Former Gearbox Exec And Claptrap Voice Actor Accuses Randy Pitchford Of Assault
The drama surrounding Borderlands 3 studio Gearbox Software has reached a whole new level, courtesy of a tiff between former Gearbox Software executive (and Claptrap voice actor) David Eddings and Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford.
As you might know, Claptrap — the zany little robot from the Borderlands series — was voiced by Eddings in every game he appeared in, leading fans to assume Eddings would be returning for Borderlands 3. But as we reported a few days back, Eddings let the world know via Twitter that he would not be back to play the character, citing a disagreement about compensation for the part.
There was even more to the story than that, apparently.
According to Eddings, who served as Gearbox's VP of business development from 2005 to 2017, he "had a lot of mixed feelings" about potentially reprising his role as Claptrap, but ultimately decided to entertain the prospect of doing so "for Borderlands fans." He had two demands, however: one, that he be paid royalties for past Borderlands projects; and two, that he receive an apology from Randy Pitchford for an alleged assault incident. And no, you did not read that second part incorrectly.
"Randy physically assaulted me in the lobby of the Marriott Marquis at GDC 2017," Eddings said on Twitter. "Personally, I think Randy's been on the tilt the last few years. He's not the victim he portrays himself to be. I even blocked him a couple years ago for stalking me on social media. Enough is enough."
Eddings then went on to repeat a past accusation: the one about the $12 million bonus that Pitchford allegedly kept for himself. He also claimed that Pitchford would sometimes call people "muggles," which we assume is the Harry Potter term for people who can't perform magic (it makes sense, as Pitchford is a magician). But holy cow; an assault accusation is a pretty big deal. And it goes without saying at this point, but all of this — all of it — is really hurting the positive vibes around Borderlands 3, which most who've seen and played it seem to love.
Neither Gearbox nor Pitchford appear to have responded to this latest accusation just yet, but we wouldn't be surprised if Pitchford lets a reply loose at some point. He had a lot to say about Eddings a few days ago, calling him "bitter and disgruntled." And Pitchford isn't exactly shy about defending himself or Borderlands 3, judging by the way he flew off the handle about the game's microtransactions last week.
We'll let you know if any other crazy things happen.