Sci-Fi Tech Developer Shuts Down Controversial Video Game Tenderloin Amid Outrage

A San Francisco tech developer who created a video game that transformed the notorious Tenderloin neighborhood into a zombie killing zone has shut down operations after furious critics claimed the game allowed players to target homeless drug addicts.

Creator Pierre-Louis Biojout, who had bragged about the game, changed course Friday, announcing he had removed the game.

“I built and published a zombie game set in the streets of San Francisco. The setting and manner in which I promoted it demonstrated poor judgment,” he wrote on X. “Targeting people struggling with addiction or homelessness was never my intention.”

In addition to shutting down the game, he said he refunded all advertisers and made a personal donation to an addiction treatment and recovery service matching the game’s revenue.

Boijout revealed the free multiplayer browser game on Tuesday, describing it as a “Call of Duty-style zombie shooter set on the real streets of SF.”

The developer claimed to have created the game in a single weekend using AI coding tools, despite having never created a video game before – and had already raked in $300 in ad revenue.

But the game immediately ignited a firestorm, with angry critics accusing Biojout of turning the city’s homeless crisis into entertainment.

“You think you’re pissed but you’re just a huge asshole,” one person wrote on social media.

“Bring back the shame. This is atrocious PR,” fumed another.

Even elected officials spoke out, including Town Supervisor Bilal Mahmood, who represents the Tenderloin.

“Turning violence against real people, including unhoused people, into entertainment is dehumanizing and should never be normalized,” Mahmood told the San Francisco Chronicle.

It appears the pressure has been put on Boijout, founder of NanoCorp, which markets a platform using AI agents to create and manage online businesses.

He told the Chronicle that he walks through the Tenderloin twice a day on his way to his office and thinks the area has a “distinctive atmosphere” that would work well for a zombie shooter video game.

Still, not all social media users were happy with the game’s removal.

“People who bully you have luxurious beliefs and should shut up and focus their energy on doing something rather than complaining about someone doing something,” commented Peter Kazanjy, founder of a sales software company in San Francisco.

“Your game was a fantastic satire,” he added.

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