Recently, the parody interactive movie game "I'm Surrounded by Male Classmates!" came under attack from certain sexual minority groups, solely due to a meme-like phrase in the game's description. This past weekend, the student developers released an apology and clarification statement addressing the recent controversy. However, the comments section of their video continues to face coordinated harassment from these groups, who claim the video failed to address the core issue.
"I'm Surrounded by Male Classmates!" is a visual novel created by Chinese high school students, modeled after the classic interactive movie game series "Love Is All Around." The game tells the hilarious story of an unnoticed high school student who suddenly finds himself surrounded by male classmates, enjoying a fun and youthful time. The game is now available on Steam and is completely free to play.
The controversy centers around the meme-like phrase "If you don't play it, you're gay" in the game's description, which sparked opposition from these groups, leading to calls for the developers to remove the game. On August 8, the high school students released a video titled "Clarification and Apology Regarding Recent Controversy Surrounding 'I'm Surrounded by Male Classmates!'"
In the video, they stated: "We apologize for dragging our audience into this flame war. We want to say 'sorry' to everyone. We hope there will be no more disputes in the future. Thank you for your tolerance and support. The video was filmed in a lighthearted manner. We wanted to use this cheerful atmosphere to let everyone know that we haven't been punished or criticized. We also hope to resolve this conflict through our usual relaxed and happy approach. Thank you again for your support."
This apology further angered certain groups, who criticized the 16- and 17-year-old high school students for failing to address their allegedly harmful remarks toward sexual minorities. These groups continue to boycott and oppose the game in the comments section.
Although not mentioned by the high school authors in their response, the phrase "If you don't play it, you're gay" has been removed from the Steam description. The game itself remains unaffected and is still available for free download and play on Steam. Additionally, a mobile port of the game is now available for download on mobile platforms.