"Going Postal": How two filmmakers turned gaming's most notorious "Bad Boy" into documentary gold

"Going Postal: The Legacy Foretold" movie poster at the Harkins 101 theater during the Phoenix Film Festival. Photographed by Alex Gold.

In a world where most gaming documentaries drone on with sterilized timelines and PR-approved narratives, PlayTest Network's "Going Postal: The Legacy Foretold" hits like a molotov cocktail thrown into a Sunday school picnic. Premiering at the 2025 Phoenix Film Festival to a crowd sprinkled with die-hard fans–including one cosplayer armed with a petition for mandatory bidets in every American home. God bless the truly committed–this dive into gaming's most unapologetic franchise manages to be both wildly entertaining and surprisingly nuanced. After the official world premiere, directors Tad Sallee and Jason Sikorsky took some time to answer questions that I had following the screening. 

For those entirely unaware, “Postal” is a video game franchise created by Tucson-based studio Running With Scissors, whose focus is on the nameless “Postal Dude”: just a regular guy that's been beaten down by the world a few too many hundreds of times and, well, goes “postal.” 

Sallee and Sikorsky could have easily churned out the gaming documentary equivalent of disaster porn, simply pointing the camera at Running With Scissors' provocative catalog and watching the outrage meters explode. Instead, they pulled off something far more productive: a balanced look at creative freedom that doesn't feel like a lecture from either side of the narrative, but leaves you invested in the overall discussion, even after the credits roll.

Admittedly looking for an additional source of drama, Sikorsky wanted to add in a meeting with the Parents of Murdered Children (POMC) to include the voices of the families affected by tragedy. As a part of the production process, he sat in on a full 90-minute seminar which he described to me as “one of the most difficult things” he has experienced. Unfortunately, the full scope of the experience didn't make the cut as it wasn't necessarily related to Postal and began to overtake the narrative. For those who are interested in a deeper insight into POMC, though, an edited segment of the 90-minute seminar will be available as a special feature on the physical release. 

What makes "Going Postal" worth watching is how the filmmakers humanized everyone involved. The Running With Scissors crew comes across exactly as they are in person: brash and unfiltered as hell, but also genuinely grateful to the community that's kept them afloat through decades of moral panic whack-a-mole. Having bumped into the team myself during a ticket mix-up at the premiere, I can confirm that what you see on screen is what you get. This refreshingly authentic portrayal stands out in an era of carefully curated public personas.

The documentary doesn't shy away from the franchise's thornier moments either, revealing production details even long-time fans like myself had never heard! These insights about creative vision and staying true to your audience in the face of extreme challenges offer valuable lessons, especially when mainstream acceptance remains elusive.

The film's animated sequences deserve special mention all on their own. These stylized clips break up the talking heads and archival footage, injecting the same nonsensically absurd energy that made the “Postal” games both infamous and beloved to begin with. They serve as perfect punctuation marks throughout the documentary's runtime, creating a viewing experience that's as entertaining as it is informative.

Perhaps the most fascinating thread running through "Going Postal" is how the franchise remained gaming's favorite punching bag long after titles like “Grand Theft Auto” (GTA) and “Manhunt” gained mainstream acceptance. This peculiar phenomenon speaks to something deeper about how moral panics function, and what makes certain taboos more resilient than others. The documentary doesn't offer easy answers, but it does raise fascinating questions about why some provocative content gets a cultural pass while other material remains beyond the pale.

The Phoenix Film Festival screening revealed just how passionate the “Postal” fanbase remains. With attendees sporting franchise merchandise and the aforementioned cosplayer making a statement about bathroom hygiene reform, the premiere demonstrated the unique connection between these developers and their audience. This devotion manifested throughout the five-year production, with fans contributing artwork such as posters, and donating approximately $44,000 to support the project which absolutely floored the filmmakers. "We expected deranged and crazed basement dwellers," Sallee said jokingly, "but they're all friendly people who are just passionate about the IP."

"It's an outlet for expression," Sallee noted about the fans. "A lot are good people who can be different. There's a real juxtaposition between how the media portrays them and who they actually are."

When asked about current industry controversies like “Palworld” and GTA map takedowns, the filmmakers didn't hold back. "Like movies, gaming is very self-referential. In movies, you can basically reshoot a whole movie's scene and it's never a problem. It's seen as a respectful nod," Sikorsky observed. "Music and games are much more sue-happy for basically the same thing."

Sallee added a sobering perspective on the industry's transformation: "When ‘Postal’ came out, the gaming industry was worth $30 billion. Now it's worth $350 billion. It's a shame people are more obsessed with money than creativity."

As indie filmmakers themselves, Sallee and Sikorsky's approach reflects their broader philosophy about creative expression. "We don't want our art to become a preach piece that's clearly pointing towards one side or another," Sikorsky emphasized. "We're journalists, and want people to make their own opinions." 

When asked what title they'd give a documentary about their own lives and PlayTest Networks, suggestions ranged from "Love for the Art" to the self-deprecating "Losers: The Movie." These two filmmakers, who bonded over being Dreamcast collectors and met at a Clinique gig handing out samples, have created something that transcends both gaming documentary and controversy exploitation.

Closing things out in our discussion, there was one message that both Sallee and Sikorsky felt was worth sharing:

Violence in the media should be taken seriously. Every family has a right to discuss the topic, and hopefully this will help stir the pot and encourage discussion. We’re desensitized to it. Postal 1 would be rated T today, it’s tame in comparison. Engage with your kids. Learn what they’re doing.

"It's not about the fame, fortune, size, or where you're making it," they concluded, a philosophy that both Running With Scissors and PlayTest Studios clearly share. For anyone interested in gaming history, creative freedom, or the complexities of media controversy, "Going Postal" offers a surprisingly thoughtful glimpse behind the curtain of one of gaming's most notorious franchises. It's available to pre-order on Blu-ray and will be streaming on Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV soon.

“Going Postal” is a solid 🌵🌵🌵🌵🌵