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[Gestault]

You can select your race and gender.

Gender: Female
Race: Yes, please.

 

[odhiex]

What do you mean by contextual? In most modern day games, Indian or Chinese will fit the context.

Well, I mean if they want to include them in games.. It has to have some sort of believability.

I remember when I was playing Just Cause 2, it had some glorious references of the Southeast Asian cultures (Malay names for places, Thailands literatures). That didn't make sense to me. The other main girl (I forget her name) has strong english-Chinese accent until it becomes stereotypical in depicting an Asian character.

The other day, I tried Farcry 3.I noticed that the islands fully domain by multi-races people. They mainly spoke in Indo-malay language, but their accents sound like they came from Africa, some people looks like from Vietnam territories or some place else (please ignore if I recalled it incorrectly). Many more examples that I could not bring here, but I hope that you get the points.

I know that majority of players wouldn't even care and Video games are supposed to be fun by not taking this so seriously. Some players may found it interesting because it feels so exotic and new to them.. But it often kills my personal immersion, because I noticed some minor errors like above in the games.

It is interesting for sure to include them, but come on... They could have done a better research to make it believable.

 

[Buburibon]

I'm black. Sure it sucks that there aren't more black protagonists in video games, but the reality is that there aren't much of anything other than white (mostly male) people in video games. If I were to complain about the lack of black characters or their representation, then so can a Hispanic, Vietnamese, Portuguese, etc, etc all the way down the line.

Definitely, and it gets even more complicated when you consider that there is tremendous racial variety within Hispanics/Latin Americans, Italians, and Portuguese. I personally know a few blond, blue-eyed (Caucasian) Portuguese nationals now residing here in Canada who do not feel discriminated by the media (at all), while some of their fellow countryman who happen to be of African descent clearly do.

 

[test_account]

I think the problem with "color-blindness" is that it's such a dishonest defense mechanism.

because it's impossible to not see color. It's impossible to live in a vacuum and not be shaped at least partially by the environment around you and the dominant views on race/gender/sexuality that you're exposed to within that environment.

What's important is how you deal with it. That you're able to identify and reflect on your problematic thoughts or actions and gain perspective from them.

Proclaiming that you're color blind prevents that. There's no need for introspection when you're OBVIOUSLY not racist. It's just an excuse for an individual to not have to do any real deep thinking about the issue or themselves. It's just a way to remove yourself from the problem so you don't have to deal with it.

So it really has no place in a discussion about race I feel.

I already replied to Stumpakapow about this before i saw your post, but earlier i was thinking that it was only a matter of skin color, and i wanted to reply that this isnt an issue at all for many. If there were more to it than skin color, then i misunderstood something, but i I didnt account for anything else than skin color when i first replied to this.

Not being concerned about skin color doesnt mean that you cant reflect on the racism that unfortunately excist. Like you say, whats important is how you deal with it. Maybe for some its an excuse to "push the problem away", but i wouldnt say that it necessarily applies to everyone who might say that race isnt important to them. Its fully possible to respect and appreciate the positive sides that differences brings as well. I think "race doesnt matter" can mean several of things, it depends exactly on what the indivdual who says it puts into that phrase.

 

[Jea Song]

The most racist people in my mind are do-gooders who like to bring up the issue of 'race' at all. It's not something I normally would ever think about.

This is the dumbest post of the thread. So by pointing out how little minorities are represented in video games... Those are the racist ones? And why don't you think about it? Maybe it's a non issue for you but for many of us.. A few million, deal with it on daily basis.

Maybe if Xbox one is successful in China developers will be forced to make their main characters Asian to appeal more to them. After all, while Asians might be a minority in the US for example, they are the majority in the world.

 

[Gestault]

This is partly off-topic, but can I just say that this, for my tastes, has been one of the best days for discussion on Neogaf I've ever encountered? The scope and depth of the conversation (with serious contributions from more mods than I can name) has felt completely different from the hobbyist bickering I usually end up encountering (mostly by choice, admittedly).

Closer to the topic though, I just don't understand why drawing from a broader range of cultural backgrounds hasn't happened more quickly just in terms of producing novel narratives for game writing. When so much of the sentiment you see from almost every direction is how the range of experiences in big-box game production can feel overly similar, I can't imagine why this almost immeasurably large backlog of human experience isn't brought in as response to it. On a deeply selfish level, my dream of a Cajun/Creole music rhythm game must come to be.

 

[Infinite]

Well that itself is a double-edged image; to the extent that it's a symbol of authentic black hair, that's a great thing. I mean, that's what it was for the Panthers, and that's what it was a symbol of liberation. Personally I took the chocobo as being sort of a fantasy take on the fact that historically some people who wore fros walked around with the fro pick in their fro. It's a sort of affirming statement "This is how I was made".

To the extent that it's a symbol of the white (here I'm using the term white not to mean exclusively caucasian, but also to refer to individuals whose ethnicities are embedded in the power structure of the culture they live in, including asians in ethnically homogeneous countries and thus FF13's designers; this is not me attempting to render invisible asian ethnicity or Japanese nationality, which both have unique and rich characteristics expressed in many contexts) perception that hair ought to be neat and restrained and ordered, or the historical association which black features as "wild", or more animal-natured than white features, and differing.

I mean my main concern is that if a white person says "What does a black person look like?" and comes up with Mr. T and leans on that, that's racist. Not that it's hateful, but that it de-values and disrespects in a more subtle way. And even if they don't sort of know why those traits (ebonics, the hair, the visual style) are a part of a stereotype, borrowing the stereotype rather than asking real people to share their real perspective as a person of colour is exclusive.

Again I can't speak much to how Sazh sizes up in the end, just to say I understand what the negative first reaction to him is, but I also understand how the characterization might prove to challenge that first reaction and represent good characterization on SE's part. Had Sazh been made exactly the same visually in a game where the development team had significant representation of people of colour, I think people would be more inclined to have a charitable first read... rather than being made by the same company that gave us Barrett, which was literally a case of white people saying "What does a black person look and sound like?"

I don't disagree but the chocobo living in his hair strikes me the wrong way. I don't think that was Square's intent to perpetuate this sort of animalistic view on black features but Japanese people have curly similar to Sazh and in their media I see jokes made about that type of hair being like a nest. I think Sazh's hair and the chocobo in it is a reference to that.

 

[MagnaderAlpha]

Why can't adding several Latinos, blacks or Asians into the mix just be normal and okay? A black Spider-man is no worse and no more forced than the hundreds of white comic book and video game heroes, fantasy/sci-fi ensemble casts, and so on. Obviously you don't just wanna add a poorly written minority character that is either a walking stereotype or simply a stand-in for a white person, but there are easy ways to just include diversity without acting like your product has suddenly and radically become a race thing that will turn everyone off to it.

I think the problem is that people can't see past the fact that a character is a character, regardless of their race or cultural background. If yo want to make a businessman-like character, who he is, first and foremost, is a smart, savvy, well-dressed business man. He could like jazz, he could drive fast or he could also be financial genius. What ethnical background, race, religion and such comes second. Hell, he doesn't even have to be a man, he could be a just as savvy business woman. Just like Martin Luther King Jr. said, "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.". Who a person is is more important what color of their skin is.

Now, one might say, "Well then, that proves that people shouldn't want developers to add more different racially diverse characters, or at least not complain, because it doesn't matter!". But, you can also say that if it really doesn't matter, developers could, without bias or insecurities, make any character any race they want because, quite frankly, the character is the character first and even if you make them Black, Latino, Asian, Middle Easter or other, it wouldn't compromise the character you wrote because the character comes first, the race comes second. And for the audience, the gamers, it really wouldn't matter either as long as they feel the same way. You like a character who's a bald, buff space marine because he's a "badass, buff space marine", not because he's white or black, don't you? What if the bald buff space marine was Middle Eastern? What if he was Asian? What if he was a SHE(and was bald, but just as buff... and a SPACE MARINE!)? Does it matter?

And personally speaking, I don't mind playing as a slew of white video game characters(even though I'm not white myself). I never had that problem. It IS a part of being conditioned to feel that way, but, I also don't mind playing as characters of other races, or even women. Race and gender doesn't mean a thing in my book. If we could have all or none, why not have it all? Besides, I've always focused more on the characters than what color they where, Personality stands out above one's skin color, and is rooted far deeper in one's soul than a shade of color can ever be.

 

[Proponent]

I think its something you start to notice and pay attention to more as you get older. One thing I have noticed is when observing younger players of games with character creators. You'll see black and brown kids making the mid 20s white square jawed character you see on almost every game box. They have been trained to think that there is no way a character that looks even remotely like them (skin color is only one factor of many) can be the hero. Thousands of hours of media where the one saving the day or driving the plot is the same archetype has effects, and it ends up with the old saying 'you can't be what you don't see'.

People don't want to insert themselves into the background token character full of stereotypes that exists for comic relief. When almost every piece of media you consume over many years is deliberately excluding entire swathes of the population and favoring one, it's also telling you that you aren't important couldn't even be in these fantasy worlds we create for entertainment.

Which games are you citing in this example? Can you name more then one specifically? And who are these 'kids' you speak of?
I'm curious and interested in that statement because to me it seems like a generalization, and does not match up with anything I have seen or experienced first hand.

I know when I'm given an option for a 'create a character', I have NEVER made or designed one as you've described. EVER.

Now, if you are reffering to is the phenomenon of Mass Effect, then yes, on my first playthrough I did choose to use the DEFAULT male Shepard look for my first run, who actually originally in the first game looked sort of tan on the box cover art to begin with anyway.

The problem with Mass Effect as an example though, is that Bioware did such an outstanding job creating a cool looking, interesting protagonist to play as to begin with in the first place. Its hard to pass up on that. I WANTED to play as THAT Shep. The character design was handled exceptionally well imo.

BUT, yes but, I DID go on to play as default female, and I also created a custom male and female character, of which both were not white.

My custom created male character was the playthrough I felt most attached to in my experience. That build recieved three trilogy playthroughs.

My point is, that when actually given the option to 'create a character', I have always made one that closely resembles myself as much as possible, and I have never just created a white male as you described, even though I have chosen to run with the default caucasian protagonist, its not the same as 'making' one from scratch. I would not invest my time in that fashion personally.

Mass Effect will always be a poor example because they did such an excellent job in creating male Shepard, there was never much incentive to spend time making your own. He looked good and you wanted to play as him.

But again, and I guess with redundancy, it should be noted I DID go on to make my own version for representation who did go on to become my considered 'main'.

So, I am curious as to what 'games' you are referring to? And who are these 'kids' you mentioned?

 

[Infinite]

I already replied to Stumpakapow about this before i saw your post, but earlier i was thinking that it was only a matter of skin color, and i wanted to reply that this isnt an issue at all for many. If there were more to it than skin color, then i misunderstood something, but i I didnt account for anything else than skin color when i first replied to this.

Not being concerned about skin color doesnt mean that you cant reflect on the racism that unfortunately excist. Like you say, whats important is how you deal with it. Maybe for some its an excuse to "push the problem away", but i wouldnt say that it necessarily applies to everyone who might say that race isnt important to them. Its fully possible to respect and appreciate the positive sides that differences brings as well. I think "race doesnt matter" can mean several of things, it depends exactly on what the indivdual who says it puts into that phrase.

Well how can you be concerned about a problem if you fail to acknowledge the factor that makes it a problem?

 

[Retro_]

.
Not being concerned about skin color doesnt mean that you cant reflect on the racism that unfortunately excist. Like you say, whats important is how you deal with it. Maybe for some its an excuse to "push the problem away", but i wouldnt say that it necessarily applies to everyone who might say that race isnt important to them. Its fully possible to respect and appreciate the positive sides that differences brings as well. I think "race doesnt matter" can mean several of things, it depends exactly on what the indivdual who says it puts into that phrase.

It does though. You can't really reflect on the racism you personally exhibit if you don't acknowledge it. and to me that's what color blindness really is. Just ignoring the problematic aspects of your own personality and refusing to take ownership for your contribution to the problem.

 

[Xenon]

Nationality does not equal ethnicity or race

This is bullshit. It is basically saying unless you have a skin color different than "white" you have no ethnicity.

 

[Infinite]

The thing about color blindness also is that if you refuse to see one's color not only are you failing to acknowledge that person's identity and who they are but you're implicitly ignoring that person's challenges and struggles as a person of color when they need you to see those things to help them in the fight for equality. To be post racial we must first be post racists.

This is bullshit. It is basically saying unless you have a skin color different than "white" you have no ethnicity.

No, everyone has an ethnicity and nationality. This thread is about video game characters of minority ethnicities, not what countries they call home.

 

[BabyFaceKillah]

The only games that i can actually remember where a black man/woman was actually represented accurately are The Walking Dead and GTA.

 

[KoopaTheCasual]

This is bullshit. It is basically saying unless you have a skin color different than "white" you have no ethnicity.

No, it quite literally does not say that at all. He did not say "Yo, all Caucasian looking people share the same ethnic background!" You're projecting an implication that wasn't made and (probably) isn't held by the poster you responded to.

His comment means exactly what it says; nationality does not equal ethnicity. This is a fact. They are two different terms, subject to two different set of criteria. Please ask him to elaborate on his stance before jumping at an opinion, he may and probably doesn't even have.

 

[Proponent]

I would also like to take a moment to say I very much appreciate this thread. And thank you.

This is a discussion that is very central to my feelings and overall core mood here in the beginning of the eighth console generation, as someone who has grown up and loved video games since the NES and rarely felt represented when taking on the role of a protagonist.

And now, honestly, I see non white male, or create a character- protagonists, as a selling point, and over all raises my interest. Its fresh, its new, its inclusive, its fair.

 

[test_account]

Well how can you be concerned about a problem if you fail to acknowledge the factor that makes it a problem?

It does though. You can't really reflect on the racism you personally exhibit if you don't acknowledge it. and to me that's what color blindness really is. Just ignoring the problematic aspects of your own personality and refusing to take ownership for your contribution to the problem.

If i respect any person depsite of what skin color they have, how does that remove my ability to understand what racisim is and acknowledge that it excist?

 

[Tomohawk]

GTA 4
GTA 5
Left 4 Dead
Left 4 Dead 2
Madden
NBA 2K
Mirror's Edge
Portal
Diablo
Gears of War
Resident Evil 5
Borderlands
Borderlands 2

Come on now the games with minority protagonists are not "usually bad." Anyway seems to me like there are quite a few games out there with minority protagonists.

Ya maybe I exaggerated, those are great games, but the genres I play are usually dominated by white casts, like jrpgs. I just wish they were more frequent so it would be easier to choose.

 

[Retro_]

This is bullshit. It is basically saying unless you have a skin color different than "white" you have no ethnicity.

Not at all. I'm just saying that ethnicity defined by language or country of origin(non-physical characteristics) is not equivalent to that of race(physical characteristics)

 

[Infinite]

If i respect any person depsite of what skin color they have, how does that remove my ability to understand what racisim is and acknowledge that it excist?

That's not "colorblindness" that's being not racist.

 

[test_account]

That's not "colorblindness" that's being not racist.

I see. In that case, i dont know what colorblindness is in this regards :/ I thought it ment that you respected everyone despite of their skin color.

 

[jhmtehgamr20xx]

This is bullshit. It is basically saying unless you have a skin color different than "white" you have no ethnicity.

I thought that poster meant more in the conflation of race and nationality that goes on when some people try to explain a nationality like it IS an ethnicity. For example explaining an American as a white guy,..b/c American is the nationality, so technically no matter your skin color if you live in America, you're an American....

...'Murican, 'scuse me.

 

[Xenon]

No, it quite literally does not say that at all. He did not say "Yo, all Caucasian looking people share the same ethnic background!" You're projecting an implication that wasn't made and (probably) isn't held by the poster you responded to.

His comment means exactly what it says; nationality does not equal ethnicity. This is a fact. They are two different terms, subject to two different set of criteria. Please ask him to elaborate on his stance before jumping at an opinion, he may and probably doesn't even have.

Ethnic-of or relating to large groups of people classed according to common racial, national, tribal, religious, linguistic, or cultural origin or background.

So the original comment stands. He can notice a lack of representation of people who share his ethnic background.

 

[ShinMaruku]

I am shocked nobody post Tyreal who is a black character who is not stereotypical.

As to this topic half of the issue is getting more diversity in development but I want people to know the monumental task that is (One that most certainly needs tackling but will take very long due to the cowardice of the human race but that's another story)

Another part is putting those people in the pop culture as well. Fighting games are really amazing to me because they are made mostly by Japanese men and yet they are more varied have better more compelling stories than games hyped up to the moon by their budgets and often made by a MUCH more diverse team than these Japanese teams.

Another thing is the media is very young therefore has a juvenile idea of what is proper to market to.

 

[Infinite]

I see. In that case, i dont know what colorblindness is in this regards :/ I thought it ment that you respected everyone despite of their skin color.

Colorblindness in this regard means you don't see color so essentially:

The thing about color blindness also is that if you refuse to see one's color not only are you failing to acknowledge that person's identity and who they are but you're implicitly ignoring that person's challenges and struggles as a person of color when they need you to see those things to help them in the fight for equality. To be post racial we must first be post racists..

 

[test_account]

Colorblindness in this regard means you don't see color so essentially:

I understand, thanks for the explanation. I thought it ment something else, so i understand now why the questions were asked. I thought it ment that you repsected people regardless of what skin color they have. Sorry for the misunderstanding Just out of curiousity, what was it that i said in my previous posts that made it look like i was talking about colorblindness with the meaning that you explain here? (i mean this question to all that replied to what i said).

 

[RawRebel]

Black female from Half life 2.

 

[mugwhump]

^ pfft, she's barely even brown
kumar.gif


But yeah, the representation of minorities in games is arguably more lacking than that of women.

A recent study conducted at Ohio State University shows that white players who use black male avatars in violent video games demonstrate increased negative attitudes towards blacks, as well as increased aggression. This finding reveals the impact that negative media portrayals can have towards the public’s opinion of a minority group.

Always thought this study was flawed, they needed a control group of non-white participants.

 

[Infinite]

I understand, thanks for the explanation. I thought it ment something else, so i understand now why the questions were asked. I thought it ment that you repsected people regardless of what skin color they have. Sorry for the misunderstanding Just out of curiousity, what was it that i said in my previous posts that made it look like i was talking about colorblindness with the meaning that you explain here? (i mean this question to all that replied to what i said).

Well when you said "not being concerned about skin color doesnt mean that you cant reflect on the racism that unfortunately excist." The word concern through me for a loop but I don't think that's actually what you meant to say.

 

[Retro_]

If i respect any person depsite of what skin color they have, how does that remove my ability to understand what racisim is and acknowledge that it excist?

because you're unable to identify it when it appears in your own behavior.

You can "respect" any person regardless of skin color. but that doesn't mean you don't make assumptions about that person based on their race, or have a preference or bias towards a certain race. It doesn't even keep you from making an insensitive joke based on race.

None of these things fit the label of a racist in our society, but they are acts of racism. Thinking someone is smart because they're asian or just "personally" not being attracted to black women or making a joke based on an ethnic stereotype "all in good fun". All common occurrences on this very website from people just like you. People that are convinced that they respect all races equally.

Which is why I don't really buy the idea of color blindness. To me it doesn't mean you don't see race, it means you don't see racism in it's modern day form.

 

[Jea Song]

Explain this then. Why do some of the most popular Japanese made games in America feature a main character that looks more white than anything?

Final fantasy:

Cloud looks white. As does squall. Lightning looks white. Tidus. I can go on and on.

Metal Gear

Snake looks white. Raiden. Could go on and on...

Resident evil.

Jill, chris, Leon, Clair.. Once again can go on and on.

So what gives? We had threads on how the Japanese like to make games catered to them yet their main characters often look white with blue eyes and blonde hair, in which is not natural to Japanese.

 

[OrangeGrayBlue]

The OP complains that the black guy from FFXIII is too stereotypical, but also that the Black avatar doesn't act black enough. Seems like a tough balance to strike.

I guess the solution would be to get more black people involved in the design process.

It's not about finding a middle ground. The issue in both cases is an inability on behalf of the developer to convey non-white characters with a sense of authenticity.

 

[Stumpokapow]

It's not about finding a middle ground. The issue in both cases is an inability on behalf of the developer to convey non-white characters with a sense of authenticity.

The solution, thus, would be to encourage people to consciously try to improve the diversity of their teams--including by recruiting out of country in places where homogeneity prohibits local diversity--and empower creatives to explore cultural themes and to consult with outside persons where necessary to do so in a respectful and engaged manner.

(Ultimately the solution could also be to just fade into irrelevance, since the crux of the problem isn't that any one developer or game doesn't represent people, but rather that the most prominent developers and gamers collectively don't represent people)

 

[Infinite]

because you're unable to identify it when it appears in your own behavior.

You can "respect" any person regardless of skin color. but that doesn't mean you don't make assumptions about that person based on their race, or have a preference or bias towards a certain race. It doesn't even keep you from making an insensitive joke based on race.

None of these things fit the label of a racist in our society, but they are acts of racism. Thinking someone is smart because they're asian or just "personally" not being attracted to black women or making a joke based on an ethnic stereotype "all in good fun". All common occurrences on this very website from people just like you. People that are convinced that they respect all races equally.

Which is why I don't really buy the idea of color blindness. To me it doesn't mean you don't see race, it means you don't see racism in it's modern day form.

good post.

 

[OrangeGrayBlue]

The solution, thus, would be to encourage people to consciously try to improve the diversity of their teams--including by recruiting out of country in places where homogeneity prohibits local diversity--and empower creatives to explore cultural themes and to consult with outside persons where necessary to do so in a respectful and engaged manner.

(Ultimately the solution could also be to just fade into irrelevance, since the crux of the problem isn't that any one developer or game doesn't represent people, but rather that the most prominent developers and gamers collectively don't represent people)

No disagreements here. I've done some game testing before and the developers office's that I've seen are monochromatic to say the least.

 

[Nome]

The only games that i can actually remember where a black man/woman was actually represented accurately are The Walking Dead and GTA.

What is this even supposed to mean? What is an accurate portrayal of a person or ethnicity?
Do you mean realistic? Or are you only talking about positive?

I'm Asian. I grew up in the American South, so I was discriminated against by people of all races, majority and minority. I'd love to see more minorities in games. I loved Sleeping Dogs. I'm also very understanding of why there AREN'T more minorities in games. Every time there *is* one, there's a shitstorm about realism and accuracy. One of my friends asked me if I was offended by the accents in Sleeping Dogs. I said no--don't you realize those are actual Asian actors using their real accents (well, some of them are)?

Here's something to think about--when a minority character is *bad* or displays "stereotypical" characteristics, it reflects poorly on the race. This does not exist for white characters. That's indicative of deep societal issues, NOT faults with the character/narrative designer.

 

[Aaronrules380]

I'm going to say that lumping all black people together because of their skin color is also wrong. Race is overemphasized when what's really important is cultural background and ethnicity. These are tied into our concept of race, but aren't really the same. I think part of the problem is that in America blacks lost a lot of their original ethnic backgrounds due to the conditions during slavery and so the ethnicity of African American was born that's unique and different from being a black person born in Africa. Skin color is important because it's more visible than ethnicity, but I think you also need to keep in mind that not all people of the same race have the same cultural backgrounds or identities

 

[SixMachine]

Explain this then. Why do some of the most popular Japanese made games in America feature a main character that looks more white than anything?

Final fantasy:

Cloud looks white. As does squall. Lightning looks white. Tidus. I can go on and on.

Metal Gear

Snake looks white. Raiden. Could go on and on...

Resident evil.

Jill, chris, Leon, Clair.. Once again can go on and on.

So what gives? We had threads on how the Japanese like to make games catered to them yet their main characters often look white with blue eyes and blonde hair, in which is not natural to Japanese.

Well in the case of Resident Evil and Metal Gear, they are actually based on American films and media, while also having an American "theme" and setting (Metal Gear is all bout dat Merica). Snake is based on Kurt Russel in Escape from New York. In MGS2, he even goes by Iroquois Plisskin (Snake Pliskin is the name of Russel's character). The old Metal gear games also had Big Boss as a Sean Connery look-a-like. Resident Evil of course you can point to Romero and horror movies as inspiration. The old RE games definitely had that live-action B-movie horror acting down to a pat.

Final Fantasy your on your own on that one.

 

[Infinite]

Explain this then. Why do some of the most popular Japanese made games in America feature a main character that looks more white than anything?

Final fantasy:

Cloud looks white. As does squall. Lightning looks white. Tidus. I can go on and on.

Metal Gear

Snake looks white. Raiden. Could go on and on...

Resident evil.

Jill, chris, Leon, Clair.. Once again can go on and on.

So what gives? We had threads on how the Japanese like to make games catered to them yet their main characters often look white with blue eyes and blonde hair, in which is not natural to Japanese.

Those games are all influenced by western pop culture so there's your answer. I don't Square's character designers thinks of their FF characters as white Americans though

 

[TwEE-N-Toast]

That Xbox Live avatar quote is kind of funny. Most white guys find it hard to relate to those animations or at least in my neck of the woods.

 

[Nome]

Explain this then. Why do some of the most popular Japanese made games in America feature a main character that looks more white than anything?

Final fantasy:

Cloud looks white. As does squall. Lightning looks white. Tidus. I can go on and on.

Metal Gear

Snake looks white. Raiden. Could go on and on...

Resident evil.

Jill, chris, Leon, Clair.. Once again can go on and on.

So what gives? We had threads on how the Japanese like to make games catered to them yet their main characters often look white with blue eyes and blonde hair, in which is not natural to Japanese.

You realize you are asking "why are games featuring white characters popular in a white-majority country"?

 

[SolidSnakex]

Those games are all influenced by western pop culture so there's your answer. I don't Square's character thinks of their FF characters as white Americans though

I believe Squall's appearance was influenced by River Phoenix. But aside from that i'd say that you can see heavy similarities between Nomura's characters and Jrock/popstars. This is really obvious with the characters in XV, who might as well be from Exile (a Japanese male pop group).

 

[Teknoman]

Time out, Tidus does not look white. Honestly, all of the main crew of FFX look to be of some Asian descent.

 

[Stumpokapow]

Time out, Tidus does not look white. Honestly, all of the main crew of FFX look to be of some Asian descent.

FFX is probably the game of SE's where their character designs, and world designs, are most conspicuously Asian.

You realize you are asking "why are games featuring white characters popular in a white-majority country"?

I think he's saying that the characters appear caucasian, rather than asian, not that he's intending to have a debate about whether or not asians ought to be identified against their will as white or not.

 

[VanillaCakeIsBurning]

What about Arabs? What games are there that doesn't portray us as the antagonists?

I can only think of one example and it's not a game.

The anime Mobile Suit Gundam 00's main character Setsuna F Seiei (Soran Ibrahim) is middle eastern.

 

[test_account]

Well when you said "not being concerned about skin color doesnt mean that you cant reflect on the racism that unfortunately excist." The word concern through me for a loop but I don't think that's actually what you meant to say.

Ah ok, i see. Yeah, i didnt mean it like that when i said "concerned". I ment that in a postive way to say that "i respect you regardless of what skin color you have".

because you're unable to identify it when it appears in your own behavior.

You can "respect" any person regardless of skin color. but that doesn't mean you don't make assumptions about that person based on their race, or have a preference or bias towards a certain race. It doesn't even keep you from making an insensitive joke based on race.

None of these things fit the label of a racist in our society, but they are acts of racism. Thinking someone is smart because they're asian or just "personally" not being attracted to black women or making a joke based on an ethnic stereotype "all in good fun". All common occurrences on this very website from people just like you. People that are convinced that they respect all races equally.

Which is why I don't really buy the idea of color blindness. To me it doesn't mean you don't see race, it means you don't see racism in it's modern day form.

It seems that i have misunderstood what the word "colorblindness" ment in this regards. I thought it ment that you respected people despite of their skin color, so that is what i was talking about. Apparently there is another defintion for it, like you describe here, but this is not the definition i had in mind when i wrote my previous posts. And just for the record, i'm fully able to know if i make a joke that is racist even if i mean it good fun. I'm fully aware of that it could be understood as racism. I never think i made such a joke on this forum either. On this subject, i would actually be really surprised if someone cant understand at all that a joke can be understood as being racist.

 

[Retro_]

I think he's saying that the characters appear caucasian, rather than asian, not that he's intending to have a debate about whether or not asians ought to be identified against their will as white or not.

They appear caucasian because...they're caucasian. Two of the three games he listed feature American protagonists in American settings.

So he is, quite literally, asking why are the most popular japanese games in America ones that feature white characters in America.

 

[SolidSnakex]

They appear caucasian because...they're caucasian. Two of the three games he listed feature american protagonists in american settings.

Exactly. And those games also have a wide variety of characters across all races.

 

[Akainu]

I can only think of one example and it's not a game.

The anime Mobile Suit Gundam 00's main character Setsuna F Seiei (Soran Ibrahim) is middle eastern.

I'm pretty sure he's gundam.

 

[KoopaTheCasual]

Ethnic-of or relating to large groups of people classed according to common racial, national, tribal, religious, linguistic, or cultural origin or background.

So the original comment stands. He can notice a lack of representation of people who share his ethnic background.

But your own definition undermines your original comment. just because nationality is one of many qualifiers of ethnicity, doesn't make them synonymous. His comment was devoid of any mention of race at all. I'm guessing you're assuming his comment implied ethnic homogeneity among that specific region? Once again, you're implying something that really isn't there. That concept doesn't even enter the string of comments, until your response.

I actually was curious about the original comment that spurred this comment thread and googled demographics of Finland, where he pulled the data:

"No official statistics are kept on ethnicities. However, statistics of the Finnish population according to language and citizenship are available."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Finland#Ethnic_minorities_.26_languages

He was pulling data on citizenship and nationality and using it for an ethnic comparison. Citizenship does not prove ethnicity. This is the underlying distinction.