The latest Harry Potter video game is getting pushback from all corners due to creator J.K. Rowling’s very public transphobia, but the latest is perhaps one of the most unexpected. Tristan Cooper, creator of the absolutely wholesome Can You Pet the Dog? Twitter account which asks the all-important question, “Can I pet the animals that exist in this video game?” is letting his followers know in no uncertain terms that he doesn’t care to be used in any materials marketing Hogwarts Legacy.
Cooper posted a very strongly worded tweet to his own Twitter page today after it was brought to his attention that the Harry Potter Film Twitter had made a tweet in the style of Can You Pet the Dog? informing players that they can pet the cat that exists in the game. Even though Cooper regularly retweets similar posts to the account he was none too pleased with the shout-out.
Cooper described the tweet as “a low point for CYPTD” and vented his frustration at spending time creating something people liked only to have it be co-opted by what he described as a “marketing machine benefitting an abominable TERF.” TERF meaning “trans-exclusionary radical feminist” and is used as shorthand to describe the so-called “gender critical” movement that espouses anti-trans bigotry.
Cooper went on to tweet that, while he appreciates the work of the game designers, he cannot justify the fact that “the game lines the pockets of an awful yet powerful bigot who is at the forefront of the recent rise in trans hate.” When asked by a commenter why he chose to engage on the issue via his own personal account rather than CYPTD, Cooper replied that he did so “because they were looking for engagement from The Brand and I didn’t want to give it to them.” He indicated that he might be willing to use the CYPTD account in the future if he deems that the issue requires a larger platform than his own.
