Top Ten Unintentionally Racist Videogames

Stephen Kelley of gamrFeed: "I’m not a big fan of the overuse of political correctness in modern society, but there are a few instances where one sees things that we should not be seeing in 2011, that brings the whole argument to the forefront. Whether or not these things were put in maliciously or innocently enough, racist moments in videogames can make one uncomfortable and even ruin a game for many people. While I bet I could round up a whole list of intentionally racist things from racial separatist groups depicting grotesque acts and terrible storylines, I’m going to try to keep to mainstream game releases. Here are the top ten unintentionally racist videogames in no particular order."

[Runa216]

Wait, so Scribblenauts....wow.

[LOGICWINS]

The guy who wrote this article doesn't know the difference between racism and being stereotypical.

[mindedone]

what's the difference between racism and racist stereotyping? Not much.

[BeardedGamerShow]

I'm often amazed at some of the things in gaming that don't go through a research group or something for these kinds of indignities.

[swirldude]

Good list, though Street Fighter is more about stereotypes then racism, and the Tom Sawyer one could not possibly have been unintentional.

[CrimsonEngage]

Had to google what Ganguro was. Clicked on images and threw up. Women can't seriously think that they look good like that can they?

[MidnytRain]

Is it really racist if it's unintentional?

[mindedone]

Yes.

You can not be a racist and yet do racist things. In such situations you say, "you are not racist, what you did was."

[MidnytRain]

Well, racism is a way of thinking, not what you do.

If I choose not to pick a guy for my basketball team and he happens to be hispanic, it doesn't mean I'm racist. However, if I don't pick him BECAUSE he's hispanic, then it could be racist.

It has more to do with how you're thinking and not what you actually do.

[mindedone]

Racist actions can be both overt, and also a lack of sensitivity to a said culture.

If I were to walk around wearing blackface, or if I were to draw swastikas on synagogues, regardless of my internal state of mind, which can never be known, it shows a lack of cultural sensitivity, which can be known.

The problem with having racism tied to an internal state of mind is that internal state of minds cannot be known. Any insight into a state of mind of another person is and will most surely always be a guess. To which, we must ask, can we EVER know racism exists, other than the racism the self contains? Given your definition of racism, the answer is clearly no. However, if racism is tied to a dissent from established cultural mores, then we can, as a culture decide when a particular action is racist or not.

[MidnytRain]

I think it can be obvious when someone is trying to be racist.

[Relientk77]

Resident Evil 5