Little Devil Inside Developers Address Complaints of Racist Character Design

NeoStream writes: We will be making the following fixes to the current characters but if it ends up not being suitable to the game as a whole, we may change the design entirely.

1. Remove the Dreadlocks.
2. Change the bold lips.
3. Change skin tone.
4. Tweak the dart blower so it looks less like a joint."

[mania568]

why? censoring things in games is never the right move, the people who complain about this things were never going to buy your game anyway, trying to appease the 1% while ignoring the 99%, they just want to complain, there are some people who where to buy your game who might now not be so happy about it, never censor your games developers...

[Greg2801]

Yeah this is just plain stupid. Im black myself and i dont see anything offensive about that design. And i know that im not the only one.
They should just ignore that 1% that are feeling butthurt about this.

[NecrumOddBoy]

I thought their looks was just a mix of BOTW's moblin troops and the Tikihead from Crash. "Tribal" is not a color; it is a theme. Now I feel like we are going to allow that 1% to ruin everything for everyone. Outrage and cancel culture will be the death of art.

[medman]

LOL...you folks in here are pathetic. You're calling those who are complaining "butthurt", and yet here you are butt all hurting because of the developers decision on what to do with THEIR game. Typical.

[deleted]

Wow. Yea, I was doing this design for fun this last year, inspired by Tiki culture. (unfinished)

https://i.imgur.com/gFSQiQc...

What went through my mind was the Crash Bandicoot tiki mask guy and tiki mask culture in general. :\ The furthest thing from my mind was depicting anything racial in a negative way.

[chiefJohn117]

I'm black and I find them offensive

[mikeslemonade]

America getting soft by the day. And it’s not 1%. It seems like it’s close to 50% that believe in this racial justice movement.

So Little Mermaid remake gets to be black but these characters in the game can’t be black and tribal, give me a break. Y’all trying to have it both ways as usual.

@medmen if they had asian or white peasants I don’t care either. Just give me the story on how it’s intended. Now they gonna make the characters grey or green maybe which makes it hella cartoony.

[PrinceAli]

and because you're black you speak for the blacks?? Lord knows you dont speak for me so whats your point?

Reading through this thread just highlights how dumb and prejudice a lot of you guys are.. it's sad.. for people who don't care you seem to really care about people caring... The only thing you guys seem to be latching onto is how 'soft' everyone is and 'butthurt' rather than realising offensive material or HOW something can be offensive... people aren't become 'soft' and lashing out they are rightly voicing their opinions and reality... what you are saying is 'People are soo soft now and get butthurt all the time' which translates too 'i wish we could go back to a time where we could be openly racist and prejudice without being called out for it and with 0 accountability'

[rdgneoz3]

It's like they've never heard of Pixel Junk Monsters 1 or 2...

[mikeslemonade]

^y’all assuming again. I never said be openly racist. We can’t have a dark skin character showing tribal elements in a video game? Now that’s being a whiny and butthurt person. That’s too elementary. That was the last thing I thought of when I was watching the game, I didn’t connect that as being black people characters.

[mikeslemonade]

Zombies are usually white skinned in the media. They are dumb and slow at walking. Now we don’t hear anybody really having an issue with that.

[Zeref]

If your game is offending a group of people. it should not be out there. This was clearly a stereotypical depiction of african tribal culture.

Doesn't matter if they were going to buy it or not.

[mandf]

So we cant have a tribal African influenced game. The woke response is its created by white people. Remember friends TV show had no black people and how wole they were but it was created by white people. Paying homage to a culture shouldn't be a insult.. everything in today's culture is influenced by all past cultures. The world is just becoming a bunch of haters. No wonder why I smoke so much weed.

[morganfell]

Who is the arbiter of what is offensive? Is this nature of being offended restricted to only a few people? Can Caucasians be offended? Did masks like that actually exist? See where this is going? It is a slippery slope generated by the Perpetual Eternally Reactionary Victims Establishment.

The truth is that once you give in it never stops. They will simply move onto something else until they absorb you into their group think collective.

[Zeref]

Who is the arbiter of what is offensive?
The people who are being offended. There is not one group of people that decides what is offensive.

Is this nature of being offended restricted to only a few people?
Of course not.

Can Caucasians be offended?
Of course.

Did masks like that actually exist?
Masks like this do not exist. That is the offensive part. its a stereotypical depiction of how WHITE people see african tribal people.

See where this is going?
I do not see where this is going

[GamingSinceForever]

This guy gets it.

[BenRC01]

Bet you're 14 and white af. Did your little basement group give you a round of applause for this post?

[NecrumOddBoy]

Zef,
"its a stereotypical depiction of how WHITE people see african tribal people."

Game is made in South Korea dude. Quit being a racist.

[mandf]

Benrc

I dont know if you are replying to me. I'm 44 and did1 12yrs of my life behind bars where real racist shit goes on not some oh we had it first shit. Life is not just what you see.i n the history of the world all races have been enslaved. All races have been wronged. Right now its it's about basic human rights not oh he borrowed from my culture. It should be an honor not a slight. You youngins have to much time on your hands looking for a fight over any perceived insult.

[I_am_Batman]

Quote:
Q:"Who is the arbiter of what is offensive?"
A:"The people who are being offended. There is not one group of people that decides what is offensive."
----------------------------- ------------------------------ - -
Ok here are two more questions for you:

1. What characteristics determine a 'group' of people?
2. How big must the percentage of offended people within this group be for it to warrant alteration or banning of the game?

[KiRBY3000]

@Zeref

OK then here is what I'm offended by. I'm offended that some people are hooked on seeing racism everywhere they can. I'm offended by the absolute lack of logic of the process. I can go on and on about everything I don't like or support and express myself in a way that says those things are offensive. I made the statements. Will it stop now? Or does it only work in one direction?

People are bullying the creators of this game into restricting the range of what they are allowed to do artistically, and they think they're making the world a better place by doing so. Absolutely delusional.

[Imalwaysright]

Zeref

I'm deeply offended by what you wrote here. What are you going to do about it?

Also these are african masks built by african tribes https://www.pngitem.com/pim...
https://i.pinimg.com/origin...
https://i.pinimg.com/origin...

Wich again, offend me deeply so how do we go about cancelling those racist african tribes?

[Dirtnapstor]

Why is depicting characters of any real world resemblance racist? Where would we draw ANY concepts from if it were not the real world?
How do you know whether or not this game is being made by “White people” as you have inferred? What if they have Black devs on their team? What if specific aspects of this game were realized by the Black devs? It doesn’t matter who really, but my point is that you’re attempting to cherry-pick (is “cherry-picking” racist?)
Maybe, just maybe the team came up with something that look led pretty cool solely based on a collective of concepts gathered from what they’ve seen....and that’s it. Just that. Simple. “I like that look, let’s go with it” type of thing.
Are white people the only ones allows to be imposed upon?

[Laxus]

@Imalwaysright

These aren't real african tribal masks lol

Literally says "Costume" in the link. Foh

Yall just wanna be racist in peace. That ain't gonna happen. Dev already changed their minds.

[morganfell]

The developers did not change their mind based on the accuracy of the mask art but due to screaming of the perpetually offended. You should try living in the real world.

"The people who are being offended. There is not one group of people that decides what is offensive."

I'm offended by people kneeling during the Nation Anthem of the United States. And there are other veterans that are not. You see no group is completely consolidated. According to some groups other groups have no rights. Plenty of BLM supporters and black nationalists claim you cannot be racist toward Caucasians. Basically Caucasians do not get to decide when they are offended. It just becomes a never ending screamfest by people that want to live in an imaginary world where they are king and cannot conceive of a life where they are not a victim and must go tilting against demon windmills.

As for actual masks:

http://nationalmuseum.ghana...

https://www.youtube.com/wat...

There are tons if you google them and look at authentic masks. I will bet 99.99% of the so called offended have never seen an actual traditional African mask in their life. This entire matter was nothing more than another case of an invented offense. And gamers, who used to be among the ultra savvy, are becoming more gullible by the year. In large part they bought off on it and got behind the glorious freedom cause. Pathetic.

And Neostream Interactive? South Korean developer. You know, Koreans. The ethnic group who have a well documented history of being racially targeted and attacked here in the US. Any guess who keeps doing that?

@Necrum - bingo.

[Imalwaysright]

Laxus

Ah yes, how easy it is for ignorants to point their finger at others and call them all kinds of "isms" and "ists". I searched for traditional african masks that can be found in museums and here are some of the results

https://i.pinimg.com/origin...
https://i.pinimg.com/origin...
https://lh3.googleuserconte...

So what are your excuses now? How come are you so casually calling others racists when you don't know the 1st thing about traditional african cultures? Are you going to call african tribes and the people behind the museums that are sharing traditional african cultures with the world all kinds of "isms" and "ists" as well?

[morganfell]

@Imalwaysright

Off the top rope with an atomic elbow. They scream the developer depictions were racist yet when you ask them why they simply say, "I can't believe you don't understand." They sidestep the question. Now they also need to explain your query. Why do these differ from the ones you and I linked?

[DaGR8JIBRALTAR]

Big red lips, blowdart...yep looks pretty stereotypical to me.

[morganfell]

"Big red lips, blowdart...yep looks pretty stereotypical to me."

Except those features exist on actual African masks. And blowguns were used in Africa.

[jambola]

and yet i guarantee most complaints were from spoiled, bored white people on twitter

[jambola]

"Who is the arbiter of what is offensive?
The people who are being offended. There is not one group of people that decides what is offensive."

so if I, a white male, decides that the depiction is offensive, I am automatically right?

[Hungryalpaca]

Your comment offends me. Remove it.

[FlavorLav01]

Games are art! Since when is art not ALLOWED to be offensive. And I don’t think that is was ever the developers intent here either. Every aspect under a microscope like this will only serve to kill creativity in exchange for safer PC experiences. Goodbye Doom, GTA, Last of Us. All too offensive. Don’t support games you find offensive, but also don’t censor art please. I’m white, blond haired, blue eyed, but I sure love killing Nazis in video games. Erry Day! Lol Lighten up a little folks, especially to this specific degree feels a little silly. This here was a theme, not a derogatory depiction.

[Angrymorgan]

People do NOT have the right to NOT be offended, if you try to appease the offended you indirectly offend another group.

[Nicknasty]

Seriously, lol. What’s wrong with showing culture? Nothing! It’s crazy thinking people like you that have no idea. Should we ban the movie Leprechaun then, for being stereotypical of Irish? It’s getting beyond stupid and needs to stop. These people that come up with this ridiculous nonsense are just so dang miserable to begin with.

[ZombieGamerMan]

Alright than The Last of Us Part 2 should not exist cause it offends religious groups that believe homosexuality is a sin, Grand Theft Auto should not exist cause it's glorification of criminal life style is offensive to victims of crime, Call of Duty/Battlefield should not exist as it offends people who hate war. We can go down a long list of games that will offend someone to some degree, would you still say that games offending a group of people should still not be allowed to be sold?

Also if we start censoring or prevent people of using themes & imagery that illicit very negative feelings about a subject matter then you are killing art, freedom of expression and creating weaklings that can not handle the brutal realities of life. You don't toughen a man up by showering him with rainbows & sunshines

[morganfell]

Before he edited his remark this Zef stated, "its a stereotypical depiction of how WHITE people see african tribal people."

Think about it. He automatically assumed it was white people. What the Korean developers did wasn't racist (remember it is how tribal people represented their own culture) but he believes it is and the first thing that crosses his mind is white people. What's the word for making such a stereotypical assumption about a group of people? Yeah its called racism. Imagine a Qwik Stop is robbed and someone says, "I'll bet it was a back guy" That would be wrong and this is no different. Mr race defender himself committed the first act of racism here then tried to quickly edit his remarks.

[ChristopherJack]

Would you support censoring a Terrorism Simulator game which promotes terrorist cells & trains people on how to commit acts of terrorism (building bombs, guns, tactics, etc)?

How about extremely graphical sexual depictions of minors?

[Muzikguy]

They should not censor their game to cater to anyone. I hope they rethink that. Start once and it won't stop

[PrinceAli]

People like you are annoying... the logic that "trying to appease the 1% while ignoring the 99%" has always been a bullshit argument to have as it's simply saying im not offended so it doesn't matter REGARDLESS of if the thing people are offended by IS actually offensive... It's plain and simple BS... If it's a non-issue for you then great, let it be a non-issue for you... So when it's changed to not offend then it's gonna be a non-issue for you then too because it was never an issue for you ever.... it's simple

[starchild]

First, some changes do affect me and I really despise how they're changed to appease these people.

Secondly, who said you can't have opinions about things that may not personally affect you? I stand up for what I believe to be right regardless of whether it personally affects me or not.

Third, lots of things done by people of the opposite political persuasion offend me greatly, but somehow it's only their side that supposedly has a right to be offended about anything. The double standards have to end.

[Cueil]

Really? People are crying about a indie game developed in Korea?

[robtion]

The internet has created a forum for people to air every little complaint. Developers need to stop giving attention to vocal minorities and validating their distorted perspectives.

Game looks great. Love the art style.

[shuvam09]

There's a race war going on everywhere. A war where no one wins and everyone loses.

But this particular incident is so stupid. If this carries on, there won't be a single villain that won't be racist.

[Grave]

Defund the "thought police".

[EazyC]

The insane thing is that I think 95%+ of people think the same, but are too through terrified to deny the vocaln minority of perpetually offended dopes.

[BlackIceJoe]

Defund the thought police is a trend I can openly support.

[starchild]

Absolutely. We're all so tired of it.

It's very telling that many of these same people only care about superficial diversity. Actual diversity of thought is anathema to them.

[NobleRed]

F****** snowflakes. When will the developers realize they should stop listen to these clowns?

Most people who complain wouldn't even buy the game in the first place so why do you listen to them??

[gamer7804]

Fear of cancel culture is why. If they don’t change it now the mob will come for them again later and possibly destroy the whole studio. I honestly don’t have any interest in this game but pretty ridiculous.

[KilluaX3]

Well I've just taken the game off my wishlist. You can keep your censored piece of garbage.

[jdoe]

CANCELLED BY REEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE EEE

[gigzamillion]

I don't get this at all there's nothing racist about these characters, even if they depict tribal people whats racist about tribal people? Not everything is a stereotype or racism I don't know why we cant knock this stuff off and stop being outraged over everything why looks at this as an insult instead of a celebration of a culture of people that do indeed exist.

[Zeref]

The way they are depicted is racist. But of course you wouldn't be able to see that.

[gigzamillion]

Ok then if I cant see it please explain to me how the depiction is racist so you can help educate me on whats racist about them exactly. Insulting me without education seems to be a bigger problem than whats actually going on with these characters.

[ninsigma]

Except these mask exist and were created be real tribes people. How is it racist to take influence from that?

[Angrymorgan]

If you see it as racist, I hope you've never laughed at, ginger, fat, gay, jokes,
I assume you dont find white chicks or dont be a menace funny movies either.

[RedDevils]

Because no one is sensitive like you.

[Cmoney007]

ResetEra is a perfect place for you because they love talking about selective outrage.

[VileAndVicious]

Pretty sure they aren't upset because it depicts tribal people but rather because the designs look similar to caricatures of the offensive way blacks were once depicted in popular media. Meaning jet black skin and large red lips (remember Mr Popo from Dragon Ball Z?).

Whether or not you find those caricatures offensive is another story.

[gigzamillion]

Ok but assuming a character is racist simply becasue of the tone of the characters skin is ridiculous, black people exist and often times the skin tone is very dark there's nothing racist about that its just a skin tone so why would someone be upset over that considering there are a myriad of games on the market with character creation where skin tone is selectable and you can choose a very dark complexion, seems odd that would be an issue here and moreover looking again at the picture shown in the article their skin isn't "jet black".

As for the large red lips real tribal masks are often exaggeration and embellishment of features and colors and those very same masks are seen as artistic and respected art often hung on walls in gallery's and homes. Just feels to me like someone wanted to be easily offended yet there's nothing really offensive here.

[VileAndVicious]

It kind of sounds like you either don't know what a racist 'caricature' is or don't believe that they exist.

And that's fine I'm not going to argue with you about it.

Just wanted to point out that having tribal characters in the game wasn't the issue.

[Zeref]

The red lipstick and teeth on the mask. They're stereotypical renditions of how white people see african tribal people.

[gigzamillion]

Have you ever seen a tribal mask, I have. If African tribal people make masks with embellished features and vibrant colors how are they being racist against themselves? Seems offensive to me to take something created by a culture and call it a stereotype, that's not what a stereotype is and this is not what racism looks like. By the way you say "how white people see African tribal people", well the game isn't being developed by white people its being developed by a South Korean indie studio so this has little to do with how white people see anything.

[NeedleEye]

Is this the best you can come up with? The teeth and the red lipstick.

I'd be interested to know what kind of depiction you would use for tribal african person, or any black person for that matter.

[Laxus]

@gigzamillion.
Real masks don't have red lipstick on them smh. The red lipstick comes from black face and the racist way black people have been depicted in media.

@NeedleEye
Yes that's all there is to it for it to be offensive.

There are plenty of ways to make these characters without it being offensive. Why did they have to be stereotypical? It's like making a character of an african american with a fried chicken around his neck. "it's just a fried chicken"

Look at Miko from Bleeding Edge. Look at REAL african tribal masks. They could have done this and made the masks look a bit more like the real masks instead of the red lipstick.

[SegaGamer]

@Laxus

"Real masks don't have red lipstick on them smh"

A quick Google search will prove you wrong. There are plenty of African Tribal Masks with red lips.

[boing1]

So who is exactly offended? African Tribal People?

[gigzamillion]

@Laxus

Real masks have bright vibrant colors and exaggerated features they are created that way by tribal people there's nothing offensive about it, this is not black face its a tribal mask comparing it to black face is ridiculous and only proves people are really reaching to make a comparison to something so they can validate their opinion of it being racist. What its more like is censorship, why is it ok for people to be upset over the censorship of nudity in a video game yet are ok with the removal of artistic representation of real culture?

[starchild]

You're stereotyping white people yourself. Isn't that racist?

[thornh]

Just don't buy the game. It's not racist. Not everything is racist. There are good and bad people of every color, religion, etc. Stop assuming every single white person goes out of their way to offend black people at every turn. Guess what? That's being prejudiced. Two can play this game but most of don't feel the need to go to the damn extremes every single minute of our lives pointing out what offends us.

[thornh]

@Laxus

So the portrayal of the old white guy isn't stereotypical?

[morganfell]

Imagine being offended by your own heritage. Then again this entire matter was probably started by some skinny white pink hair looking for a cause.

And BTW, some people are screaming they are racist masks. Why? What about them makes them racist. How are these masks racist and ones that look very VERY similar hang in museums and are not racist. Or ones made for sale in Africa by Africans. Is there some secret design where you have to defocus your eyes to see a racial epithet?

[chiefJohn117]

The fact you don't see how it racist is mind blown. This will never end. It's 2020 yet ppl still don't see the problem smfh

[RebelWAC]

Are you serious!? I'm african black, very proud to be may I ad and I don't see anything troublesome about this other than the fact that it has been depicted as racism. Pick your battles ffs cause this ain't one of them.

[SegaGamer]

What about the black people replying saying it's not racist? Is their opinion not worth anything? How about the images found online showing that many African Tribal Masks have red lips?

[gigzamillion]

You're right it will never end if people don't stop being overly sensitive and offended about literally everything, The fact people think this is something to be outraged about mind blown.The problems you speak of could be better addressed if people put their focus and effort into them instead of a couple characters in an indie video game that are in no way racist or offensive.

[CrimsonWing69]

Because African tribal people don’t exist? Or are black people embarrassed by them? I just don’t understand the world. I’ll watch black stand-up comedians do the most racist jokes, but then you add African tribal people in a game with a unique art style and that’s offensive?

Makes as much sense as burning a Wendy’s down because an officer had to shoot a black guy swinging punches at him and trying to taser him. This world is getting out of hand.

[Zeref]

It's the way they're depicted that is racist. It looks like the stereotypical way white people think tribal people are. So of course you wouldn't see the problem with it. Show me one tribal mask with red lipstick and sharp teeth on them.

There's plenty of games that do African tribal people right. Bleeding Edge's Miko for example.

[CrimsonWing69]

It’s the art direction. Get over it. I’m not offended by how ugly the white people look.

[Bathyj]

The Devs aren't white

[RebelWAC]

I don't see no problems with it whatsoever. The only problem I see is where we cross the line when it comes to rasism.. the word changes meaning by the day and it loses weight the more we misuse it.

[starchild]

You're being racist toward white people by stereotyping them as being racist.

[Zeref]

Racism isn't an art direction lol

[Dirtnapstor]

How would you respond to the characters from The Flame and the Flood? Should I be offended as well? They have a very grotesque misrepresentation of a white girl.

[thornh]

So did you have an issue with Marvel's portrayal of tribal people in Black Panther? Actually, better question. If a white person had directed Black Panther, and it was the exact same movie, would you have had an issue with the movie?

[monkey602]

Well that 1 guy who complained better have preordered and fully paid off the highest tier collectors edition already then.
Who am I kidding. He probably had no intentions of buying it in the first place

Im still excited for it. Would take more than this to put me off but its a shame to see an artists work and vision go to waste over something this trivial. Different story if it was actually racially demeaning

[Azurite]

TIL Diablo 2 is racist.

[Eamon]

Kneejerkism.

21st century white guilt does not address actual real-world problems. Inability to tell the difference between something harmless like these character designs and something harmful like police brutality doesn't serve anything.

[starchild]

Well, I'm all for reducing police brutality if people have sensible ideas about how to do it (not the ridiculous ideas being bandied about), but the truth is, it isn't a significant problem to worry about. Not saying it doesn't matter, simply saying that there are more pressing issues that better deserve our attention.

If you aren't a criminal and you aren't fighting the police your chances of being killed are so tiny it isn't anything the average person should worry about. I mean, I don't go around worrying about being killed by a tree falling on me or getting struck by lighting and those are things I'm actually slightly more likely to die from. And this is true for people of any race.

[Eamon]

Black folk are naturally really afraid of cop encounters. It's no surprise - when every other week there's phone footage of a trigger-happy cop killing one of them. Many cases the victims were not criminals at all, but almost every time in these vids the victims were not a threat to the cop. Just because the stats of police brutality are lower than annual car crash stats, doesn't make the threat any less real.

Also, this idea of - don't fight the police during an encounter or arrest and all will be fine - has been disproved by actual video evidence of unarmed non-threatening black folk being on the end of explicit police brutality. You're not looking at it from the PoV of those disproportionately effected by this. Clearly, not resisting arrest isn't enough to guarantee your life. And that's putting aside the fact that in most places in the world people usually survive resisting arrest anyway. Police brutality is realized from the combination of bad training, trigger-happy response, disproportionate use of force and insular culture. Then there're the issues of poor neighborhoods with high crime, an increasingly violent society, mental health of cops, militarization of police gear, racism among the rank & file.

And then you get the police unions fighting tooth and nail to stop any kind of introspection or reform. Even resorting to gang-like intimidation tactics like the doxxing of the NYC mayor's daughter.

[NeedleEye]

It's considered racist when you don't include enough black characters in your game. And it is still racist when you do include them. There is no way to appease these braindead idiots. Just do what you were doing and let these idiots scream, they will eventually find a new target to went their frustration.

[Zeref]

lol this isn't inclusion when the ones included are disrespectful depictions.

[NeedleEye]

How are these depictions disrespectful?

Surely it is a common stereotype, but there is clearly no racist intent behind it.

[jambola]

oh
so now you think you decide what inclusion is?
how entitled can you be

[thornh]

I'm offended every time I see my ancestors depicted with horns on their helmets. I think I'll start VLM (Viking Lives Matter) and start by burning down the nearest IKEA in protest.

[1nsomniac]

I usually hate this term but “fake news”.

[bangoskank]

Still excited about it but people who are offended by this and feel the need to complain about it should be slapped. It's an innocent creature design and a good one at that. The dev should not alter the model and just make the skin color lighter.

[jimbost79]

And change the skin tone of the main character too. I'm personally offeneded that it's a white guy that's being depicted killing these creatures. That one scene where he's riding a small horse shooting at a fleeing bear in particular upset me. I'll have to let the devs know about this. I can't be the only one.

[bangoskank]

In all seriousness I strongly advocate animal rights to the point where I don't eat meat but the bear thing really didn't bother me just like killing boars in Breath of the Wild didn't. People need to have fun and stop whining.

[jimbost79]

I know mate I just think the whole thing is ridiculous.

[spwittbold]

fuken dumb lol

[Bathyj]

I've heard that penguins are offended too because they don't really like sand.

[Lexreborn2]

People continue to say it’s a “1%” versus the 99%. That’s pretty bold of a claim, firstly if people are looking at the game they clearly have an interest in buying it. Secondly, all games are developed with small test groups which is a minority. And a lot of mechanics or design in early testing make it or don’t based on those test groups.

If there are even 20% of people and their game is trending for what is perceived as negative. Changing a design is the least of their concerns as now their brand is taking negative press. Even if you are black to think because it doesn’t offend you it doesn’t offend another is a lack of empathy. It’s like the black person who says because I was never pulled over it invalidates the 20 others who were for being black. I know that because being a black person myself I have seen this commentary and refuted it.

The devs are changing a character design that’s not a negative censoring that changes the impact of the game. It simply means an artist has to broaden their scope. Why is that a problem for a product that is supposed to reach out to millions of people?

[chiefJohn117]

Preach! Everyone down voting you are evil and what wrong with the world.

[Lexreborn2]

Honestly I could care less about the downvoted, because I know the audience wasn’t interested in hearing differently. That’s the whole reason the people on here are encouraging each other because they are for the opposite decision. But, clearly the developer is more in line with my view as they are changing it. It is what it is

[Lexreborn2]

Villanelle, you literally prove the point in your post. If it was a 1% vs the 99% then the sales wouldn’t be effected. So it’s clear that a large portion of their audience and potential buyers who don’t like it are worth changing it then someone who is angry that they did.

You prove that YOU are the 1% if anything by your retort. Again, they have the ability to see first hand how badly the public perception was from the design choice. And clearly it’s not a left vs right thing. Because again... they changed it.

[Angrymorgan]

So by that logic, every game, tv show, movie and song to ever come out cannot offend or upset anyone....good luck making that then

[Lexreborn2]

Everything has a point of empathy and product of story telling. If the point of a show is to hit hard at societal norms that are challenging then that’s apart of the story.

This mask/character design is clearly not impactful to the story WHATSOEVER. So, trying to compare the two narrative is clearly not synonymous with one another. If it was a part of the narrative I would agree but it’s not so it can be changed.

Hell since the dawning of American T.V they held a value that white blinds are best for news casting. That has somewhat changed in the news media. And at one point they only had blond white models on TV shows. Guess what? Now they have models of all types on shows.

Get over it you live in a diverse civilization that doesn’t just cater to YOUR standards.

[Angrymorgan]

So cutting the bullshit, your saying if it's not paramount to a story, the story creator cant visualise his/her artistic vision.
The world cant cater to my standards but in can other peoples who are offended

And please dont preach to me about diversity, my family is jamaican, german, Irish.

I think you need to get over yourself m8

[Lexreborn2]

Oh yeah, because you have Jamaican German and Irish that make you a poster boy huh? You still have no take in this and they changed it. So the person who needs to get over themselves is you.

Art is subjective and it’s value is dictated by the people receiving it. If they donated the game for free as is sure the freedom of expression you are trying to invoke would be unapologetic. But they aren’t, they are running a business and trying to make money.

Ergo.... they changed it. Cry a river about false entitlement all you like. The world gives no fucks

[Angrymorgan]

When did I say I was the poster boy, I'm saying get your head out of your arse and stop preaching to me about diversity.

Art is an expression of the creator and not the consumer, we have freedom to Express ourselves so why should people be forced to change their vision because of wannabe do godess like yourself?

Spin it however you want to, your full of shit pal

[BenRC01]

You'll all be shocked when the far right take hold because people are sick of this BS. Take a stand against the 8 people on twitter who make this garbage up and carry on working for the 1000s that thought your game looked great.

I WILL NOT BUY THIS IF YOU PANDER TO TWITTER GIMPS.

[syphon32]

Wait... Huh... I didn't see any of that. There was something racist in the trailer🤷‍♂️

[Saaleh]

You are putting the developer in an awkward situation, either side they go they will get slapped. So both sides feels extreme to me.

I will let the developer decide if they made a mistake or not because the issue is vague and not a big deal in the first place. Clearly, the developer just want this drama to end and never intended to offend any side.

[jambola]

yeah, but now they're pandering to oversensitive idiots so i don't want to support that

[monkey602]

Its not an easy situation to defuse for them. If it was only 1 or 2 people complaining to begin with they should have ignored it. Unfortunately for the message that changing it is trying to achieve, it can almost have the opposite effect. So much in the media is being altered and censored now that people are starting to get their back up about it all. Its being pushed back against harder and harder.

This comes off the tail end of a week where the UK has had 2 of its considered classic shows (little Britain and come fly with me) pulled from all streaming services and broadcasts because of racist and homophobic material. Worth noting here I dont like either show. However now we have to go one step forward and true classics like Fawlty Towers, Only fools and Horses and Father Ted are under scrutiny and face the axe too. These shows shouldnt be buried but maybe a disclaimer put before each to state they were a product of their time and no longer considered the acceptable behaviour?

Same for all the talk of pulling statues down. Instead we could do what some of the other Eastern European countries have done and move these to a designated location so the history behind them isn't lost entirely and we can talk about the subject matter instead of blowing it up.

A middle ground should be found because now its just creating divides

I still plan on supporting this game myself though. A lot more work went into it as a whole than just one enemy variant

[Saaleh]

It makes sense. Full context is important to the issue at hand especially if you want to find the middle ground. But my issue with some people go extreme and decide to not buy the game over something vague like this, just imagine you are developing this game for years and suddenly this drama started to drain all your hopes and excitement. if it was clear like there is some racist thing and then this drama occurred i would see 2 sides saying ( even with clear racist content this is freedom of speech/creativity) and the other side would say (even freedom must have red lines in order to maintain it, there is no such thing as 100% freedom), but the issue is that all of this is vague so either side you are in i don't see how it's an excuse to crush this developer to make of them an example for those who ignore the context you mentioned (It makes sense why people angry but their anger needs to be in proportion to the issue at hand not proportion to the full context). But I agree there has to be middle ground when there is controversial topics in these games/movies/..etc

Even if there is still disagreements these discussions are better than this drama.

[DrDeath]

This is so out of hand.

[drizzom]

One modern day publicity stunt after the next...

[Bathyj]

Ha I just googled African tribal masks. They literally nearly all had big red lips. Google is so offensive.

This is pathetic dude.

[chiefJohn117]

Google really is. Search good hair, then search bad hair. Anything you search the bad version will be images of black people while the good will be white people. It's messed up

[monkey602]

I actually had to test this and see. It was the absolute opposite

[chiefJohn117]

Lol Monkey is right, they did something. Social media was all over their *** about it Just a week ago. Suddenly the images switched up.

[The7Reaper]

Not getting the game now which is a shame because it looked interesting too, I don't support devs that cave to these type of people.

[chiefJohn117]

Good, we cancelling all racist BS. Now they not getting neither sides money. Cancel culture wins again. They'll make sure not to put this BS in their next game

[Question_Mark]

People like you are what’s wrong with the world today. All you’re doing is hurting racial relations with all your complaining about non issues. You’re making the world a worse place. Focus on things that are actually racist.

[azizlksa1]

Omg, imagine everyone being happy with the reveal event and suddenly there is this one annoying snowflake who points out the thing that no one noticed, and calls it racist. Seriously man you should fuck off my games and find other things to sabotage.

[Dirtnapstor]

I know, right??
From now on, I guess make all video game characters White and no one will be able to complain about anything! Yay, we’ve solved the worlds pseudo appropriation problems!

[Dirtnapstor]

OMG, give me an F’in break. Who cares? It’s their story, their universe. Probably the same group that went after Guerrilla for HZD and the tribal look of the clans, of which Guerrilla told them to take a flying leap. Tell you what, this crowd can’t be please. So stupid, smh.
DO NOT BOW DOWN. Once you’re subservient, it will only get worse for you.

[Zodiac]

They are fucking black characters with dreads, big red lips and they run around blowing darts. A nice substitution for chucking spears. Extremely outdated depictions of “tribal” people and black people in genera. It’s racist. All you people so offended by tackling racism need to stop being snowflakes - it’s embarrassing.

“I’m NoT BUyInG THe GamE AnYMoRe” SNOWFLAKES

[starchild]

Most people like you are pushing racism in the name of supposed anti-racism.

[jambola]

so typical
"if you disagree with my interpretation of what is racist, you are against topping racism"

[SegaGamer]

Like I said yesterday, Twitter was the worst thing to happen. It does more damage to the world than good. I'm sick and tired of cancel culture.

[silenthillstrangler]

I fucking knew it, me and my flat mate both said the same thing at the exact same time. Ridiculous. won't be buying and supporting this shit.

[Hakuoro]

I'm pretty liberal but I can't approve of censoring these peoples work. And on top of that while I am not in favor of purposely insulting characterizations. This is hardly like if the KKK made a game and put obviously racist caricatures in a game.

I understand that it's a thin line between insulting and respectful and that thin line is judged differently by different people. But if we don't allow any cultural appropriations those cultures get lost in history.

The other day I was watching the old Street Fighter animated movie and in has T-Hark who is a prime example of fairly insulting cultural appropriations but at the same time at least the game/anime had a native american representation.

I guess as a people we have to decide is it better to have well intentioned but misleading representations or just let cultures disappear because people are too afraid to use anything other than modern representations.

And NO THIS ISN'T A DEFENSE OF RACISM, or right wing ideas that seem to victim blame.

[Cmv38]

Now people are complaining that they don't want to offend anyone, so following that logic, you wanted the game to offensive?

[jambola]

i want them to not pander to oversensitive idiots with nothing better to do

[sourOG]

What’s wrong with African tribal characters? We have gone backwards, wtf is this?

[PaulFiend]

That big cat from the picture is white... MAKE IT BLACK IMMEDIATELY!!! :D
(jk, I respect every nation and every decent person no matter their color, rofl its just the color, and we are living in 21st century, wtf developers?)

[Zayne-Z66]

Being racist and racial insensitivity are not the same thing. One involves prejudice and discrimination intended to hurt and the other is an act ignorance. Whatever your views on this case and whether or not you believe change is warranted, this was not an example racism, and people should stop throwing that word around.

[Jaces]

When you constantly look for every instance of racism in life you're probably going to have a bad time. It's their creative project, you dont like it, then move on.

[J-DARKnes]

Are you kidding me?

[Aaroncls7]

wtf, when will this end

[chiefJohn117]

I missed that, F*** them. Those designs are ignorant. The black face style design if you don't see an issue you're part of the problem. It Fing 2020 yet we still seeing racist imagery from the Jim crow era and past what's white folks obsession with portraying black people with big red lips? Hope the game get cancelled now. #BLM

[monkey602]

Is that not a bit extreme? We aren't talking about them making light of "blackface". Instead they used reference to an indigenous culture and recreated a characature based on a culture those people themselves created and not something insensitively placed upon them. If this was in fact insensitive and ignorant of the developer should they not be commended for their action on the issue and willingness to better themselves and work with those unhappy with the original depiction?

I fail to see how wishing ruin upon them works to better accommodate anybody

[Question_Mark]

Ah, I see it now. You’re just another ignorant sheep that jumps on every train that’s fooled you into thinking it’s “correct”.

[chiefJohn117]

To tell me I'm an ignorant sheep following a train is undermining all the racism I been through and experienced. I won't even get mad you're just another one of them or at least a clueless bafoon that doesn't care or willing to listen and comprehend.
I got what I wanted, they're changing it and by the looks of it sells will tank. #JusticeServed

[GrizToof]

Is this some kind of sick joke? Why is every game studio, social media site and tech company a bunch frail bodied purple haired shit stains. Stop with this nonsense, make the games you want and stop listening to the 11 people on the internet that are offended over everything. When the fuck will a company with guts come forward and give us what we want? Unapologetic, uncensored, thoughtful, artistic games that come from their vision and not a chopped dog turd to appease 1 transgender and the 10 white people that cried over it.

[Veneno]

This situation points to a weird cycle of cultural depiction that we see over and over.

On one side you have a culture, be it African, Italian, Asian, Latino, whatever, that has strong, deep, meaningful things about their culture that they are proud of. On the other side you have people of the new world, the modern world, which is a world devoid of culture, devoid of identity, money rules everything, money is the first and last thing you think about. So these types of people end up borrowing culture to fill that space. Not necessarily because they want to adopt it but it does something to fill that void. Sometimes that leads to using a culture and bending it to your will to fit your plan.

Then you have the middle, which are things like the Olympics or the World Cup where countries and cultures represent themselves, together.

It's not so easy for one group to try and represent a culture they are so disparate and removed from. So mistakes will be made and you can acknowledge that and fix them. But the otherside should be able to see and realize that being stereotypical and being racist are different things and should be more civil about approaching it.

So the Korean studio should have done more than a Google image search before trying to depict a culture they have no connection with. And the vocal critiquers should understand that the devs weren't trying to be offensive.

So the discussion between the two sides should have been done before hand but now it has blown up to this. In the end the result turned out well. The dev responded and apologized and I truly believe they just wanted to depict a culture they were interested in, but didn't really understand. And I truly believe that the dev appreciates very much the feedback, but again this process should have been done before showing your game to the world.

And of course now we have the extreme commenters on both sides here that don't understand that a bridge was built here but just want to comment for their own vanity. Thats why history just keeps repeating.....

[monkey602]

I think this is going to be one of the best takes I read on the subject today

[Ausbo]

People attacking stuff like this ignores/distracts from the real racism out in the world

[Question_Mark]

Exactly this 100%. They’re only hurting their image while ignoring everything that’s actually important.

[Redemption-64]

🤣, am African and I see nothing wrong with this. I don't like it when some gamers want devs to remove things in games because they don't like it. But this is one of the reasons why I took issue with some gamers asking Sony to either fire Neil or have him remove things from the game that triggered them. Anti-SJWs and SJWs are both the same side of a coin.

[sourOG]

I’m willing to bet it’s white people complaining that have zero history of African warrior tribes.

[Veneno]

Well said!

And I would agree that on the surface there isn't much wrong with what the developer did, but I'm curious to ask you, wouldn't you want people to understand that the African culture is more than just masks? I work with Ethiopians, Kenyans, and Somalis and I know the cultures are far more rich than just masks. There's more we can take in than just masks over and over again.

[Redemption-64]

African culture, or any culture for that matter is far more than just mask. I will welcome the opportunity or chance for other people to experience our culture, be it through our languages, food, dancing, storytelling, music, traditional events, clothing and more.

I just don't think what is shown in game is offensive. I speak for myself, but I know my country men will agree with me.

[RabbitFly]

And people are complaining that they are willing to change them?

Come on. Whether you are offended by them or not is rather irrelevant. The are very similar to designs that are deemed to have racist connotations by modern standards. The way they currently are looking does not seem to be crucial to the games design so they are changing them. Good. They have no need to make a simple enemy design be the mountain they die on. Especially not in the current climate.

I am also willing to take their explanation at face value because, while many Asian cultures have some very ingrained racism. They are also not as familiar with certain aspects of western culture. So it would be understandable that they not necessarily were familiar with the connotations they were in a way emulating.

I think they made the right call. Even though I am not personally offended. I think everyone should have the freedom to create anything, no matter how offensive. But I also don't believe it was their intent to make a character design that would potentially be offensive. Therefore it makes no sense for them to defend said character design when they can easily change it up to something more original within the context of the game.

[Veneno]

People that have culture understand the problem. Those that don't have culture or at least cultural awareness don't understand.

[jambola]

well i lost a lot of interest
if they're this willing to pander to oversensitive idiots, who knows what else they will do if people complain

[LucidIllusion]

All this negative back and forth coupled with constant stupidity makes me want to kill myself seriously

[Hungryalpaca]

I can’t wait for an American Revolutionary War game but the red coats are wearing t shirts and jeans because redcoat is “offensive”.

[RabbitFly]

There is a big difference between a pointless enemy model in a cartoonish fantasy game and a historical retelling and/or setting.

[esherwood]

Bet it’s a bunch of privileged white kids being offended for black people

[Gamerking82]

Well I’m offended by most the lyrics they speak in gangster rap music may be we should ban all that type music while we are at it . And any black comedian that has ever joked about whites or Asians ban them 2 while we at it I also as a white man find that offensive also.

[RabbitFly]

And no one here is talking about a ban. The creators themselves seems to be ok with changing it so they changed it.

Why pretend like this is a free speech issue? They are not being silenced. They chose to change it, and that is their prerogative. If anything the outrage to the fact that they were willing to change it seems more akin to cancel culture than the opposite.

[Elda]

Regardless if they take them out or not I'm still interested in playing the game.I wouldn't have known anyway until they just mentioned it in this article & I doubt it will have any bearing on gameplay.

[marinelife9]

I’m black and I don’t care. They are artists. No different than when a comedian makes a funny white joke we all laugh.

[Sophisticated_Chap]

You can never win with these complainers. If you don't have black people in a game, then it isn't diverse enough, but if you do put them in, then it's potentially racist. Developers need to stop listening to these people, and if they did, they might just find that their game's sales won't be affected much, or won't be affected at all.

[Angrymorgan]

It's bad enough removing tv shows and statues, now our games too? I thaught we were all free to Express ourselves

[Angrymorgan]

I can see it now..the next uncharted and tomb raider games are set in their own back gardens..exploring their abandoned sheds...it wasnt too long ago we were told theres no diversity in games, now too much is offensive..absolute joke

[Auron]

Sigh......

[BrainSyphoned]

Brought to you by the devils inside Twitter.

[Cmoney007]

This shit again?

CCC - Cancel Culture Cancer

[Nicknasty]

Lol, it’s starting to become a little ridiculous now. People need to ease up and kick back. Going way overboard. What’s next? Ban chocolate milk and call it racist? Nothing would surprise me with these nuts.

[Greg80]

All these companies need to stop bending the knee to every single thing that might offend someone. That asshole baby might not even buy the game. It is stupid. For the people who it may offend should just pass over the game.

[Moe-Gunz]

This is a stretch

[AK91]

-_-

[Acecalibur]

Huh? As a 37 year Black man, I didn't notice anything offensive.

[2ndhandcorn]

Lol how funny and twisted the world is becoming.

[Faiya]

Really? Crying over indie game?

[Lexreborn2]

This community of gamers really showed their faces and don’t even realize it. They changed the mask but y’all took it off for real with y’all thought process. It’s ironic how many people are saying this is authentic African Mask wear and google it.

But if you google African Mask the amount of mask with big red lipstick is almost non existent with red lips being even less. And then have the audacity to call others soft, you guys lack any sense of empathy and clearly come from a overtly masculine environment of over compensation.

Y’all need help bad

[dietis_h]

how in the world is this offensive!?

[SaveFerris]

Did the kickstarter backers have a problem with the design of the NPCs?

[drzdcb]

I am a flipping black person and I did not think for a second this was racist! I guarantee you the majority of people that were "offended" by this weren't even black. It clearly was not meant to be racist! People need to seriously stop being offended by everything.