Gamers Call Foul: Did Musk Pull a Fast One in ‘Diablo IV’ and ‘Path of Exile 2’?

Elon Musk has long aimed to enhance his Silicon Valley reputation with gaming prowess, expressing both skill and enthusiasm for a genre popular with technology enthusiasts. A few years back, he even elaborated on why strategic video games are superior to chess. However, his recent endeavors to showcase his capabilities in digital realms have led to other gamers accusing him of dishonesty — and urging him to validate his credentials.

In a discussion on Joe Rogan‘s podcast just before the 2024 election, Musk, who — apart from steering a number of significant tech enterprises and supporting Donald Trump — claimed to be ranked among the top 20 players globally of the video game Diablo IV. Although Rogan found this impressive, this claimed achievement raised skepticism, as the dark fantasy role-playing game notoriously demands countless hours of dedication to improve a character and conquer battle scenarios. When would he find the time for all of this?

It soon became apparent that the “top 20” rank had been exaggerated. Musk’s assertion regarding his Diablo skills relied on a list independently curated by helltides.com, rather than Activision Blizzard, the studio behind the game. This unverified leaderboard consolidates the best times for completing a specific “endgame” level, and Musk did indeed claim position number 19, having vanquished a number of vicious creatures and the final boss in a remarkable two minutes and 45 seconds. (He has since dropped to position 54.) Yet, this is merely one narrow gauge for assessing the “best” players, and the rankings were based solely on recorded run-throughs submitted by Musk and a limited number of competitors — fewer than a thousand individuals combined, from the game’s over 3 million active monthly players.

The gaming community was somewhat divided regarding the authenticity of Musk’s Diablo IV proclivity, with some suggesting he had delegated the laborious task of “grinding,” or leveling up a character sufficiently powerful to confront the game’s toughest obstacles, allowing him to swoop in and claim the spotlight after the hard work was done. Others entertained the possibility that Musk was neglecting his other obligations to game for extended periods. While Musk informed Rogan that Diablo IV served as a means for him to unwind (“If I engage in a video game at extreme difficulty, I have to focus entirely on the game, which has a soothing effect,” he indicated), it’s quite plausible he might be gaming while managing other responsibilities. After the collapse of crypto platform FTX, numerous accounts surfaced about CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, who was convicted of fraud, gaming during crucial calls and interviews.

The discussion garnered more attention to a previous instance of Musk attempting to flaunt his gaming expertise. In 2022, he was engaged with a different fantasy RPG, Elden Ring, which he described as “the most exquisite art I’ve ever encountered.” That year, he disclosed his “build,” showcasing a “power mage” character along with its attributes and inventory of weapons and armor. Outside of Musk’s most devoted supporters, the build was broadly mocked as the creation of a complete novice. Critics pointed out that he was carrying excessive items that were illogical — two different shields, for instance — that would render his mage extraordinarily heavy, sluggish, and exposed to enemy assaults. Simultaneously, other gear he selected was not suited for a heavily armored configuration. Again, Musk’s character had attained a reasonably high level, yet this further perplexed Elden Ring enthusiasts who interpreted the screenshot as proof he was unaware of the essential principles of the game mechanics.

Most recently, Musk has irked gamers by ascending the leaderboards of Path of Exile 2, another RPG. Within this game, Musk has played as several “hardcore” characters, implying that once a character dies in the game, it is erased permanently. One of these characters, “Kekius_Maximus,” held the 59th position in the world at the time of its demise, having achieved level 94. Another deceased character, “Percy_Verence,” currently stands at slot number 13, with a level 97 status. Musk live-streamed his gameplay as Percy_Verence on Jan. 7 on X (formerly Twitter), and immediately raised doubts that he possessed minimal experience with the game despite his upgraded character.

As one Path of Exile 2 enthusiast outlined in a Reddit discussion, there were numerous signs that Musk had no clue what he was doing, or at least lacked an understanding of the gameplay mechanics that would have enabled him to advance his character to such a developed state.

He faced difficulties with aspects of the map interface, made expensive yet basic errors, collected lower-quality items while neglecting more desirable ones, and seemed oblivious to the fact that he couldn’t acquire more when his inventory was at capacity. One user concluded that he couldn’t have reached that stage in the game — completing hundreds of thousands of maps — all by himself. “His equipment is superior to that of many full-time streamers,” they remarked. “There’s no way this is authentic.”

The reactions on the YouTube clip of the stream were especially harsh, with numerous viewers interpreting it as evidence that Musk had delegated the labor necessary to reach character levels in the nineties, although there remains no definitive proof to support this assumption. “This sounds like a middle-schooler presenting a book report on a book they haven’t read,” one commenter noted of Musk’s occasionally perplexing comments during gameplay. “I appreciate how the usual Musk supporter can’t defend him here because they genuinely don’t know anything about the game,” another user stated. “This has somehow turned into undeniable proof that he is a fraud.” The most popular reply says: “A lifetime of claiming credit for the achievements of others has led to this.”

The backlash was severe enough that on Sunday, YouTuber and Twitch streamer Asmongold explicitly accused Musk of receiving an unfair advantage by allowing someone else to play on his account. “Did Elon Musk utilize this account to reach level 97?” he inquired during his stream. “The response is quite clear: No. Unquestionably, without any doubt. If Elon Musk can demonstrate that he played this account to 97, I will broadcast on X, commencing the day he proves it, for an entire year nonstop, every single stream.”

Most disappointed, however, were the gamers who had previously expressed admiration for Musk. As one X user who claimed to “defend him most of the time” articulated in a post that garnered nearly 100,000 likes: “Elon has lost the trust of all gamers overnight. Boosting your account and falsely claiming it is the worst transgression. Incredibly cringe-worthy, fragile ego on full display.” Another user responded, “Man, I still hope this isn’t accurate.. I’m such a huge admirer of his mainly due to his integrity.”

Musk, for his part, has not addressed Asmongold’s challenge, nor has he disclosed how his Percy_Verence hardcore character met its demise since the uncomfortable Jan. 7 livestream, and he has seemingly not posted about Path of Exile 2 since Jan. 9. (He also didn’t immediately reply to our request for comment.) It’s possible he’s retreating from his elite gamer persona in light of the considerable backlash. Regardless of Musk’s true skills at the keyboard or console, we understand his emotional connection to the gaming world is profound. The Battle of Polytopia, a video game he once described as superior to chess, led to one of the most significant arguments he ever had with his ex, Grimes, as reported by biographer Walter Isaacson. With both obsessively engaging in the game in 2021, the musician made an impulsive yet strategic decision to betray and attack him after they had established an alliance. Musk erupted at her, while Grimes retorted that it was merely a game. “It’s a huge fucking deal,” Musk told Grimes, as per Isaacson, and he refused to communicate with her for the remainder of the day.

Given that kind of mindset — and Musk’s tendency to lash out at those he perceives as adversaries online — it may not be long before he becomes antagonistic towards the gaming community that had quietly embraced him as one of their own.