YandereDev Faces Grooming and Abuse Allegations

UPDATE:

A change.org campaign has been created, urging for Alex Mahan to be taken off of Patreon in lieu of recent allegations.

Here is the link.

In addition, the two main voice actors — voicing Ayano, the protagonist, and Osana, the main antagonist, have officially stepped away from the project.

ORIGINAL ARTICLE BELOW.

YandereDev is not looked at favorably in the gaming nor anime sphere; from his infamous “stop sending me emails” video to the falling out with TinyBuild, a gaming company that was initially going to help complete the hit game Yandere Simulator, YandereDev (aka, Alex Mahan) is not unknown to controversy nor an unfamiliar target of ridicule — the amount of which being justified is up for debate, depending on who you ask.

However, recently, these allegations have gone from “He’s just a horrible dude” to something far more sinister.

These allegations, if proven true, could have significant implications for both the developer and the game’s future. It’s essential to approach such topics with caution and ensure that all information presented is based on available evidence and sources.

The Allegations

A post on the r/Osana subreddit, a subreddit popular for being anti-YandereDev* has brought to light new allegations against Alex. u/AllyMarie93 posts as a proxy between themself and a 16-year-old fan of the game, referred to as “Jane” for anonymity, who alleges that she was groomed and sexually abused by YandereDev over the internet during this past summer. The evidence, as presented, includes inappropriate behavior from YandereDev, such as asking Jane to model certain outfits, requesting explicit pictures (according to u/AllyMarie 93, “lewd pictures and videos to f*p to”) and discussing intimate details about his own nether regions. Most of these interactions reportedly took place on SnapChat, where messages were set to delete upon viewing, presumably to avoid leaving a trace.

Source

The reason that u/AllyMarie93 is posting this instead of the victim, is because u/AllyMarie93 is a youtuber who has created content discussing YanderDev’s problematic behavior in the past. Upon stumbling upon u/AllyMarie93’s video, the victim allegedly reached out with her information.

*The r/yanderesimulator subreddit is heavily moderated by Alex and the YandereDev team, who swiftly ban and remove all negative content in regards to Alex. Thus, r/Osana was created. “Osana” is the name of a proposed character in Yandere Simulator, and who is meant to be one of the main “love rival”s, or antagonists. She was proposed years back, but allegedly has yet to ever functionally appear in the game, being a testament to his inability to finish a game over 6 years in the making. Thus, the name r/Osana is meant to poke fun at Yandere Dev.

The Retraction and Evidence

“Jane”, the minor in question, is still in contact with Alex, according to u/AllyMarie93. Jane has also publicly retracted her statements against Alex, an action which many speculate was orchestrated with the influence of Alex. Perhaps “Jane” believes that her actions will do more harm than good. Perhaps “Jane” believes she is opening herself up to harassment and pain. It has been alleged on the /Osana subreddit that “Jane”s parents are currently aware of the texts and situation, so some suspect that they have a hand in influencing her behavior as well.

However, we here at LAN stand with victims, and hope that the truth comes out, whatever that may be, and the offending parties are held responsible.

According to u/AllyMarie93, “Jane” has multiple voice recordings and evidence that she shared with them, and created a Youtube Video discussing these new allegations.

The Copyright Strike

Further complicating the matter, YandereDev reportedly used the victim’s real name to file a copyright strike against u/AllyMarie93 in response to her video, an action that has been criticized by the community. This move is seen by many as an attempt to silence the evidence and further victimize “Jane”, a minor, by doxxing her.

If it is true that YandereDev “manipulated” “Jane” into filing this copyright strike, he would theoretically be forcing a minor to dox herself. In response, u/AllyMarie93 removed their Youtube video in order to protect the true legal name of “Jane”.

However, thankfully, that video is still available due to the Internet Archive.

Below is an excerpt from u/AllyMarie93’s post on Reddit:

Some of the last pieces of evidence I received from Jane show Alex gaslighting and guilt-tripping her into retracting her allegations, and even asking her to publicly lie on his behalf.

Source

YandereDev’s Response

In the wake of these allegations, YandereDev posted a detailed apology on his blog. He acknowledges the circulating video and admits to making significant mistakes in his interactions with Jane. He details their conversations, admitting to making inappropriate jokes and not shutting down flirty remarks*. He also mentions that Jane began recording their conversations, leading to the current controversy. YandereDev has expressed deep regret and has taken steps towards atonement by donating to RAINN, an organization that supports survivors of abuse. It is worth noting that the creator of r/Osana was reportedly offered more money to buy the “snark” subreddit than Alex Mahan publicly donated to RAINN. Source

*I would like to point out that this statement has an uncomfortable connotation, in my opinion. By saying “it’s my fault for not shutting down the flirtacious jokes she was making” (not an actual quote), it could be argued that he is shifting blame onto the child, a common tactic with groomers who make it seem as though it was the child’s fault.

Conclusion

This is a developing story and we would like to reaffirm that all allegations are alleged and we have done our due diligence to cite wherever possible. We do not advocate for harassment of any sort towards anybody.