[eCa]

I (as a non-native English speaker) have pronounced it with a hard g since first i saw it (mid ’90s) and many years before I learned how the creator preferred it to be pronounced.

I continue to pronounce it how I prefer it, not as a slight, but most people here would be surprised by the soft g.

If I ever meet him I’ll attempt to pronounce it soft-g.

On the other hand, even though my name exists and is reasonably common in English, I’m fairly certain neither you or the GIF creator would address me the way I pronounce my name. I would understand anyway, and wouldn’t care one bit.