GOG apologizes for emailing people Nazi symbols
GOG, a Steam competitor gaming platform, sent a newsletter on June 5th promoting the fantasy game The End of the Sun—set in a universe based on Slavic mythology. The email included Slavic runes, including the Sowilō symbol, but one resembled the double SS insignia associated with the Nazi Schutzstaffel, prompting immediate backlash.
In response, GOG apologized and attributed the incident to “a series of mistakes.” The company cited multiple contributing factors: miscommunication with the German QA team, inconsistent font rendering across email clients, and staffing shortages during a bank holiday period. GOG’s explanation reveals failures in quality assurance and review processes that should have caught the issue before distribution.
The incident underscores the risks of cultural symbols, particularly when symbols from different traditions may inadvertently resemble controversial historical iconography. GOG’s rapid acknowledgment and detailed explanation of systemic errors represent an earnest response, though the failure of multiple oversight checkpoints remains noteworthy.