SUNDAY, JUNE 7, 2026|No. 1957
Gaming · GOG · Apology

GOG Apologizes for Newsletter Featuring Nazi-Associated Symbols

GOG issued an apology after sending a newsletter that inadvertently included symbols resembling those of the Nazi SS, citing a series of internal errors.

GOG apologized after a newsletter included a symbol resembling Nazi SS insignia.
GOG apologized after a newsletter included a symbol resembling Nazi SS insignia.
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GOG apologizes for emailing people Nazi symbols

The company sent a newsletter that included the double S symbol associated with the Nazi Schutzstaffel.

by Terrence O'Brien

Jun 6, 2026, 1:59 PM EDT

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Good ol’ games? Image: GOG

GOG sent a newsletter about the game The End of the Sun on June 5th that included symbols associated with the Nazi SS. The Steam competitor issued a statement attributing the inclusion to a “ series of mistakes,” including miscommunication with the German QA team, inconsistent font rendering, and being understaffed during a bank holiday, among other things.

The game is a fantasy title set in a universe based on Slavic mythology and culture. So GOG included Slavic runes in its email promoting the title, including the Sowilō symbol, which means “sun”. According to one of GOG’s multiple explanations, some platforms, including mobile phones, rendered the rune as ϟ.

Adding confusion to the situation is a statement posted on Reddit by a verified GOG rep saying:

“I also recognize that placing two such runes next to each other could create an unfortunate association with symbols used by the Nazi regime. This was noticed before distribution, and out of respect for local sensitivities, the material was not sent to the German community.”

This has led many users to question why the newsletter was sent out to other localities or why the symbol was even doubled up in the first place.

GOG.COM @GOGcom We are sorry for today’s newsletter. We made a series of mistakes: We created an unfortunate visual association by placing the runes incorrectly, we used the wrong logo for The End of the Sun, we did not check the display of the newsletter on mobile devices - which came out Show more

The developers of the game have also expressed confusion, posting in a Reddit thread that, “We don’t know why GOG used symbols in their newsletter. Really, we were also totally surprised when we saw the logo in the newsletter (the old logo) and the symbols next to the newsletter title.”

PAN's pipeline reviewed approximately 1 open sources for this article. No human editor reviewed this article before publication.

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