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Indie game developer Matt has pledged to donate 100% of his personal Playdate earnings to The Cybersmile Foundation starting July 2025. The decision comes as a direct response to the online abuse and harassment he experienced within the Playdate community—toxicity severe enough that he ultimately abandoned the platform.

In a personal blog post, Matt revealed that inadequate support systems for harassment victims influenced his departure from developing for Playdate, Panic's distinctive crank-controlled handheld. His earnings—calculated after Panic's 25% cut and payment processor fees—will now fund Cybersmile's work combating cyberbullying globally.

"Having experienced online abuse myself—and received so little support that it ultimately drove me away... this feels like the most constructive way to turn that experience into something positive," Matt wrote.

The donation targets a critical pain point in tech: platform safety for creators. Despite Playdate's niche appeal, its community struggles mirror broader industry issues—from open-source maintainers facing harassment to toxic behavior in game development forums. Cybersmile, a multi-award-winning nonprofit registered in both the UK and US, focuses on digital wellbeing through education, support services, and advocacy.

This move raises uncomfortable questions for platform operators:
- How should niche tech communities moderate effectively at scale?
- What support mechanisms exist for creators facing harassment?
- When does platform growth inadvertently enable toxic behavior?

Matt’s action transforms personal adversity into systemic impact—funding an organization that provides resources he himself lacked. As gaming and developer communities continue grappling with online safety, his donation underscores that technical innovation must include human safeguards. Perhaps his closing words say it best: "Be excellent to each other."