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Forspoken def9/5/2023 A black character doesn't NEED to have any specific attributes simply because they are black. They are not some sort of mysterious group that all have the same background, same story, etc. Black people are, believe it or not, just people. People are blowing this WAY out of proportion.Īnd I am confused at so many of the responses here. The wording is awkward but nothing more than that. The wince-inducing descriptions levied at the protagonist could have easily been avoided had anyone with melanin been given meaningful positions of power on the project. Sure, they have Black actors like Balinska and Janina Gavankar as antagonist Tanta Sila, but without Black writers or consultants featured prominently during the preview, the game didn’t come off well for me. When we have discussions about representation and changing the way games are made, it feels like they are often left at superficial changes, like the face on the game cover or a nearly interchangeable protagonist. While I don’t doubt that Luminous Productions consulted Black folks in how they went about creating Frey, being greeted by white writers, and only hearing about consultation from second-hand account didn’t do them any favors for me as a player who’s been starving for Black representation in games, both on-screen and in crafting their narratives. “We worked closely with a number of consultants from BIPOC backgrounds to help portray Frey’s character and tell the story from her perspective,” Square Enix said in the FAQ, adding that Forspoken’s supporting cast was “dominated by women and several women of color.” Sadly, its answer came off as a canned response that leaned heavily on the hands-off preview where Balinska’s “passionate” feedback throughout her motion capture process was regarded as “invaluable feedback” for the team. (Later on, he received an FAQ sheet that rounded up our media questions. When Axios’ Stephen Totilo asked if there were any Black developers or consultants involved with Forspoken in Square Enix’s video chat, he didn’t receive an answer during our preview. I wasn’t the only journalist to find Stashwick’s awkward remark and the lack of Black writers shown in our preview as harrowing. The cherry on top of my newfound dread was motion capture and voice over director Tom Keegan describing Balinska’s mannerisms during her motion capture performance as having a “very hip-hoppy kind of walk.” Those stereotypes included her “being very angry,” her having “fallen through cracks of society,” and being “on the verge of prison,” before being teleported to Athia. My newfound fears weren’t helped when Rymer and Stashwick described Frey’s origin story, which came off as a tired amalgamation of Black stereotypes.
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