Killing Floor 3 And Maneater Dev Blames “Woke Leftists” For Layoffs

TripWire Co-Founder Compares Himself To Steve Jobs In Bizarre Rant On “Woke Leftists” Ruining Killing Floor 3 Published Nov 11, 2026, 9:38 AM EST James Lucas is the Lead Photo Editor at TheGamer and has worked in professional journalism since 2018. A Newcastle University graduate with a degree in Journalism, Media, and Culture, they have written hundreds of guides, news stories, and original reports, with bylines in IGN, NME, GaymingMag, and VG247, sourcing interviews with studio heads, legendary industry figures, prominent actors, and more. You can reach them at James.t@thegamer.com Studio co-founder John Gibson, who was ousted from TipWire after facing backlash for supporting a blanket ban on abortion, is at the center of controversy yet again after blaming the failure of Killing Floor 3 on "woke leftists." "Woke leftists got me, the CEO, key leader and creative force ousted and the company forced to be sold," Gibson claimed on X. "This narrative that CEO's are just greedy stuffed shirts is destroyed by this result. The same team that made KF3 made KF2, minus its leader. I'm not saying mistakes weren't made following my departure, and I'm not saying I was the only talented person there. I lead a great team of talented individuals, and we succeeded as a team. But pull the linchpin and the machine collapses. Like kicking Steve Jobs out of Apple." Gibson is essentially saying that no matter how talented the team at Tripwire Interactive may have been, without him at the helm, there was no hope for future projects. The inner turmoil at Tripwire may have led to the disjointed direction of the game, and how rushed it felt, sure, but it's hard to imagine Gibson effectively leading a team he ostracized by publicly declaring himself a pro-life game developer. Especially when developers who worked directly with TripWire began to distance themselves from the studio after his comments. John Gibson Calls On Elon Musk To "Help" Save TripWire He's not just comparing himself to Steve Jobs and one of the most successful tech companies of all-time, either. Gibson also asked if he should "get Embracer to give me TripWire back so I can fix KF3, make sure Maneater 2 is great, make Red Orchestra 3 and stop the layoffs?"—tagging Elon Musk to "help" out. "Give me a call Lars," Gibson said. "Could be an Apple and Steve Jobs situation. Gamers and fans get what they want, you stop losing money and maybe make some money again, win-win. I've already got a new company, I don't need this, but I hate seeing fans lose." Now at the center of controversy yet again, Gibson is busying himself arguing with strangers on X about abortion, tripling down and claiming that "a bunch of militant leftists lost their minds over it and destroyed a company." "A very small minority within the company bullied other staff and owners into making a bad decision," he claimed. "I hold mainstream and majority beliefs that are about saving lives." Killing Floor 2 is certainly a lot more popular, drawing tens of thousands of players even today. The community generally agrees that the foundations are solid, but the cracks were beginning to show long before Gibson stepped down and Killing Floor 3 launched, with a mountain of microtransactions and DLC piling on top over the years. But even before intrusive MTX reared its head, the game drew criticism for how much of the first game's personality was lost—similar to what KF3 faces today. Released July 24, 2025 ESRB Mature 17+ / Intense Violence, Blood and Gore, Strong Language Developer(s) Tripwire Interactive Publisher(s) Tripwire Interactive Engine Unreal Engine 5 It’s 2091 and megacorp Horzine has produced the ultimate army: an obedient horde of bioengineered monstrosities called zeds. Now, only the rebel group Nightfall stands between these infernal creations and the future of humanity. Killing Floor 3 is the next installment in the legendary action/horror series. This intense FPS puts you in the boots of a Nightfall specialist joining forces with up to five teammates to battle waves of zeds, earn dosh, unlock skills, and build the ultimate arsenal.