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Fired female Nintendo employee targeted by Gamergate hits back

Former Nintendo staffer Alison Rapp has spoken out about the events that led to her firing.

Adam Rosenberg

on March 31, 2016

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

Alison Rapp, the former product marketing specialist at Nintendo who was let go on Wednesday for holding a second job, has responded to the company's statement on the matter.

"Moonlighting is actually accepted at Nintendo. It's policy," she wrote on Twitter.

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Rapp -- a self-professed outspoken feminist -- had been targeted in recent months by "GamerGate" and others involved in an ongoing "culture war" over video game fandom. Their behavior included digging up personal information on Rapp and sharing it with her employer.

It was initially believed that Rapp's firing stemmed from the notoriously image-conscious company caving to pressure. Not so, said Nintendo.

"Alison Rapp was terminated due to violation of an internal company policy involving holding a second job in conflict with Nintendo’s corporate culture," a statement issued to Mashable read.

Rapp responded to the public statement on her firing in a string of tweets. The tweets tell a story, from Rapp's perspective, of the events that led to the loss of her job. She also speaks to deeper industry issues that, in her view, have rendered topics like sex, sexuality and social politics verboten in gaming.

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Additional details and context for Rapp's story can be found at Game Informer.

Topics Gaming Nintendo X/Twitter

Adam Rosenberg

Adam Rosenberg is a Senior Games Reporter for Mashable, where he plays all the games. Every single one. From AAA blockbusters to indie darlings to mobile favorites and browser-based oddities, he consumes as much as he can, whenever he can.Adam brings more than a decade of experience working in the space to the Mashable Games team. He previously headed up all games coverage at Digital Trends, and prior to that was a long-time, full-time freelancer, writing for a diverse lineup of outlets that includes Rolling Stone, MTV, G4, Joystiq, IGN, Official Xbox Magazine, EGM, 1UP, UGO and others.Born and raised in the beautiful suburbs of New York, Adam has spent his life in and around the city. He's a New York University graduate with a double major in Journalism and Cinema Studios. He's also a certified audio engineer. Currently, Adam resides in Crown Heights with his dog and his partner's two cats. He's a lover of fine food, adorable animals, video games, all things geeky and shiny gadgets.