Domina Patch Notes Include Anti-Mask Rant, Gets Hundreds of Negative Steam Reviews

Domina, a video game on Steam, was recently review-bombed due to its developer's patch notes for its latest update.

Domina Developer's Rants on Masks

Domina is an indie action game developed and published by Dolphin Barn Incorporated. It simulates the management of gladiators during the waning days of the Roman Empire. It also lets its players play as their gladiators in arena fights or watch them be victorious or defeated in the arena, according to Bago Games.

Although digital video game distributor Steam noted that all of the game's reviews are "Very Positive," 22% of the 901 user reviews in the last 30 days were positive, netting the game a "Mostly Negative" recent reviews score.

The game's recent negative reviews were due to developer Dolphin Barn recently ranting in the patch notes of Domina's latest patch. In the game's 1.3.18 Beta patch, Dolphin Barn suggested players to "try showing a woman [their own] faces" while discussing the changes brought into the game, such as optimizations for gladiator render/draw routine, fixes on the game's ministrator, and balancing changes.

"Be confident, unafraid of the LIES --you might get a girlfriend. Women like confidence," Dolphin Barn said in its patch notes. "Women don't like dudes who cover their faces in fear."

A Kotaku article mentioned that Dolphin Barn's rant hinted at the developer's opinion on wearing masks in public as a precaution from getting infected with COVID-19.

Dolphin Barn didn't make it clear what it meant by "LIES" in its rant. Whether he meant that wearing face masks doesn't work or that the pandemic is fake is uncertain until Dolphin Barn explains the rant itself.

Players' Reaction to the Rant

As previously stated, the rant didn't go well with Domina's players, who proceeded to review-bomb the game to express their disagreement with Dolphin Barn.

"[Domina] was a cool game to stream/watch, but I guess that was thrown out the window by a [developer] who thinks he has to push anti-medical propaganda [disguised] in a changelog," a Domina player said with its negative rating. This Domina player also advised game developers to leave political propaganda out of gaming.

Another Domina player also made its disagreement with its developer, posting a review that said the game was fun despite the Dolphin Barn being an"anti-mask nutcase" that spreads his ideals in its game's patch notes.

However, not every player went to Domina's Steam page to leave a negative review.

One Domina player left a positive review on the game's Steam page, saying it was a "fun little gladiator sim."

Meanwhile, another player mentioned in its positive review of the game that the game is "great to pick up and play" occasionally, adding that it didn't care about "political stuff."

"... the game has fun and funny game mechanics and interactions," the Domina player said while also leaving good remarks on the game's soundtrack.

All the reviews discussed were posted on March 14.