Notch

[[File:Markus Persson at GDC 2011 cropped.jpg|165px|thumb|Literal fedora-wearing neckbeard Notch looking shady in 2011]]
{{Video games}}
'''Markus Alexej Persson''', better known as '''Notch''', {{lived|1979}} is a [[Sweden|Swedish]] [[video game]] designer, best known as one of the founders and former owner of Mojang Studios, a Swedish video game development company, and the creator of the sandbox game ''[[Minecraft]].''

His actions on Twitter have caused him to become a controversial figure, notably for promoting right wing talking points such as "Heterosexual Pride". Many of his statements eventually got almost all mentions of him in the game ''Minecraft'' removed.

==Biography==
Notch was born on June 1, 1979 in Stockholm, Sweden. His mother was [[Finland|Finnish]] and his father Swedish. He grew up in Edsbyn but his family moved back to Stockholm in 1986. Notch bought a large mansion in Beverly Hills, U.S. for an area record $70 million in December 2014.

Professionally he had worked as a game developer for King from 2004 to 2009, then as a programmer for Jalbum. He was involved in the founding of ''Wurm Online'', and ''Minecraft'' which he is best known for.

He married Elin Zetterstrand on August 13, 2011, but by August 15, 2012, he was single again. Notch is a member of the high IQ society [[Mensa]], is an [[atheist]], and a principal donor to Médecins Sans Frontières. As of 2011, he was a member of the Swedish [[Pirate Party]].<ref>Markus Persson (August 19, 2011). [https://twitter.com/notch/status/104581699286990849 "I'm a member of the Swedish Pirate Party, and I have publicly spoken up against excessive fear of piracy multiple times."] ''Twitter''. [https://archive.ph/qgrl5 (Archived)].</ref>{{efn|Considering the left-leaning stance of the Pirate Party, this may contrast with his later political developments.}}

Notch deleted his Twitter account on August 28th, 2020 after he had a feud with Mark Brown from Game Maker's Toolkit, after Brown tried out YouTube ads, but ended up not wanting to use them because Trump ads were appearing on his videos. Notch told Brown to "drop the politics" (whatever that means in this situation), and Brown agreed if Notch deleted his Twitter account, which Notch did.<ref>Iain Lew (August 28, 2020). [https://gamerant.com/minecraft-notch-twitter-account-delete/ "Minecraft Creator Notch Deletes His Twitter Account"]. ''Game Rant''.</ref> Notch, being a spineless individual, undeleted his Twitter account after about a week.

==Bigotry==
===Support of racism===
Notch has become involved in making racist posts on social media, such as "[[It's Okay to Be White|It's okay to be white]]",<ref>https://twitter.com/notch/status/936215345400033280</ref> which is a [[white nationalist]] [[dogwhistle]]. Conflicting with this white supremacist behaviour, Notch has declared as recently as 2020 that the default ''Minecraft'' avatar, Steve, is supposed to be of ambiguous race, and that he had no race in mind while designing the character.<ref>Twitter; @notch, Friday 16<sup>th</sup> October 2020: [https://twitter.com/notch/status/1317079316941897729 "I didn't think about it." in reply to a question about Steve's race].</ref>

Separately, in a now deleted Twitter post, Notch stated "lol. Well, we let N****** the right to vote, so why not?"<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20190430104624/https:/twitter.com/notch/status/22330335379333120</ref>

Notch was also criticized for making comments where he claimed that [[white privilege]] is "made up".

===Anti-LGBT stance===
Notch has gone on record to support Heterosexual Pride Day, a twitter hashtag created as a response to Homosexual Pride Day, making the "celebration" homophobically charged in its goals and intentions:
{{cquote|If you're against the concept of a #HeterosexualPrideDay, you're a complete fucking cunt and deserve to be shot|||@Notch, June 29 2017.<ref name="gaystarnews">Gay Star News; Stefania Sarrubba, Tuesday March 12, 2019: [https://www.gaystarnews.com/article/minecraft-notch-transphobic-tweets/ Minecraft creator Notch under fire for transphobic tweets]. ([http://archive.ph/j8moF archive snapshot])</ref>}}

Bizarrely, Notch followed this tweet up with another, adding "by a photographer", implying that this was an (albeit in poor taste) joke, only to follow THAT tweet up with another finishing it off with the statement "with a gun". It's unclear whether Notch was trying to make an incredibly unfunny joke or unironically suggesting that people against Heterosexual Pride Day deserve to be shot for opposing such a pure and innocent movement.<ref group=note>Incidentally, in places like [[4chan]]'s /pol/ board, the phrase "In Minecraft" would be added by posters to the end of death threats and calls for violence. Of course, this didn't stop one New Jersey man from getting arrested for making threats against a Florida Sherriff who was extremely vocal in denouncing anti-Semitism in his jurisdiction. [https://kotaku.com/minecraft-death-threat-4chan-pol-shooter-arrested-cops-1850241929]</ref>

In addition, Notch has made many transphobic comments on Twitter, including one tweet where he claimed that trans women “[[Alt-right glossary#You Will Never Be A Woman (YWNBAW)|aren’t women]].”.<ref>https://www.newsweek.com/minecraft-notch-controversy-twitter-transphobic-q-1359020</ref> Ironically, Notch defended adults who eat their own boogers by saying "Does it affect you?"<ref>https://twitter.com/notch/status/1104860015410606081</ref>

{{cquote|I'd rather be a [[fascism|fascist]] [[cunt]] than have a feminine dick, so gladly! wait no not the last pa|||@notch<ref>[http://archive.ph/Q2vHQ I'd rather be a fascist cunt than have a feminine dick, so gladly! wait no not the last pa] by @notch (Mar 19<sup>th</sup> 2019) ''Twitter'' (archived from 19 Mar 2019 23:08:39 UTC).</ref>}}

Of note is that, according to Notch himself, before his turning out to be a complete monster, gender in Minecraft is purposefully nonexistent, all characters and entities in the game are therefore homosexual, and he added on how he was trying to use the singular "they" to refer to the default playermodel, Steve.<ref>Tumblr; @notch, July 28<sup>th</sup> 2012: [https://notch.tumblr.com/post/28188312756/gender-in-minecraft Gender in Minecraft].</ref><ref>Owen Good (July 28, 2012). [https://kotaku.com/minecraft-guy-isnt-supposed-to-be-a-guy-or-a-girl-says-5929849 "'Minecraft Guy' Isn't Supposed to Be a Guy—or a Girl, Says Game's Creator"]. ''Kotaku''.</ref>

===Gamergate? Awwww man!===
Because of course someone like him would get involved in [[Gamergate]] somehow. Notch got involved in a slapfight against [[Zoe Quinn]] on Twitter back in 2017,<ref>[https://observer.com/2017/06/minecraft-gamergate-markus-persson-notch-zoe-quinn/ Minecraft Creator Tells Women on Twitter ‘Act Like a Cunt, Get Called a Cunt’] by John Bonazzo (06/13/17 2:25pm) <i>Observer</i></ref> responding to a tweet by Quinn lamenting the events of the movement by politely and eloquently calling Quinn a "fucking cunt". When he got called out he doubled-down and continued to throw the word around like a 10-year old who had just learned the word for the first time. When he eventually found out who he was harassing, he attempted to backpedal while also continuing to stand his ground and affirm that he was in the right.

As for his actual alignment in the controversy, it's hard to tell. While he claims to be against it and in support of those harassed, he's also quick to go after any perceived "[[SJW]]s" with wild abandon.

==Belief in QAnon==
{{main|QAnon}}
{{cquote|Q is legit. Don't trust the [[media]].|||@notch<ref>Twitter; @notch, Saturday 2nd March 2019: [https://twitter.com/notch/status/1101794469060337664 Q is legit. Don't trust the media.]. ([http://archive.ph/srsfN archive snapshot])</ref>}}

Notch has also promoted conspiracy theories, notably endorsing [[QAnon]] at least once, calling it "legit".<ref>https://www.inquisitr.com/5322601/notch-minecraft-qanon-conspiracy/amp/</ref><ref>Game Revolution; Paul Tamburro, Sunday March 3<sup>rd</sup> 2019: [https://www.gamerevolution.com/news/504497-minecraft-notch-qanon-donald-trump Minecraft creator Notch says QAnon conspiracy theory is 'legit']. ([https://web.archive.org/web/20190306044240/https://www.gamerevolution.com/news/504497-minecraft-notch-qanon-donald-trump archive snapshot])</ref>

==Return to science?==
{{cquote|Imagine using a live feed of the water splashing against a rock in a river as your source of randomness.
Someone could attack this by building a tightly controlled artificial river where the splashes become predictable.

Randomness and entropy are just the lack of understanding.|||@notch<ref>Twitter; @notch, Thursday 13th November 2025: [https://twitter.com/notch/status/1988926635274563956 Imagine using a live feed of the water splashing against a rock in a river as your source of randomness.].</ref>}}
Fortunately, it appears that Notch's focus has shifted back to science.

==His baby==
Of course, one can't talk about Notch without bringing up his only positive contributions to humanity, his magnum opus: ''Minecraft'', a sandbox survival game where players explore a blocky environment to build tools and/or create grandiose structures. Originally released to the public on May 17, 2009, it rapidly grew in popularity and eventually grew to become the best-selling game of all time,<ref>https://twitter.com/JasperBoerstra/status/1129408859112652801</ref> surpassing even the likes of ''Tetris'' and ''[[Grand Theft Auto]]''.

Though for the most part the game itself has been without much politically charged controversy, it has indeed been caught in the crossfire in recent years thanks to the way its creator has acted.

===Mr. Jeb, I don't feel so good…===
In March 2019 [[Microsoft]], which had bought ''Minecraft'''s parent company {{wpl|Mojang}} from Notch for $2.5 billion in 2014,<ref>Brett Molina (September 15, 2014). [https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/gaming/2014/09/15/microsoft-minecraft/15658383/ "Microsoft to acquire 'Minecraft' maker Mojang for $2.5B"]. ''USA Today''.</ref> removed almost every reference to him from the game,<ref>Venture Beat; Jeff Grubb, Thursday March 28, 2019: [https://venturebeat.com/2019/03/28/microsoft-rescued-minecraft-from-notch/ Microsoft rescued Minecraft from Notch]. ([http://archive.ph/YJhMW archive snapshot])</ref><ref>Eurogamer; Tom Phillips, Thursday March 28, 2019: [https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2019-03-28-minecraft-removes-references-to-notch Minecraft removes references to Notch]. ([http://archive.ph/FYfHm archive snapshot)</ref> save for his recognition as the creator in the credits. Of course, since people never look into things first before making wild assumptions, people immediately assumed he had been deleted from the game outright, causing accusations against Microsoft and Mojang for supposedly removing the true creator over "minor political differences".

===The texture update===
Similarly, in 2018 it was announced that JAPPA, the game's main artist, would be going over the vast majority of the textures in the game and redoing them, in order to create a more consistent and fluid art style. The original textures would still be available as a texture pack called "Programmer Art"<ref group=note>Also available on the game's Bedrock Edition as the Classic Texture Pack.</ref> but after the textures were officially released, they would become the default look of the game from then on.

Now, any reasonable person would assume this was a decision made to keep ''Minecraft'' fresh and exciting in order to keep up with the evolving competition. [[Crank]]s, however, immediately accused Mojang (or Microsoft, depends on which crank you ask) of trying to erase Notch from the game entirely&hellip; even though the original textures still exist in-game (albeit disabled by default) and are free to use. This one died about as quickly as it appeared.

===Happy birthday, Steve===
Things escalated further when Microsoft made a statement that Notch would not be invited to ''Minecraft'''s big 10<sup>th</sup> year anniversary celebration.<ref>https://variety.com/2019/gaming/news/minecraft-creator-excluded-from-anniversary-due-to-comments-and-opinions-exclusive-1203200050/</ref> Notch did not make a public statement.

==In conclusion==
Much like his own creation, Notch is what one would refer to as a "blockhead". It's also important to note that being the creator of a great game doesn't make you a great person, as Notch excellently demonstrates.

==See also==
*[[JonTron]]: Another example of why you shouldn't let political views overshadow your content.

==External links==
*{{wpa|Markus Persson}}

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=note}}

==References==
{{reflist|2|80%}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Notch}}
[[Category:Alt-lite]]
[[Category:Antisemites]]
[[Category:Atheists]]
[[Category:Billionaires]]
[[Category:Conspiracy theorists]]
[[Category:Gamergate]]
[[Category:Homophobes]]
[[Category:Internet kooks]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:QAnon]]
[[Category:Racists]]
[[Category:Sexists]]
[[Category:Sweden]]
[[Category:Transphobes]]
[[Category:Trolls]]
[[Category:Video games]]

Categories: Alt-lite, Antisemites, Atheists, Billionaires, Conspiracy theorists, Gamergate, Homophobes, Internet kooks, Living people, QAnon, Racists, Sexists, Sweden, Transphobes, Trolls, Video games