive tree gave him a good dose of Listerine (and a “just append name here” resignation letter) and shoved him up stage for a public apology.

Now we’re not one to pick on him for his enthusiastic display just for the “Burning Mad – Game Publishers Rant” event, but he did carry it a little waaaayyy over the top there. So all those who may have found his words offensive, here’s his little “Sorry” note:

I don’t know who has read the internet, yesterday. In a [unintelligible] panel I said a bunch of things. I was trying to be thought provoking and entertaining and fun and a lot of the stuff went too far over the top—on the entertaining and fun side, so that it was no longer thought provoking, just inflammatory. And in the process I hurt a bunch of people I care about. And so, I want to apologize now.

Read Chris Hecker’s entire statement after the jump!

Big “Whoopsie!” moment brought to you by the 2007 Game Developers Conference in sunny San Francisco. And you thought the GDC, for all it’s overblown theatrics, couldn’t be as dramatic as the Oscars. Let this be a lesson to everyone folks: if you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all, okay? Chris Hecker, from Maxis, shot to controversial stardom a few days ago, when words escaping from his lips formed “The Wii is a piece of…”…well, you know the rest.

Word spread throughout the Internet like a brush fire, and soon he was rant fodder for the fanboys. So it wouldn’t be surprising if someone higher up the food chain executive tree gave him a good dose of Listerine (and a “just append name here” resignation letter) and shoved him up stage for a public apology.

Now we’re not one to pick on him for his enthusiastic display just for the “Burning Mad – Game Publishers Rant” event, but he did carry it a little waaaayyy over the top there. So all those who may have found his words offensive, here’s his little “Sorry” note:

I don’t know who has read the internet, yesterday. In a [unintelligible] panel I said a bunch of things. I was trying to be thought provoking and entertaining and fun and a lot of the stuff went too far over the top—on the entertaining and fun side, so that it was no longer thought provoking, just inflammatory. And in the process I hurt a bunch of people I care about. And so, I want to apologize now.

When I’m on stage, I’m me. I’m talking talk from me. From me. I’m not representing EA or Maxis.

I want to make two things perfectly clear.

I do not think the Wii is a piece of [sh*t]. Nintendo needs to be applauded for trying to interface on the controller front, the user interface front, on making games accessible, on making a console that you don’t need to mortgage your house to afford.

Secondly, it’s totally obvious—and I’m sorry that I implied otherwise—that everyone at Nintendo is passionate at making great games. Some of the games give me hope that we will be seen as an art form on par with movies and books.

Not representing Electronic Arts or Maxis. Well, there’s really nothing else to identify him as, aside from being the same guy to use questionable language (“Games are [effin’] awesome!”) at the 2006 Game Developers Choice Awards. Unless you count his new title, which folk have been quick to tie his name with.

Via Kotaku