With the recent talk of Capcom being linked to racism in its latest release of Resident Evil 5, I began to wonder about all of the other occurrences where a video game had been accused of racism. We all know that racism is predominant in our society and that discrimination and stereotypes are well played out and displayed in many Hollywood movies, but is the video game industry following that same trend?First I would like to get something straight. I am a 23 year old year Indian male, born and raised in a small town in British Columbia in Canada. I know racism. The world may see Canada as a human rights leader and a giant fighter against racism, but that is not true. There is a lot of racism in this country, and it's everywhere. Every race I have encountered is racist, all of them. No one is perfect and even I have had some stereotypical thoughts of people, especially of my own people (we're not all cheap :P ). I have been called racist things, I have been victimized because of it and I have always been fascinated by people's obsessions of racial power. But I digress…
The recent, like mentioned earlier, was Capcom latest blockbuster title Resident Evil 5. It had been accused of disrespecting African people and that main character, in this case Chris Redfield, a white male, is going into Africa and slaying black people who are infected and now zombies. Black Looks had the following to say:
"The Black people are supposed to be zombies and the white man's job is to destroy them and save humanity...
This is problematic on so many levels, including the depiction of Black people as inhuman savages, the killing of Black people by a white man in military clothing, and the fact that this video game is marketed to children and young adults. Start them young… fearing, hating, and destroying Black people. "
Chris saving the world or Chris being racist?
To me, that's a little farfetched. Chris's sidekick in this game is a black woman from the country where the zombie infestation is taking place. She is fighting and killing those same black people that the racist white man is killing, fighting the exact same cause that the white man is fighting and listening to the same higher level people that the white man is listening to, regardless of skin colour. If Chris is so racist, why is his partner black? Is she his slave?
What about Punch Out? This classic game is being redone for the Nintendo Wii, and in all honesty, I am now a little angry at myself for selling the system (but then I look at my Xbox and remember how much I love NHL 09). But what exactly is the premise of this game? You are a tiny white great hope, boxing your way around the world fighting every single stereotype known to man. I may not have agreed with the accusations Resident Evil 5 received, but this one is just too blatant. You fight a pizza loving Italian, a vodka drinking Russian and an Indian that obviously has a turban (most Indian's don't wear turbans) and can do magic. I don't think you can get any more racist then that in a video game.
But of course they can, I know this one isn't really a game, but it does have to do with the industry. Sony launched a campaign regarding the Playstation Portable. The point of the advertisement was to promote the upcoming white coloured Playstation Portable. There is no way no one at Sony didn't see what they were doing.
Look out! The White are coming!
And what about the main characters of a video game? Why are they always white? Marcus Phoenix of Gears of War, white. Snake of the Metal Gear Solid series, white. God of War, Resistance, Halo, (well, we don't really if I Master Chief is white or not, but if you had to take a guess) Killzone etc. They are always white. Unreal Tournament had a black main character in the form of Malcolm, but they cut him in this latest iteration (karma for why the game has been an absolute disaster for Epic). Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto series though did have a black main character in the game San Andreas, but oh that's right, you were a gangbanger. The game Farcry let you chose the nationality of the characters, which was nice. And just like the movies, why are there never any black people in most World War 2 games? Black people never fought in the war for the United States?
What could be the reason for this? Maybe the video game industry is just run by a bunch of white people? Or maybe they just think that their market is predominantly white? Either way I think this trend needs to stop. I know people are going to say that I am over reacting, and that it is just a video game, but when the video game industry is making about the same monetarily as the movie industry and growing every year, something needs to change. Little children are playing these games, why should they be susceptive to the same stereotypes that most people in my generation and older deal have and continue to deal with?
Political Correctness isn't a video games strongpoint. There'll always be Shadow Warrior. Who wants some Wang?
Yeah I know this isnt only about RE5 but this isnt the first time someone has brought up the point of RE5 being racists, thats why I specifically talked about that game. Besides I could careless about those other games mentioned in the article.
Not many on the front lines. If you are going to try and make a point you want people to accept at least try to do some research instead of trying to blind us with sensationalist bull ****.
http://www.history.army.mil/html/moh/mohb.html
http://www.historyplace.com/unitedstates/a...rwar/index.html
they were over 2.5 million african americans in the army for the US
http://www.archives.gov/research/african-a...s/ww2-pictures/
i was a history major and my focus was WW2, that's why i love WW2 games and just nit picking the crap out of them. This is my biggest gripe with all of them
Indians, especially the rajput's (who where my ancestors) fighting in Africa and completely destroying the Germans rolling in with their big drums would be nice to see in any sort of media once in a while.
I mentioned blacks because they were the most predominant minority in my opinion fighting for the allies, but a lot of other races fought for the allied side as well. The fact i have yet to see a single coloured person in a WW2 game is completely baffling to me... Games like call of duty and medal of honor pride themselves on their historical facts but yet they are missing a really big part of the war.
As for RE5, if it takes place in Africa then it would only be natural for most of the zombies to be black. Furthermore, he's not shooting these monsters because they are black but because they're friggin' zombies. Maybe if the game penalized you for shooting white zombies you'd have a case.
Furthermore the absence of non-white characters is not racism. I'm sure all those Indian, Japanese, and Chinese movies with their non-white cast must be so solely because of racism and not because of the population's demographic.
Thank you.
And yes, if you're a field op, you're a black guy. Funny thing is, I wouldn't doubt someone would sit and find a way to make that racist.
Example: "Oh, so black people don't shut up when they're on the phone, is that what you're saying? So of course they'd be the ones calling the air strikes!"
I tire of these idiots that sit and try to make everything about race. Get over it, people. I don't sit and bitch when I watch a television show that consists of ZERO white people (or any other race for that matter)...
+1 I remember playing video games to escape from stupidity and ignorance.
+1 I don't see the point of looking for racist overtones in ANYTHING.
The whole rant about Punch Out was stereotypical, not racist.
why cant people just be color blind instead of fishing for racism and insults?
if RE5 took place in Sweden w/ some black guy as the hero...all those NAACP-type groups would be saying "what now? the hero is a gangbangin thug!? how racist!"
They will always be able to find SOMETHING to call racist, right? Racism is an old topic. Time to move on...
The whole rant about Punch Out was stereotypical, not racist.
why cant people just be color blind instead of fishing for racism and insults?
if RE5 took place in Sweden w/ some black guy as the hero...all those NAACP-type groups would be saying "what now? the hero is a gangbangin thug!? how racist!"
Indeed. I think some people need to learn a little more about what racism actually is.
If people weren't so damned tetchy about everything that happens now and getting their knickers in a twist when they can see something that could be interpreted as racist, sexist, ageist, violent, etc, it'd be a much better place round here
I think this needed to be pointed out and brought into the public light.
Fall out 3 also lets you choose race of character, which imo is good, lets have future games adopt this 'function'.
Other than, that, even Indians fought in the world war's, do we see indians? This can go into an argument of a game being realistic and no im not saying count how mcuh each % represented the real military and make it the same... juts saying we need some mix of everthing, so that kids all see that i can have black, white, indians, on my team.
Racism and favourtism is everywhere.
Notice it the next time your sitting inc lass... everyoen sits beside the same race!
There was a long article in the Philadelphia Inquirer a number of years ago that you could search for or I could provide you with (PM would be needed) that explained modern racism and the sad fact that 90% of white America is still racist toward black people. As the article stated, not because they are intentionally racist (like say the 50s), but because they are ignorant. Ignorant in the sense that the only way the majority of them have come to know black people is through major media which depict black people in stereotypical ways. As a result, most white people assume a black person is unmarried with kids, selling drugs (or otherwise being unlawful), and lacks education; among other things. This is the way the media portrays black people and this reinforces the stereotypical images they see in other forms of media.
By showing black (or any race) people in only stereotypical ways we're putting a tall order on people's mind. For black Americans we only represent 12% of the United States population so it is a very safe assumption to say that a large portion of the country has not had the chance to know a black person or interact with one more so than seeing them in passing. It is a very tall order to then say those people can look at the various media from TV, to games, to music and see that a stereotypical black guy is this and then logically separate that from what a real black guy is like.
The only way to end racism is to expose people to other races and other cultures. Games and all forms of media need to be more representative of our society as a whole and not perpetuate problematic racial stereotypes.
It is very naive for anyone to say media has no effect on people's thinking or actions... I don't think games make people kill people, but if you only see black people as gang bangers in all media it becomes hard for you to not assume they all are.
Exactly.
I would like to see that article, if you could find it for me and PM me I would be much obliged.
Also, you might be interested to know that racism has actually been linked to genetics in addition to mass media influence. It's hard to draw a line as to why people are racist, but if you would like to know more about those trials on genetics and racism let me know. The trials that were done were really quite provocative.
Geez, was it pruely the Black Panther movement that bought all those Elite Xbox 360s?
this topic is getting boring.
And calling that Sony ad racist is REALLY stretching things.
But I think now the problem is worse because we all have seen Africans infected by many terrible viruses. So now it became something more "realistic" then ever.
But I think now the problem is worse because we all have seen Africans infected by many terrible viruses. So now it became something more "realistic" then ever.
I know, it's not like those pesky white Europeans ever got infected by that snooze worthy virus Spanish Flu or that boring bacterial infection Bubonic Plague is it? White Euriopeans have had it so easy.
oh and about Master Chief @halo ... i dont think he is human to begin with , i mean he is an AI Soldier.
Dragon Ball was really big for a while. I never heard anyone bitching about Mr. Popo.2
First of all people let's get the definitions right. Racism is the control of recourse from one group by another. If you're a minority that depends on a majority for recourses then you can't be racist to that majority, on the other hand if you're a majority that controls the policies of, hiring, firing and the control of wealth you can be racist.
Prejudice is to prejudge a situation or people; everyone is prejudice in some fashion.
Now I don't think Resident Evil is racist but Capcom should have seen this coming, I can imagine if they did a game in Germany with infected Jewish people what the outcome of that would be. Maybe if they had a more a diverse working environment all this could have been addressed. They need to see the bigger picture, and just because you think this might be a good plot does not mean you should do it.
History People, History.
i just hope there aren't any people racist against green people!
"Every race I have encountered is racist"
People who try to find racism in things like this are just being ridiculous. I hear jokes poking fun at almost every race all the time, and it goes both ways. And I have plenty of international friends who even poke fun at themselves every once in a while. I really enjoy people like that, down-to-earth and honest, never trying to make them look like some sort of victim.
But you... and the readers who sympathize with your article... haha, I'm sorry that you choose to live your lives expecting people to feel sorry for you. Get over it.
Please note, I am not white, but I am an American.
If you really want to be THAT much of a hypocrite, then look at San Andreas, I played the hell out of that game as a black person and did I consider that game to be racist? NO but I guess if we looked through the eyes of the people who cry racism then everything with a main black part in it is racist to white people.
I'm SICK and TIRED of hearing the race card pulled, on everything from education to VIDEO games now…
What you just described is called Stereotyping. That is not racism.
Definition of racism:
1 : a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race
2 : racial prejudice or discrimination
YOU JUST SHOWED YOU ARE THE ULTIMATE RACIST. STOP CALLING PEOPLE NAMES AND WATCH HOW YOU ACT.
I think RE5 needs to be just with zombies of yourself so we can kill them. That would be anti-racist
I think people are just "reading between the lines" a little bit too much in the case of RE5 (although I remember Yahzee having a slight rant about it in Zero Punctuation!). The sony thing is similar but could be considered worse, but still you'd need to be "reading between the lines." That was probably a bad move on sony's part, I have no doubt they'll be accused of racism if they haven't already.
And anyway, what if we invert it and swap the women's roles; would you consider that racist?
Ohhhhh the irony.
The world may see Canada as a human rights leader and a giant fighter against racism, but that is not true
And there goes any credibility right there. I'm sorry if you have been a victim of racism, I really am. But if you think Canada's not doing enough to fight racism and stand for freedom and equality for all then you need to open your eyes. Better yet, pack up and go to a country that has less tolerance for racism. If you think it's "everywhere" then you obviously have never been outside of your small town. Go to a larger city. You will be shocked at the diversity and what's more... we can all get along.
Anyway, I tend to lean towards the side of people being too sensitive. Its hard not to think a particular way about a race when you run into so many stereotypical guys.
I think there is a difference between people who are truly racist, and people who just have stereotypes in their mind. I had a friend once who really was a racist person. It was extremely annoying. Most people I know are not racists like backwoods racists.
Oh here's a bigger question: are you racist if your preference for mate is the same color as you?
My main beef here is with the criticism that there aren't enough African-American protagonists.
Garrett, you say this "trend has to stop", but what exactly are you talking about? Do you think racial employment quotas should be enforced more strictly? Do you think the government should interfere with the conception of video games? I don't see any acceptable measures the government can take, and I don't really even think there is a problem.
Most North-American films and books of fiction have Caucasian protagonists, and I do not think this is a thought-out decision by the part of their creators. Artists and developers don't say "After considering all possibilities, I have decided that the main character should be white." Primarily Caucasian cultures will most often have Caucasian protagonists in their works of fiction, it's completely understandable. If you find the amount of Caucasian protagonists is disproportional to current demographics because the video-game industry is run by whites, remember that racism is not always the cause of imbalances.
PS: And yes, I agree that Sony's commercials were just awful.
You could argue that they cater to market demand, but that approach is excluding large numbers of potential buyers, which is rather insane. I never thought of it before now, but the lack of black or other ethnicity characters is just as bad as a lack of respectable female ones (which I have noticed in the past, not sure how true it is today).
I find it rather silly to presume that group X is not interested in game genre A when that genre is only ever marketed at group Y, and then use that as a justification for continuing to ignore (exclude) group X. You and your mother might be able to both sit down and enjoy the same film, but to gain both your interest it would have to be marketed in such a way that appeals to both of you.
And sure you can sit there and say people are looking for problems when there are none but I think that's just sticking your head in the sand because the truth is uncomfortable. I think that much racism these days happens unconsciously and through lack of care and ignorance, rather than on purpose. But that doesn't make it less of a problem or acceptable. Sure it's less malicious, but is it less damaging?
Perhaps games companies never thought about it before and just need to be told that gamers are not all carbon copies of each other. More options for playable characters would be a bonus. I mean, we play games for fun, so I think that it makes sense to make it as fun as possible for as big a variety of people as possible.... more $$ that way for a small amount of work coding in a few more playable characters.... why wouldn't they do it?
By the way, I always loved the contradictory logic behind anti-racist movements. I remember when I was young and oblivious to the concept of race (never picked up on it and I did live in a neighborhood with a wide variety of races). One day I went to school and all of a sudden they were telling me about races. About how some people weren't the same as me but I should ignore the fact that they're not the same as me and treat them as if they were the same as me. The lessons was essentially that we're all different and we should acknowledge that we're different but not treat anyone different because we're actually all the same. So there I was, in the ideal state and they ruined it. Thanks a lot.
I feel people talk entirely too much about race. If you simply attack it via morals and values then you can side-step the issue altogether.
Last edited by Solid Knight on 08 Apr 2009 - 00:05
You could argue that somebody who won't buy/play a game because of the ethnicity of the main character is racist too. Having a white nerdy main character isnt excluding anybody. How much fun did people have pretending to be Gordon Freeman?
There is a big difference between actively discriminating against someone and the more subtle, passive, barely-there-but-still-harmful forms of discrimination we see today.
Like I said, you can deny it all you want, but to me it just looks like avoiding an uncomfortable truth about society. If you are a white male in a western country you probably never experienced this form of exclusion, unless perhaps you applied to a typically female job or subject. I guess it's understandable why you would prefer to maintain the status quo and power balance tipped in your favour.
As for this or any game, I do not believe it's deliberate racism, but lack of sensitivity and knowledge, which is not really excusable in this day and age. I can pick up and enjoy any game regardless of who the main characters are, but when you look around and see that all the games all focus on white males...well ..you feel out of place. There really should be a greater mix.
If you are a white male and all your games are based on white males, you are on thin ice trying to tell me it doesn't or shouldn't matter. How would you know when this issue never affected you?
I think people need to learn when to switch off and at least try to enjoy themselves.
Last edited by jwjw1 on 08 Apr 2009 - 17:17
Not a good analogy. Steps are a physical barrier to entry while "unintended racism"--which technically isn't racism at all--isn't nor is it a policy that has any degree of enforcement. Really, it just comes down to hurt feelings and misunderstanding. A change of perspective would eliminate said "unintended racism".
Yeah, there are racist people out there hence groups like the KKK. However, the biggest point of contention is that there are groups of people who do nothing more than make up racist motives. Didn't get a job? Racism. Got criticized? Racism. Group lacks some other ethnicity? Racism. And it goes on. Then there is this expectation that White people are supposed to just take it. After all, only White people are racist. What people fail to realize is that all these false accusations of being racist or having racist motives will breed animosity towards a particular race among those accused. Just like you'd get ****ed off if a particular group of people ran around calling you a rapist when you're not. Nobody likes being accused of crimes they did not commit.
If you are a white male and all your games are based on white males, you are on thin ice trying to tell me it doesn't or shouldn't matter. How would you know when this issue never affected you?
If you're going to be selective about your games this might be true. But you're ignoring all the games where you don't have White protagonists or games where you can select characters of many different races. Everyone is Chinese in Dynasty Warriors. Many Japanese games have Japanese characters and those are very popular. Street Fighter and similar games have characters from around the world and people routinely play as other races and/or genders. You'll find there actually a crap ton of games without a White male avatar and yet they still remain popular with White people. I'd bet White people are actually the least likely to care about the race of their avatar or even the gender.
And like I said earlier, if you actually care about the race of your avatar you're pathetic.
The game is not racist. That's the end of it, so to all you wimpy losers out there pulling the race card yet again...SHUT THE **** UP!!
People need to be cognizant of their surroundings. Not walking around with a hypnosis syndrome manufactured by the media or some hatemonger.
Now as far as the Sony ad goes, now THAT's a form of racism. Can't get any more obvious than that. While their intention might have been to advertise a new color for the PSP, they way they chose to advertise was it completely distasteful.
Anyone can spot racism if you look hard enough. It's just a matter of how much you care. For me, someone's ignorance is of no significance to me. I'll still go on being who I am because of the fact that I don't take who or what race I am too seriously. I just try to keep a smile on my face and have a good laugh, and I think that's what most people should try to do. Just enjoy life and stop worrying about petty details.
Double standards, some members of most other races other than Caucasians live in delusion they themselves can not be racist. It's why African Americans can spout racial explicits geared towards Caucasians, but it's over for you should you happen to spout back the big bad "N" word..
Race is only an issue to this day because people make it to be, they aren't willing to move on and co-exist which each other in regards to the fact we are all humans and are equal. Nearly anything can be interpreted as racist even if not intentionally and can cause muck..
For the record, I already know the article discusses other things besides the "big" race issue of RE5. I could say more regarding the whole race issue/debate and my thoughts, but for the sake of my well being I better not say anything else..
Today, stuff like this? This is just whining.
I think you are wrong on that point. I think that it may be predominant in your own mind, but to say that it is predominant in society is a rather out of date view.
I think if you look at the older generations, you may be able to find some merit to that point. These people grew up in times when racism had a myriad of excuses to support it, and dozens upon dozens of media outlets (including many regular television programmes) from which to learn it .
I would dare contest that the overwhelming majority of the younger generations are actually not racist. Thus, I don't see how you can state that society is predominantly racist. It may be that many of those who hold positions of authority still are as they are likely to still be in that previously mentioned older generation, but that is changing as they die off.
Of course, I'm not saying that racism isn't alive and well, but to say that it's predominant is just as ignorant as racism, in my view.
Incidentally, I write this as about a dozen children play football outside of my window, one of whom is black and seems to be as respected as any of the white children. The times they are a changin'...
RE5 is definitely NOT racist. There is no prejudice here. The only prejudice may be against zombies, because maybe not all zombies are flesh eating monsters. Maybe some of them just want a hug.
RE5 is racially insensitive. As someone else pointed out, if the game was about killing infected Jews in Germany, there would've been just as big an outcry. There are historical accounts of white military men slaughtering black people in Africa, and to allow people to re-enact these events, even in a fantasy/horror context, is really more insensitive than racist. In this case, considering the developer, it was most likely not deliberately insensitive, but they should've done a bit more research before doing this.
Think about some other events in history. I live in London, and the bombings from 2 years ago were quite significant. I think it would be very insensitive if you could play a game where you blow up buses, and trains in London Underground. In any other setting, it might be a fun game, but it's historically insensitive to anyone who had to live through those events. That's why it's less of an issue killing zombies in Spain than it is in Africa. It depends on the history of the area and the context of the events that took place there.
I wouldn't be surprised if there were thousands upon thousands of black video gamers enjoying games like these with no idea that they're supposed to be feeling offended right now.
P.S. So, it's still cool to say 'black', right? Or is there some other word we have to use now? Is there no longer an official shorthand for African American? I can never tell. Ah, I pity the Spanish language.
You're part of the reason racism still exists.
People love to complain about anything and everything. If you don't like the video game or what goes on it in, show it by not buying the video game.
Last edited by Raikou Tch on 10 Apr 2009 - 21:12
"If nobody brought false attention to these things, maybe people wouldn't worry so damn much about it. This is just blowing it up far more than it should be."
SO TRUE
To many people need to get over them selves with political correctness BS its has gone way to far.
Its like any thing else
To many people need to get over them selves with political correctness BS its has gone way to far.
Its like any thing else IF YOU DON'T LIKE IT TURN IT OFF and stop bitching
There is no "maybe"? Majority of FPS market (people who buy these games) are white male, military in these countries are white male and game developers in these countries are white male. Rest is minority. Character customization is only solution (for a person who wants to play as a gay transvestite midget woman who fights with dildo).
Evil role is always goes to current biggest "trouble maker" (choice of creator).
Today people forgot what racism really is. Racism is not a positive/negative generalization of group (by any attribute possible: gender, race, country, class, etc.) which is normal thing to do. Racism is denying or (giving extra) rights only because of racial difference.
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