Hoffman/Speedo Hoffman

## Howard Robert Hoffman

— **Howard Robert Hoffman**

**Howard Robert Hoffman** is one of the twelve playable Cleaners in *Back 4 Blood*. He is a well-organized and conscientious doomsday prepper who seeks to prove his worth and be accepted as a member of the team.

**Speedo Hoffman**, initially a fan-requested concept, has transcended its origins as a mere skin proposal. The community's enthusiastic reception and Turtle Rock Studios' wholehearted embrace have elevated Speedo Hoffman to a status far beyond its initial conception. What began as a simple request for a character skin has metamorphosed into an integral and cherished element within the fabric of Back 4 Blood and Turtle Rock Studios.

This evolution reflects not only the creativity of the community but also the collaborative spirit between players and developers. Speedo Hoffman now stands as a symbol deeply embedded in the cultural identity of both the gaming community and the dedicated development team. It serves as a testament to the dynamic relationship between players and game creators, illustrating how a playful idea can weave itself into the very essence of a game's culture.

## Themes behind the Speedo Hoffman Skin

The emergence of the Speedo Hoffman skin in Back 4 Blood marks a departure from conventional character depictions within the gaming industry. In many video games that feature character skin options, female characters are often portrayed in swimwear, perpetuating established stereotypes and reinforcing narrow beauty standards. However, Speedo Hoffman challenges these norms by presenting an overweight, middle-aged male character confidently sporting nothing but a speedo.

This departure from the usual depiction of characters serves as a significant step towards promoting diversity and inclusivity within the realm of character representation. Traditionally, video game characters are portrayed as athletically built or young, contributing to a limited and unrealistic set of beauty standards. Speedo Hoffman, on the other hand, embraces body positivity by defying these conventions, encouraging a more inclusive portrayal of in-game personas.

The decision to showcase Hoffman in a speedo not only breaks away from the seriousness of traditional character designs but also introduces an element of humor and playfulness to the gaming experience. This choice contributes to fostering a lighthearted and entertaining atmosphere, challenging the notion that character representation in video games must adhere strictly to predefined norms. Speedo Hoffman's unconventional and humorous approach showcases a refreshing perspective, adding depth to the overall gaming landscape.

## Origins

On August 5, 2021, the inception of the iconic skin can be traced back to a creative plea by Discord user **Legend8K60FPS**. This imaginative request, complete with a visual representation, was submitted in the #b4b-fanart text channel within the official Turtle Rock Studios Discord server.

— **Legend8K60FPS requesting the "Hoffman Speedo" skin**

On August 7, 2021, the concept of "Speedo Hoffman" gained further traction when Discord user **Daddy** not only adopted the idea but also brought it to life through visualization.

The community's response to this imaginative rendition was overwhelmingly positive. Notably, the depiction of Hoffman without a belly button became a quirky and amusing detail that resonated with both users and developers alike. This unique characteristic has since become a focal point in numerous discussions surrounding the unconventional yet beloved "Speedo Hoffman" skin.

## Speedo Hoffman as a Meme

Gradually, what began as a modest concept evolved into a full-fledged meme. This meme found diverse applications, notably serving as a playful tool to jest with disgruntled users on social media platforms. These users were fervently urging Turtle Rock Studios to introduce a speculated "Versus Campaign Mode" in Back 4 Blood, allowing players to experience the Campaign mode while contending with others who controlled the Mutations.

The meme ingeniously employs the "Distracted Boyfriend" internet meme, originating from a 2015 stock photograph by Barcelona-based photographer Antonio Guillem.

## Continuation of the Speedo Hoffman Saga

The fervor surrounding Speedo Hoffman caught the attention of prominent figures within the development team, including President and General Manager **Steve Goldstein**, Co-Founder and Creative Director **Phil Robb**, along with various studio personnel and content creators. Over time, these influential voices acknowledged the phenomenon in a whimsical manner.

This section lists key events in chronological order.

### 2021

On the official Turtle Rock Studios Discord server, **Steve Goldstein**, President & General Manager of Turtle Rock Studios, provided insights into a highly anticipated fan request. Operating under the username **🐢Stock Photo Steve**, he addressed inquiries about a **"Hoffmann Speedo"** skin. On August 12th, 2021, he responded to the community's curiosity with the following statement:

— **Question regarding the "Hoffman Speedo" skin**

— **Steve Goldstein, President & General Manager of Turtle Rock Studios**

**Phil Robb**, Co-Founder/Creative Director at Turtle Rock Studios, revived community optimism on the official Turtle Rock Studios Discord server under the username **🐢 SlabOMeat**. This occurred on November 23, 2021, in response to inquiries about the possibility of a summer skin bundle featuring the coveted Speedo Hoffman skin.

— **Question regarding the "Hoffman Speedo" skin**

— **Phil Robb, Co-Founder/Creative Director of Turtle Rock Studios**

On December 17th, 2021, new details about the Speedo Hoffman skin were unveiled by community manager **Rosalynn "🐢burnttoast" Ty** on the official Turtle Rock Studios Twitch channel. Originally known as the "Hoffman Speedo" skin, viewers were eagerly seeking insights during the "Let's Chat: December 2021 Update!" stream. Rosalynn Ty, in a considerate move, not only addressed the community's questions but also officially christened the iconic skin as "Speedo Hoffman."

"Hey Rose, I need you to send this email out to make sure that...I don't know...we can ask for permission to have Hoffman in a speedo or something like that. And you need to do that now!"
And I'll be like: "Oh, I gotta do that now!"
So I have to work on that and the thing that is extremely important that has to go out to the team that's gets put to the side and then work on that thing (the Speedo Hoffman skin).
It's sort of similar for the rest of development. We have a list of tasks that we need to complete but then you have a gamebreaking thing that needs to be addressed and so that thing (the Hoffman speedo skin) will take precedent.
By the way: According to StockPhotoSteve (Steve Goldstein, President & General Manager), Speedo Hoffman is very expensive so I cannot make any promises that Speedo Hoffman will come into existence.
"Toast we need more Hoffman skins."
Ok. I'll send a note to the team. I can't believe you guys love Hoffman so much. Actually, no I can believe it. He's funny
— **Rosalynn Ty, Community Manager at Turtle Rock Studios**

During the livestream, the excitement surrounding the Speedo Hoffman skin showed no signs of waning, and once more, Community Manager Rosalynn Ty contributed additional details to the discussion:

It was not I that brought the Speedo Hoffman to everybody's attention.
"Steve wants the speedo."
No, Steve doesn't want the...I don't know if Steve wants the speedo. Oh no...what have I done.
Um...what did you (Steve) say before? The skin is expensive because of Hoffman's back hair...I don't know...said something like that.
— **Rosalynn Ty, Community Manager at Turtle Rock Studios**

### 2022

On April 1st, 2022, Turtle Rock Studios unveiled the highly anticipated **Speedo Hoffman** skin for the first time. The character render, crafted by character artist **Alex "🐢skills4u2envy" Boatman**, showcased the playful and unique design of this iconic skin which has received praise by the community shortly after the grand revelation.

Speedo Hoffman render by Alex Boatman
On 𝕏, the captivating artwork featuring the **Speedo Hoffman** skin circulated extensively, drawing attention from the gaming community. Notably, significant contributors to the game, including Evangelo's voice actor, **Alan Ayala**, and Howard Robert Hoffman's voice actor, **William Salyers**, voiced their opinions on this social network.

Alan Ayala shared his thoughts in a post:

— **Alan Ayala via Twitter**

William Salyers, while initially reluctant about additional performance captures for a skin, couldn't contain his surprise and delight at the revelation of Speedo Hoffman:

— **William Salyers via Twitter**

**Phil Robb**, Co-Founder/Creative Director at Turtle Rock Studios, expressed his appreciation by liking the original tweet shared by character artist Alex Boatman.

Additionally, this remarkable artwork garnered attention not only on 𝕏 but also on the Back 4 Blood subreddit. The enthusiasm observed on Twitter was reaffirmed by the Reddit community, swiftly making Speedo Hoffman the talk of the day. This surge in popularity officially introduced the concept to the Back 4 Blood community on Reddit, which had previously been unaware of Speedo Hoffman.

On April 7th, 2022, Turtle Rock Studios unveiled the launch trailer for their expansion, Tunnels of Terror, receiving widespread acclaim globally.

Surprisingly, the Reddit community swiftly redirected its attention to a different focal point. Mere hours after the trailer's debut, a fanart depiction of H.R. Hoffman sporting nothing but a speedo overshadowed the excitement surrounding the expansion announcement on Reddit. Notably, this fanart drew inspiration from a more mature version created by a user on 𝕏, @Daichi\_Akimichi.

The fervor persisted until the morning of the subsequent day, with the positive feedback unmistakably indicating the immense popularity of this particular skin for Hoffman.

Speedo Hoffman fanartSpeedo Hoffman fanart featuring English dialogueSpeedo Hoffman fanart featuring Japanese dialogue
On the same day, distinguished Back 4 Blood content creator **SwingPoynt**, a vocal supporter of the Speedo Hoffman concept, declared during his live stream that he would initiate a campaign to encourage Turtle Rock Studios to integrate Speedo Hoffman into the game.

"Let's all buy speedos and we're all going to take a picture together or all take pictures of ourselves in a speedo."
And I'm going to put all these pictures side by side in our most glorified pose ever.
At the bottom of it there's a banner that says #SpeedoHoffmanForBack4Blood, okay?
— **SwingPoynt, Back 4 Blood content creator via Twitch**

After a hiatus, Turtle Rock Studios made a return to Twitch on April 22, 2022, exploring the Ridden Hives introduced with the Tunnels of Terror expansion.

Community Manager **Rosalynn "🐢 BurntToast" Ty** (assuming the role of Heng) was accompanied by guests from the development team:

* Marketing and Integrated Communications Manager **Alissa Ginny "🐢 Alissa" Barry-Toth** (playing as Holly)
* Community Coordinator **Jenny "🐢 bluejaysong" Song** (playing as Karlee)
* Senior Mission Scipter **Paul "🐢 Dainslaif" Tessmann** (playing as Hoffman)

During the live stream, a user inquired about the availability of the Speedo Hoffman skin, prompting Community Manager Rosalynn Ty to respond,

— **Rosalynn Ty, Community Manager at Turtle Rock Studios**

— **Paul Tessmann, Senior Mission Scipter at Turtle Rock Studios**

Rosalynn Ty playfully inquired about Paul Tessmann's question with a touch of irony, as if she were teasing him about not knowing which Hoffman skin was under discussion.

— **Rosalynn Ty, Community Manager at Turtle Rock Studios**

I wasn't reading the chat.
— **Paul Tessmann, Senior Mission Scipter at Turtle Rock Studios**

Despite the unanswered question, it was notable that a developer associated Howard Robert Hoffman with Speedo Hoffman, creating a subconscious link when discussing the status of a new skin for Hoffman.

On August 26th, 2022, Turtle Rock Studios live-streamed a preview of upcoming content for the game's new expansion, Children of the Worm, on their official Twitch channel. The focus was on the new Cleaner, Dan.

Guests in this edition of the development stream included the following staff members:

* Senior Live Producer **Katrina "🐢 TinyWendigo" Garsten** (playing as Holly)
* Junior Game Designer **Michael "🐢 SwingPoynt" Schrauth** (playing as Dan)
* Community Manager **Rosalynn "🐢 BurntToast" Ty** (playing as Sharice)
* Systems Administrator **Kevin "🐢 MadnessMetal" Yazdi** (playing as Jim)

During the stream, a viewer asked about the release date of the "Bikini Hoffmann" skin, sparking numerous expressions of the community's desire for the Speedo Hoffman skin in the chat. The team members participating in the livestream took note of this ongoing demand, sharing their thoughts and acknowledging the community's persistent interest in the Speedo Hoffman skin.

The employees present shared the following comments regarding Speedo Hoffman.

What a surprise. Oh, (Speedo) Hoffman skin?
Everybody is always asking for (Speedo) Hoffman skin. Always.
— **Rosalynn Ty, Community Manager at Turtle Rock Studios**

I think mostly people are asking for the "Hoffman Bikini" skin which is more specific.
— **Kevin Yazdi, Systems Administrator at Turtle Rock Studios**

— **Katrina Garsten, Senior Live Producer at Turtle Rock Studios**

— **Kevin Yazdi, Systems Administrator at Turtle Rock Studios**

— **Rosalynn Ty, Community Manager at Turtle Rock Studios**

— **Kevin Yazdi, Systems Administrator at Turtle Rock Studios**

— **Rosalynn Ty, Community Manager at Turtle Rock Studios**

— **Michael Schrauth, Junior Game Designer at Turtle Rock Studios**

— **Kevin Yazdi, Systems Administrator at Turtle Rock Studios**

Stream Highlight- Speedo HoffmanA short clip showing the stream's highlight.
## Sources

1. ↑ William Salyers on IMDb.
2. ↑ Request of the Speedo Hoffman (Discord).
3. ↑ Official status of the "Speedo Hoffman" skin #1.
4. ↑ Official status of the "Speedo Hoffman" skin #2.
5. ↑ Official status of the "Speedo Hoffman" skin #3.
6. ↑ Speedo Hoffman ZBrush sculpt by Alex Boatman (𝕏).
7. ↑ Alan Ayala about Speedo Hoffman (𝕏).
8. ↑ William Salyers about Speedo Hoffman (𝕏).
9. ↑ Speedo Hoffman fan art (Reddit)
10. ↑  Speedo Hoffman dominance (WebArchive)
11. ↑ SwingPoynt reacts to Speedo Hoffman (Twitch)
12. ↑ SwingPoynt Campaign #SpeedoHoffmanForBack4Blood (Twitch)
13. ↑ What do you mean "Which Hoffman skin"? (Clip on Twitch)
14. ↑ Speedo Hoffman skin audience reaction (Twitch)