Prince Harry — Duke of Sussex, sixth in line for the British throne, and husband of nine-months-pregnant Meghan Markle of Suits and marrying-a-freaking-prince fame — caused a bit of a kerfuffle on Wednesday while visiting a YMCA in West London to discuss the effects of social media and violent video games on children with a group of mental health experts. He seemed to desire a ban on the game Fortnite, currently the world’s most popular free-to-play game. Some of his choicest quotes during the event were rounded up by The Daily Express and published Thursday:
“The game [Fortnite] shouldn’t be allowed. […] Where is the benefit of having it in your household? […] It’s created to addict, an addiction to keep you in front of a computer for as long as possible. It’s so irresponsible. […] Parents have got their hands up — they don’t know what to do about it. […] It’s like waiting for the damage to be done.”
Not everyone was chuffed about Fortnite being insulted. Jokers on Twitter quickly hit upon the most obvious opening volley:
when u come second in fortnite https://t.co/S17qbvmG3O
— Memeulous (@Memeulous) April 4, 2019
https://twitter.com/jbillinson/status/1113858531504152577
https://twitter.com/ckolderup/status/1113845844707405824
Prince Harry only wants to ban Fortnite because he knows he'll never get a victory royal
— Dr Grandayy (@grandayy) April 4, 2019
People also took note of Prince Harry and Meghan breaking a Guinness World Record on Tuesday for reaching one million Instagram followers in the shortest time (5 hours and 45 minutes) after launching their SussexRoyal account. Somebody already had the account by that name (and he’s not happy about losing it), so even that detail was brought up:
https://twitter.com/djfoster08/status/1114153806898528256
https://twitter.com/GameStarterMan/status/1113887345584025601
https://twitter.com/TomatoGodBoi/status/1113943699459837952
Others went in more unique directions for their commentary, with critics even pointing out the recent Oxford University study which found no link between teenagers’ video game use and violent behavior, though it should be noted the Prince never claimed the game causes violence:
this reads like an automatic headline generator from 2018 that's a bit slow
[spins wheel] Prince Harry says that [draws bingo ball] Fortnite should [throws dart at board] be banned— Mike Sucks At Twitter (@tatershark) April 4, 2019
Look, Prince Harry is right. Fortnite should be banned and so should every other game with a crafting mechanic
— pixelatedboat aka “mr tweets” (@pixelatedboat) April 5, 2019
https://twitter.com/NukeNacho/status/1113897987481194506
And some critics of the monarchy cut right to the quick.
I agree whole-heartedly with Prince Harry. Children should not be playing Fortnite. Instead, they should be outside riding on their ponies, sailing on their father's yacht, attending the theatre, or learning how to shoot deer and grouse with the grounds keepers. https://t.co/8kgkQpmAkA
— 🙏🌧🌍 (@godblesstoto) April 4, 2019
I'm 99% sure prince harry thinks "fortnite gaming" means playing video games for two weeks straight https://t.co/RRreUTiNDn
— alexis nedd thinks unions are neat 🎮 💚 (@alexisthenedd) April 4, 2019
Prince Harry saying Fortnite should be banned is getting more attention then a royal wedding. 😂😂😂
— KEEM 🍿 (@KEEMSTAR) April 5, 2019
https://twitter.com/Botty_Cello/status/1113893413731041280
The money spent on his fucking wedding could have sent every child in the UK on holiday for a fortnite. https://t.co/y7gPihEOx9
— RAB FLORENCE (@robertflorence) April 4, 2019
I don't want my kids addicted to Fortnite but equally I don't want to be lectured by a prince with no experience of children, and whose future children will be able to knock about the palace gardens instead of sitting inside playing videogames https://t.co/JNlki7Yl5J
— Anita Singh (@anitathetweeter) April 4, 2019
Even Harry’s grandfather Prince Philip flipping a Land Rover became fodder for jokes:
So Prince Harry wants Fortnite banned.
It's a shame he didn't stop his grandad from getting addicted to Grand Theft Auto…
— Tears of a Clown🏴 (@Modmuffin) April 4, 2019
Oh well. At least there’s definitely nothing worse than social media and video game addiction plaguing England right now:
Unfortunate because after Brexit the UK might become real life Fortnite. https://t.co/MwwjLKS79w
— Ronny Chieng (@ronnychieng) April 4, 2019
(Via The Daily Express, BBC [1, 2], VG24/7, SyFy, and Twitter)