Newsweek's N'Gai Croal: RE5 Trailer Imagery Is Racist
Newsweek's N'Gai Croal: RE5 Trailer Imagery Is Racist
April 12, 2008
Earlier this week GamePolitics covered the opening installments of MTV Multiplayer's multipart feature on Black Professionals in Games.
And while Newsweek's popular video game writer N'Gai Croal was the focus of the series' opening article, MTV Multiplayer decided to devote a second installment to his perspective on whether or not there is racist imagery in the controversial trailer for Capcom's upcoming Resident Evil 5.
GamePolitics readers will likely recall last year's flap over the trailer which shows RE5's white protagonist mowing down scores of zombies, all black. The game is set in Haiti.
Croal was very clear in his view that the RE5 trailer contains racist imagery:
Victor Godinez, who covers video games for the Dallas Morning News offers his reaction to Croal's comments.
In the Arizona Daily Star, Phil Villarreal writes:
UPDATE: An e-mail from a reader pointed out that while N'Gai Croal was speaking of racism in the RE5 trailer, this article might be read as Croal's condemnation of racism in the finished game itself. That would be difficult, since RE5 isn't scheduled for release until May of of 2009, according to GameStop.
Thus, I've edited this article to make it clear that N'Gai's comments were about the trailer specifically. Personally, I believe that the trailer represents the game, or, more specifically, a segment of the game that the publisher, Capcom, felt good enough about to release at E3 2007 as the official representation of RE5.
Moreover, if the trailer imagery contains elements of racism, it would have to be chopped from the final game entirely to avoid placing those elements into RE5. This could happen if Capcom is thinking about potential negative reactions to the game in the U.S. market. N'Gai comments on this aspect:
And while Newsweek's popular video game writer N'Gai Croal was the focus of the series' opening article, MTV Multiplayer decided to devote a second installment to his perspective on whether or not there is racist imagery in the controversial trailer for Capcom's upcoming Resident Evil 5.
GamePolitics readers will likely recall last year's flap over the trailer which shows RE5's white protagonist mowing down scores of zombies, all black. The game is set in Haiti.
Croal was very clear in his view that the RE5 trailer contains racist imagery:
I was like, “Wow, clearly no one black worked on this game.” ...The point isn’t that you can’t have black zombies. There was a lot of imagery in that trailer that dovetailed with classic racist imagery. What was not funny, but sort of interesting [about the controversy], was that there were so many gamers who could not at all see it. Like literally couldn’t see it...
It’s not as simple as saying, “Oh, they shot Spanish zombies in ‘Resident Evil 4,’ and now ‘black zombies and that’s why people are getting upset.” The imagery is not the same. It doesn’t carry the same history, it doesn’t carry the same weight...
It’s very difficult in this country... to have a conversation about race. Everyone brings to it their own history, their own perspective... The music that they’re using in the trailer is very reminiscent of the music used in Black Hawk Down which was set in Africa — Somalia. That actually was one of the things that was most disturbing because it sort of had a feeling as like, “Wow, what research did this team do? Did they only watch Black Hawk Down and give it this kind of vibe?”
Victor Godinez, who covers video games for the Dallas Morning News offers his reaction to Croal's comments.
I am more than a little sympathetic to [some specific] objections [to Croal's view]. On the other hand, anyone who watches that [RE5] preview and doesn't feel at least a little uncomfortable probably isn't paying attention.
As Mr. Croal acknowledges, all we've seen of this game so far is the preview... And it could well be that Americans are so unconsciously drilled on what is and is not acceptable in discussions of race that discomfort over the trailer is simply subconscious political correctness kicking in.
In the Arizona Daily Star, Phil Villarreal writes:
Newsweek’s N’Gai Croal – by far the deepest thinker and best writer in the field of video game journalism – sure seems to think [that RE5 is racist]. Judging from the trailer, he points out callous racial insensitivity that has apparently gone into, if not the game itself, at least its previews.
I think Croal has some valid points, but I’d say he’s being a little hypersensitive here. This is an industry that evolves around Mario, one of the most blatant ethnic caricatures imaginable. For whatever confluence of reasons, political correctness hasn’t been able to penetrate the video game realm as much as it has other media, and whatever racism you find is largely due to innocent ignorance rather than any calculated agenda.
UPDATE: An e-mail from a reader pointed out that while N'Gai Croal was speaking of racism in the RE5 trailer, this article might be read as Croal's condemnation of racism in the finished game itself. That would be difficult, since RE5 isn't scheduled for release until May of of 2009, according to GameStop.
Thus, I've edited this article to make it clear that N'Gai's comments were about the trailer specifically. Personally, I believe that the trailer represents the game, or, more specifically, a segment of the game that the publisher, Capcom, felt good enough about to release at E3 2007 as the official representation of RE5.
Moreover, if the trailer imagery contains elements of racism, it would have to be chopped from the final game entirely to avoid placing those elements into RE5. This could happen if Capcom is thinking about potential negative reactions to the game in the U.S. market. N'Gai comments on this aspect:
I don’t know how Capcom feels about it. I think releasing that game is going to be very difficult. I think there are people and organizations who aren’t very understanding of games that if that imagery is brought to them they’re going to be like, “Wait, hold up. I don’t know how you could put that out.” Then you have to say, “Does Wal-Mart want to deal with that? Does Target want to deal with that?”
I’m not saying that censorship is the answer. I’m saying that the same rights that allow Capcom to put the game out are the same rights that allow people to bring pressure on people who might release that game. This is why it is important to whoever works in the American office of a company like Capcom to be able to show this is the history, this is where this comes from, this is where we need to be more sensitive. I’m not sure they’ve done that yet.
Comments
I kind of want a moderated, or community declared comment format. One where someone establishes a stance, which then populates a list that future commenters will see. Commenters would then enter their comment, and choose what categories their comment most closely resembles.
So if its say a discussion about Obama, Clinton and McCain, McCain commenters check the McCain box when commenting, Obama commenters check the Obama Box, then people commenting on, for example, Democrats in general, may check either the created Democrat category, or, check both Obaa and Clinton.
It just seems that when you have a dialogue this heated, coupled with people that are just giving two cents without taking in a stance of understanding, you get a lot of nonsense. I'm not sure if anyone benefits from a greater understanding of the issue, which I think we should all strive for.
The Japanese often made stereotypical (and often negative when they do) depiction of Americans and yet, barely any American complained. These peoples needs to be more supple on their judgement.
Its not racist imagery. It is a setting, it is exactly the same as the RE4 and the zombies being Spanish. How is it not? Is he implying that Spanish people are somehow not as important? Is that implication not racist in itself? Lets ignore that for now as there are more important things reflected in Croal's interview.
Croal just wants attention and he'll get it. This isn't a joke but he surely is. The game has yet to even be released and he is upset at the trailer. It is completely about the skin color of the zombies. He is trying to say it isn't but his comments clearly reflect that opinion.
He is basing his opinion on a trailer. How many times does one base their entire opinion of a game on a trailer only to end up with their foot in their mouth? I see this happening here.
__"I think, again, the point is not that Capcom can’t or shouldn’t make a zombie game set in what appears to be an impoverished country where the majority of residents are black. I’m not saying that. But what I am saying is that if I was Capcom, I wouldn’t have suggested to put out that trailer. I would have said, “You know what, this has tremendous capacity for being misunderstood, and we want to signal that this is not what you might think it is” — and they didn’t do that. That’s what I’m saying."__
Capcom can make the game but they just shouldn't advertise it? Double talk, trying to spin things, this reflects dishonesty. He absolutely was saying that and he is just attempting to cover it up so his opinion seems more reasonable. You see politicians do this every day, lets pay attention to the language Croal decides to use.
__"Again the portrayal of Africa, or the Caribbean, since we don’t know where it’s being set, as sort of this dark, dangerous continent filled with people who only want to do you harm goes back a long, long way. And based on the images put up on the trailer, what else are you supposed to take from it? Especially if you’re not familiar with the franchise?
“It’s very difficult in this country, in many countries, to have a conversation about race.”
Even if you are familiar with the franchise, if you are familiar with those images and their historical weight, you look at it and say, “Man, that’s kind of messed up.” "__
Just support for my comment above, he is saying one thing then also saying he isn't saying it. This tactic belongs in the political realm but is commonly taken and used in aspects of the media such as this. N'Gai Croal is not only jumping the gun but he is using this dishonest tactic in a foolish attempt to remain the "innocent" party. You can fool some people sometimes, but you can't fool all the people all of the time.
Lets take a closer look at this extended trailer and take a close look at the imagery, I will include time stamps to let you know what to look at and you can decide for yourself if you agree with me or not. I do have training in the arts but I always stress that experience in the arts means jack except when it comes to technique. Anyone can be critical of art if they just simply care enough to pay attention.
__"It’s like they’re all dangerous; they all need to be killed. It’s not even like one cute African — or Haitian or Caribbean — child could be saved. They’re all dangerous men, women and children."__
So this quote seems to be his main point of the entire article, it definitely set the mood early on so lets keep it in mind when we are watching this trailer.
0:00 - 0:46 into the trailer.
This seems like every day life for many people. I don't have the desire to kill anyone of these people yet. Maybe Croal does but I certainly have yet to have a desire to kill anyone walking down a street carrying a container on or people talking. I will grant that there is one character that seems to be up to no good. He shows up at 0:34. He doesn't look like he is happy and he doesn't seem to like you but so far thats the only threatening or dangerous imagery that the video has thus far.
0:47 - 0:55
Angry mob. These people do seem dangerous but they are focusing their anger onto someone. This implies they have a reason to be angry. Perhaps some political uprising? At this point it is unclear but clearly these people are angry and throwing stones.
0:55 - 1:31
No one dangerous here. Clearly the main character seems to be out of place because of his skin color but also because of his attire which seems to be made out of more of a quality material and seems to be cleaner. This was done, in my opinion, to show the audience that he is an outsider in this area. It works. I must stress that none of the people around this character presents themselves as dangerous or the need to be killed. Notice this is the halfway point and none of the citizens in the area depicted seemed like they should be killed or attacked.
1:32 - 1:38
Innocent person gets infected with some kind of zombie virus. Again lets look up at Croal's statement that it seems like they all need to be killed and notice that this is the first time it happens. There are 4 individuals present in this room. One is the main character which is an outsider to this place. Two are the first truly dangerous individuals in the trailer that are inflicting harm on an innocent person. The innocent person here seems to be in a lot of pain and is obviously an unwilling participant in the event.
1:39 - 1:50
The innocent person turns from being a normal human into being a zombie. This is a sudden change from being a formerly peaceful victim of some kind of attack to being a violent person(zombie) that needs to be killed. Yet the main character does not immediately gun down the zombie so this reflects the earlier desire to help the individual that was being attacked by the two other people. Also take note that from 0:00 through 1:48 the music and sound have been gradually building suspense for the viewer. And it isn't until the 1:49, when the zombified individual becomes violent, that the music changes from suspenseful to fast-paced action.
1:51 - 2:01
The fast action music starts and everyone in town is a zombie. The character is defending himself from the now violent zombies and always walking backward. The viewer has now seen a village where it seems like normal every day life(with the exception of the angry mob scene) go to a village out to kill this one individual. Clearly something has happened.
2:02
Aviators guy with a loud speaker. This makes things make more sense as loud speakers are commonly used during political protests. So clearly there is some kind of political situation going on and this explains the angry mob and also labels this person as being more important and probably more responsible for the zombies acting the way they do.
2:03 -2:31
Jittery, fast paced action-packed scenery of violence and struggle. The main character is gunning down zombies but also getting attacked by them. This is normal because if you're surrounded by zombies and have a weapon you are going to be slaughtering them or getting slaughtered by them. Its the core of the game really so this isn't surprising. I do think that this is the only portion of the game N'Gai Croal seemed to pay any attention to.
2:32 - 3:08
This is the end of the trailer. There really isn't any more interaction with the village beside that really quick clip at 2:34 which seems to be a death scene. This portion is meant to identify the game and the company and to also make the viewer want more(to buy the game).
3:08-3:12
I don't know what this is, it doesn't seem to belong at all in the video... I don't think it has anything to do with the actual trailer.
This trailer was powerful and well directed. The entire first half depicts many of the villagers as being normal people. Perhaps angry at some kind of political issue going on at the time, it is a bit unclear what that is but the point is something happens to them and they turn into zombies. It is clearly a Resident Evil story development plot and even if you are not familiar with the Resident Evil series you probably know what zombies are.
If you don't know what zombies are and you only watch 1:51 - 3:08 then obviously you are going to probably agree with N'Gai Croal. However if you know what zombies are and you see even 1:32-3:08 I would definitely find it hard to accept that you don't think something is wrong with those people. And if you have actually watched and payed attention to the entire thing it doesn't matter if you know what zombies are or not you see people go from normal life, to angry, to bloodied sickly looking brainwashed killers.
I'm sorry but I have a hard time believing that Mr. Croal even payed attention to the trailer. I'm not convinced in the slightest. Again I see this as him trying to get some attention from a hot topic that is easily twisted in his favor. Not impressive by any standard. It isn't even that good of an attempt to spin the issue. [FAIL]
"Perhaps the reason that gamers can’t see the racism is because we don’t see black people in something and try to figure out how its racist. Our ability to see past the color of a zombie’s skin and see them for what they are shows that we are growing as a people and people like this that make this an issue are only deterring humanity’s evolution."
your looking way to much into what I said, I just thought at the time that the game took place in Haiti, as most articles that I have read said that.
I withdrew my statement with another one a little while after the first, because I checked the link in Robert Lings Post.
ya but its not Hatti its Africa..and it still has tribes last I checked.
You see the context is a village made of thatch and sticks and maybe some larger timber based housing, besides some "traditional" garments that might be out of place the context of the location is about right.
Adam
Its not Hatti tho....
JimK
Do not fed the ego to much now :P
I do have issue with writing it can waffe from coherent to WTFness easily :P
"Capcom have rather shot themselves in the foot by making the zombies Black, which immediatly started the bleeting and honking from the politicaly correct crowd. To be fair RE4 wasn't any less racist really with all the Spainard murdering but impovrished south africans are a somewhat different kettle of fish from greasy mainland europeans. Of course this game is made by the Japanese and we all know what a bunch of Xenophobic dicks They are. Really I don't think we have to start seriously worring until we see the zombies break out the fried chicken."
Not exactly what he said but I think thats pretty close.
The fact is, this is all just bitching to Bitch in reality, much like most of the things Al sharpton, jesse jackson, and other so called "Civil rights" leaders of the modern day say and do. Unlike Rev. King, they aren't about unity but division and political agendas, least thats my opinion of it.
As the old saying goes. "Cant we all just Get along?"
Africa actually, Ngai said Hatti in his article as discussion fodder.
Keep in mind that there were complaints that Dead Rising was extremely racist towards Americans. Pretty much talking about how much hamburger Americans eat.
So, even if it's racist, at least it would be equal opportunity racist. I mean, if they left Africa out, then wouldn't they be biased in their racism?
Fellow UK'er here too, Scotland in fact. I can see where N'gai is coming from and I think a lot of people are trivialising what he is saying, some just seem to be jumping on the bandwagon without even reading what he has to say.
Its open to interperation, for example:
Star Wars, notice how the Empire are all English, isn't it obvious George Lucas was dregdging up the UK's history to paint us as immoral Imperalist slavers. If they weren't sinister they were submissive. Meanwhile their personal army, Stormtroopers, were faceless drones sent into peril at the command of the Imperialist masters who sat in safety.
The rebellion however consists of young commited American freedom fighters. Echoing the war for independance.
Jabba the Hutt represents America at its worse, corrupt and corpulant but this is easily resolved by a few dedicated members of the rebellion, showing once again that the American spirit cannot be quashed.
The above is, of course, total bullshit. Is it racist because you didn't see Star Wars in the way I just described? No. Is it racist because you aren't aware of the regional and historical sensitivities of a foreign nation or culture. No.
Wild Zero took place in Japan and Undead was in Australia which has Japanese and Australian zombies respectively. Do you want to call them racist?
Like I give a shit what you morons think of me any more.
I think this is a case of seeing racism where there isn't any.
Still, it's stupid.
anyway, there is nothing racist about this game. basically, this n'gai hack just wants his 15 minutes of fame
You had me in stitches dude, really.
RE:"Racism is bad, really bad. But racism only really hurts when it is against a minority/a weaker group. Since caucasians are generally the wealthiest people around the world, it could just be seen as being ignorant of the real problem if you’re actively acting against it."
You just showed your own racism, not against whites, but against everyone else by claiming whites are generally the wealthiest people around the world. You should have just stopped at "Racism is bad."
"When ever I and many other people think of Africa, we think of the victims, not the criminals. They think of the kids with missing legs, mothers who die from birth, kids who are left alone because the parents die from malnutrition, children who are forced into war due to corrupted governments."
I'm not sure thinking of Africans as victims is any better than thinking of them as corrupt officials. You still only seem to see part of the picture, but think that you have the better half. I think we all have kneejerk images that come up in response to certain things, but perhaps it would be better to spend time thinking about the Africans who are neither.
Those in Accra, Cairo, Marrakech and Cape Town, for example, who live a life much like our own, granted without some of the luxuries, but not necessarily in poverty.
Were the kids racist through their ignorance? Or able to treat both "races" equally, by not even acknowledging the "race" of the men portrayed, much as you'd look at someone as crazy for suggesting there's a significant difference between someone who has brown hair, and someone who is blond...
The episode ended with the flag being altered to add two more lynchers, a yellow man and a black man.
"Now I’m intrigued, exactly what luxuries do you believe ‘they’ are missing?"
With the exception of Cape Town, really banging electro. There;s just no decent rave music in North and North West Africa.
1863 when the Emancipation Proclamation went into effect was several hundred years ago?
It is set in Africa!!! So there are gonna be African Americans!!!??????
WTF????
Africans are Africans, not African Americans.
I think the depiction of the people was racist. I dont think they're not gonna be dropping N bombs or nothing like that but this game is certainly looking to be in the grey area.
Clearly no one black worked on this game, since Capcom is a JAPANESE company.
Incidentally, Capcom is an international company, with headquarters in Japan and California.
On another note, my cousin's been to Haiti and the pictures he took compared to the scenes in the game (minus the whole military and zombie stuff of course) do kind of look dead-on for the background. I would get off Capcom's back.
Think about this for a second.
You are being pursued by caucasian zombies hungry for your flesh, what do you do?
Shoot them, of course.
You are being pursued by Black zombies hungry for your flesh, what do you do?
Shoot them of course.
Are you familiar with Canada? There are fairly good odds of non-caucasians working a game at Bioware since the average Canadian city is composed of around 42% of visible minorities.
Sadly, some peoples (like someone we know too well) only sees what they want to see.
This is why I only trust balanced speech that presents both sides correctly. This speech looks like that person only saw the trailer and didn't bother looking for much more.
That was my point Peter.
@ CenturionRyan
I haven't played the game. N'Gai doesn't appear to be calling out the black zombie shooting as the problem though. He appears to be calling out the setting, the music, and the behavior of the black non zombies.
How about if the protagonist were black? Would you feel better then? What if the trailer were exactly the same, but the village was set in 'Nam, or Burma, and all the zombies were Asians?
Since when does a video game have to be historically or geo-politically accurate? Honestly! It looks like to me that Capcom is trying to use the same formula again that made RE 4 so successful.
Your perception is skewed sir.
I can understand a race that endured slavery and abuse in the Western World being somewhat uncomfortable at the concept of playing one white man wandering around in an all-black environment shooting them, take away the context and yes, it would be racist, so I think what N'Gai is saying is that he will save his final judgement until he knows how the story is presented.
It possibly also raises uncomfortable overtones because of the problems Africa has recently had with the AIDS epedemic.
Whilst Capcom is a Japanese company at heart, the game unknowingly touches on some very delicate imagery here in the West, and I think that I, like N'Gai, will be interested to see how Capcom present that imagery through the story, there's 3 different cultures 'interacting' here (Japanese writing a game about Westerners and Africans) and a lot of possibility for misunderstandings.
But when a game from a 'Japanese' company come out with a game that sets in a African like setting, it's racism?
I don't like the argument of 'white boys thinks that Africans are violent people'. When ever I and many other people think of Africa, we think of the victims, not the criminals. They think of the kids with missing legs, mothers who die from birth, kids who are left alone because the parents die from malnutrition, children who are forced into war due to corrupted governments.
I also don't like the idiots who viciously attack African Americans, and call them bitch, niggers, and other things just because of this controversy. I am also against the use of the word nigger in online game as if it's not even as bad as bitch.
Studies shows that video games may change our stereotypical view of a group, but majority of people doesn't go around, stereotyping everyone, and making up their mind about someone just by their race.
Perhaps the reason that gamers can't see the racism is because we don't see black people in something and try to figure out how its racist. Our ability to see past the color of a zombie's skin and see them for what they are shows that we are growing as a people and people like this that make this an issue are only deterring humanity's evolution.
Particularly at Destructoid, there are a handful of community bloggers that wrote very good article about the perception of the imagery and some general response to one of the Chief Contributor's article decrying a similar incredulous/defensive response to the perception of racially charged imagery that has been displayed here so far.
I've blogged about this for two days, and I'm pretty spent about it :) But i will say that
-This is alot like Mister Sparkle (The Simpsons)
- No one's calling for a boycott of the game, an even so, its unlikely that this will stop the game from being released at large
- Its important, in discussions of debateable racially charged imagery that a distinction is made from something being racist/displaying racism and something that invokes stark racial imagery
- I advise anyone with a preformed, alarmed reaction to this general topic, to please, read and understand the actual article
- And also, please note, this is not someone starting down a warpath agenda *against* RE5. N'Gai was responding to being asked about the RE5 controversy. The context being the MTVblog's series on black professionals in the game industry.
During conversations, I've learn to forget the color of the skin of the person I spoke too.
But there are some who clearly can't do that.
Yes, saying all Germans are Nazis is rascist. WWII shooters don't show that though, they show that every member of the German army was a member of the German army.
Take for instance GTA San Andreas. You, as a black male regularly shoot white cops. In fact, except for the motorcycle cops, every cop ingame is white. Now, if you have the game, you know that the "Bad guy" is also black.
The Resident Evil series have been full of caucasians antagonists and protagonists. Suddenly, the local is changed in RE5, which happens to be Africa. You know, where the VAST MAJORITY of all black people live.
That is not racist. It would be racist if its INTENT is to kill black people as a measure of white supremacy, but that has never been the case.
Agreed. Anyone that responds by saying “Oh, they shot Spanish zombies in ‘Resident Evil 4,’ and now ‘black zombies and that’s why people are getting upset.” obviously read the title of the thread and responded. Please read the full article before responding, not the short clip.
He's not complaining that the zombies are black.
Yeah black hawk down actually was a mildly racist movie, and intent aside this trailer does carry imagery that someone with less context about what it was may find racist. There was NO character developement whatsoever in black hawk down about any somalian, they were presented as hordes of drug-crazed africans that were to be mowed down with a gatling gun, they were essentially presented as zombies in that movie, so yeah it might be based on historical fact but it was presented in such a way to be slightly racist.
really, this guy just wants attantion, that´s why.
nobody thought whether or not this trailer could offend someone, because it wasn´t meant to!
and by the way: what sense would it make to have a black gordon freeman? it doesn´t even matter which color he has,
because you never see him in the game...
Read the freaking article first, you obviously didn't that's just clear if for no other reason than you said that the game "happens to be in Africa," it say RIGHT in the article that the game takes place in Haiti, hell even if you just read a couple comments you could see the game took place there, like sometimes i might skip reading some comments before posting when there's like 85-300 of them, but there's like 20 at this point, stop being lazy
Blacks ARE a tiny minority in Japan, and even in North America, they're not common in the game industry, so I would be very surprised if there were any on the development team. That being said, however, I doubt there were many whites either. Japan is not exactly known for its multiculturalism.
The problem with racism is that it is damn hard to define and see in this day and age; it is a subtler question than yesteryear's white hood and burning cross indicators. Mr. Croal makes a really good point about the setting: there is no doubt that trailer makes use of "otherness" and classical racist images.
The problem, as it often is, is the nature of art. What is the game's message? We can't answer that question before playing the game, and even then probably not definitively, but we can consider the issue. Does it make a work "racist" if it uses classically racist images? Wouldn't then Uncle Tom's Cabin be racist, for portraying stereotypical "Negroes?"
Now, I'm not suggesting that RE5 is Uncle Tom's Cabin, or that it can't possibly be racist, but I'm suggesting that the work might have a idea that it it's trying to communicate that is best couched in this imagery.
And it is a further consideration to realize that this is a Japanese game. Is it fair to judge the work based on American sensibilities? It really is possible that the original concept designers didn't realize how thoroughly America is steeped in these questions of modern-day racism. Maybe they weren't aware of what these images and tones of "otherness" and fear mean to us when they're associates with Black men and women.
Just some guy trying to get hits in exchange for torpedoing his credibility.
So, RE5 isn't racist because you're shooting black people, it's racist because...you're shooting black people? What? I don't get the point.
Is it because he's shooting black people in Africa? So if a black person shoots white people in Europe, is that just as horrible?
I think that people who see a stereotypical black man in a plain old zombie are the racist ones. Even if those people are black... if that's how they see their own race, I pity them.
He's the videogame blogger for Newsweek.
No, it's not because you're shooting black people. His concern is that the setting and actions are very stereotypical and portray a rascist view. It shows life in Africa or Haiti (wherever it actually takes place) in a way that shows no research on their part, simply an assumption.
I'm not saying he's right, I'm just explaining the view. Read the article if it's unclear.
German isn't a race.
you forget the world is judged and put to fame over American sensibilities. *shudders*
But the way I see this going is that the media sensationalists and to a greater or equal degree black activist sensationalists that use black peoples standing in the nation to push their warped views on others and keep blacks in general in a state of victimization so they can stay in business, its being used as a means to further the cause of black victimization.
Yes I understand that line of thought is oxymoronic, and I can be quite the moron but my point is its being blown out of perportion for sensationalism and partly PCish activism.
I think always the wrong people (no gamers) will misunderstand games the way they want and start to talk nosense using whatever they can use. Racism against black people is the topic this time.
I didn´t notice any spanish people whinning about spanish zombies being killed on Resident Evil 4. And no mexicans complained about Ghost Recon either (except for non gamers).
So if it´s gonna be some controversy about RE5, is gonna be just bullshit made controversy.
Neither are "Americans" *rolls eyes*
Dick Ward
Dose it matter? its a fictional setting in a 3rd world country(or 2nd I forget) if they mix their 3rd/2nd world settings alil.
Oh, ok. It's racist because it's a bunch of huts in a jungle.
I didn't realize that Resident Evil games were meant to be the vanguard of historical accuracy in video games. Does that mean the Great Zombie White House Attack of 1812 is a little exaggerated?
Imagine if you took only the Pueblo (Spelling, probably, sorry) from RE4. It'd look horribly racist, infering that all Spanish live in tiny little towns with no running water or electricity. I think we just need more gameplay footage. The next area could be a giant city, or an extravegant mansion.
thus why I went with the "black activist " rant, they are one of the few groups I can think of that try and throw poo every change they get to maintain the victim status so they can keep them selfs in business by inflaming the masses that believe their BS.
I don't remember saying that the game is rascist. I was explaining N'Gai's point. I haven't played the game, I know very little about African/Haitian culture so I don't know whether it is rascist. What I do know is that your interpretation of his argument is incorrect and you would benefit from reading the whole article before engaging in conversation. This is why I corrected you, not because I agree with mister Croal.
Honestly, I would think it would be badass if Capcom used my face for the game as a zombie. Shit, that would be epic.
In other words, yeah I see no racism in the game. I can understand his feelings but I strongly disagree.
Hell, If I was to see more white people than black in RE5, I would think there's more of a reason to call them "Racist" (Come on, the game takes place in... Haiti? Africa? I would think something is up if there's hardly any blacks in the game...)
Eh...Most of these beliefs can stem from the the stereotypes used against people who are white. That they are all racist people...
Which is of course, not true, I have white friends who would destroy anyone who would say racist things to me. I don't believe in these stereotypes, really.
while he is doing in a placid manner its still rather sensationalist, there would be no discussion here if they(the zombies) where a whiter shade of pale.
and I would bet if the main character was black it would have not garnered the media attention it has gained.
I fucking hate anyone who does that, and guess what: Minorities do it like no tomorrow.
Now, I don't hate them because of their color or whatever. And I know not all of them are as pathetic as this. But a majority of all minorities are. And I hate them for that. So by proxy, yeah, I guess I'm a fucking racist. Who the fuck ISN'T these days? It's IMPOSSIBLE.
Fuck I hate these people.
First, Croal is the gaming columnist for Newsweek. I doubt he needs the publicity.
Second, MTV asked him. So I doubt he is out to cause trouble.
Third, there are a couple different versions of the trailer out. The one posted above is the extended trailer. The one that first came out was shorter. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kP3XFPSHiWo
The longer one has a lot more context than the shorter one. The shorter one is at least for me has a lot more disturbing portrayals of black people than the longer one. In the longer one there are some scenes of the normal non-zombie people. In the shorter one those are a lot fewer. I think that if only the longer trailer had be released then there might not have been as much controversy because it shows a lot more context.
Finally, for those saying that no one complained about RE4 being in Spain, I would suggest that you look at the trainers for RE4 and see how different they are from this trailer. http://www.gametrailers.com/game/1099.html
There's a big difference in hating minorities and hating extremists. I only hate the latter and it doesn't matter if they are American, African or whatever.
Majority?
That's just like saying the majority of Christians are dickheads like Jack Thompson. When in reality, this isn't true. It only seems like that because those fools are just the most vocal. You'd be surprised to see how little "minorities" are like this.
I think the problem is some people will use Resident Evil 5 like a plataform to talk about racism on videogames.
I really can´t talk about afro-american activism, because in Mexico we don´t have those social issues. But I think there will be people who uses activism for their own benefit, and they will lie or misinform about things they don´t know in order to get their agendas.
I don´t think RE5 is a racist game, but people will use like an excuse to use videogames like a racism issue propaganda.
Which by no means tells they are racists, unless they are enough racist to see that kind of behaviour from black people completely normal for them, which I doubt.
Wouldn't an utopia be just like that, a place where someone points out your skin color would be as random as pointing out your hair color?
I do understand though, that it might be good to consciously make a note about the race of the zombies... Not that I think seeing a crowd of black zombies attacking in a video game is gonna make yourself xenophobic towards black people, but stereotypes are suprisingly easy to create... Though I think that making you see all blacks as savages that attack you with hatchets and pitchforks on sight might take more than one game. :/
I wouldn't be too worried.
"It’s not as simple as saying, “Oh, they shot Spanish zombies in ‘Resident Evil 4,’ and now ‘black zombies and that’s why people are getting upset.” The imagery is not the same. It doesn’t carry the same history, it doesn’t carry the same weight…"
Right, because non of the Spanish speaking population never faces racism and people living on countryside don't have any offensive stereotypes on them? This was sarcasm by the way.
@Dick Ward
"I’ve not played the game, so I’m not able to judge, and I find it funny how many people are willing to defend RE. I’m not saying it’s a rascist game, I’m just curious how everyone else knows it isn’t?"
Because jumping the gun easily provokes an exact opposite reaction, even from person who would be normally balanced in his/her opinion.
We don't know what this game is about, and even if it doesn't make some deep points about the situation of Africa, the possibly racist imaginary is more likely the result of a naive design of a people living in homogenous nation (and by that I don't mean xenophobic country, but a country that doesn't have such an overblown political correctness) rather than a statement against a race.
If a Japanese game gives a bad image of Koreans or Chinese, then it's probably straight out racism... This just seems rather naive design.
And while Capcom doesn't make the best possible stories, I think they have enough sense to add few black good guys too, as in RE4 there was good Spanish guys... It's not much, but don't expect any deep thoughts on Africa's situation from their storywriters.
Besides, from what I gathered, they made the game take place in Africa because they thought it would be both a nice change of scenery and it would be fitting if the origins of the virus were in the same place as humanity's.
I wasn't talking about you when I was lolling about Capcom and historical accuracy.
Maybe Haitian culture has some beautiful music that Capcom could've put in the trailer but Haitians are not the demographic. The music they chose is instantly recognizable to us. Just like every other trailer, it uses stereotypical music to very quickly tell you what te game is about. If that means using a tune that somebody else already used to convey the same feeling, why not? In my opinion it would be racist to only start being consciouss about these things when black characters are involved
The problem in the above article is not that black people are the bad guys. The problem stated is that the depiction of Africa is stereotypical and provokes a negative image.
I should probably elaborate on my last comment.
I wasn't talking about the game, but if there were zombies shuffling towards you in real life, what would you be inclined to do, regardless of their skin colour?
Like this.
I'm not sure what your point is though, as no one is complaining that black zombies are getting shot.
Hell, even when there is racism, why bitch about it? I mean, yeah, if there are situations where it does effect you then fine.
But people are racist. That's just a fact. Nowhere near as many as these people want to believe, but it exists. So why whine about it? Just ignore it, or do anything but fuel the fire. Whining fuels the fire.
Look, I'm not saying that these people don't have legitimate troubles and face legitimate racism (Which I don't support by the way), but the racism card is thrown around non stop. Everywhere. You can barely say anything without offending people.
And frankly, I'm tired of hearing it. Fed up. Sick of it. It's without a doubt a blatant case of the "boy who cried wolf". They do it over stupid ridiculous shit like this (and far worse), so by the time there is an actual case of racism, I just don't care anymore.
@Repudiator
Okay, to be fair, my statement was very ignorant. It was out of frustration.
But an alarming amount of minorities do do this. Maybe it's just my experience (which does not draw from FOX News or indeed any news channels) but it's growing old. I have no patience for it anymore. And now my games are being effected.
*sigh*, I remember when I could play games exclusive to real life issues.
People bitch about it because it is a problem. Because people who are not rascist may not realise that the product is and take information from it that is false. Misinformation is very dangerous. It's the same reason that I bitch about psychics advising people on medical procedures, or people shelling out money for 'dietary suppliments'. I'm sure you do the same when people say that games make people kill.