The Thatcher's Techbase mod for Doom is gone again: Despite changing the title to [REDACED]'s Techbase and censoring all images of former UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, Bethesda Softworks has removed the mod again and warned its creator that their account could be temporarily or even permanently suspended if they keep pushing it.
Thatcher's Techbase has been around since 2021, sending old-time Doom players into "the tenth circle of hell—the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland" to put down a resurrected Margaret Thatcher, one of the most notoriously controversial Prime Ministers (outside of die-hard Conservative circles) in UK history. In August, following the release of the "new" Doom + Doom 2 bundle that among other things enables modders to share their work directly in-game, Thatcher's Techbase became available on non-PC platforms for the first time—something mod author Jim Purvis was clearly excited about.
Shortly thereafter, though, the dust-up began. Someone reported the mod for "real-world politics," and it was removed from the official distribution lineup. Undeterred, Purvis reworked the mod, redacting the title and theatrically censoring all appearances of Thatcher in what staff writer Harvey Randall described as "an utter masterclass in malicious compliance ... that manages to be an even more biting political satire than the original."
It was also, as he noted, "a giant middle finger to Bethesda's staunchly anti-politics stance," and it seems that Bethesda doesn't have much of a sense of humor about these things. Just a day after ███████'█ Techbase was re-released, Bethesda has removed it again, and thrown in an "official warning" for good measure.
"This mod, ███████'█ Techbase, has been reported one or more times for a Code of Conduct violation; real-world politics and deliberately disobeying a ZeniMax employee, and has been removed," a new takedown message shared by Purvis states. "As a result, this account is receiving an official warning.
"Further violations of any part of our Terms of Service may result in a temporary suspension or even a permanent deletion of your account. Please take a few moments to review the Terms of Service and Code of Conduct, which must be acknowledged to participate in the Bethesda.net experience."
It all seems very odd to me. Bethesda had no problem embracing "real world politics" with the Wolfenstein games, and the whole Fallout series is built around very real-world fears of nuclear Armageddon, with a healthy dose of American imperialism thrown in for good measure.
Compared to those, Thatcher's Techbase is an absurd, goofy cartoon. So what puts it over the line? I won't argue that this take on Thatcher is in good taste, but it's hardly a fringe sentiment: Let us not forget that Thatcherism, as it came to be known, left what you might call a bit of a bad taste in some people's mouths:
Followers have also taken note of the "deliberately disobeying a ZeniMax employee" part of the notice, which for some is the real icing on the cake.
zenimax employee: pic.twitter.com/PGf0nuCI83September 25, 2024
Purvis hasn't indicated whether he will continue to push his luck with more Thatcher's Techbase reworks, but I would imagine this is the end: Bethesda has to be keeping an eye on the mod at this point and will no doubt drop a heavy hammer in response to further fooling around. On the other hand, he also said, "The charges won't stick, I'll beat the allegations," so who knows? Either way, the good news for PC players is that Thatcher's Techbase remains available in its original, slightly-less-convenient format at thatchers-techbase.github.io.
