Forum > Gaming Discussion > Should lead game characters be more representative of different ethnicities?
Should lead game characters be more representative of different ethnicities?
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Tue, 13 Oct 2009 18:28:33
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?

I see a lot of white, a couple of black and only see minor variations usually when the whole game is based around a certain culture i.e martial arts, chinese etc.

Do you think that developers have any kind of responsibility here to try and diversify?

Would you like to see more variation that isn't stereotypical?

Should european and japanese devs be making their protagonists white American males?

As a larger question, should countries outside the US try and make games which reflect their culture and sensibilities more than just trying to duplicate summer US blockbuster movies?

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Tue, 13 Oct 2009 18:47:55
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Seeing as the Serbian protagonist (Niko) in GTA4 was not able to pronounce or even spell his name correctly, no thanks. Only do it if you are serious. Do not get a serious game about Russians and let them all talk English with a fake and crappy accent.  
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Tue, 13 Oct 2009 19:00:06
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yes, i think the more diversity there is the better.  create-a-character is also nice, but it needs to be done right.  for example if you allow me to create and play as a black person in fallout 3 ... don't have liam neeson talking to me as my father

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Tue, 13 Oct 2009 19:39:04
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No I don't think they have to put in any minorities just for the sake of being 'diverse'. As far as developers in other countries putting their own 'ethnicity stamp' on a game they make then that's totally up to them. I don't see why they should feel like they have a responsibility to do so. I guess it should all depend on the market they want to cater to.

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Tue, 13 Oct 2009 20:26:10
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bugsonglass said:
yes, i think the more diversity there is the better.  create-a-character is also nice, but it needs to be done right.  for example if you allow me to create and play as a black person in fallout 3 ... don't have liam neeson talking to me as my father

LOL

I need this game now.

Archangel3371 said:

No I don't think they have to put in any minorities just for the sake of being 'diverse'. As far as developers in other countries putting their own 'ethnicity stamp' on a game they make then that's totally up to them. I don't see why they should feel like they have a responsibility to do so. I guess it should all depend on the market they want to cater to.

Wouldn't it be nice to see games from developers that reflect their countries legends or culture? Rather than having an americanised view of a Nordic legend, why not have the Norweigen developer make it true to their culture? It just might make the games you play far more diverse and inspirational?

I would love for more British games that were British, rather than having developers pretending they are american developers. GTA, Burnout, Climax, Fable, Banjo etc, these are all UK devs.

Some French games feel decidedly french like Ubisoft titles like Rayman or BGE, they just have that french animation feel to them. It would be great to have the games by the developers based in their own countries more too, if I play a Russian developed dectective game, make it based in Moscow with russian writers and russian actors and make it reflective of their culture and conventions. It would be enlightening to me.

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Tue, 13 Oct 2009 20:29:09
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Devs have no obligation, but it does make for a more interesting game. In all forms of media the lead is usually the person most people will identify with, which is a shame, but it is a business.

In the few oportunities I've had  to play a protagonist that is not a white male I've enjoyed it.  As Iga points out above, these characterizations may be imperfect, but they do prompt greater understanding and  empathy for the minority group depicted.

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Tue, 13 Oct 2009 20:36:31
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How can I play a videogame if the protagonist isn't a white straight male for me to identify with?
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Tue, 13 Oct 2009 20:38:33
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I'd like to see more culture portrayed in fantasy worlds.  Whereas we often have these extremely stereotypical elf/orc good/evil situations, there ought to be much more nuance.

With regard to worldly differentiation, it's questionable to have one culture portray another.  Not that it can't be done, but it's worrisome.
Edited: Tue, 13 Oct 2009 20:39:32

---

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Tue, 13 Oct 2009 20:56:28
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gamingeek said:


bugsonglass said:

yes, i think the more diversity there is the better.  create-a-character is also nice, but it needs to be done right.  for example if you allow me to create and play as a black person in fallout 3 ... don't have liam neeson talking to me as my father

LOL



I need this game now.





Archangel3371 said:


No I don't think they have to put in any minorities just for the sake of being 'diverse'. As far as developers in other countries putting their own 'ethnicity stamp' on a game they make then that's totally up to them. I don't see why they should feel like they have a responsibility to do so. I guess it should all depend on the market they want to cater to.

Wouldn't it be nice to see games from developers that reflect their countries legends or culture? Rather than having an americanised view of a Nordic legend, why not have the Norweigen developer make it true to their culture? It just might make the games you play far more diverse and inspirational?



I would love for more British games that were British, rather than having developers pretending they are american developers. GTA, Burnout, Climax, Fable, Banjo etc, these are all UK devs.



Some French games feel decidedly french like Ubisoft titles like Rayman or BGE, they just have that french animation feel to them. It would be great to have the games by the developers based in their own countries more too, if I play a Russian developed dectective game, make it based in Moscow with russian writers and russian actors and make it reflective of their culture and conventions. It would be enlightening to me.

 

Sometimes it works sometimes it doesn't. Personally I really like most of those "amercanised" games you mentioned Banjo, Fable, GTA, Burnout. A lot of time if something is "too British" I just don't "get it". Actually that's the very reason why I've never liked some Ubisoft games like Rayman and Rabbids is because I get this "French" vibe that just doesn't click with me for whatever reason. On the other hand I really dig a lot of the Japanese culture and quirkiness.

1176413.png

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Tue, 13 Oct 2009 21:09:11

Yodariquo said:


With regard to worldly differentiation, it's questionable to have one culture portray another.  Not that it can't be done, but it's worrisome.

So hire some minority classes.

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Tue, 13 Oct 2009 22:12:36

Yeah. I want a game starring this motherfucker.


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Tue, 13 Oct 2009 23:13:36

SteelAttack said:

Yeah. I want a game starring this motherfucker.


who doesn't want to play as Machete?

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Wed, 14 Oct 2009 03:11:51
bugsonglass said:
yes, i think the more diversity there is the better.  create-a-character is also nice, but it needs to be done right.  for example if you allow me to create and play as a black person in fallout 3 ... don't have liam neeson talking to me as my father

That happened to me too. Hilarious.

Meh, I couldn't really care less. Make a good character, portray whatever they are properly, and I'll enjoy it. If they're a lame white characer I won't like them. And if they're a lame "Serbian" character I won't like them either. However if they're a lame black character of course I'll like them. I'm not a racist.

Edited: Wed, 14 Oct 2009 03:12:26

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Wed, 14 Oct 2009 10:18:57

How do you think people would react if Sheva was the lead in RE5 and Chris was the second player hand-me-down?

Does it bother you, playing as a woman?

When you see non-black and white lead characters in games, why are they usually only used in context to a certain culture or relgion?

In TV and movies I find it kinda insulting that whenever you see Arabs 90% of the time its to do with terrorism, the other 10% is portraying them as persecuted Muslims. Not that I'm either from the region or a muslim.

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Wed, 14 Oct 2009 10:36:42


I would gladly welcome a minority character as a the lead, but like Iga said it has to be done right.

gamingeek said:

How do you think people would react if Sheva was the lead in RE5 and Chris was the second player hand-me-down?

Does it bother you, playing as a woman?

I wished the creators would've went a little further and made her skin darker and dark eyes.

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Wed, 14 Oct 2009 11:02:37

travo said:


I would gladly welcome a minority character as a the lead, but like Iga said it has to be done right.

gamingeek said:

How do you think people would react if Sheva was the lead in RE5 and Chris was the second player hand-me-down?

Does it bother you, playing as a woman?

I wished the creators would've went a little further and made her skin darker and dark eyes.

If there is a game set in India, I would like to play as something other than a white westerner. This applies to most games. I know it's somewhat used to give the impression of being new to the land and discovering the world somewhat like the player does in real time. But having a different stance would be nice. Why not a Korean professor arriving in a different country? Or a Russian etc?

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Wed, 14 Oct 2009 11:02:49

How about an African-American character that is white?

Like Charlize Theron

yummy

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Thu, 15 Oct 2009 02:57:13

gamingeek said:

travo said:


I would gladly welcome a minority character as a the lead, but like Iga said it has to be done right.

gamingeek said:

How do you think people would react if Sheva was the lead in RE5 and Chris was the second player hand-me-down?

Does it bother you, playing as a woman?

I wished the creators would've went a little further and made her skin darker and dark eyes.

If there is a game set in India, I would like to play as something other than a white westerner. This applies to most games. I know it's somewhat used to give the impression of being new to the land and discovering the world somewhat like the player does in real time. But having a different stance would be nice. Why not a Korean professor arriving in a different country? Or a Russian etc?

 That's what I thought about Prince of Persia. They were all Americans! Though it did make the game even funnier.

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