List of controversies involving Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus

The 2017 first person shooter Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus attracted controversy for numerous reasons. Despite the controversies, Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus was released to a positive critical response with particular praise directed towards the game's the characters, narrative, cast performance, and gunplay, as well as the general presentation of the game itself.

Marketing campaign and allusions to Donald Trump and the alt-right movement

Due to the political climate in America in 2017, Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus generated controversy for making several allusions and references to both recently elected President Donald Trump and the alt-right movement.

During a guest appearance by Brian Bloom and Nina Franoszek on the Donkey Con Artists podcast, hosted by The Hollywood Reporter's Patrick Shanley, Bloom addressed the controversy, stating that, "the only thing the new game has in common with anything in history is that the [...] are bad guys, and I hope and think and thought and still do that we all agree."

"Make America [...]-Free Again"

In the lead up to the release of Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus, the game's publisher Bethesda Softworks released a marketing campaign which included the slogan "Make America [...]-Free Again". This was viewed by journalists of many different media outlets to be a play on Trump's 2016 Presidential campaign slogan, "Make America Great Again." The slogan was viewed as a way of "intentionally baiting controversy" by referencing President Donald Trump.

"Not my America"

In the lead up to the release of the game, Bethesda put out a new ad which depicted armoured soldiers march across a street lined with [...] flags while the message "NOT MY AMERICA" flashed on screen. Business Insider said that the message was a reference to the phrases "Not my President" and "Not my America" which were being used by various immigration and civil-rights groups during Protests against Donald Trump. Business Insider also said that the ad, "comes amid real-world debates that broach political and racially charged issues" that were taking place in the United States at the time.

"These are not fine people"

After the Unite the Right rally, the official Wolfenstein Twitter account made a post on 25 October 2017 on Twitter with the caption: "These are not “fine people.” with an attached video of the game's main antagonist giving a speech in front of the Washington Monument. The ad was in reference to American President Donald Trump's "very fine people on both sides" quote during a press conference in regards to a question about the rally. Tristan Greene of The Next Web described the ad as part of "one of the best marketing campaigns I’ve ever seen."

References to Richard B. Spencer

In the lead up to the release of the game, Bethesda put out a new ad in support of punching [...]. Some media outlets described this as a reference to the debate that arose about whether one should punch [...] or not when alt-right leader Richard B. Spencer was punched in the face during Trump’s inauguration in early 2017.

A newspaper that can be found in the game titled: "Meet The Dapper Young [...] Leader With A Message Of Hope". The magazine's title is a reference to the 2016 article by the magazine Mother Jones titled, "Meet the Dapper White Nationalist Riding the Trump Wave" which was criticized for portraying alt-right leader Richard B. Spencer and his political views in a positive light. Video game website Kotaku said the magazine's addition was "clearly a shot at Mother Jones and any other media outlet who decides to start getting cutesy about [...]".

Claims about politically correctness, promotion of communism, and anti-White racism

After the reveal of the first trailer in early 2017, numerous commenters on 4Chan, Reddit, and YouTube claimed that the game was attempting to be "politically correct", promoting communist ideology, and pushing an "anti-white" narrative. The game was also accused of aligning itself with "anti-Trump" organizations. According to Vice, many of the commenters were affiliated with the alt-right and that internet culture and gaming culture in 2017 had become a place where "people will openly defend [...]." Later, commenters on 4Chan, YouTube, and other social media platforms called for a boycott against the game.

Claims about Antifa

After release, some players criticized the game for presenting American Antifa groups in a positive light. Jewish Currents wrote that the game's depiction of antifascists who oppose the regime being denounced as [...] by the government and media was meant be a comparison between American in 2017 and the alternate history [...]-occupied America of 1961.

Presentation of communist opposition to the Second World War

During the section of the game which takes place in New Orleans, B.J meets a character named Horton Boone, a communist who claims that B.J was just pawn of the American government. B.J replies that Horton and his "Bohemian friends" were passing out Bolshevik propaganda and "opposing the draft on every street corner" during World War II, referencing real life communist opposition to the Second World War prior to the invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941. Party for Socialism and Liberation speaker Dawn Frankenberry-Saas criticized the game's depiction of communists in what she describes as a disservice towards the "communists who were on the front lines of the fight against [...] in Europe and who carry that fight forward now, here in America."