Recently, Zoe Quinn accused Night in the Woods developer Alec Holowka of abuse and essentially holding them against their will in Winnipeg. This incident happened early in their career, and they explain they've chosen to come forward now after reading about a similar experience that Nathalie Lawhead had. Following in her footsteps, several others have stepped forward and have publicly made their stories known.
Lawhead and Quinn's stories inspired many others to speak up, with several high-profile video game developers being accused of abusing their positions. The allegations range from sexual assault to physical and mental abuse and everything in-between. Several developers and publishers, big and small, have been called out for not treating the accusations with the proper care, for knowing about certain situations and ignoring them, and for doing nothing.
Alongside Lawhead and Quinn, Adelaide Garner has accused Luc Shelton of Splash Damage of prolonged psychological and physical abuse. Mina Vanir has accused Vlad Micu of sexual harassment at a game developer's conference. Insomniac Games' Mary Kenney also shared a story regarding abuse at the hands of a "game writer/professional."
These are just a few examples of stories cropping up on social media, with a Twitter account @AbuseIndustry being created today to document and share these stories. According to @AbuseIndustry, they've received tons of DMs where the person has been asked for the story to not be shared and to remain anonymous. This account, which was recently created as a direct result of the current on-goings, has already amassed 635 followers.
Various other developers have voiced their sympathy and their encouragement for those who went through these events and have publically shared them. Others have offered support in various forms such as the willingness to talk and have offered resources for those who need it. It's currently unclear how this situation will resolve, but with the traction it has gained since Lawhead and Quinn's initial claim, many will hopefully continue to speak up and have their voices heard.
There have been no official responses as of this writing.