Highlights
- Fntastic's The Day Before includes an item called Press Armor that insults journalists, which is seen as a response to heavy criticism the studio has faced over the years.
- The game generated a lot of hype but disappointed players with its buggy and broken state, leading to negative reviews and players abandoning it.
- While the insult towards journalists is in poor taste, it is just one of the many issues plaguing The Day Before, and it is unlikely that these issues will ever be fixed since the developer is shutting down.
Players exploring the world of Fntastic's The Day Before have discovered a piece of equipment that seems to exist solely for the purpose of insulting the press, with an item description claiming "no one likes journalists." This jab comes from a studio which has faced heavy criticism from journalists over the years for, among other things, allegedly copying other games' trailers to promote The Day Before.
Fntastic was plagued by controversy and scandal throughout the development of The Day Before, with the accusation of copying trailers being only one among many that were leveled at the company. Despite this, the game generated an extraordinary amount of hype in the lead-up to its release, as fans were incredibly excited by the possibilities inherent in an open-world MMO set in a zombie apocalypse. However, when The Day Before finally launched in early access and revealed itself to be a buggy, broken, extraction shooter instead, players were quick to turn on the hotly anticipated title and its developers.
The Day Before Shuts Down Its Discord After Surge of Angry Players
Following a disastrous launch, new zombie shooter The Day Before shuts down its official Discord server amidst a wave of angry criticism.
But even before The Day Before was slammed by overwhelmingly negative reviews, its developers evidently had a bone to pick with journalists. This is evidenced by the Press Armor, a piece of equipment players can loot off of fallen zombies, which displays the following description when hovered over (as reported by PCGamesN): "Sure, you can hope for some sympathy in it, but to be honest, no one likes journalists." The armor itself is a blue bulletproof vest with the word "PRESS" written across the chest, closely resembling the kind of body armor worn by many real-life reporters doing the dangerous work of conflict journalism.
The Press Armor in The Day Before is one of many lootable items to be found in the game, all of which have their own item descriptions: most of these short snippets of descriptive text are fairly straightforward and functional, making the Press Armor stand out for being nothing more than a vehicle for an insult aimed at journalists. It is possible that other items exist with similarly malicious descriptions, but with players abandoning The Day Before in droves following its catastrophic launch, it is becoming less likely that these items will be found and documented.
Even if it is assumed that the description of the Press Armor was meant as a joke rather than a mean-spirited insult, it is still arguably in bad taste considering the real danger faced by conflict journalists doing vital work around the world. With that being said, an item description being in poor taste is possibly the least of the issues plaguing The Day Before, and considering that developer Fntastic is shutting down in response to the game's total failure, it is unlikely that any of these issues will ever be fixed.
The Day Before
Following a terrible pandemic, players must survive in the harsh post-apocalyptic world of The Day Before filled with infected monsters and other opportunistic survivors. An MMO and survival game from FNTASTIC, The Day Before boasts an open-world, multiplayer environment where players can scavenge and fight for their lives.
