"Bro got no sympathy" — Netizens criticize video game inspired by death of John Edward Jones after being trapped in Nutty Putty Cave 

Fans have had a go at a new video game inspired by the tragedy inside the Nutty Putty Cave in 2009. Situated outside Utah's Salt Lake City, Nutty Putty Cave attracted over five thousand visitors yearly and was a local favorite of the Boy Scout Troops before 2009.

In 2009, John Edward Jones, a father and medical student, was hopelessly stuck headfirst inside a narrow fissure and couldn't be rescued. The cave has since become a grave for the 26-year-old and is permanently closed. At present, visitors can find a plaque dedicated to the deceased medical student.

A snippet from the video game (from @piotrkulla) shows a character entering headfirst into a narrow fissure. To add an extra layer of realism, the makers have included a heart-rate monitor and an oxygen saturation scale.

Netizens on X have been divided about the game - some praised the game for the realistic horror while others called it insensitive. Some reactions on X are as follows:

"Bro got no sympathy," opined someone on X.

"Bro not before wen I was bout to sleep," wrote another.

"imagine dyіng in the worst possible way and someone makes a video game inspired from it," commented another person.

Many people slammed the game and asserted that they wouldn't play it because it was 'disturbing.'

"This I actually find disturbing. No way i am playing such a game," commented a netizen about the video game.

"He could've kept this to himself and just released the game but now it's weird af," opined another person.

"THAT AN HORROR GAME AT THIS POINT," announced someone.

While few others felt it could be upsetting, it would still most likely do well in the market.

"Sometime a man's death is another man's inspiration." They tweeted.

"good lord this is upsetting and it will sell like hotcakes/ great concept, good work," opined someone on X.

"Bro just made Claustrophobia simulator," wrote another netizen.

According to the maker, the video game is currently in development and doesn't have a name or an official page yet.

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Utah caver explains the John Edward Jones tragedy that inspired controversial video game

Matt Paulsen and Richard Downey have been connected with the Nutty Putty caves for many years and were on duty when the John Edward Jones incident happened. In a 2023 interview (via HowStuffWorks), they explained the catastrophe that inspired the video game.

"Traditionally, these types of caves are very complex and feature lots of domes and three-dimensional passages, which was true of Nutty Putty. It had tight squeezes that opened up into a big room, then back to another tight squeeze. It was very characteristic of a hypogenic cave," said Matt Paulsen.

Meanwhile, Downey revealed that several amateur campers would enter the cave without following protocols. This carelessness resulted in many non-fatal accidents inside the cave before the 2009 tragedy.

According to him, at least six different people got stuck inside the cave between 1999 and 2004 but were eventually rescued.

"A lot of the people going to Nutty Putty were first-timers, or they were on a date with their girlfriend and wanted to show off or whatever. They put themselves in situations that they probably wouldn't have if they had just stopped and thought about it for a minute," explained Downey.

John Edward Jones and twelve others visited the cave on November 24, 2009. In the quest to discover Birth Canal - one of the narrowest parts of the cave - Jones took a wrong turn and reached an unmapped area.

The 26-year-old thought he had seen light outside the tunnel and dived headfirst into the fissure. However, he got hopelessly stuck at a 70-degree angle and couldn't move a muscle.

"As cavers, that's one of the things we're taught not to do, go head first into a tight squeeze going downward. Had he been oriented the other way, it's my opinion he would have gotten out," said Paulsen.

As many as 137 rescuers worked tirelessly for 27 hours to get the man out of the cave. However, Jones lost consciousness quickly when blood started pooling in his brain, putting stress on his heart.

Rescuers tried to install pulley systems, but the soft clay walls of the cave couldn't hold the weight. One rescuer got injured when a pulley smacked him on the face after ripping free from the walls.

John Edward Jones died just before midnight on a day before Thanksgiving. The Nutty Putty Cave was permanently closed, and the entrance was sealed as Jones' resting place.