Five Nights at Freddy’s Creator Pens an Emotional Open Letter to His Haters

Five Nights at Freddy’s creator Scott Cawthon shares an open letter with his critics.

In a post today, Five Nights at Freddy’s series creator Scott Cawthon wrote an open letter to his critics and haters. The letter, which was posted as a “discussion” on the Steam page for the brand new title Five Nights at Freddy’s 4, is as personal as it is emotional.

“It’s true that there has been a lot of hate toward me lately; on the forums, on youtube, etc. And I’ll be honest, it’s difficult. It’s difficult when people seem to dislike you only because you’ve found success with something,” Cawthon wrote in the post. “I think some people have this idea that I spend my days swimming in gold coins like Scrooge McDuck, cranking out games with no effort, then laughing all the way to the bank. The reality is quite different, and I think that people who hate on me for being successful are misguided.”

Cawthon then goes on to share his recent experiences working at both Target and Dollar General, as recently as one year ago, and how he has tried to maintain normalcy in light of his recent success. “I haven’t had a successful life; and now that God has blessed me with some success, I’m doing my best to be responsible with that success. I don’t party on weekends, I don’t get drunk or sip martinis. I spend my evenings playing Megaman 3, buster only, with my kids. And I try to do good with what’s been given to me.”

Cawthon said he was sharing this because he wanted people to realize he is human, that both he and his games are imperfect, and that that is okay. He also encourages people to spend more time trying to create new things instead of just hating anything.

“People who make videos bashing other people are like people who run into a public square and scream into a pillow. They’ll get attention, but they won’t change anything. If you strive to be like them, then you’ll spend your life screaming into a pillow as well, and your life won’t mean anything… Don’t fall into the pit of people who have given up on making something of themselves, and make sure you make EVERYTHING out of yourself.”

“I’m getting too old for this. And when I retire someday, I’m going to want to sit down at a computer and play YOUR games, read YOUR stories, and watch YOUR videos. Don’t fall in with the people who have already given up on themselves. You are tomorrow’s next big thing.”