Elon Musk has come under fire from content creators after he streamed himself playing Path of Exile 2.
Newsweek has contacted Musk for comment via the press office for X, formerly Twitter.
Why It Matters
Musk has made gaming a large part of his online personality, repeatedly describing himself as a prolific gamer and saying he is one of the top-ranked players in the world at Diablo IV, another major title in the genre of action role-playing games. However, the billionaire's credibility has come into question among gaming influencers.
What To Know
On January 7, Musk streamed himself playing Path of Exile 2 on X, the social media platform he owns, using an account that was ranked ninth in the world for the game's "hardcore" mode, its highest difficulty.
However, viewers quickly noted that Musk's behavior during the stream did not match that of an experienced player. The billionaire appeared unfamiliar with the game's core mechanics, such as mana and looting, and described his items as mediocre compared to his character's level, despite the items in question being considered among the best in the game.
In a video analyzing Musk's stream, New Zealand livestreamer and Path of Exile player Quin69TV said it was "unfathomable" that Musk would have been able to reach the account's level by playing how he did on the stream, as he would not have been able to collect the items that he already had.
Other top influencers agreed, highlighting the extensive time needed to reach the highest levels in the game, which appeared to clash with Musk's schedule.
The billionaire entrepreneur is the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, and President-elect Donald Trump has appointed him co-lead of the Department of Government Efficiency.
Quin69TV said that in one instance, Musk was having a live audio conversation with German politicians on X while his Path of Exile account was active. The gamer speculated that Musk paid people to manage the account for him.
What People Are Saying
Asmongold, a top livestreamer, said while reacting to Quin69TV's video: "There's no way he played that account. I'm sorry, I think he bought the account or somebody played it for him, one hundred f*****g percent … I think he is account-sharing, for sure. Trying to have somebody play your account and get people to think you're a serious, real gamer is ridiculous. It's embarrassing. Extremely f*****g lame."
Hasan Piker, a political livestreamer and frequent critic of Musk, said: "He was so obviously cheating. We know he's not an incredible player. It's funny to me how bad he is. I wonder how much money he spent on this. He just wanted to show off and make it seem like he was a cool nerd."
MoistCr1tikal, an influencer also known as Charlie, said in a video analyzing Musk's stream: "This is so clownish. He doesn't understand how the game works. It's so false it's laughable … He is beyond clueless, and from his gameplay, it seems like he doesn't even know how to play the game."
Musk wrote on X in November: "So many life lessons to be learned from speedrunning video games on max difficulty. Teaches you to see the matrix, rather than simply exist in the matrix."
What Happens Next
Musk has not commented on the allegations. The billionaire is set to play an important role in Trump's new government, which is due to return to office on January 20.
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