Representation of Minorities in your game when you aren't a minority

[Gaizokubanou]

But that same could be said about everything in game, most notably, death (which you mentioned as ineffective detriment).  IRL, I would think that one of worst outcome of racism would be death.  It's interesting that because we as player died so often across so many games, death rings 'hollower' (because everything within the scope of a game will ring bit 'hollow' compared to outside experience because it's at best, simulation of a real thing. while real things are real.  Best that any art forms can do is to help connect the mental dots in our mind from its presentation to whatever we have in our limited experience) compared to actual racial slurs that games' narratives may muster up.

[clyde]

Ben Esposito's GDC presentation has brought this issue up in various comment-sections and I found another essay that is helpful.

[itsamoose]

But that same could be said about everything in game, most notably, death (which you mentioned as ineffective detriment).  IRL, I would think that one of worst outcome of racism would be death.  It's interesting that because we as player died so often across so many games, death rings 'hollower' (because everything within the scope of a game will ring bit 'hollow' compared to outside experience because it's at best, simulation of a real thing. while real things are real.  Best that any art forms can do is to help connect the mental dots in our mind from its presentation to whatever we have in our limited experience) compared to actual racial slurs that games' narratives may muster up.

 

You bring up a point I hadn't considered before.  You're right to point out that death is, ultimately, the worst expression of racism or bigotry in the real world.  I could see a situation where the player's death is meaningful in this context, but the developers would have to go as far as to end the player's game (or at least make it so it can't be easily reloaded) and have that death be something the player couldn't necessarily control or do anything about.  Perhaps if the player's character was killed by a mob that the player had no hope of defeating, or depending on the setting, a person just up and kills the player character because he's a member of a class that isn't seen as having the same rights as the perpetrator (as whites often did before, during, and after the US civil war).  To take this a step further the same could be said of theft, though this might be an easier idea to articulate in the language of a game.

I think trying to cast death in this context may actually be counter productive, in that death as far as the player is concerned is simply an end to their game.  It isn't something they have to contend with, or can't do anything about.  In effect the player isn't made to deal with the effects of bigotry through the game's mechanics--death is still ancillary to the experience of playing the game.

[clyde]

[accidental double-post]

[clyde]

Imagine playing an RPG and finding out many hours into the game that you have been getting paid less for finishing quests because you choose a non-white and/or non-male character.

[Gaizokubanou]

I think trying to cast death in this context may actually be counter productive, in that death as far as the player is concerned is simply an end to their game.  It isn't something they have to contend with, or can't do anything about.  In effect the player isn't made to deal with the effects of bigotry through the game's mechanics--death is still ancillary to the experience of playing the game.

 

What if the game was rogue-like, or to quote NL, "YOLOGAME"?!?  But otherwise (those games are not the norm) certainly, most effective means of communication is something within the game's system.  Death can come into play for powerful moment once all that's done, but certainly not as a one-off.

 

Imagine playing an RPG and finding out many hours into the game that you have been getting paid less for finishing quests because you choose a non-white and/or non-male character.

 

Hah, that could be great if weaven into a game that deals with stuff like that, notably I think "Sometimes, Always, Monsters" is a good example of a game that can carry out such mechanic without coming off as cheap attempt for trying to get a figurative gold star from feminism or devs getting trolled into oblivion for coming off as sexist themselves.

 

More broadly though, I would like to emphasize Twig and Spenny's points, that just because you have a character that's of different skin color doesn't mean your game has to make some political statement about that person's skin color...  It really depends on your game.  If your game is relatively historically grounded (say WWII shooter) and serious in tone (not BF Heroes), sure, being a non-white-male should be an issue and not addressing it would be a problem... but if a game takes place in some pure fantasy lands or distant future, trying to shoehorn (because it can be done well, but again, the world needs to be explained and built well) in modern racism and culture into those distant world personally annoys me to no end, it's like the creator just decided to fuck off with creativity.

 

Ultimately, best you can do is writing a character that makes sense as a person (flawed or heroic) given the context.