The Twitch streamer Luis “Lachegga” was banned from his accounts in Destiny 2 in early July. His claim: It is a conspiracy. Critics of the game, like him, are regularly banned by Bungie. Following his allegations, Bungie has now publicly stated the reasons.
What accusations are being made? Luis, previously known in the Destiny community as “Lachegga”, was the largest German Twitch streamer of Destiny 2 until his ban, but claims to have been a victim of a conspiracy by Bungie.
- Several Destiny accounts belonging to Luis were suspended in early July, including a Steam ban being mentioned.
- In further videos, the streamer raised the accusation that other content creators had teased him in an official “streamer Discord” of Bungie.
- His ban would also not be a “normal ban”, but allegedly planned long in advance by other streamers and Bungie’s German community manager.
Critics of the game would often be banned by Bungie and silenced, so one of Luis’s accusations goes. And he has yet to receive an explanation for the ban upon request.
In the meantime, Bungie has publicly addressed the situation. And the official reasoning from the developer is also strongly supported by highly incriminating screenshots from Destiny 2 players.
Bungie cites violations of the code of conduct
This is Bungie’s reason for the ban: In response to multiple inquiries about the ban, Luis received no answer or explanation from Bungie support or the community manager.
On August 9, Bungie publicly spoke out and announced through the German Destiny Twitter account that a local creator and streamer was banned “due to ongoing violations of the code of conduct, particularly regarding harassment of players, other creators, and Bungie staff”.
The opposite route was taken by the now largely inactive Destiny 2 streamer Venero.TV. After the news of the ban broke, he wrote in the comments under one of Luis’s videos:
[…] Dealing with criticism is exhausting. If you ban critics, there’s no more criticism. […] If you don’t love everything that [Bungie] puts out, you’re immediately pushed aside. For me, it was then over with the free packages, events, or community meetings. One can still understand that somewhat. And honestly, fuck it […] But now being removed from the game? WTF, that’s really going too far. What’s next? Striking YouTube videos? How will the game ever get better if the head already stinks?
comments the streamer Venero.TV via YouTube about the ban of Luis “Lachegga”
What happens next? Luis has already announced in his first video statement about the ban that he intends to file legal remedies against Bungie’s decision. He is asking his supporters for financial help. Donations from players have already been received for this purpose, as can be seen in the video.
Ultimately, the situation remains controversial. On one hand, streamers and content creators have demonstrably great influence on the player base and the perception of a game and thereby have a certain responsibility to be role models for positive interactions.
On the other hand, it can be argued that the decisions of game developers and platform operators should not be arbitrary.
What is your opinion on the ban of Destiny 2 streamer Luis and how do you see the balance between freedom of speech, responsibility, and fairness in the gaming community? Feel free to discuss with us in the comments.
Not only does a new path begin for Luis. Destiny 2 is also entering a new phase as the developer is currently preparing for the end of its first saga:
Destiny 2: Everything about the DLC “The Final Shape” from 2024 and the big showcase
The ban from Destiny 2 is also final and will likely not be lifted despite Luis’s appeal.
This is why Bungie takes strong action against violations: Criticism of games and developers is not unusual and often contributes to dialogue and improvement of the gaming experience. However, it is equally important for Bungie how this criticism is expressed and whether respectful boundaries are maintained.
The developer has strict policies against harassment, personal attacks, and bullying. And following the incidents regarding the harassment of a community manager, they seem to be cracking down even harder, consistently removing toxic members and streamers from the Destiny community.
It is no surprise that Luis is particularly in focus here. Furthermore, several screenshots from Destiny players exist sharing their toxic experiences with Luis.
“The largest German Destiny streamer is simply not nice”
This is what players say about the ban: In the comments on various platforms, the guardians long debated whether the ban is an unjustified conspiracy by Bungie and its employees and other content creators or a fair decision.
Those who then further informed themselves and took a look at several screenshots shared by players, allegedly showing in-game chats with Luis, could quickly conclude that Bungie’s decision is correct.
Several players report there of their own experiences with Luis aka “Lachegga#5427” in Destiny 2 and posted various chat logs with various, highly questionable statements.
Some still support Luis and find the ban unfair. But most Destiny players welcome it and agree with Bungie’s decision. “There is a difference between criticism and harassment,” finds HonduhDad™.
Many of our readers also emphasized that they find the criticism of Bungie correct and also the fact that one should point out grievances. But here it is indeed “the tone that matters,” as our reader Millerntorian commented.
MeinMMO reader Marek writes, for instance:
[Luis] knows Destiny 2 well, so his points of criticism are certainly well-founded. However, he is an arrogant unsympathetic person who only complained in a way that was hard to endure. It’s not a pity that Bungie doesn’t want anything to do with him anymore.
comments Marek on MeinMMO
Also the player and MeinMMO reader Hegh commented on our article from July 17: “His insults towards players would have led to a ban on any platform. I wonder why Bungie even let him get away with it for so long. As a streamer, he is in the public eye and is a public figure and his behavior is embarrassing. The only thing I agree with is that they could have informed him of the reason for the ban […].”
Similarly commented the MeinMMO reader Chris: “I don’t even necessarily question whether someone has something against [Luis] (in various positions) and wants to punish him. I just strongly doubt that the cause for all this is [his] harsh criticism. I am much more convinced that [Luis]’s toxic behavior is the reason [for the ban].”
For Luis himself, these comments about how good it is that he was banned are only “mental acrobatics at its finest,” as he emphasizes in a video. He argues that he “didn’t even know that you can only talk when you say things that everyone likes.“
He emphasizes that many other comments reached him that are on his side. And the player yuki. also supports him and comments on Bungie’s post as follows:
Hefty statement ever. You (Bungie) are so pathetic, you should invest in better content and a better anti-cheat instead of dealing with something like this. It’s just sad that people have cheated publicly for months and nothing has happened!!!!
writes yuki. via Twitter
And the Destiny player Chris B. commented: “[…] Obvious cheaters you ignore, but someone who creates content for Destiny 2 and expresses criticism gets banned with a Discord announcement. … not that it was agreed upon and planned. One could have also first issue a warning or think about a chat ban.“
What streamer colleagues say about the Luis ban
This is how German streamers view the ban: Bungie’s decision to ban Luis has not only caused a stir in the German Destiny player community. Also well-known German streamer colleagues like Venero.TV and Nexxoss Gaming have since given public feedback on it.
Luis included a clip of Nexxoss Gaming in his last video, who remained diplomatic and said: “No matter what I say, someone is eventually angry at me because I said something […] But you also have a lot of jealousy and you have a lot going on behind the scenes in the community, and honestly that’s one of the reasons why I’ve done a lot alone over the past few years.“
The opposite route was taken by the now largely inactive Destiny 2 streamer Venero.TV. After the news of the ban broke, he wrote in the comments under one of Luis’s videos:
[…] Dealing with criticism is exhausting. If you ban critics, there’s no more criticism. […] If you don’t love everything that [Bungie] puts out, you’re immediately pushed aside. For me, it was then over with the free packages, events, or community meetings. One can still understand that somewhat. And honestly, fuck it […] But now being removed from the game? WTF, that’s really going too far. What’s next? Striking YouTube videos? How will the game ever get better if the head already stinks?
comments the streamer Venero.TV via YouTube about the ban of Luis “Lachegga”
What happens next? Luis has already announced in his first video statement about the ban that he intends to file legal remedies against Bungie’s decision. He is asking his supporters for financial help. Donations from players have already been received for this purpose, as can be seen in the video.
Ultimately, the situation remains controversial. On one hand, streamers and content creators have demonstrably great influence on the player base and the perception of a game and thereby have a certain responsibility to be role models for positive interactions.
On the other hand, it can be argued that the decisions of game developers and platform operators should not be arbitrary.
What is your opinion on the ban of Destiny 2 streamer Luis and how do you see the balance between freedom of speech, responsibility, and fairness in the gaming community? Feel free to discuss with us in the comments.
Not only does a new path begin for Luis. Destiny 2 is also entering a new phase as the developer is currently preparing for the end of its first saga:
Destiny 2: Everything about the DLC “The Final Shape” from 2024 and the big showcase
