Rowling

• Those supporting the trans community had called for a boycott of the game.
• It’s already sold more units than the bestselling game of 2022, and it’s seen as a serious contender for the Game Awards’ Game of the Year.
• But as a social scientist who studies gaming subcultures, I’ve been particularly interested in Hogwarts Legacy’s large following among Black gamers, who, like millions of others, seem more than willing to overlook the calls to boycott the title.

‘That wizard game’

• Some fans wanted to know whether her beliefs were misconstrued or if she herself actually held anti-trans views.
• When Warner Bros. Games announced in September 2020 that it would be producing Hogwarts Legacy, those angry about Rowling encouraged gamers to refrain from purchasing the title.
• Some of them even refuse to reference the game by its name, instead calling “that wizard game.”

‘Black folks done took over Hogwarts’

• The love of this world – and the nostalgia it evokes – seems to supersede the problematic views of the creator.
• And yet the game’s popularity among Black gamers might come as a surprise.
• The game has gained such a foothold in the Black gaming community that one Facebook commenter triumphantly announced that “Black folks done took over Hogwarts and turned it into an HBCU” – a reference to historically Black colleges and universities.

Gaining a foothold in a white male world

• But if you aren’t a white man, it’s important to adhere to the norms and expectations in order to be accepted into the community.
• Communication scholar Mia Consalvo has written about how gamers work to acquire what she calls “gamer capital” – expertise, slang and accomplishments that reflect status in gaming subcultures.
• The requisite benchmarks, the language used and the knowledge that’s valued have traditionally been dictated and determined by white men.
• So in order to gain clout within gaming networks, gamers tend to downplay their race, gender or sexuality.

Separating the work from the creator

• And, does this speak to the age-old belief from political science that Black Americans are socially conservative and therefore more likely to overlook homophobia or transphobia?
• Black popular culture has a complicated relationship with the separation of artists from their work.
• So many Black gamers are primed to separate Hogwarts Legacy from Rowling, particularly since the game makes huge strides in representation.