Exploring politics and philosophy in Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 5

Warning: The following is NOT spoiler free.

Warning II: trigger warning for sexual assault mention is symboled tw*

One of the arcs has you fight against a CEO for worker right abuse and mistreatment. Image by Polygon.com

Who’s the thief?

Despite the many issues with Persona 5, the game has a lot of concepts and ideas that are worth discussing. Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 5 redefines the word thief. It features interesting and worth looking at meanings to being one.

Criminal justice systems around the world define robbery as the process of removing ownership of a property from the owner to a person who is not the owner by force. The owner has to have not consented to transferring rights they exercise over property to another person. In most cases, the subject matter in robbery is money but are material possessions the only thing that can be stolen from people? Are they the only things people deem valuable and worthy of protection?

Persona 5 includes different forms of thieves. Those who steal talents, ideas, wages, taxpayer money, money and lives.

The first foe is the high school P.E. teacher who robs students talented in track and field of showcasing their talent by disbanding them and starting a team for a whole different sport, volleyball. Though that’s not the only horrible thing the teacher does as he abuses his students both verbally and physically tw* (even implied sexually but was done in an explosive Oh Look at that hentai sensei Kamoshida!!! than respectful) Kamoshida sensei’s crime is robbing the youth of their talents, denying them the chance to demonstrate their skills and possible sponsorships and scholarships.

Madarame, the second villain, steals ideas. He plagiarised countless works by “tutoring” aspiring artists, offering them training in exchange that he takes credit for whatever they produce. Can you imagine spending years learning to draw only so that someone or some place takes credit for it? Madarame’s example is quite prevalent in the publishing industry.

There’s also Kaneshiro who steals money from people by extortion, Okumura who steals wages and health and quality time from employees, Shido who plans to steal taxpayers money should he win and achieve his own personal agenda rather than that of the people who voted for him and stole Wakaba’s work to use for his own purposes and Nijima who steals lives by not caring whether or not an innocent person is thrown in jail so long as she got a suspect and the case is closed.

Who’s the criminal?

The game highlights a flaw in the criminal justice system in the scene where the character you play as, Akira Kurusu, jumps to defend a woman against a man who attempts to tw* sexually assault her. The man, who calls the police to report Kurusu of assault, threatens to use his connections should they try to arrest him. With one phone call, the cops, rather than arresting him for attempted assault, arrest Kurusu and he’s charged with a crime.

The game ponders the question is it a crime to use violence to stop a crime?

Non Violence

The Phantom Thieves steal hearts; they steal “bad intentions” of people who steal from others. Their special power is to travel into the subconscious of bad guys and change it to good. Bad intentions comes in the form of bad versions of people . The Phantom Thieves have to fight the bad version of the people in their sub conscious in order for them to get rid of evil. You don’t kill people in Persona 5 nor you commit acts of violence towards them. You don’t fight crimes by committing crimes. A paradox often present in media with themes of crime and social justice.

The cast’s personas compliment the main theme perfectly as each one of them is a thief or a rebel of some sort. Arsene, Zoro, Captain Kidd, Carmen, Goemon, Johana, Ali Baba, Mylady and Robin Hood are all considered thieves/rebels in the setting of which they belong except they stole from the rich and influential to either help the poor or achieve other personal gains.

Led or Lead? *pun*

Shin Megami Tensi’s Persona 5 interestingly features many sides of the argument. One of the main characters asks wouldn’t they, the phantom thieves, be contradicting themselves by triggering a change of heart in the people whom they pursue rather than letting it happen on their own? A question that provokes the phantom thieves though they don’t pay much attention to it.

Yaldabaoth, the last boss, appears as a result to the phantom thieves continuous operation change hearts. If a change of heart was only achievable via external means, in the case of Persona 5, the phantom thieves interference, wouldn’t that mean humans cannot be trusted? They can’t be left to their own devices otherwise they’d commit crimes? Had it not been for the Phantom Thieves, the bad guys would’ve carried on with their wrongdoings. Yaldabaoth claims, just as the bad guys needed the phantom thieves to help them change into good people, humans need Yaldabaoth to distinguish the good from the bad. Free will versus Determinism, a recurring theme in JRPGs.

Restorative Justice

Restorative Justice is another concept the game has. Rather than turning the bad guys to police, The Phantom Thieves; Operation change of hearts causes the bad guys to admit to their wrongdoings on their own and in public and vow not to commit the act again. Changing hearts defeats bad intentions completely. The game denies this form of justice to one of the characters who’s responsible for the murder of many.

Class Struggle

One arc in the game tackles class struggle in a very straightforward manner. Employees in the subconscious of bad people, or in this arc Okumura’s, the CEO of a fast food chain, are portrayed as robots who work nonstop and are ordered to praise their company and CEO. An interesting fact you learn during class is the meaning of the word robot which is latin for to work. Employer abuse and mistreatment and terrible working conditions are brought up as issues. Though Okumra isn’t bad for only abusing his employees as he also abuses his own daughter (whose *marriage for convenience* is used as a plot device. Ugh) through this arc you hear characters in the background chattering about worker abuse taking place in many workplaces and not just the chain.

Anarchy… Sort of?

Although not explicitly, Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 5 doesn’t cheer for the current criminal justice system. During many moments of the game, you hear characters in the background talk about a group of people being immune to prosecution due to wealth and influence. The character you play as, Akira Kurusu, has a criminal record for defending a woman against a man who attempted to tw* sexually assault her. But because the man has strong influence he’s able to get away with it. The presence of many corrupt individuals in different establishments as the police station and school is another sign of distrust.

While many video games glorify police system associating respecting the police and not speaking of it critically it with patriotism (not cheering for that here), Persona 5 doesn’t share the quite common sentiment.

Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 5 is a great example to video games as a platform to discuss complex issues.

Nier: Automata, a refreshing take on existentialism and other “big” questions.

Video games, especially JRPGs, tackling heavy subjects as existentialism is nothing new. However, Nier: Automata’s take is very refreshing.

Warning: The following is not spoiler free.

9S and 2B fighting machines. Image courtesy of platinumgames.com

Free Will versus Determinism 

There exists a plethora of JRPGs where characters have stand offs with other characters, exchanging opposing views and ending up fighting each other. One party believes humans require guidance whereas the other believes otherwise and need to follow their own judgement. The guidance often comes in the form of religion. The group which believes in Free Will ends up fighting the group that believes in Determinism.

Nier: Automata features the same concept except determinism isn’t imposed by a religious institution this time although it could be interpreted as such. The game has you play as 2B, a character who’s role later in the game is revealed to be an executioner; a person who gets rid of any person who questions the system. Questions as “the point of it all” and “why do we exist” are asked by fellow Yorha member 9S, a scanner.

9S, the scanner or “human who questions their own existence” in the game asks Commander about the point of going to earth and fighting, a question to which the Commander answers simply by saying the Yorha unit were made for that purpose and what will you do if you don’t fight? The Commander believes there is no purpose for androids other than to take role in this never ending war whether it’s to gather data and hack into machines as scanners, fight as combat types or eradicate outlaws as executioners.

The Commander shares similar point of view to those who believe a human’s life is determined whether by religion or other ideology. If humans were not supposed to live according to this ideology then what are they supposed to do?

Nier: Automata asks this question; what if it’s revealed to us that we exist to take part in events and recreate such events and should we question the point to the events or express desire to abandon the roles dictated to us by such ideology, we get punished?

Is Determinism only imposed by religion? 

Procreation is the first form of determinism featured in the game. After being notified of large enemy existence, that is a large number of machines, 2B and 9S make their way to a valley deep down in the desert where they’re greeted with a bizarre mass simulation of procreation process by machines. The process results in a powerful machine which resembles androids in appearance known as Adam.

The game also features other “mode of life.” such as working. Characters by the name of Marx and Engels ponder questions as the point to their existence and whether or not a life where they, highly destructive type of weapon known as the Goliath, cannot be used as such is possible? This is a clear reference to Marx and Engels critique of the concept of working to sustain oneself or “Class Struggle”.

The game also features a cult who turns the abandoned factory; a place where machines are built, into a place to practice their religion. A group of machines starting a religion and regarding a fellow machine as god is a clear reference to religions nowadays as a mode of life and an answer of the many answers to existentialism.

Beside going to work or following a religion, pursuit of beauty and seeking approval, two modes of life which the French philosopher Simone De Beauvoir addressed extensively, were also included in the game. One of the bosses you fight is named after the philosopher. When you play as 9S, you come across recordings scattered all over the world. Some of which, as the one by Simone, are by machines. These recordings often have explanation for the unusual machine behaviour as starting a cult or a kingdom or in Simone’s case seeking beauty. Simone, the machine, was subject to pressure to meet certain standards only so she would be accepted and admired.

Glory as a mode of life is included in the form of machines starting a kingdom. Some of us might want a roof over their head to protect them from the rain and all kinds of unfriendly weather whereas others are ambitious. Perhaps a little too ambitious. Maybe they want to run in the presidential elections? Maybe they want more than that? To be in charge of everything and have access to massive wealth and privileges and not be questioned by people? Ever?

Emotions emphasised through Gameplay

Nier:Automata features repetitive gameplay sequences but that is for a purpose. Not only it has repeated gameplay segments, the game has you go through it three times in order to get a full scope of the story. In the first and second play-through, you play as 2B and 9S. In the third you play as 2B, A2 and 9S and the perspective switches very often depending on the event that is taking place.

It felt exhausting just going through the playable portions of the game over and over. What if the androids themselves? Can you imagine them not being able to break free from the imposed norms and modes of life?

Now that we’re free, what do we do?

Nier: Automata may have the three main characters go against what’s been decided for them but the journey is far from over. The quest to find a meaning to one’s life is never ending. The game, however, does give ideas as what to consider a meaning to life.

Androids, whether operators, scanners, combat types or executioners establish various relationships, some of which are familial whereas others are romantic or friendly. Androids who grow consciousness, acknowledge new feelings and act in accordance to the feelings and consciousness or in strictly computer terms; data that don’t correspond with Yorha agenda, are prosecuted. Some even suffer malfunction and their operating system ceases to work.

Machines also establish various forms of relationships. Hostile machines aren’t destroyed for not conforming to a certain way of living as opposed to their non hostile counterparts as the ones in Pascal Village. Unless a machine and an android take part in this vicious cycle of war and killing, neither can find peace.

In the world of Nier: Automata, war is the status quo, peace is the exception. For some, relationships as family, friends and loved ones, community and peace are worth pursuing and protecting.

For others, resistance, non conformity and free thinking are also worth pursuing and protecting.

Whatever it is the meaning, only you can decide.

Persona: modern presentation, ancient ideals.

I was done with Persona 5, a game which I’ve enjoyed quite a lot. I did, however, have many issues with the game.

image courtesy of gamespot.com

Shin Megami Tensi: Persona 5 has you play as a high school student who all of a sudden is burdened with the task of stopping evil adults around him, starting with the abusive teacher at school, a renowned artist who’s also a plagiarist, an extortionist gang leader , an abusive CEO of a fast food chain, a prosecutor who doesn’t care about justice so long as the case is closed and a power hungry politician. The gameplay portion is divided into two main parts; the main quest, level grinding in dungeons and beating bosses and social links.

You obtain personas; powerful beings that aid you in battles. There’s a category for each persona. Social links represent those categories. Should you wish to level up a persona of a certain category, you will have to maximise the relationship with a character of the same category. The characters who hold persona categories and the bonds you establish are varied. There are friendships as well as romance.

Compulsive Heterosexuality

As previously mentioned, in order for you to maximize a persona, you need to maximise the relationship you have with the character of that persona’s category. You can’t choose to be friends or partners with anyone you like. The game makes every woman identifying character a potential love interest. The game also doesn’t include queer characters as no character expresses romantic or sexual interest in characters of the same gender. The game has binary characters who are men and women and assumes both are heterosexual. There were constant reminders of the characters compulsive heterosexuality as boys commenting on the girls’ tight outfits and swimsuits, sneaking look at the girls’ bodies when their clothes are soaked twice and a character assuming your sexuality based on your gender identity. The game also has an event where one of the characters who identifies as a man responds to a compliment by the main character by saying he “would rather hear that from a lady.”

Adult-minor relationships but no queer representation

For a game that has characters fight evil, minor adult relationships are sure rampant. Odd thing is the first villain in the game is a teacher tw: sexual abuse who physically and sexually abuses students. The teacher physically and verbally abuses students and sexually harasses female students. Persona 5 lets you date not one but four adults; A teacher, yes, as if it’s any different, a doctor, a journalist and a fortune teller. Though age of consent in Japan is twenty, the game thinks minors can consent to relationships with adults five years and more their senior. Not to mention one of the adults gives unlicensed substances to the main character. Including four adult women as romance option but not one same gender speaks volumes of the game’s homophobia.

Women robbed of their agency

Persona 5 may feature “achieving women”; a public prosecutor who often talks about the challenges she faces in a male dominant profession, a scientist, a hacker, a doctor, a reporter and four playable characters, it still robs them off their agency, has them in situations where they have no control over matters as basic as marital status. Haru, one of the female playable characters, is forcibly engaged to a rich man to achieve financial gains. Though you do beat the “cognitive” version of the rich and abusive fiance, Haru is still engaged to him in reality. A seventeen year old high school student is forcibly engaged to a an abusive man who expressed desire to demean and mistreat her multiple times yet even after that the game has them both together in the car during a major event. Another part where the game denies women self agency and autonomy is when one of the boys asks the girls to change into swimsuits so that they seduce an older man and obtain information. The girls, not protesting the plan, agree to it for the “great good” of course.

White Superiority Complex

It’s no secret that the Japanese video game and anime industry churn creations of people who suffer from such complex. Persona 5 is no exception to that. Often times we hear about discrimination against people who are half Japanese. But being “half ” alone isn’t a reason to be discriminated against. You have to be half black or brown. Half whites on the other hand are idolised. The game features yet another example to this racist idolization. Ann, a character who’s half British, is often praised for her “exquisite” beauty and “different” features. Whenever they need a woman to seduce a man in the game, again robbing agency of women, the groups leaves the task to Ann. A missed opportunity to make the white dubbed cast racially diverse.

Culturally Insensitive

The game does a common mistake which is including sacred and revered gods and symbols from other cultures as enemies. P5 has a lot of Hindu deities and much has been said about portraying gods worshipped by millions as enemies in video games and entertainment industry. Having enemies based on gods beside enemies as “ambassador of filth” a demon sitting on a toilet seat only makes matters worse. How about you don’t include gods at all?

While I appreciate the effort in writing a story of which consumers can connect with, I especially appreciate the fact that the game dedicated an arc to address worker struggles and portray an abusive CEO as a villain, I cannot excuse Atlus for the said issues. It’s very likely that I will not support them in the future should they not sincerely commit to diversity and avoid including problematic content.

Gone Home

“Home Is Where The Heart Is.”

You follow Katie Greenbrier, a young woman who traveled back to her family home after spending sometime abroad, as she explores around the family’s new house and looks for clues on their whereabouts.

Image by The Fullbright Company

The Greenbrier’s house is big, probably too big for three people, dark and empty. Where could they have disappeared to? The more you interact with objects, the more you learn about the father, mother and your only sibling, Sam. The father, Terrence, is an aspiring writer who’s facing a hard time after having been rejected by publishing houses numerous times. And when he finally makes it, he’s told the publisher will no longer be making deals with him due to the poor sales of the first two novels. The mother, Janice, is a forest ranger. Although things are going well with her job, Janice is not happy with her relationship because of the father’s career situation and its toll on his mental health. Sam, my favorite, is Katie’s younger sister who during the course of game tracks her character growth. Sam tells Katie about the first friend she’d made, her writings and the girl who she grows to like and becomes partner with.

Gone Home is a game that has you explore people’s feelings through exploring a physical space. The more rooms you unlock, the more objects you interact, full of information on the three family members. The game uses special effects as thunder and storm to hint at the family members situation. Where are they in life? Are they happy early in the game? Probably not. Will things brighten up for the Greenbriers?

Gone Home asks the question, what is home to us? Is it a big nice house with multiple floors and a pool? Home is where the heart is. For some it’s where they find peace. For others it’s where they find love or simply achieve personal accomplishments. Whether you agree with it or not, Gone Home is a video game that makes excellent use of game mechanics as a mean for storytelling.

 

Exploring the political themes in The Last Guardian

Note: The following blog post is not spoiler free.

Much has been said about Team Ico’s The Last Guardian’s emotional intensity and reliance on narrative, which is highly encouraged in video games because to me, video games are meant to be played and not watched. The more the user involvement, the better.

The game, beside having excellent visuals, AI and original soundtrack also has a storyline packed with political themes.

Credits to Alphacoders.com

Dissent

The Last Guardian is a story of dissent. The title is a reference to the role of Trico, the beast you meet right at the beginning, prior to your encounter. Throughout the game you meet other “guardians” who are tasked with the mission of protecting the mysterious white tower and the being who controls the beasts and suit of armors.

Towards the end, you learn about how the boy ended up in a dungeon with Trico lying next to him and chained to a well. Trico was a guardian, like those beasts you met and fought against. He was also on a mission to kidnap “chosen ones” and deliver them to the being in the white tower. Though he succeeded in kidnapping the boy, Trico decided not to deliver him to their master, despite being subjected to extreme conditioning and control. This act of rebellion led to his imprisonment.

The game’s plot is a clear metaphor for an establishment of some sort. It could be military, religion, capitalism or simply a government. The suit of armors and beasts are the military/guard wing who protect this establishment. Trico was a member of the military/guard collective.

Coexistence

If you pay attention to the intro with beautiful illustrations featuring Trico and other creatures, you’ll come to learn of Trico’s nature. Trico is confirmed as a Man Eating Beast. He went out of his nature not only to befriend the boy, but to protect him and make sure he returns to his hometown safely. When Trico first turned against the guardians and suit of armors, he swallowed the boy so they wouldn’t deliver him to their master. The game has Trico and the boy protect and care for each other whether by feeding, healing wounds, clearing routes, defeating suits of armors and other guardians, destroying controlling eyes and ultimately “the master” and escaping the valley together.

Trico and the boy journey their way out of the valley relying on each other’s strength. Trico might be affectionate towards the boy and vice versa, the truth is neither of them is able to escape the valley without the help of one another.

The Last Guardian shows that prejudice and bigotry are taught not innate. Even if eating humans is part of who Trico is. Trico did not eat the boy. The boy, as opposed to what he heard from his folk, wasn’t afraid of the beast. Instead of going with whatever he was told about those man eating beasts, he built a relationship of friendship and mutual trust.

Freedom

The game is abundant with symbolism for freedom. Often times you run into large cages where guardians are subject to control and brainwash through objects which emit light. The guardians are also controlled via Glass Eye; objects made of stained glass with symbol of eyes. Should you not destroy the Glass Eye, Trico won’t be able to proceed.

The game excels at the portrayal of the struggle for freedom. Though it features scenes with severe cruelty, it uses such strong themes to emphasise the burden and price of freedom. Trico and the boy’s longing for freedom is extremely evident. They will stop at nothing. Both are willing to Fight Til The Last Gasp. Trico and the boy has an exceptionally strong will.

A strong will is a signature trait of Team Ico’s game leads. But whether or not the main characters are rewarded for such bravery is entirely another story.

The Last Guardian is an epic tale of dissent in an industry ladened with works glorifying otherness, war, violence and conformity.

Moana is the best disney princess to date

Disney’s Moana is a creation story according to an underrepresented culture. The film follows Moana; a teenage girl from Hawai, also the daughter of the chief of her tribe as she saves her island from an impending doom. Running out of resources, people of the island find it necessary to move despite misbelief that the ancients forbade leaving the land. Moana yearns for the sea. Her father though, the chief, strongly opposes that she or anyone leaves the island or “crosses the barrier” for safety reasons.

Moana’s only supporter, her grandmother, urges her to go on a journey to find Maui, a demigod, and have him return the heart which he’d stolen from the goddess, Te Fe Tee. Moana’s grandmother believes doing so will bring back prosperity to the island.

Credits to moanatrailer.com

“Keeping the tradition”

Moana is the daughter of the chief in the tribe or a princess as Maui calls her. Besides her social class, Moana shares other similarities with Disney princesses as the love for adventure and change (Snow White, Cinderella, Aurora, Belle, Jasmine, Ariel, Mulan, Rapunzel) standing against patriarchy personified in her father (Ariel), worrying about not living up to her parents expectations (Mulan) and saving her people (Mulan).

“Global warming is the enemy” 

The enemy is not a power hungry entity or being, rather lands running out of resources and volcanos eating up every inch of land due to harmful practices done to environment by man.

“No romance”

Moana’s mind isn’t preoccupied with thoughts of finding a love interest. Her life is not defined by her relationship status, as is the case with previous Disney princesses. Moana is on a journey to save her people. Moana’s companion, a man, becomes a dear friend and they don’t end up as a romantic couple.

“The return of the puns”

The film is loaded with good old puns and references to Disney classics. There was a reference to a social media website, get the “hook” pun, easter eggs, an evil crab with striking resemblance to a Disney villain.

“A woman of color”

Not only she’s strong and independent, goes as far as to cross seas to save her own people, Moana is a woman of color and a member of first nation. After centuries of non representation, negative portrayal and objectification in the media, comes a woman of color with a story of whom we all identify with and values we fight for and keep.

Sound Wisdom from Anime

Yes because starving humans who don’t have anything to offer is moral.

 

Final Fantasy XV and the profit based mentality

It seems as though Square Enix have made a habit of changing characters physical appearance to appeal to a broader audience, precisely western audience. Personally, I’m rather disturbed by their very narrow definition of “western”. And I’m particularly concerned of the ongoing white washing of the some of the characters in their upcoming feature film Final Fantasy XV: Kingsglaive. The game Final Fantasy XV, which is scheduled to release on September 30, draws inspirations from modern day Tokyo. It features characters with facial features that are more common among Asian demographic than white. Square Enix shared more info on their latest game and the reason for some of the decisions as the alterations of the appearance of one of the characters.

The company assumes white consumers make the majority of video game consumers thus targeting them is necessary in order for cash to pour in. It is concerning that a company as big as Square Enix is very open about their profit based decisions.

You heard her. They gotta stay in business.

How did Square Enix come up with the conclusion that the majority of the fanbase are white? Was it based on reliable data? Did the data cover every region with access to their products? I doubt it. Even if white consumers indeed make the majority of the fanbase, shouldn’t the company work to target consumers of other groups? Moreover, what kind of PR is this when a company makes it very clear that they’d do whatever it takes to make their product marketable even if it’s at the expense of nonwhite and non male consumers? Is this the direction companies should be taking rather than making their content inclusive?

White washing? Square? What are you talking about? I’m referring to the more white version of Lunafreya in the aforementioned film and the redesign of Prompto. Many could argue that Lunafreya was never Asian. But she was never white either. She was ethnically ambiguous. As for Propmto, he resembled Asian boy band members.  Some even wonder about how Noctis is Asian when his father is white. (who also got the white treatment). I’d go as far as to suggest that the characters’ exaggerated heights (which was shared by Square days ago) is also a step to appeal to western audience and make it seem as though the characters in the games are also western.

It is utterly disappointing to see the first Japanese game to include a diverse cast (Barret, Zas, Vanille and Fang) go steps behind just so they appeal to presumably broader audience.

I could be sitting here arguing about white washing all day but opponents insisting that characters are white as if not being white is bad points at a deep issue. I’m not even talking about the lack of representation in the game and movie which is a fact. Suggesting that a character isn’t white is enough to make people angry.

Why can’t underrepresented groups share their thoughts on lack of diversity and representation in any medium without risking bullying and harassment?

Why can’t people of colour be in video games, film and TV?

Why can’t people of colour, people of different gender identities, sexualities, disabilities and groups be main characters in video games, film and TV?

People who aren’t comfortable with other people suggesting that a character in a video game is not white. What makes you so uncomfortable about it?

Can’t white people relate to characters in games?

The ability to relate and identify with characters in video game is one excuse which is often used by consumers who refuse to play as characters who are different to them. Consumers of overrepresented and privileged groups would rather repeat the experience of an overrepresented and privileged, see things from the same scope over and over rather than “learn” about another person’s experience. Playing as an underrepresented and underprivileged means to learn, to come to understand, to connect thus to be able to identify with because oppression is oppression. Not opting for underrepresented and underprivileged characters in video games is refusing to let go of bigotry and prejudice.

Lack of diversity and representation of underrepresented and underprivileged groups is cultural ethnic cleansing. It’s contrary to reality. It’s misinformation and misrepresentation. It’s historical distortion. It’s dehumanisation. To include overrepresented groups and attribute positive traits to them is to express that only this group possesses such traits. To include underrepresented group and attribute negative traits to them is to express that this group are only capable of whatever negative traits associated with them. To ban multiple definitions of positive traits as beauty, good, kindness, intelligence is to ban freedom of expression. It is to deny people the right to choice as to what they consider beautiful, intelligent and good.

The entertainment industry have an obligation to diversity. People of all races and ethnicities invest in such industry as they contribute to the disproportionate amount of profit such industry makes, albeit they consume unconsciously because they don’t have any other options. Alternatives to such forms of entertainment don’t exist in the regions of which they come from. Sometimes they’re not allowed to consume alternative products. Other times they’re not allowed to make the alternatives themselves or certain conditions bar them from creating such alternatives. Because they invest in such products and because they contribute to the imaginary figures that go under “profit”, they have a right to representation.

 

Overwatch and the police system

The name Overwatch points at a body or a collective of “super cops” who vow to rid society of evil where normal cops fall short. As someone who grew up believing police were created to serve and protect, I came to believe otherwise when I first was shouted at by a policeman for exercising a group of rights as the right to movement, expression and assembly.

The police system doesn’t understand that the general rule is freedom and the exception to the rule, the extremely narrow and rare exception is regulation. Can I even call police powers regulations? No. Why? Regulations passed by courts or a legislative body cannot limit human rights and that includes rights as the right to movement, expression and assembly. Police nowadays are more likely to infringe on such rights than protect them. Overwatch doesn’t just feature “super cops”, the game that earns credit for a diverse cast has themes of “otherness” and a rather outdated approach to crime solving and criminals. I am not even talking about the game mechanics here as I know how hard and challenging it is to create a video game where the gameplay is in harmony with whatever progressive values it claims to contain which in Overwatch’s case, diversity.

I risk prosecution for something I said on satellite TV. I said I don’t think those who consume substances of any kind should be taken to prison. And if addicts were patients, why are they taken to prison rather than places where they could get the treatment they so require? Why can’t we look into the reasons as to why “criminals” commit crimes and work to find solutions for whatever issue that causes crime i.e. poverty, unemployment, mental illness, systematic discrimination, prosecution..etc. Why is our idea of fixing things is denying people rights when the reason criminals are forced into a life of crime is being denied of rights?

Overwatch boasts diversity in cast. It features characters from sixteen countries (nationalism and borders) Even the Reaper hails from a country (it’s not hell, sadly) There’s racial, gender, mental, physical and even specie diversity. But is it a good representation?  I commend Blizzard for coming up with physically diverse women as Zarya, Seymmetra and Pharah but I can’t just ignore the other women with “asses poked out”. Personally seeing Zarya was extremely refreshing, not only she’s big and has muscles, she comes from Russia which is the number one “othered” country in the entertainment industry in the United States and for strictly political reasons (I’m against Russian government and I think the regime is oppressive.). Zarya is also based on a person that exists! Zarya is not a case of someone drawing the woman of their fantasies! It is a real life case of Blizzard featuring real women in their games! How refreshing and good is this! Zarya is cute.

As for the representation, I look forward to a representation where the story of the character who come from an underprivileged group features a form or two of the discrimination they face by both the system and individuals. I welcome all attempts at diversity and representation with stretched and open arms. What I’d dismiss as lazy representation is flattened experiences, ones that don’t mention the hardships members of an underprivileged group face, the extent to which their lives are affected by such discrimination and differential treatment, by both people and the system. And most importantly, one that isn’t easy to consume for the privileged audience. Not the cute Sheldon from the Big Bang Theory. Not a POC with physical traits deemed attractive by white population.

Demise of the Tomb Raider

What’s your idea of fun? If it’s shooting at things I’m afraid you won’t like what I’m about to say in this blog post. I’m not here to argue about whether or not Core Design’s Lara Croft is more “Politically Correct” than Crystal Dynamics’. But I feel Core Design’s Tomb Raider had a lot more to offer than just shooting.

Lara Croft in Rise of the Tomb Raider. Image by dualshockers.com

I sat down watching a Let’s Play for the most recent Tomb Raider game titled Rise of the Tomb Raider hoping that it would be more than about shooting. Alas I was mistaken. Players join Croft in the eleventh installment of the game as she journeys to Spoiler clear her father’s name after he was accused of lying by the society of archeologists. Lord Croft came up with a theory that the holy grail was once passed to a saint situated in Syria and that drinking from the cup makes people immortal. Unable to prove such theory, Croft was accused of lying. And that led Croft to committing suicide/End of spoiler. To regain his lost reputation, his daughter, lady Croft, decided to go on a journey to validate the theory. The game starts with Croft climbing a mountain to one of the tombs which holds a clue as to where the holy grail could be.

You can’t but stand still and appreciate the scenery. You’re surrounded by nature. There’s the mountain you’re about to climb, the ocean and the tomb. To be honest, I’m not a fan of photo realism as a goal in video games. Photo realistic graphics are very dependant on the available technology and they age along with the software. Rare are the times when I went back to a game and was as impressed by the graphics as I was when I first played it. You’re ten seconds inside the damned tomb and a battle takes place. The very tomb you took a pause to appreciate, the lightning and shade, the textures, the details on the rocks and the color pallet, they’re all turned to dust thanks to a series of explosions and a bloody bullet exchange.

It seems Crystal Dynamics don’t share my love for archeology. Other than the fact that the minute you walk into a place it gets completely destroyed as it’s often used as battle ground, the buildings are not complex in design as opposed to the ones in Core Design’s games i.e. the long structure in St. Francis Folly level in the original Tomb Raider, the structure in Palace Midas, the cistern (even sewers looked pretty). The beautifully computer generated temples are only surface deep. They’re only there for you to look at and not go inside and explore and travel thousands of years back and learn about the culture. In a previous blog post I mentioned that I have come to learn of cities as Venice through Tomb Raider. I even decided to visit the actual locations the games were set in. Except I’m not going to shoot people because that’s not why I’m going there. I seriously doubt anyone would. “Rise” makes shooting and destroying the center of Croft’s adventure.

While some could argue a large portion of the “classic” games included shooting, I’d argue back that while the classic games indeed had you shoot gangsters and slaughter animals, ones facing extinction and mythical, those encounters could easily be avoided. Whereas in Rise you could not avoid any combat segment whether against a human or an animal. I’d also like to add that shooting segments in Rise were much longer than exploring and puzzle-solving. As many other action games that target trigger happy folks, the levels in Rise are designed to accommodate shooting. The obvious barriers which you use to “take cover”, the scattered explosive barrels which help you kill a group of foes instead of one should you shoot them, all exist for a better shooting experience. I found myself asking these questions many times: Is she there to kill people or get the cup? Who runs into that many people anyway and an armed cult of all people?

In rebooted Tomb Raider and similar games, “taking out enemies” is essential to the journey. You can’t beat the game without committing a massacre. You have to kill humans. Not knock them out cold, kill them. You can’t make it to the level exit without “clearing out” the area. Not that killing few is less criminal than killing many but in “2013” and Rise slain foes have to be as many as hundreds. The more you kill the more achievements you unlock as reward for the killings. Achievements for killing vary. There are those for “headshots” and other body parts and those for the creative ways of which you killed humans. Moreover, the main obstacles to Croft are either her human opponents, which she needs to kill, or animals, which she also kills. Gone are the days when she needed to swim as deep as 40 Fathoms, cross paths with deadly blades, rolling boulders, trapdoors, spikes, crumbling floors, swinging maces, lava, pits, steam, laser beams and other environmental restrictions.

Revamped Lara Croft is often celebrated by fellow gamers especially women. Though many pointed out the double standard the games have as vilifying Croft’s opponents while praising her for doing the same exact thing, Croft is still regarded as a good example for women in video games. While violence isn’t a unique problem to Tomb Raider, I would like to see the cast which takes credit for writing a Croft with whom the audience can relate, make her less violent if not at all. As someone who played 2013 and doesn’t plan on virtually raiding anymore tombs, unlike classic Tomb Raider games, I wasn’t left with any nice memories. The awe inspiring grandiose chambers were replaced with small dark rooms lit with candles and have caskets. The “variety in locations” was reduced to an island with tin huts, if lucky a castle made of tin and a forest.