Streamer Dan Allen, who was revealed yesterday as the person behind “The Real Insider” (opens in new tab) Twitter account that (among other things) leaked Ubisoft’s big Assassin’s Creed presentation (opens in new tab)has apologized for his actions in a new video posted to YouTube, saying he did it all for influence and “the buzz.”
“I’m ashamed of it. It was pathetic and just unfair,” Allen said in the video. “Many of you reach [out] and say, ‘Why the hell did you do it?’ To be honest, it’s punching power, it’s the buzz, it’s being hooked on the thrill of thousands waiting to hear what you’re about to say.”
When he wasn’t posting any leaks, Allen ran the Dan Allen Gaming channel on YouTube, which offers a wide variety of gaming content, including guides, walkthroughs, and interviews, and currently has nearly 200,000 subscribers. His regular streaming job may not have provided the temporary rush he felt as he revealed big secrets to everyone else in the world, but then again, he’s also much less likely to get sued as a result.
Speaking of which, Allen claimed in his apology that many of his leaks, like those involving Silent Hill and Metal Gear Solid, didn’t violate NDAs because they were largely made up.
“Bullshit. Out of control comments. Half of the posts were guesses,” Allen said. “For example, I posted a photo of Kratos right before the [Sony] Situation. It was an educated guess due to the fact that [Kratos voice actor] Christopher Judge had retweeted the state of play so I thought it would be there. It was.”
Allen may want to downplay the NDA violations involved in his leaks because of the potential consequences that could result. Public shaming isn’t fun, but neither of them get sued for breaking legally binding contracts. And Ubisoft NDAs are no joke. As an example, part of a May 2022 Rainbow Six Siege NDA received by PC Gamer states the following:
“The parties acknowledge that any infringement [of confidentiality] by any party, its affiliates and representatives of the obligations hereunder may cause irreparable harm for which no award of monetary damages may be a satisfactory remedy. Accordingly, without prejudice to any other rights or remedies that a party may have, any party may have the right to seek the remedies of a court order, specific execution and other equitable relief for any threatened or actual breach of the provisions of this Agreement.”
Searching for “claims, specific performance and other equitable compensation” essentially means that Ubisoft has the right to sue you if you violate the terms of the contract. That doesn’t mean it will be, and in the event of, say, a technical glitch or anything beyond the control of the people involved, I like to think their lawyers would label it bad luck and let it slip. But things could be different if someone signed the paper and then immediately and deliberately spat out everything they promised to keep secret on the Internet.
In addition to his potential legal troubles, Allen said he has lost personal and business friendships in the game industry because of his secret leaker life, and has had to delete his personal Twitter account because of the “barrage of hate” he has. received since its unveiling. Still, he said the backlash is justified and he’s not seeking sympathy or forgiveness.
After apologizing to content creators, journalists, PR reps and his followers for his “incomprehensible stupidity,” Allen said he would take some time off to get away and “try to learn from this mistake.”
“In the end I just regret it,” Allen said. “I can’t turn back time, but what I can do is try to be a better person and promise you that this will never happen again.”
No one has charged Allen at this time, at least as far as we know. If he avoids issues beyond remorse, it could be the last time an exposed leaker is excused by the industry. Ubisoft usually doesn’t have a clear target after a major leak, at least not as far as we know, and certainly not one who has publicly confessed. Meanwhile, some game publishers have been getting bolder lately about welding lawyers against individuals. Bungie goes after Destiny 2 cheat makers (opens in new tab) and users with the courts, and last year a teenage Fortnite player reached a settlement with Epic (opens in new tab) about alleged cheating. Cheating and breaking NDAs are different things, but along with the recent GTA 6 hack and what feels like a general increase in leaks, major studios could potentially become more and more vigilant about protecting information, and more likely to the court steps as a deterrent.
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