Race, Ethnicity, and Culture in the Games Industry #8
The video game industry has struggled to get with the times when it comes to equality among gender, races, and cultures. In my group’s presentation we discussed how the video game industry struggled to produce female characters that are not sexualized and also struggle to support female gamers and game creators. This is even more true for women of color although, men of color may have experienced discrimination or a lack of equality as well.
This lack of representation of black culture and other minority cultures is, in part, due to the fact that “ only three percent of video game developers are black” (Virgil). In the article “This Black Woman Gamer Didn’t See Black People In Her Favorite Game, So She Put Them In Herself” published by Bulletin, it discusses the frustration that gamers of color experience. “71 percent of black people play video games, yet less than two percent of the characters in all video games represent any person of color. That means that although only 61 percent of white people play video games they represent 98 percent of the gaming world” (Virgil). I think what the most frustating part is, based on the articles that I have read (listed below), is that not only are people of color barely represented in video games but when they are represented they are either depicted poorly or shown in very limited way. One example of this is the game Sims. In the blog post about Amira Virgil disliking her options for black Sims characters, she claimed that there were very limited options for different skin shades and hair styles. I will agree that there were very limited options for hairstyles, however, I went onto my own Sims 4 game and I would argue that there were quite a few options for different skin tones. Perhaps she was playing a different version, because in Sims 4 there are 8 different shades from tan to dark brown skin tones. Additionally there is also a green option.
Despite having possibly increased their selections, I do not think that this means that gaming industry is fixed. The industry still struggles with correct cultural representation and appropriation. For Black people in games such as Grand Theft Auto there are always black men depicted as gangsters and continues to support the incorrect image of what it means to be “hood”. There are other games, as listed in the articles, that struggle, not only with black culture, but also with indigenous cultures as well.
DePass, Yussef Cole And Tanya. “Black Skin Is Still A Radical Concept in Video Games.” Waypoint, 1 Mar. 2017, waypoint.vice.com/en_us/article/78qpxd/black-skin-is-still-a-radical-concept-in-video-games
Elizabeth LaPensée Assistant Professor of Media and Information and Writing, Rhetoric and American Cultures, Michigan State University. “Video games encourage Indigenous cultural expression.” The Conversation, 27 Nov. 2017, theconversation.com/video-games-encourage-indigenous-cultural-expression-74138
Virgil, Amira. “This Black Woman Gamer Didn’t See Black People In Her Favorite Game, So She Put Them In Herself.” Bulletin, blavity.com/black-simmer-amira-virgil.
