One of the most popular Apex Legends streamers has caught the ire of Respawn yet again, with consequences that almost ruined his pro career for the second time in a row.
Jacob “HisWattson” McMillin, a pro player for FURIA Esports, announced his account suspension today after his account broke the rules for harassment outlined in the Positive Play Charter, EA’s standard for all of its online games.
While playing offline with fellow FURIA member Nelson “Xeratricky” Medina, the two players exchanged lighthearted banter and insults with each other, which was subsequently picked up by EA’s automated chat moderation.
HisWattson’s ban echoes a similar situation earlier in the competitive year, where his outspoken nature led to his first ban, which went on to affect FURIA’s start to the pro league.
Prior to Split One of the NA ALGS, HisWattson found himself dealing with numerous ranked games being impacted by hackers, leading to his call for help from Respawn to address the situation. But with the security team off on the weekends, he then started calling out RSPN_Hideouts, the head of Apex security. Deleted tweets included how HisWattson “hates” the dev and that he “wants to clown him on Twitter.”
This behavior led to Respawn putting out an official statement, condemning the harassment toward members of the development team and stating its zero-tolerance policy for any further threats. HisWattson was subsequently blacklisted, later confirming his ban from playing in week one of Split One in the 2023 NA ALGS.
HisWattson later clarified his thoughts from his initial Twitter post, recognizing that he spoke out in anger and said he wished to bring constructive criticism on the issue of cheaters and the dev team’s ability to respond in a timely manner.
Despite the setback, the latest automated ban on HisWattson’s account does not interfere with the start of Split Two, and FURIA will be able to field a full lineup for their first day of competition.
Week one of the NA ALGS starts on March 11, with FURIA competing in Group C. Their first game against Group A takes place on March 12 at 6pm CT. Fans can watch HisWattson and FURIA through the official PlayApex Twitch and ALGS YouTube channels.
