My speculation is that the demographics are mostly immature adolescents and young adults that never experienced the laborious effort of making something and thus have an entitled fickle mentality. I think gaming in general is like this.
Can’t speak to them specifically, but generally anyone of particular note or import is going to be targeted by those who feel sleighted. It’s why Celebrities get stalkers, why Influencers get “taken down” in hate videos, and why small project contributors eventually throw up their hands and say “fuck this” after having enough toxicity from the very groups they’re trying to serve or help.
Some people just cannot stand being a “lesser-than” in their own minds, and will rip apart others. It’s always been there, but the social media and data harvesting era of today has made it easier than ever to terrorize someone you just plain dislike.
I hate that they’ve been pushed to ending the project so abruptly, but I hope they find joy again soon.
I think this is very subculture dependent. Celebrity culture? Sure. Gamer culture? Absolutely. But I feel like there are many subcultures that are much less prone to harassment of prominent community members.
There is also I think a distinction between people whose toxic behavior comes from their miscalibrates sense of entitlement and people whose toxicity comes from their desire to bully someone.
Having done a lot of volunteer work, I know firsthand that many people simply don't realize how much effort goes into something that seems simple. They will make suggestions and sometimes demands, pressing the value and importance of what they're asking. But they don't step up to help. This doesn't rise to the level of bullying and harassment, but it can be extremely frustrating, draining, and discouraging.
Anyone who garners fame of any kind needs to have thick skin because he will inevitably get just as much hate as he does praise. It's probably something fundamental in human nature, or even life itself. I've seen this cycle play out time and time again everywhere across a countless variety of peoples and subject matters.