Racism as a theme in video games

[StaceyPowers]

What video games do you think have done the best job tackling issues of racism?

[Kane99]

Hmm, that's a good question. I could see San Andreas being a good study on racism. As for other games, maybe stuff like civilization, oh, Dues Ex Human Revolution, etc. I can't think of many other games though. 

[The Blackangel]

RDR2 definitely tackles it. Better than any game I have ever seen. And I've been playing video games for longer than a large number of the members here have even been alive.

8 minutes ago, Kane99 said:

Hmm, that's a good question. I could see San Andreas being a good study on racism.

You sure about that?

[Patrik]

GTA 4 kinda representing some nationalities in a bad images, like showing some as mafia, some as loan sharkers, they also are making fun of the jamaican english accent lol

[Reality vs Adventure]

The real meaning of racism is to hate another species and there is only one human race. Real racism is clearly shown in The Witcher 3. Geralt is mutated making him a witcher and a different species from the humans. The villagers in almost every town he goes to says rude comments about him behind his back just for being the way he looks and who he is as a witcher. But I don't know of any game that actually tackles racism of any kind whether it be species or ethnicity.

I was playing AC Black Flag the other day and a black pirate on the ship was talking to Edward. Edward asked where he would go (I think referring to if he had some riches). The black pirate said that he wasn't safe in Africa, wasn't safe in the Americas, and the only place he was safe was right in his own country aboard the ship as a free man. And Edward called his crew the citizens of the Jackdaw (ship). 

[m76]

20 hours ago, The Blackangel said:

You sure about that?

Are you sure that's not projection?

Say if in both cases you were wearing a red shirt would then the game say that, people in red shirts are thieves?  Of course not.

[Reality vs Adventure]

Ok, I was a little off in Black Flag. But same thing. Here is the video:

 

[killamch89]

Deus Ex Mankind Divided did it a great job as well because in addition to the ongoing wars between natural humans and the cybernetic enhanced ones, you had little things in the game like at certain restaurants they had tables reserved for natural people only. 

[Heatman]

On 1/3/2021 at 9:05 PM, m76 said:

Are you sure that's not projection?

Say if in both cases you were wearing a red shirt would then the game say that, people in red shirts are thieves?  Of course not.

Personally, I don't think it's anything to do with projection and also it's not the same thing as the color of dress but the skin color. So, I think GTA kind of have a thing against painting the black race with bad picture. 

[m76]

9 hours ago, Heatman said:

Personally, I don't think it's anything to do with projection and also it's not the same thing as the color of dress but the skin color. So, I think GTA kind of have a thing against painting the black race with bad picture.

So in the previous two GTAs you play white italian dudes. First thing they do is kill people steal cars, etc. You presumably don't take issue with that.

But when you are playing the same game with a black guy, that is painting black people in a bad light? 

When you are presented with a white criminal you automatically think that it is just one guy and not representative of the entire group of people, as you should.

But with the black guy you immediately jump to the conclusion "they are saying all black people are thieves" No, you are adding that part.
They are just presenting one dude, same as the white ones in the previous games. So why do you apply a different standard if it is not projection?

Edited August 25, 2021 by m76

[Reality vs Adventure]

I'm curious: If we took a look at all the protagonists from GTA 1-5, what is the breakdown of the ethnicities of the protagonists? I get the vibe it is mostly minorities depicted as criminals. But I haven't played all the games. Even in GTA 4 the protagonist is Eastern European white male. Eastern Europeans usually are depicted as some kind of a gang member too in entertainment because of the years of the Soviet Union. 

[Crazycrab]

2 hours ago, Reality vs Adventure said:

I'm curious: If we took a look at all the protagonists from GTA 1-5, what is the breakdown of the ethnicities of the protagonists? I get the vibe it is mostly minorities depicted as criminals. But I haven't played all the games. Even in GTA 4 the protagonist is Eastern European white male. Eastern Europeans usually are depicted as some kind of a gang member too in entertainment because of the years of the Soviet Union. 

 

How many people do you meet or play as in these games aren't criminals, or at least unethical... Damn near nobody and that's regardless of race.  You play as a criminal and almost everyone you meet are gangsters, dirty cops, corrupted politicians, greedy business tycoons, asshole celebrities or just generally kind of dicks.

 

3 hours ago, m76 said:

So in the previous two GTAs you play white italian dudes. First thing they do is kill people steal cars, etc. You presumably don't take issue with that.

But when you are playing the same game with a black guy, that is painting black people in a bad light? 

When you are presented with a white criminal you automatically think that it is just one guy and not representative of the entire group of people, as you should.

But with the black guy you immediately jump to the conclusion "they are saying all black people are thieves" No, you are adding that part.
They are just presenting one dude, same as the white ones in the previous games. So why do you apply a different standard if it is not projection?

 

Exactly, there not pinning the identity of criminals on the playable characters because of their race, their doing because it's GTA!  It is worth noting that a lot of the characters in this franchise are very stereotypical, but again it's not racially motivated.

[Reality vs Adventure]

4 hours ago, m76 said:

So in the previous two GTAs you play white italian dudes. First thing they do is kill people steal cars, etc. You presumably don't take issue with that.

But when you are playing the same game with a black guy, that is painting black people in a bad light? 

When you are presented with a white criminal you automatically think that it is just one guy and not representative of the entire group of people, as you should.

But with the black guy you immediately jump to the conclusion "they are saying all black people are thieves" No, you are adding that part.
They are just presenting one dude, same as the white ones in the previous games. So why do you apply a different standard if it is not projection?

Italians a lot of times are depicted as gangsters or thuggish because of the Sicilian history from the 20's to the 70's in America. There are a lot of people mixed with Italian, but in entertainment, a full Italian I usually see portrayed as someone involved in crime. 

[m76]

9 hours ago, Reality vs Adventure said:

Italians a lot of times are depicted as gangsters or thuggish because of the Sicilian history from the 20's to the 70's in America. There are a lot of people mixed with Italian, but in entertainment, a full Italian I usually see portrayed as someone involved in crime. 

Yet nobody seems to be raising their voice against representing Eastern Europeans or Italians as criminial, it's only when black people are presented when the crying starts.  So why is that? Unconscious bias, that's why.

[Heatman]

5 minutes ago, m76 said:

Yet nobody seems to be raising their voice against representing Eastern Europeans or Italians as criminial, it's only when black people are presented when the crying starts.  So why is that? Unconscious bias, that's why.

Maybe you're right it's an unconscious bias but I think when racism is ever mentioned, it tend to carry more wave if it's associated with blacks.