the issue … isn’t just that it’s … horrifically racist and misogynistic, it’s also a terrible game
It’s funny, but it seems like I read this phrase a lot, and not just about games (book series, movies, shows, etc). I can’t think of any other good examples off the top of my head, but it seems that every time an artist takes a really cool or interesting concept and fills it with bigotry, they also fill it with poorly written mechanics, potholes, clunky dialogue…
Sure, there’s media with language that doesn’t age well, but it seems like 9/10, when something is made with blatant hate, there isn’t even an incentive to try to push past or ignore it; the content is garbage with or without the drivel. The initial concept is just good enough to get people to want to give it a shot.
A lot of old stuff is super racist and well made. The Birth of A Nation was revolutionary in film and influenced many future movies despite literally being a movie about how awesome the KKK are. Lovecraft was famously racist as fuck and a lot of his “Eldritch horror” was sort of a metaphor for his fears of “primitive” religions and miscegenation. Even Lord of the Rings has racist elements - JRR Tolkein said in multiple occasions that he based the dwarves on Jews, which is pretty rough to modern readers given that the dwarves are more obsessed with gold and treasure than anything else.
It’s funny, but it seems like I read this phrase a lot, and not just about games (book series, movies, shows, etc). I can’t think of any other good examples off the top of my head, but it seems that every time an artist takes a really cool or interesting concept and fills it with bigotry, they also fill it with poorly written mechanics, potholes, clunky dialogue…
Sure, there’s media with language that doesn’t age well, but it seems like 9/10, when something is made with blatant hate, there isn’t even an incentive to try to push past or ignore it; the content is garbage with or without the drivel. The initial concept is just good enough to get people to want to give it a shot.
A lot of old stuff is super racist and well made. The Birth of A Nation was revolutionary in film and influenced many future movies despite literally being a movie about how awesome the KKK are. Lovecraft was famously racist as fuck and a lot of his “Eldritch horror” was sort of a metaphor for his fears of “primitive” religions and miscegenation. Even Lord of the Rings has racist elements - JRR Tolkein said in multiple occasions that he based the dwarves on Jews, which is pretty rough to modern readers given that the dwarves are more obsessed with gold and treasure than anything else.