Resident Evil 5 (Xbox 360)

They're coming to get you, Barbara.
3/12/2009 8:34 PM | 121 Comments | Page 4 of 4

What's Hot: No more antique-typewriter save system; Co-op works well when you've got a person with a pulse to play with; Shorter than Resident Evil 4.

What's Not: Subhuman portayals of Africans are offensive; AI-controlled partner not helpful approximately 60 percent of the time; Nothing here that you haven't really seen or done already in Resident Evil 4 (or Lost Planet).

Scott Jones
Status: Coffee makes me feel 4-percent sexier.

No, none of it made any damn sense. Yet there was a Buñuelian disjointedness to Resident Evil 4 that somehow made it compelling, despite itself. Resident Evil 5, in contrast, is trying too damn hard to be dramatic, in the name of upping the ante from the previous game. Those bombastic set pieces, and the battles with the massive bosses, are not exciting. They're overwrought and numbing.

The happy couple.

Most disappointing of all [minor spoiler, if you care about such things], the El Gigante, the most feared enemy in Resident Evil 4 and one that will forever haunt me, has a cameo in Resident Evil 5. But he shows up sporting an unkempt Appalachian beard for some inexplicable reason, making him look more like Old Pappy looking for his jug o' moonshine rather than the nightmarish creature he formerly was.

In the end, once the credits roll on Resident Evil 5, what I'm left with is a grim, unimaginative world; an annoying, unreliable partner; and a host of impersonal, forgettable encounters -- all of it poisoned by hideous, unfortunate racism.

This review is based on a retail copy of the game provided by the publisher.

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Comments

Bawk!
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CG-Prophet
10/15/2009 4:23:27 PM

@FoxyAreku:

Fighting a new boss constitutes a dramatic change for you in a sequel? Really? This is why some series never evolve. You, my friend, suffer from Street Fighter-itis. That's where a developer takes a franchise, slaps a couple of new characters in it and you go out and buy it. Don't you deserve better than that?

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FoxyAreku
10/15/2009 3:38:38 PM

Are you this stupid....? Racism? The game takes place in AFRICA. AFRICA has AFRICANS, also if you had played the game and payed attention, you would know that the parasite the people are infected with makes them violent and war-like.

Also you say that there is nothing in RE5 that you haven't done in RE4. Well, funny thing, but I don't recall fighting Wesker or ANY boss from RE5 in RE4. RE5's levels aren't even close to RE4's either.

I've said my piece.
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GusMastrapa
4/23/2009 1:21:47 AM

@Mortavius:

No worries. I never read your statements in a negative light.
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Mortavius
4/17/2009 1:24:44 PM

@GusMastrapa:

Very good points. I can see how the statement could be read as a challenge; all I can say is that I assure you that wasn't my intent at all.
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Bawk!
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RyanKuo
4/17/2009 12:16:26 PM

@Mortavius:

My bad. Didn't read your post closely enough.

@GusMastrapa:

I'm with you. I just think that there's a point at which over-rationalizing compensates for lack of experience, and removes the discussion from reality. There's no discussion that needs to be grounded in reality more than this one.
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GusMastrapa
4/17/2009 12:06:06 PM

@Mortavius:

There's an implied violence in the word "racism." Not necessarily physical mind you. I also urge caution when turning discussion of racism into a contest of who has experienced the worst. Of course there are some things that are very difficult or impossible to truly understand until you've experienced them. But just the same empathy and understanding have a miraculous way of bridging that gap.
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Mortavius
4/17/2009 11:51:50 AM

@RyanKuo:

I agree completely with what you're saying in regards to having real-life experience giving a broader view than a dictionary definition. If you are referencing my posts before to LasttoBlame, then I would actually say that your comments should be directed at him. I was using his definition of the word from his blog, and he actually states in there that it is not a dictionary definition.

Having said that, while I agree with your point about having a broader view, it doesn't change my opinions on this game being not racist. I may not have been subject to many racist attacks in my life, but I have certainly been the subject of discrimination, as I would wager that we ALL have been at some point and to some degree. And really, is there such a difference between discrimination and racism?
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Bawk!
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RyanKuo
4/17/2009 10:42:13 AM

@CG-Prophet:

Sure. Though, as with everything, it's a matter of degrees. Have you felt threatened by verbal jabs, experienced a inevitable pattern over time, felt as if you ultimately had no safe place to go, etc. Notions of racially-based "pain and suffering," let alone "insensitivity," take on a subtler meaning when you are by definition an outsider.
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Bawk!
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CG-Prophet
4/17/2009 3:12:51 AM

@RyanKuo:
Quick question (not being facetious here) - does being called a cracker, honky, white devil, whitey, redneck, hillbilly, etc. count as a racist attack?

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Bawk!
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RyanKuo
4/16/2009 6:57:54 PM

@Mortavius:

I think it matters because actual first-hand experience with racism tends to give you a broader understanding of it than a dictionary definition does.
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Mortavius
4/16/2009 5:58:08 PM

@RyanKuo:

I would imagine I have. I honestly don't recall, but just because I can't remember it doesn't mean it didn't happen. Obviously I didn't consider it important enough to remember. I fail to see where you're going with that question though, in regards to RE5 being racist.
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Mortavius
4/16/2009 5:56:34 PM

@GusMastrapa:

Yep, I completely agree with you on this one.
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GusMastrapa
4/16/2009 4:17:27 PM

@Mortavius:

Surely. But games tend to explain nothing about the setting except, perhaps, "the bad guys came here and blew everything up, that's why the buildings are all trashed." Games have a long way to go in this regard. And I think Resident Evil 5 is a great illustration of this.
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Bawk!
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RyanKuo
4/16/2009 4:00:13 PM

@MSUSteve:

Well, different cultures have different opinions about boxes and snakes. And snakes in boxes. I bet they are a lucky charm in Japan.
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MSUSteve
4/16/2009 3:58:30 PM

@RyanKuo: Jones once called me fat and said that I was a "box lover" and a "snake kisser".

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MSUSteve
4/16/2009 3:55:59 PM

@lasttoblame: "A more recent and hilarious example would be the prevalance of 'wiggers', white teenagers who are so infused into black urban hip hop culture that they look and act black and fool nobody."

Isn't that a racially insensitive statement? How does one "look and act black"? Aren't you, by your own definition, a racist?

"Japan likely doesn't construe Resident Evil 5 as a racist piece of art, but then that just shows the rest of the world the kind of insensitivity and ignorance Japanese will hold for other cultures."

Isn't making a blanket statement like this also racist? I realize that I'm conducting somewhat of an ad hominem attack here, but I think you open yourself up to it when you make such pronouncements from on high without recognizing your own massive hypocrisy.

"this type of portrayal is in line with the idolizing of American failures into American heros, like General Custer's last stand or Apollo 13's failed attempt to reach the moon."

Did you really compare the courageous efforts of the Apollo 13 crew with Custer's Last Stand?

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Bawk!
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RyanKuo
4/16/2009 3:49:42 PM

Have any of you clowns actually been the subject of a racist attack?
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Mortavius
4/16/2009 3:42:30 PM

@lasttoblame:

Finally your last point about Sheva's unlockable costume. I completely agree with you; it's a sex symbol grab. But I'm confused at why you're upset about it. By your definition, racism is "insensitivity towards another race or culture that inflicts pain or suffering." How does portraying a the african character in a pleasing and positive manner apply to your definition of racism? It doesn't inflict pain or suffering. It's meant to be pleasing t6o the viewer. Just like in previous games, the female characters have alternate costumes in styles and dress that is pleasing to the audience. The only difference is that the sexy outfits were americanized because the characters were american, whereas Sheva is African so her costume reflects that.
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Mortavius
4/16/2009 3:24:41 PM

@GusMastrapa:

I agree completely that a setting is essential; but explaining everything behind that setting may NOT be essential. Explaining the reason why the castle is run-down when the entire story is about political court intrigue can serve to distract the reader from the main points.
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Mortavius
4/16/2009 3:10:50 PM

@lasttoblame:

You mention that the horde of Africans in a mob is racist. I see where you're coming from, but I would point out that you are completely ignoring the intent and previous games in the series. Zombies have been depicted in hordes in almost every one of the games; that is part of the horror of zombies. Zombies are often (not always) slow moving creatures and an individual zombie or two is not always a very good threat. It would have been silly for the creators of the game to use something that worked well as a scare tactic in the previous games but then ignore it for the completely arbitrary reason that "it might offend someone if they're too sensitive" in this game (something that I would point out you decried earlier in your blog).

And that argument pretty much applies to the whole AIDS vs. zombie virus argument. It is tragic what AIDS is doing to the African people now. But does that mean we should curtail anything that might offend someone? We'd almost never create anything new, and again, that is what you explicitly are against in the earlier part of the blog. Sounds kind of hypocritical to me, not to mention that that sort of self-censorship could be construed as another form of racism.

I agree completely with your impression of Sheva; I'm sure she was created to market to Americans. Is that such a bad thing? If you create a product, you want to market that product to a specific audience right? Sheva was created to be the sex symbol in the game, not as a poster-child for the African people. every culture has their own ideas of what they conider sexy.
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GusMastrapa
4/16/2009 3:00:55 PM

@Mortavius:

In well-told stories the setting is absolutely essential, it's like another character, it informs the players, the tone of the tale and the motivations of everyone involved. The sad fact is that games very rarely use setting in this way. Games use setting as backdrop. And if they do use the setting to inform the gameplay experience it's superficial, eg. The Ice level means slippery floor.
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Mortavius
4/16/2009 2:59:48 PM

@lasttoblame:

Continuing on, you made mention that it is insensitive for another culture to portay the Africans in their traditional dress. Where does this attitude stem from? By this logic, it would be innappropriate for any culture to write or create anything about any other culture, since you say that thi is bad. This would certainly curtail our creative ability, don't you think?

I am in complete agreeance with you that the language barrier causes a feeling of the "other" or the "unknown." But I think you are misinterpretating the logic behind it. Ignoring that this tactic was also used in RE4, the feeling of isolation that the language barrier generates creates a feeling of helplessness and adds to the fear and horror that the game tries to generate.

I agree with your assessment of the environment, but I would point that almost every game favors this tactic. In almost every game I have played, the player gathers resources from the environment with almost no regard for anything other than their own fulfillment. This is because games are for enjoyment, not moral quandries over whether cutting down those trees will negatively affect the environment or destroy a natural habitat. We have enough of that in the real world; people play games as an escape.

As a side note, you said the natives can't seem to use their environment; I would disagree. Every zombie I killed usually dropped small caches of gold. Obviously they are gathering resources from their environment as well.
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Mortavius
4/16/2009 2:46:40 PM

@lasttoblame:

Well, I've read your Last to Blame blog, and my first impression is that it is wordy and takes forever to get to the point, constantly getting off-track to define or give an example to something that does not directly apply to the main point (RE5 being racist) but can serve to distract the reader.

By the 18th paragraph, where you start to actually address the topic of the game, I can find something I respond to.

You claim that the game does not address the poor conditions that the natives live in and propgates a sterotype as Africans being poor. I don't disagree with the first part of that statement; you are correct, the game does not address the conditions they live in. But I would say that is not the FOCUS of the game. The goal of the game is not to address how and why everything is why it is. It doesn't tell you why there is a particular table in a room, how it was built, why it's there. Plainly put, like in any story that's ever been written, it's not pertinent to the story that's being TOLD. I don't read a book and wonder why it takes place in a castle; that's the setting of the book, and if it's important to the story, I trust the author will explain it. Otherwise, I move on.

Secondly, your point that this propgates a sterotype is unfounded. You may very well think this, but I have the game, and this thought never crossed my mind till I read your blog, and when I did read it, I dismissed it at once, because I do not, and am not going to, think that Africans cannot help themselves. Indeed, knowing their long history and the environment that they live in, I would say they are exceptionally capable of looking after themselves; God knows I couldn't do as well if you plunked me down in the middle of Africa.
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lasttoblame
4/16/2009 5:35:15 AM

Gamers will defend video games as art with their dying breath, and then turn around and say that "its just a game". Quit contradicting yourselves.

Resident Evil 5 is racist; it's called cultural appropriation, it's called insensitiviy and ignorance. Try to examine the context of the game as you shoot and explode heads.

BTW, that racism expert that apparently declared RE5 "not racist"? He's not a racism expert. Check out the "update": http://kotaku.com/5165545/an-informed-expert-speaks-out-on-re5-racism-update

If you're still not convinced, check out more reason on this blog:
lasttoblame.blogspot.com There's a whole essay about it; it won't fit in the comments section.

(its mine, but don't let that stop you from checking it out)
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MSUSteve
4/9/2009 2:09:30 PM

@CG-Prophet: This cropped up in a BIG way on the recent Giantbombcast that featured the Bioware doctors. Those guys were speaking insane marketing jargon, talking about "IP" and "portfolios" constantly as well as talking about all the tie-in (cash-in) things they would like to do with all of their "IPs".

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Bawk!
Bawk!

CG-Prophet
4/9/2009 1:05:29 PM

@MSUSteve:

Marketing muck muck with creative types. So you get developers speaking a dialect that they shouldn't like "IP" and "Unit" and "SKU"

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MSUSteve
4/9/2009 11:50:12 AM

@GusMastrapa: I hate calling games products as well. I recall watching some "making of" type stuff in which the producer of Madden (or NCAA Football) kept referring to the game as "the product". It was a total turn off and, to me, really showed how they thought about the game, not as a fun experience, but as a commodity.

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Mortavius
4/8/2009 2:47:52 PM

@GusMastrapa:

Fair enough. Reviews appeal to different people for different reasons. Myself, I like cold hard facts about the product I'm reading the review on; I can make personal decisions about it if and when I buy it. That's one reason I love Gamespot for reviews; I find their game reviews are (mostly) based about tangible aspects that can be re-created by most users, so they provide a realistic baseline to review a product on. But that's just me.

As to calling games products, I was more using the term in a generic sense to encompass movies, restaurants (although that is as much a service as a product), and other objects that are reviewed so that others can learn about them before they buy them.
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GusMastrapa
4/7/2009 7:48:37 PM

@Mortavius:

"A product review (again, in my own opinion) should be solely about the product, and not the viewers feelings, because such things are subjective."

Personally I'm only really interested in the subjective angle. And calling games "products" is a real bummer. It's like calling films "IPs" or albums "units."
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Mortavius
4/2/2009 5:47:04 PM

MSUSteve,

Thanks for pointing me to those threads. I read through both of the posts, and I have to say, I agree with them. However, there's something I feel that has been left out.

I agree that the presentation of the game has the potential to make people feel uncomfortable when playing it. What I would add to that, is that sort of feeling is a piece of context that the viewer or player brings with them to the game. And I don't see how a game developer can be held responsible for the context that a viewer brings.

Is it a sensitive issue to depict a game where a white protagonist is shooting black enemies in Africa? Especially when later depictions of those same enemies are stereotypical and inaccurate? Yes. Does that mean we should not have a game about this because it might offend someone or bother them? Absolutely not.

Although I have yet to see the game actually accused of being outright racist (indeed, some of the posts go quite far as to say that is exactly what they are NOT saying) the simple implication is there. And that implication is what myself and some others respond to. I can completely understand if someone, having a connected background with the game might find it disturbing. I can also see that same thing happening in almost any game where the real world is depicted. For example, if the game took place in Canada, and the zombies were infected First Nations peoples, then if someone had a background as a First Nations member I could completely understand them feeling uncomfortable. But to quote the old phrase: "That sounds like a personal problem." That's exactly what it is. To accuse the game or the creators of some agenda (not saying anyone did), or to make any blanket statements about the game based upon personal feelings, is in my opinion unprofessional in reviewing a product. A product review (again, in my own opinion) should be solely about the product, and not the viewers feelings, because such things are subjective.
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MSUSteve
4/2/2009 2:32:40 PM

@Mortavius: I'm not trying to diminish your opinion, but I'd encourage you to read through the comments in the comment thread here: http://www.crispygamer.com/columns/2009-03-16/thoughtprocess-more-on-resident-evil-5-and-uncomfortable-echoes.aspx Your point of view has been brought up and discussed quite a few times. In fact, I think I started off with a similar tack in Evan's first "Uncomfortable Echoes" piece, so check that comment thread to see what others said to me. http://www.crispygamer.com/interviews/2009-03-02/uncomfortable-echoes-a-conversation-with-resident-evil-5-director-jun-takeuchi.aspx

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Mortavius
4/2/2009 1:10:37 PM

I know I'm a late comer to this whole debate, but I wanted to share my opinions.

I think this whole thing is ridiculous. None of this outcry came out when any of the MANY Resident Evil games came out before. There was no vocal complaining about Resident Evil 4 when an American was killing Europeans. There was certainly no outcry when the first three games came out and the main character(s) were killing infected monsters in good old USA! It really seems to me like the outcry only happened when suddenly it's a "white" character shooting "black" zombies. Sounds hypocritical to me.

Now, I'm not insensitive. I'm aware of the history of our nations (as I'm not actually from the USA), and I know that horrible things have been done in the past. But in my opinion, people are projecting their anger over what has/is happening in the world and they see a convienent outlet to vent that in this new game.

The setting of Africa allows for a new setting in the game series. It would be pretty weird if Chris Redfield was shooting up all white people in Africa. Incidentally, Chris has been around since the beginning, so I can't see any argument about him being white either.

And as to the original reviewer about the black zombies being undernourished and such? Well, they're MONSTERS. It would look pretty weird to see zombies that are hale, hearty, and healthy-looking, right?
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GusMastrapa
3/25/2009 4:58:05 AM

@bustin98:

Thanks for coming back to say that. I takes a big person to step up and admit when they got something wrong. You're alright in my book.
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bustin98
3/25/2009 2:14:02 AM

I have to come in and say that I was wrong about the scene with the girl. Not about how it should be interpreted, as the black man getting the bug shoved down his throat shows that normal people are getting attacked and turned.

Tonight I did a speed run through the first level and I did see the girl getting dragged down an alley. I don't consider that man black, but there it was.

My point of view of the game hasn't changed, but this at least shows to me the reviewer did see what he said he saw.
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MSUSteve
3/20/2009 9:08:46 AM

@bustin98: You said: "Maybe you feel uncomfortable with what you saw, but can you really feel confident in throwing around controversial terms without knowing the story of what you witnessed?"

Of those with negative reactions to some of the imagery in RE5, most are only saying that the images make them uncomfortable. Very few are throwing around controversial terms or calling those at Capcom racists or alleging any racist agenda behind the game.

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bustin98
3/19/2009 5:48:29 PM

Just as a lack of knowledge in history can alter your percpetion of racism and how it may apply to this game, a lack of knowledge of the game can do the same.

Skip all of the cut scenes at the beginning of the game and just start playing. Then go back and sit through all of the cut scenes at the beginning. What you are missing the first time around is context. Would you have known that to get to that point in the game, your characters had to pass through an armed guard (who appears to be a native to the area) and a locked steel door? Probably not. Well, who cares?

Put it this way. I show you a picture of a black woman standing in a bus, no other blacks on the bus, and there are empty seats. Sounds bad, but maybe there are reasons for her not sitting.

Taken as a whole that Capcom intended, its obvious that there are natives that are normal and are trying to take measures to control some problem, and that those behind the steel door are dangerous for unknown reasons. For someone to view the scene of the infected blacks beating a sack or seeing a white woman in a predominatly black neighborhood being mistreated as racially insensitive is just as silly as looking at the image of the black woman standing on a bus and to judge it in the same light.

Maybe you feel uncomfortable with what you saw, but can you really feel confident in throwing around controversial terms without knowing the story of what you witnessed?
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Killerzuchini
3/19/2009 2:55:04 PM

Firstly, I wouldn't call it a "vacuum", it's an oxygen deficient environment, at worst. And secondly, maybe the argument is a little ridiculous, so let's try it's inverse. Current argument: In history, Africans were portrayed as scary mindless things, to dehumanize them. Coincidentally, this IMAGE (not message) is expressed in RE5. However, let's apply that to things that it hasn't, using my English class example. Knowing that slaves were not allowed to learn English, should I be offended whenever I see a black person failing English? Should I be offended if I see a black person sitting at the back of the bus? There is the EXACT SAME CONNOTATION applied to all these images. All they all true, or all false? Either way, it's not appropriate to pick and choose which examples stand.
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MSUSteve
3/19/2009 11:04:58 AM

@GusMastrapa: But it's hard to breathe while playing.

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GusMastrapa
3/19/2009 9:52:37 AM

@MSUSteve:

When you live in a vacuum it's just more convenient for your video games to exist there too.
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Bawk!
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evohollywood
3/19/2009 9:51:23 AM

@Killerzuchini:

And actually there can't be racism without history, there can't be ANYTHING without history. NOTHING exists in a vacuum. Race is a part of a group of people's identity, and identity forms over time...hence history. Moreover racism is a preconception...meaning you must have formed an opinion about a race based on past events or past knowledge.

And regardless MSUSteve hits the nail on the head. Taking something completely out of context into an abstract hypothetical place does nothing to advance your argument in any way.

Evan
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MSUSteve
3/19/2009 9:01:51 AM

@Killerzuchini: It's still a ridiculous argument man. The context exists. Talking about how something might be hypothetically viewed in a vacuum doesn't really address the topic in any meaningful way.

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Killerzuchini
3/18/2009 7:41:10 PM

@evohollywood:

Not entirely because racism can exist without history, otherwise racism would have never actually started. If I insulted someone because of the color of their skin or their beliefs, or what have you, it would be racist. I don't need to know their background or their history to be racist. If I were to be talking to, say, a friend of mine, and said "dude, you're pretty bad at English," and that wouldn't be racist, necessarily. If I said that to my BLACK friend, it wouldn't be racist. UNTIL, someone makes a comment saying "What, are your racist?" That, although admittedly a weak comparison, is a solid EXAMPLE of what this is. Because of how something was viewed or portrayed, it becomes inappropriate to state or use that view or portrayal, even in completely different context.
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Bawk!
Bawk!

evohollywood
3/18/2009 7:27:44 PM

@Killerzuchini:

What you're saying is, if you remove this game from the context of history then it is not racist or offensive at all. Which is correct. However, unfortunately for your argument, this game exists in reality (and by that I don't mean that events it depicts are real, just that it was a video game that is actually real, and is in no way hypothetical) and therefore must exist within the context of history like all popular forms of media.

Yes hypothetically, to a person who has no idea that Africa or Africans exist this game would not be offensive in any way. If you remove the context of history then nothing is racist, nothing is offensive, everything would exist in a historical vacuum. I guess my point is that your argument is ridiculous.

Evan
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Killerzuchini
3/18/2009 6:24:34 PM

@MSUSteve:

Well, I guess Michigan was a broad statement, but I'm in Lansing, and part of a incredibly diverse school (which, sadly, must repeatedly state how diverse it is. But that's a subject for something totally different.) However, the dehumanization of Africans rarely comes up in any history text books, in that context anyway. It might be mentioned in passing, but is never a topic of discussion. Upon reflection, I suppose it should be, but that's not relevant right now. What is relevant is how the imagery, being accidental, is being... well, PLACED there by people looking for it. For example, if you showed this to someone who didn't know Africa was even a place. A hypothetical person, of course. Upon seeing this, he'd be scared. Same as anyone's reaction to, say, the Spencer Estate from RE1. However, the locale just makes people go "No, it was actually portrayed like that. It's not right to put that in a game." Now, whether you know the history of black/white relations or not, or how Africans were viewed, it's just a coincidence. A scary game used Africans, and Africans were once portrayed as scary. Yes, there were (presumably) ways around this, but not knowing how people of western culture would react, they didn't see the need to. And I didn't say it's not worth discussing, I think much can be learned from the discussion. I said it's not something the game should be reviewed based upon, or that should be used to question the motives or intentions of Capcom.
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GusMastrapa
3/18/2009 4:18:35 PM

@Killerzuchini:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/12th_Street_riot
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MSUSteve
3/18/2009 3:51:33 PM

@Killerzuchini: You said: "Everyone knows about slavery and kidnapping and such, but negative Black/African portrayal is something not as widely known. At least not up here in Michigan."

As someone that was born and raised in the metro-Detroit area, one of the most racially segregated populations in the country, I disagree that we in Michigan don't have any knowledge or legitimate feelings about racism and black-white relations. I went to law school with a guy from Mississippi and he was floored at how segregated we are here in the Detroit area. This stuff is definitely relevant to us here in Michigan.

Anyway, you lost me completely in the last post when you said that feelings evoked by disturbing images that call to mind terrible past racist depictions should not be discussed so long as the images weren't intended to be racist. The fact that Capcom didn't mean to put forth any racist sentiment by including images of black people that evoke historical portrayals of them as subhuman doesn't in any way remove that connotation from those images. Discussing this stuff opens everyone's eyes to how these things make others feel, regardless of how they were intended.

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Killerzuchini
3/18/2009 3:32:40 PM

Last comment not actually directed at MSUSteve. Just hit the reply button >.>
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Killerzuchini
3/18/2009 3:31:11 PM

@MSUSteve:

I feel like the only issue here is whether somebody CAN relate the imagery in RE5 to imagery that has been implied (seemingly) before my time, or in parts of America that I know less about. I'm not ignorant, per se, I consider myself more well informed than many people my age, but I do not proclaim to know everything. Now, this history of racism, I believe, should not have been pointed out. A -few- people are calling RE5 racist, and many are saying it's offensive, but none if it's intentional, and if unintentionally (by coincidence) offensive, shouldn't be used to judge the game or the company as a whole. It should simply be said "I refuse to rate or play this game, because I found the opening scene disturbing. With my knowledge of how Africans were portrayed during |insert year here| I feel as though it is a little edgy." That could be the only potentially fair review as far as THAT goes because in order to see anything offensive, you have be able to relate it to what you know.

On that note, I very very strongly feel that much of the outburst and cries of politically incorrect material aren't accurate or justified, because I personally doubt that everyone calling it offensive has knowledge into the history of racism. Everyone knows about slavery and kidnapping and such, but negative Black/African portrayal is something not as widely known. At least not up here in Michigan.

But on that closing note, I do agree that the debate should probably just cease. Some may find it offensive, others will not. Either way, I think it's pretty solid that ALTHOUGH Capcom possibly maybe could've done something (I love the game as is, and who knows what could happen if it were different) different, they did not intend to offend anyone.

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MSUSteve
3/18/2009 11:35:51 AM

@RyanKuo: I don't fault you for feeling frustrated with Killzerzuchni's engagement of the topic at somewhat of a surface, plot-of-the-game level. It just seems to me that'd it'd be easier and more respectful to simply abandon the conversation altogether than to dismiss someone in a pretty rude and undeserved way. I'm not saying that conversations on topics like this won't be fraught with disagreement, but there's no reason to not be civil, especially to someone that's been nothing but civil himself. That's all.

Btw, I really liked the options you presented as to how Capcom could've diffused a lot of these negative feelings over in Evan's thread. Those were all really great suggestions. I especially liked the idea of making the zombies much less human, more grotesque, and to have them move in a very inhuman manner. All of that stuff really would've worked to dispel the ugly racial imagery that essentially intact, but scowling, brooding, hulking black zombies are evoking.

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RyanKuo
3/18/2009 11:26:05 AM

Hi, I'm back.

@MSUSteve:

Let me be clear. Anyone who's old enough to drive a car is old enough to handle some snark. Also, it hopefully goes without saying that the comments I post represent my snarky opinions and not those of Crispy as a whole.

That said, I would much sooner have a very unpleasant conversation about a topic that I think is valuable than a pleasant, middling one that I believe gets us nowhere.

I've tried to say it more politely before, and I'll try saying it another way. There are different ways to read a text (here, RE5). One way is to simply read it at face value. Another is to interpret the subtext. The subtext is what people are reading when they talk about race issues in the game.

Killerzuchini, and everyone using the "they're not Africans they're zombies" argument, have posted reams about why it's wrong to read racial issues into the subtext because the 'stated intentions' of the main text (the plot, the official themes, the textbook definition of a zombie) overrule those, and any other, interpretations.

So it's not "shame" I'm feeling. It's impatience.

We're at a point at which everyone is realizing videogames can be taken seriously. But arguments like the above are stuck at the point where we're realizing that they can actually have content. I think that happened when Zork came out. And I think that, as serious as the people who use those arguments may be, they ultimately keep us from talking about games seriously.

That's what my sarcastic post was trying to express.

Again: It's like trying to talk about the meaning of Spider-Man with Comic Book Guy, who won't listen to you because you're using the wrong Peter Parker continuity.

I'm glad you and Killerzuchini and everyone are posting. I hope my (and anyone's) snark isn't taken as a sign of the contrary. But conversations about important things, like race, are never going to be pleasant ones.
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MSUSteve
3/18/2009 10:51:27 AM

@RyanKuo: You said: "...because I'm now arguing with a high schooler about how the evil Umbrella Corporation resurrected the ancient myth of the mean black person, and Chris Redfield saved the day."

That's really insulting to a guy that's been nothing but reasonable in this dialog. You might not agree with him, but that's crap to dismiss him like that. If you're feeling shame about discussing fictional events in a video game and the meaning behind those fictional events, then I guess you've gotta quit any and all discussion on the subject, because that's where it starts. I think Capcom could've done itself a big favor by more clearly driving home that the zombies are in fact the victims, as I stated earlier. All Killerzuchini was pointing out is that RE5 does have an anti-colonial, anti-exploitation message. I really don't have much else to add. I just wanted to support Killerzuchini one more time after another uncharacteristically shitty dismissal from a Crispy editor. I don't agree with everything he's saying, but he's calmly and lucidly presenting his points and trying to engage in the subject in a meaningful way. He certainly doesn't deserve that treatment Ryan.

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Killerzuchini
3/18/2009 9:17:21 AM

@Foe_Monkey:

I've read it a few times. I think at this point the debate is whether Capcom used these images on purpose, as it's getting bad reviews for "loaded imagery" which, using the word loaded, implies it is intentional.
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Foe_Monkey
3/18/2009 9:10:32 AM

If you have not already checked it out, you should read Evan Narcisse's peice on this subject. http://www.crispygamer.com/columns/2009-03-16/thoughtprocess-more-on-resident-evil-5-and-uncomfortable-echoes.aspx
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Killerzuchini
3/18/2009 8:20:50 AM

@GusMastrapa:

I'll admit that my age does limit certain things, primarily that I've never even heard of Menace II Society, so I can't argue that one.

However, on the material used, I still have to stand that Capcom using it wasn't inappropriate in any way. The said "baggage" that is attached to this imagery was placed there by people viewing it, not by the makers. The Spider Man example is a very good one, and I too support that they removed the twin towers, because it would be a rather painful reminder. However, it is still noticeably New York by all other accounts. The negative imagery from RE5 is scary-game-in-Africa, not scary-African-game. Maybe the word "menacing" is getting applied to the wrong nouns. The Majini are menacing. Africans are not. But the only two ways to have truly avoided this, 100%, would have either been to 1) change the locale, or b) change the theme of the game. One solution mentioned was to show NORMAL Africans living out their daily lives before all this happened, but if you put yourself in the shoes of the developers, there isn't a way to incorporate that with the game. It would be awkward and out of place in the current setting, but if the switched it up and showed Umbrella or TriCell or whoever come in and destroy this town, it would ruin the story line, as that information isn't given out until later.
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GusMastrapa
3/18/2009 8:00:48 AM

@Killerzuchini:
Not to pile on the eighteen thing but this quote, "Because, many years ago, *colonial* Americans (I do need remind it was colonial Americans, not people from this, or recent, generations) saw black people as menacing" leads me to believe that maybe you don't have quite same sense of history as the rest of us.

You were, after all, only two years old when the movie "Menace II Society" came out -- a film of this very generation that dealt with the fact that, yes, young black men living in South Central Los Angeles were considered menacing. You don't need to go back to colonial times to find such examples.

To your most recent post. Your argument about Resident Evil games always using negative imagery is shaky. You're using the word "negative" as too broad a brush. Of course there's that kind of negative imagery in Resident Evil games. We don't expect them to be all teddy bears and rainbows. Again, you're dismissing all context rather than noting the baggage that comes attached to the real-world situations and locales that the African setting brings.

Remember the movie Spider-Man? The story is set in New York. It always has been. Stan Lee set the comic book there way back in the '60s. When Sam Raimi cut the first trailer for the movie he shot a scene where Spidey threw a web between two buildings to catch a helicopter full of fleeing bank robbers.

Those two buildings just so happened to be the two towers of the World Trade Center. Terrible things happened on September 11th and that changed everything. Sony cut those scenes from the movie, discontinued posters depicting the towers. Now, you could say, Stan Lee meant for Spider-man to take place in New York. And Spider-man doesn't have anything to do with terrorism really. Just leave the movie the way it was. But we know, even now, that excising that imagery at that time was the right thing to do. Certain images can be inextricably linked to deep, deep wounds. Wounds that don't heal fast.
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Killerzuchini
3/18/2009 6:55:50 AM

@RyanKuo:

The high schooler thing is an unfair comment, seeing as how a) I'm 18 and b) I've brought nothing but constructive argument into this.

Now, about the purpose of bringing Umbrella into, which seems to be missed. I understand WHERE the impression that the beginning unintentionally uses disturbing imagery, but it's brought into question why, and I'm using Umbrella to explain that. Yes, it's fictional. So is the cutscene. Interestly enough, they're made BY THE SAME PEOPLE. That's the important part. Everything portrayed and implied by the rest of the game is what is worth noting, and for whatever reason, you said that the fictional company is irrelevant. It's the basis of the game. If the basis of a game implies the exact opposite of what being are seeing from the opening cinema, than anything garnered from the opening cinema (i.e. It uses negative imagery) that could me taken out of context is pretty much null.

Now, I'm running out of time for the moment, but I'll finish really quickly with a comment on the imagery. People are saying that Capcom uses "loaded" imagery for effect, or that they needed to pay closer attention to the imagery they were using. Now, I don't think they do. They've used negative imagery in... uh... Every game. Resident Evil 4 was far scarier with a much less inviting atmosphere. However, since they were spaniards and never had any negative imagery, it wasn't a big deal. But because Capcom didn't see anything wrong with it in Africa, they just changed the locale. Look back on the RE franchise, it's survival horror. If you are somehow piecing together "Zombies are scary, we use to think Africans are scary" then it's just a coincidental leap CERTAINLY not worth calling loaded imagery.
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GusMastrapa
3/18/2009 2:42:22 AM

Maybe as a reboot here let's take a look at this great blog post by Ben Fritz over at Variety:
http://weblogs.variety.com/the_cut_scene/2009/03/a-simple-question-about-race-and-resident-evil-5.html

He raises the point that literally no-one except for one kook at the Huffington post has called the game "racist." If you read Scott's review and this story you'll see that neither levy that claim against the game. What they do say is that it seems like the game is, a bit blithely, using imagery and situations without true understanding or awareness of their history or impact. I think it's an important distinction.

Let me saying it again. NO ONE HAS SAID THAT RESIDENT EVIL 5 IS A RACIST GAME. YOU ARE NOT RACIST FOR THINKING ITS A FUN GAME. I THINK ITS A FUN GAME. OKAY I'LL STOP SHOUTING NOW.
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RyanKuo
3/17/2009 11:58:54 PM

All right, I'm setting up shop in Evan's article, because I'm now arguing with a high schooler about how the evil Umbrella Corporation resurrected the ancient myth of the mean black person, and Chris Redfield saved the day.
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Killerzuchini
3/17/2009 9:27:04 PM

@Killerzuchini:

companies are what are causing the*
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Killerzuchini
3/17/2009 8:29:18 PM

@RyanKuo:

People are looking at all the wrong qualities was my point. Ok, menacing looking Africans. Because, many years ago, *colonial* Americans (I do need remind it was colonial Americans, not people from this, or recent, generations) saw black people as menacing, it is questionable to put menacing Africans in a game. Bare in mind, this is fictional. The entire thing is fictional. It's a fictional town, in a fictional part of Africa, with fictional characters. Therefore, it is only correct to use the actions and implications of other fictional things from the same context, such as TriCell and Umbrella. The actions of these fictional companies are what are the fictional Africans we speak of to appear menacing, and are fictionally victimized. Now, this is all concrete. It is canon, it is legitimate, it is implied by the making of the game and part of the intended story. Any type of racism or negative imagery towards Africa as a whole, however, is in no way concrete, as the only thing supporting the claim is A SINGLE OPENING CUTSCENE that could potentially be viewed as putting a single fictional town as a representation of the view towards Africans as a whole.
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Malarauko
3/17/2009 6:46:18 PM

@GusMastrapa:

I love the whole gameplay angle. For me the gameplay is 99% of why I play a game. Its so rare for me to go for story or anything like that. I know its silly to ignore games as more than just Games but for me its still mostly how I think of them. I just think that doesn't make them less valueable than any movie or book.
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RyanKuo
3/17/2009 6:01:13 PM

@Killerzuchini:

It's one thing to state things you've learned by reading history books and unlockable backstory. It's another to apply those ideas to an *individual work* that was made by individuals: people with specific backgrounds, biases, understandings and misconceptions; not empty vessels that automatically suck up a distinction like "anticolonial = not racist" that you've slapped onto (might I remind you) made-up entities like Umbrella Corp. and TriCell, not to mention the entire country of Japan.

If you can build an argument that actually speaks to the concrete, formal qualities of the game that real people are really looking at, which supports the notion that the game is a clearly, consciously, anticolonialist manifestation of the Umbrella/TriCell fiction, then I'd like to hear it.
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Killerzuchini
3/17/2009 4:57:34 PM

It's not a round about way of saying it's just a game. I do believe that it should be reviewed as a game, however, it was also shot down as racist. If you look at Japan's history, Umbrella's history, Tricell's history, and Capcom's history, you will actually be shocked to find that RE5 is anti colonial, and that all signs point to how BAD expansion is, and how POORLY Africans have been treated in the past. However, nobody seeks to defend THIS point. I haven't brought it up because I feel like all the pseudo activists will challenge me on it, and I'm really not in the mood of another argument. However, whether it be video game or movie or book, it is being treated and, more importantly, reviewed, unfairly.
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RyanKuo
3/17/2009 4:47:07 PM

These are just roundabout, intellectual-like ways of saying "LOL it's just a game."

Evan's follow-up column picks up on the issues that Scott laid out in the review.

http://www.crispygamer.com/columns/2009-03-16/thoughtprocess-more-on-resident-evil-5-and-uncomfortable-echoes.aspx
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Killerzuchini
3/17/2009 4:36:57 PM

@bustin98:

On a note, the reply button works now. Must've been something wrong with how it's loading. (Using Chrome on this comp)

However, I think bustin nailed where the aggravation comes from. If one feels offended by this game, go ahead, be offended. I may try my best to convince you otherwise, but I won't be upset by what you think. However, when I clicked the link leading to this game, I was expecting something of a review. I'm not saying the reviewer doesn't have the right to his own opinion, but I think what he puts in should definitely be 1: more accurate and 2: more about the game itself, and more about giving it an honest rating as a form of entertainment.

Note: I particularly liked where you brought up the word "outdated." If one has to delve into the history of racism to make a valid statement concerning racism, then it probably was unintentional, and people are just seeking excuses. Let it be known that Capcom also went to Africa for research, and asked Africans about the game. I strongly feel that people are constructing racism out of nothing, for whatever reason. But that is just MY opinion, and therefore just a side note.
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bustin98
3/17/2009 4:17:18 PM

@GusMastrapa:

I don't care if people have the opinion that this game is taking advantage of people's preconcieved notions of what is racist. I don't care if people are offended by the game. 'You' can be that way, its a free country.

What I do care about is someone who is trying to be perceived as a source of a valid opinion, instead writes half truths or fails to comprehend what has transpired. I think KillerZuchini and others, myself included, feel that this review fails to flesh out the game and is instead tainted by negative feelings that may or may not apply to the game. The review implies that the entire game is null and void because the opening sequence smacks of outdated sterotypes. How many books have you read where you can judge the whole story based on the first chapter?

The review even outlines scenes that do not transpire as written. How can anyone on either side of the issue even take this viewpoint into consideration? Go ahead and have your opinion of being offended by this game, but have a foundation of truth for your opinion.
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RyanKuo
3/17/2009 4:12:40 PM

@Killerzuchini:

Hey, what browser/OS are you using? (re: Reply button)
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Killerzuchini
3/17/2009 3:30:28 PM

@GusMastrapa:

Ok, I agree that if you have to spend that much time to decide whether the game is truly offensive or not, there might be a problem. However, I never found the game to be offensive in any way (even after being told it was 'racist' I didn't see anything -wrong- with it) and I read the bonus files as that; bonus files. It just so happened that these bonus files helped explain much more than the game itself did, possibly for the reason of not wanting to bog down the game. As an example, we already have Crhis' backstory. However, Sheva is a new character. This is no easy way to fully explain Sheva's intentions and background without digressing too much from the main story. I believe that at this same time, they may have accidentally left out details that could give the impression left on so many people after the trailer.
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Killerzuchini
3/17/2009 3:26:32 PM

Understanding what MSUSteve said (for some reason my reply button doesn't work) I can see where some people might feel uncomfortable with the imagery. Contextually, however, this game can't be called RACIST. RACISM is different than "Gee, this game has some pretty vivid imagery,it makes me a little uncomfortable." In Call of Duty: World At War, you are given the option to execute PoWs, or let them live. This SHOULD be unsettling to people, especially if they choose to mercilessly kill them. However, it receives little press coverage. I do believe that everyone has the right to their own opinion, and one can say that the imagery of RE5 disturbs or offends them, but it can't be called -racist.- Racism would imply that Capcom is directly implying something, and I think we can all accept that Capcom is not a racist or malicious company. If SHOWING something in the beginning would alleviate of the harshness of the imagery, maybe that wouldn't have been a bad choice.

On a note about showing that the Africans are the victims of all this, I request everyone (who has unlocked it) reads Sheva's file.
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GusMastrapa
3/17/2009 3:20:52 PM

@bustin98:

I deserved that. I think. But face value? C'mon. If the game only looks above the boards if you spend twenty hours playing and read every single little diary then we've still got a problem.
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bustin98
3/17/2009 3:10:28 PM

@GusMastrapa:

Of course, showing obvious signs that the game was taken at face value instead delving further into the details is the most honest way to issue a review.

If it worked for Fox News it can work for anyone.
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GusMastrapa
3/17/2009 2:03:56 PM

@Killerzuchini:

Sorry if I was a little harsh, but I think the argument being made and the accusation that folks didn't beat the game is also counter-productive. Sorry, again.
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EvanNarcisse
3/17/2009 11:56:46 AM

@RyanKuo: Bullets don't hurt Fiddy. You know that!

@MSUSteve: You've pretty much dead-on on what I was driving at.

@KillerZuchini: Even if it's coincidence, the question remains as to whether the ickiness was avoidable or not.
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RyanKuo
3/17/2009 11:18:14 AM

They should have put 50 Cent in this game. Then you could SHOOT 50 CENT!
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MSUSteve
3/17/2009 10:18:37 AM

@Killerzuchini: The context is important if you're defending Capcom from allegations that the creators of RE5 are racist and had a racist agenda. That's much less important where the issue is how the portrayal of the black Africans in the game calls to mind and evokes racist imagery from the past, which is what people are really talking about. Check out Evan's new article (here at Crispy) on his feelings about RE5 for a good summation of that argument and his responses to some other opinions from around the internet.

Where I keep getting stuck is on the solution to the issue. Evan suggests showing the native population in a pre-zombie state to reinforce the fact that the aggressors are actually the biggest victims. That's the story of RE5 really. That the zombies are victims of a heinous crime perpetrated by an evil corporation. I think driving that home a little more by showing that these now zombies were once people with families and lives might've diffused some of the shock and discomfort that the zombified villagers evoke in people.

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Killerzuchini
3/17/2009 10:05:17 AM

I think the most important thing to realize is context. If one was not aware of what was causing all of this was in fact a corporation, then yes, it could be -considered- racist. However, when piecing together all the information either directly or indirectly given, there is a greater cause for the imagery: *insert name here* is responsible for heinous crimes, and is evil to the core. It could very well be coincidence that the evil that is portrayed in this game (Reminder: caused by a company) is reminiscent of how Africans were once portrayed. Evil does always seem slightly.... Evilish. And as far as there being no sympathetic people, there could be two reasons for that: One, people always turn away from this stuff. Africa's current state is proof of that. Two, I would guess it's to give a sense of helplessness. Hence why Everyone that is there to help you... Fails.
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MSUSteve
3/17/2009 8:43:37 AM

I'm not sure Killerzuchini deserves that sort of snark Gus. In response to his long and reasonable post you insult his intelligence and focus on his statement about beating the game three times? That doesn't exactly raise the level of discourse, does it? I mean if you want to have a serious conversation of the issues, then there's no place for that. If you just want to shout down anyone that doesn't agree with Jones' review, then carry on I suppose, though I must say, I'm disappointed.

Killerzuchini, I agree with you (at least through 3-1, where I've played up to) that Chris has been nothing but a good guy. I'm really not sure what Jones is talking about when he calls him a jerk. Jones' review reads like he had an agenda to cut the game down because of what he perceived as blatant racial insensitivity on the part of the designers. While I expected to agree with Jones, after playing quite a bit of the game, I'm just not feeling that way.

To respond to your points about the village scene, the problem people are seeing is not that the people are living in squalor. It's that they're extremely menacing and the images call to mind past racist depictions of blacks in line with the "black brute" mold. There are no sympathetic characters whatsoever. There is nothing to make the people realize that the villagers are, first and foremost, victims of a hideous crime perpetrated on them by the Umbrella Corp. They're simply presented as subhuman monsters, which as you pointed out, they turn out to be. But it's that, combined with an undeniable history of racially bigoted imagery that suggested the very same thing that has people upset with that portion.

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Killerzuchini
3/17/2009 8:01:25 AM

1: I note that your first comment towards me attacks my intelligence instead of my argument. Very mature. 2: Her tarzan-esque outfit? No nuance on that one, it could be anything. Although Sheva is African, she was raised in America, and is rather light skinned. No matter what side you take on Sheva, someone is going to call you racist.
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GusMastrapa
3/17/2009 7:50:35 AM

@Killerzuchini:

So what great nuance did you detect from Sheva's unlockable costume.
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Killerzuchini
3/17/2009 7:01:43 AM

No, I come from the school of thought that says the more times you beat the game, the more you unlock, and the more likely it is I've noticed nuances of the game that are left out of most opinions. It wasn't bragging, it was in contrast to the belief that most people here haven't beaten the game. (In fact, several have stated they haven't yet.)
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GusMastrapa
3/16/2009 11:05:32 PM

@Killerzuchini:

I take it you come from the school of thought that believes that the more times you beat a game the more valuable your opinion. If proscribe to the school who thinks your school rides the short bus.
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Killerzuchini
3/16/2009 10:48:41 PM

Oh, missed one: Chris is a jackass? Did you ACTUALLY play this game? I can't once think of anything he said to imply he wasn't a great guy. Both his bonus file and in-game actions specify that he has unshakeable devotion. There are several cutscenes where he saves Sheva's life, and shows the utmost sincerity in keeping here alive. I'm really wondering if you actually BEAT the game.
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Killerzuchini
3/16/2009 10:44:54 PM

Ok, this is review blatantly does not play the game enough, nor think about the "racist" overtones. Firstly, I'll attack where people think this game is racist. Let it be known, place is never given. All we know, it's in Africa. I'm a senior in high school, and I've done DOZENS of research papers on humanitarian efforts and cruelty to man. Not sure of how many of you are aware of this, but Africa is a messed up place. Not because the natives are black, not because white people shoot it up, but because people get away with machete-ing women and children, and other generic examples of mass murder.(Rwanda picture: Note; GRAPHIC: http://www.orwelltoday.com/rwandabodies2.jpg) The beginning doesn't put BLACKS in a negative light, it's puts the MOOD in a negative light. If everybody was happy-go-lucky, and the buildings were upper-middleclass, with running water and electricity, people would be going "Why the hell would there be problems with zombies here? This place looks perfect," and the entire mood would be ruined. The rest of the inaccuracies are really easy to point out. Yes, you'll notice that no enemies ever have a chance to express humanity, and this is a soft spot. Resident Evil 1, 1996. Those of you who played, remember the first zombie? You open a door and he's chewing off a head. You then promptly shoot him. No humanity, he's a monster. All those Africans you gun down in RE5? News flash: NOT HUMAN. They are Majini. They are infected with type 2 Las Plagas. They have no civility as they themselves are not human. And finally, the last one could be easily mistakable, but must still be corrected. The spear throwing tribal groups? They have a reason to be there. I've beaten the game three times now, and read all the bonus files. If you catch every detail, those tribal guys have been there, ageless, since colonial times. I would like a response from the Author on this post, in case I missed something. Thanks for your time.
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GusMastrapa
3/16/2009 2:16:36 PM

@Malarauko:

Thanks for discussing this with us. I wonder why you should get upset about games being reviewed on social issues. That's the half of video games we've been ignoring for the past twenty years. And it's a pretty interesting angle. Besides, there are a zillion other game reviewers who will flog the gameplay angle to death. Is Scott Jones really depriving us by not moaning about the finer points of swapping ammo and control schemes?
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S_B
3/16/2009 2:04:25 PM

@jerryku:

In this case, I was referring to Scott's comments about Chris Redfield being an unlikable jackass, not the racist overtones.
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Malarauko
3/16/2009 11:20:27 AM

@RyanKuo:
Yeah. I suppose I was stupid in not saying it. I get a bit angry when games are reviewed based on social issues rather than gameplay. But then again Scotts entitled to his opinion. It won't stop me playing the game (although I did get RRoD the day after first playing it...). If I came off as inflammatory then I really do apologise because i'm not here to troll or anything bad.
@ScottJones:
Pretty sure. I can understand the angle your coming from but for me with the people I know (that includes african people) this game isn't a problem. When we discuss games its always more about the gameplay than anything like the representation of characters. Maybe your culture reads into things a bit more but for us at the end of the day its a game about an evil parasite thing that makes people grow tentacles when you shoot their head off.

I'd also like to apologise for my first comment. I kinda jumped off a bit and started ranting. Didn't mean to honestly. I normally like your reviews. Especially the whole "I don't like Fallout thing". Meh at the end of the day its just a game right. Not going to erode the very foundations of society and kill us all with dark fire. Not like Fifty Cent.

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RyanKuo
3/16/2009 11:13:13 AM

Sorry, everybody. That line about the white woman was an editorial oversight on my part. In editing it, I inadvertently changed Scott's intended meaning. So, Scott was not trying to mislead the reader about what was happening in this scene. He was trying to give an honest impression of it. (The line has been fixed.)
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jerryku
3/16/2009 1:56:33 AM

@S_B:

Are you sure creating a game where a strong white man kills hundreds of weak black men rubs most Americans "the wrong way" and not "the right way"? There are hundreds of pages of American academic writing that say it might be the latter more than the former.
(Similarly, having white American soldiers mow down thousands of Japanese ones in WW2 games rubs alotta people the right way, too.)

I find it odd that so many people are willing to blame the supply and not the demand, if in fact this game was designed to appeal to racist power fantasies. How many people worked on RE5's core development? 200? 500? Of those 500, how many were responsible for the overall creative decisions? 10? How many people will buy it? 2 million? 4 million? More of them will be American than Japanese, too.

Reply »
jerryku
3/16/2009 1:38:39 AM

As for the "disturbing" racial imagery of the game that Chris Jones, Tom Chick, and others have commented on, I think that's a clear result of the different dialectic that exists in post-black slavery nations (ex: America) and nations like Japan. The scene where the sexy white woman is dragged away and brutalized by black men is an eyebrow raiser in a post-"OJ Simpson is the Case of the Century" country like America, sure. But in Japan? The OJ Simpson trial was fairly irrelevant to Africa, Latin America, Asia, etc. I'd be really surprised if the developers specifically put that scene in the game in order to exploit the OJ Simpson-style fear. Why is she dressed in such a way, then, you ask? Could be alotta reasons. For one, going from "sexy and beautiful" to "hideous and evil" is a transition a lotta horror movies like to see for various psychological reasons. Plus we have lots of other Ada Wong / Lara Croft / Sheva Alomar-type characters who seem to love to show alotta skin during their violent adventures, too..
Reply »
jerryku
3/16/2009 1:38:28 AM

When I first saw the RE5 teasers years ago, showing Chris beating up hordes of African zombies, I was surprised and a bit bummed out. I first started becoming politically aware thanks to a book on the Rwandan genocide called "Stories from Rwanda" by Phil Gourevich. For those who are unaware, the Rwanda genocide of 1994 was followed by a series of central African conflicts, over many years, that some estimates say cost about 6 million lives. So RE5's setting was kinda off putting to me in the same way a game about ramming planes into skyscrapers would be off putting. Still, after all that, and after finishing RE5 this morning and loving it, I don't see RE5 as racist in the ways Scott Jones sees it.

The entire story is almost identical to the story of other media such as the film/book "The Constant Gardener" starring Ralph Fiennes. An evil biomedical corporation made up of crusty old white guys use Africans as test subjects because they think the world won't care if they do (Umbrella began it's operations in Africa in the 1960s I believe). This is mentioned in RE5's supportive text.
For me, the story of RE5 was very indicative of the strong anti-colonial beliefs that many popular Japanese media have. One of the most popular series in Japanese TV is Mobile Suit Gundam, which is like Japan's version of Star Wars. The shows of this 30 year old series have been likely viewed by 95% of Capcom's development staff. The early Gundam shows featured very strong anti-colonial themes, although they were dressed up with a sci-fi setting. There's a popular political belief in Japan that people shouldn't mess with the affairs of people in far away places, and that belief shows up in Gundam and Resident Evil 5.
Reply »
S_B
3/16/2009 12:34:10 AM

@Shurs:

The other thing to consider is that she's definitely not being DRAGGED away.

The way she's pulled away is more reminiscent of "Come inside, honey, you're embarrassing the neighbors." than a scene that implies rape.

It wasn't like the zombie was groping/manhandling her, he just grabbed her by the arm and almost led her away instead of forcing her.
Reply »
Shurs
3/16/2009 12:04:00 AM

@jerryku:

"There's Arab and black."

You're wrong, and not just what I've quoted. And let's let Scott answer for himself.
Reply »
jerryku
3/15/2009 11:52:43 PM

@Shurs:

The zombie that drags the white woman away is a native of the village. His skin tone is very light but his facial features are that of a "Manjini." You see many of his character models during the village battles. There are no "white" enemy characters in the game besides some of the bosses. There's Arab and black. That's all.

Reply »
Shurs
3/15/2009 11:42:43 PM

I'd appreciate if Scott could address the issue that S_B brought up regarding the scene with the blonde woman in the black dress. Scott dedicates three paragraphs to this scene and appears to get it wrong.
Reply »
Gregariousclaw
3/15/2009 10:07:55 PM

So wait.
Shooting black infected people in AFRICA is racist? would you be happy if all of the antagonists suddenly became white? I believe that idea is the real racist idea. What do you expect from a game set in AFRICA!
I for one and for the equal slaying of zombies/infect no matter race, creed, or culture.
Viva La Shotgun!
Reply »
S_B
3/15/2009 8:28:40 PM

I think the review is a bit mistaken, unless this isn't the scene in question:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ts7XtXxdq0&feature=related

As you can clearly see, "Things get more troubling when a scream erupts from a nearby alleyway, and Chris and Sheva spot a zombie dragging off a white woman by the hair." isn't accurate.

It's a white zombie, she isn't dragged by the hair, and there aren't any racist overtones to the scene. The question of what in god's name she's doing there to start with does remain, but it's not at all how it was described in the review.

I definitely still agree with the part about how Japanese developers really do need to get their acts together and stop ignoring the remainder of the world when developing games.

Over the years, I suppose I've just become used to ignoring what can basically be described as negligence on the part of the developer when it comes to ensuring the game is also fit for other countries.

Logically speaking, it's silly to create a character that will very likely rub your largest customer base the wrong way.
Reply »
MSUSteve
3/15/2009 6:59:20 PM

Anyway, I'm somewhat disappointed on Jones' review. After reading it I expected the worst when I fired up RE5 and was pleasantly surprised to find that the village scene was by far the worst the game had to offer up to the beginning of 3-1. Of course it could go off the rails big time, so we'll see. But really, I'm left wondering if Scott went into the review with an agenda, conscious or not, to rip the game because of his perception of its callousness to the historical plight of blacks and the depiction of them during worse times. As a self-described liberal white guy, I'm sure he and I share similar sensibilities and yet, even headed into RE5 expecting the worse I'm really not seeing much to get so upset about.
Reply »
MSUSteve
3/15/2009 6:54:42 PM

Having played up into 3-1, I still feel like the initial village walk through has been the worst in terms of evoking racist imagery in that all of the residents are extremely dark and sinister looking. Of course they all turn out to be infected zombies, so there's some explanation for it, even if that doesn't eliminate legitimate comparisons to similar past racist images.

As Gus mentioned (and then quickly dismissed) there are sympathetic black African (among other races) soldiers in the game. They're very dark, unlike Sheva, who people have taken to task for being so light skinned. So there are at least some non-infected black people that not only turn out to be sympathetic, but also extremely capable. They, including Sheva's friend Joshua, save your ass in a pretty cool QTE/cutscene. I'm not trying to make an "I have a black friend" argument there. I'm just pointing out that all depictions of blacks in the game don't hue to the "black brute" mold.

I've heard that later in the game there are depictions of "African tribesmen" styled enemies, which probably are stereotypical and somewhat offensive to anyone that knows anything about African culture. But as someone ignorant of the culture I, rightly or wrongly, don't expect to feel much in the way of outrage. I've watched plenty of movies that do the same thing and again, rightly or wrongly, have trouble getting too upset about it. As Gus said, these images exploit what many think about "dark" Africa and work in a horror game like RE.

As for Chris, I'm not sure where he's a jerk. He's been a good guy through 3-1. I'm really liking Sheva and feeling attached to her since she's always bailing me out. I love the thank yous and other little voice snippets she says.

Speaking of exploitation, Sheva's motivation has to do with a big company coming into Africa and exploiting the native people. She's got a personal stake in it that's more than simply being the token black protagonist.
Reply »
GusMastrapa
3/15/2009 5:44:34 PM

I'm a bit disappointed by the lack of nuance exhibited by the defenders of the game. Seems like since they're not seeing lynchings, swastikas and white hoods they're not seeing anything amiss. It's not that we're in Africa, shooting black people, folks. It's that we're shooting black people who are rarely given (except for several in-uniform tokens) a chance to exhibit any humanity.

And to the Spain argument that keeps coming up: Resident Evil 4 may be set there in name, but the game really takes place in the same gray countryside as every episode of Scooby Doo. Aside from a few moaned lines of Spanish there's nothing architectural or cultural that really places us there. If, for some strange and slightly more interesting reason, Capcom had chosen to explicitly recreate the look and feel of the country during the Spanish Civil war we might all be whistling a different tune -- a significantly quieter tune, I'd imagine. Because how many Americans actually know that there was a Spanish Civil War in the first place.

Anyway, I was on the other side I'd be using the argument that Resident Evil 5 is exploitation. It is leveraging xenophobia to create fear. The same way that American views of the original Ring and The Grudge, got an extra jolt of creepiness from the sheer foreignness of the Japanese settings and the alien seeming look of Samara. That's the point of exploitation -- to take our prejudices and bend them. Use them to prod us and make us feel guilty and dirty and anxious and upset. So that we can walk out of the darkness (or in the case of gaming out of the living room) and put that ugliness behind us. You're pretty silly to go into a game about shooting zombies and not expect it to be exploitative.

See, that's how you argue. Without accusing people of being liberal, over-reacting, not-playing-the-entire-game-traffic-seekers. Now you do it.
Reply »
Bawk!
Bawk!

CG-Prophet
3/15/2009 1:37:44 PM

I've played it for about an hour and let some stranger jump in to take control of Sheva.

I hate the controls for this game and even the additional control schemes suck.

Oh and the Africans in the first few sequences? Are they infected already? Because if they aren't then why do they look so evil?
Reply »
Bawk!
Bawk!

RyanKuo
3/15/2009 1:03:11 PM

As I read threads elsewhere about this subject and this review, I'm seeing that RE5 has the potential to do more good than harm. This is becoming a fascinating topic, not on race or on RE5, but on Americans today. Take the "zombie infection don't discriminate" thesis that most skeptics are using: This means that black people don't get special treatment (in the game). They have the right to get shot up just like the rest of us.

It's a great inversion of the attitude that whites are treated unfairly because blacks (and women, and people who aren't white, and people who are poor) get special attention that average white males don't. Looking at this game a certain way allows them to single out black people -- literally as targets -- so that they can continue to make the same claims about 'skin color not mattering', about race being invisible to their eyes, that maintain the racial status quo in society. For every black person that gets shot in RE5, chalk up another one for racial equality. If, in Resident Evil, the zombies are a metaphor for all people, then the heroes are instruments for bigotry. One side uses Chris and Sheva's guns to maintain buried racism; the other feels weird about it, to varying degrees. Looks like there is some hope for interactive media to contain & express meaning.

The other thing this controversy is bringing to light is that most Americans don't know shit about Africa, myself included.
Reply »
termy
3/15/2009 12:43:45 PM

This article and many comments keep referring to the "white woman" scene as if she's abducted by black men. Did you even play the game? The guy who abducts her is WHITE! He is one of the most clearly white zombies you encounter. It's clear that Capcom were specifically careful in that scene to have no black men present at all, and yet they're getting criticized for it anyway! Can we have a little intellectual honesty, please?
Reply »
Bawk!
Bawk!

RyanKuo
3/15/2009 12:23:53 PM

@Malarauko:

"represents the majority of the genetic makeup of the people there accurately"

What goes into an accurate representation of a genetic makeup? You're talking about black skin, right?
Reply »
ScottJones
3/15/2009 12:19:59 PM

@Malarauko:

"It doesn't show black people in a derogatory light."

Are you absolutely sure you're playing RE 5?
Reply »
Malarauko
3/14/2009 6:58:09 PM

I honestly think the feeling you have that this game doesn't sit right racially is an over reaction. Theres a limit to what you can really justify under PC and this is over it.

It doesn't show black people in a derogatory light. I've gotten this game just today and from the small part i've actually played (you can't have played much more) there really was nothing to inspire such a reaction. If you really think that a videogame in Africa which represents the majority of the genetic makeup of the people there accurately is somehow racist then your probably overcompensating for your on feelings. Your need to vehemently denounce anything that has even a whiff of racism (however imagined) is almost laughable. Its like when I was at college and in a play we had to represent the population of an African village for a part of the play. We asked the Caribean-British students if they would like to participate and not one had a problem. No one who watched the play complained that the african villagers were racist because they were represented accurately.

Its a piece of media set in a certain region. Get over yourself.

As for your other criticisms I can see where your going with the AI thing but I really think criticising it for being similar to RES 4 is unfair. Under that reasoning you could rule out a lot of good sequels.
Reply »
Bawk!
Bawk!

w1ndst0rm
3/14/2009 6:23:43 PM

@GusMastrapa:

Uh, what?! What I said is what I typed and that is all. You seem to have ran with somthing that isn't there.

But since you said it I do tend to fall on the side of actions speak louder than words. (not in all cases and situations; don't run off again)

It was a lament. 'Wow, there is a lot of bithcing about how much this world sucks. Maybe more bitching than action. And that just bums me out.'
Reply »
bustin98
3/14/2009 12:50:18 PM

I read this review because it was refered to in a forum that I frequent. I was on the fence about buying the game, though I was persuaded to make the purchase.

In the forum, we had a big stink over the situation with the white woman. Some saw no problem as its just a video game. Others felt the use of her was for dramatic effect but inferred something far more sinister.

Now, having played the game past the point in question, it seems to me the only sinister intentions are those of this review. First, you come across her in the first chapter, but its not right away. You fight several rounds of zombies first. And there are some white men scattered through the groups. So there is a precedent for white people.

When you get to the scene, the woman bursts from a house onto a balcony screaming for help. She is then dragged back into the house by her arm. By a white man. When you get in the house, there is yet another white man along with the now infected woman.

How about the Africans that have the bloodshot eyes and cracked lips? I'm sorry, but did you skip the cut scene that showed two zombies shoving a creature down another man's throat and the ensuing reaction the man had? The explanation is right there. Also, I have seen skin colors of all ranges in the hordes of zombies.

This review is inflammatory and misleading. The author is creating controversy for the sake of controversy. Its one thing to be spouting opinions on gameplay and graphic design, its another to twist the game into something it is not. You need to play the game at least one more time.
Reply »
ScottJones
3/14/2009 11:05:02 AM

I've been reluctant to join the conversation here because I think my review says everything I need to say on the subject. By and large, I'm glad people are thinking about the game from different vantage points (even though some of those vantage points disappoint me).

One counterpoint.

Consider the implications of zombie Jews. "Here comes Rabbi Schlomo! Oh no! That's not Rabbi Schlomo! It's a zombie! Aim for the yarmulke!"

Braaaaaaattt. Braattt. Braaaatttttttttttt.

Would the oh-lighten-up-NPR lover-it's-just-a-videogame argument still work?
Reply »
ScottJones
3/14/2009 10:53:49 AM

unangbangkay: "Sometimes it's discouraging to see how some would prefer not to help the medium mature."

I second that.

I'm discouraged by the RE5 reviews I've read around the Net, including on Game Daily, The Escapist, and Wired. Everyone seems to be typing around the issue.
Reply »
GusMastrapa
3/14/2009 4:01:09 AM

@w1ndst0rm:

So what you're saying is that unless you plan on solving racism, then just shut up about it.
Reply »
ado_rimbo
3/14/2009 3:19:01 AM

As a Spaniard living in the United States who has spent some time in Africa, I naturally have two cents to throw into this pile.

I was a big fan of Resident Evil 4 and saw nothing wrong with gunning down digital versions of my fellow countrymen. That is because the ganados were a broadly European caricature in the vein of It's a Small World, as Scott shrewdly points out in his review. It would have been impossible for them to be offensive because there is possible racist depiction of Spain. That is because most Spaniards are white, pale white. The north is of Celtic stock, just like the Irish.

Since the vast majority of Americans know next to nothing about Spain, they pile Spaniards in with Latin Americans and call them Hispanics, an ethnicity invented in America to describe people who speak Spanish as first language. Even my mother, who is blond and blue eyed, is described as a Hispanic here.

But the point is that Spaniards are whites with an imperialist history, not a racially oppressed minority, so there are not loaded images here that one could be irresponsible with.

That's obviously not the case with Africans. RE 5's plot is not racist, and the first leg of the game isn't either, save for the appalling scene with the blond woman. The truly irresponsible segments are those with the 1930's uga buga tribal zombies. This part is frankly unacceptable, but sadly, its not out of place in pop culture.

Scott is wrong to blame the Japanese for this when chances are their designs are influenced by the equally irresponsible King Kong and stuff like Temple of Doom. Hollywood and mass media has long used this sort of nonsense with impunity under the excuse that its just a movie. Resident Evil isn't jarring to the average teenager because they see these images all the time.

BTW Being politically correct means avoiding discussions of race to hide latent racism. To confront pc means to subvert and attack stereotypes, not to openly embrace them.

Reply »
unangbangkay
3/14/2009 2:40:38 AM

As an aside, I placed a rant on my blog similar to what I posted on this comment thread, but wound up disappointed at how so many people just stood up, without thinking, to defend a game that squandered the opportunities to use its uniquely sensitive setting to elevate the discourse, settling instead to provide cheap, exploitative thrills.

Sometimes it's discouraging to see how some would prefer not to help the medium mature.
Reply »
Bawk!
Bawk!

CG-Prophet
3/13/2009 10:24:28 PM

Putting aside race for a minute I think Capcom should have thought a little harder about what kind of control scheme to bring to the Xbox 360 and PS3. I think it worked well in 4 (at least on the PS2 version) because the pacing was a bit different.

But in an environment where Halo, Gears of War, Killzone 2 and Call of Duty are the most popular games of the day, you have to offer controls that work for a broader swath of players.

The RE style controls should have been an option and not a default. This is from my time with the demo - not the full game.
Reply »
Bawk!
Bawk!

w1ndst0rm
3/13/2009 7:11:38 PM

@GusMastrapa:

Nope.
And I am not finding where he did that, BTW.

What I agree with is that in the world there is more sqauking than actual help. Again, not applied to Scott and/or this game; jut applied to humanity in general.
Reply »
GusMastrapa
3/13/2009 5:39:05 PM

@w1ndst0rm:

Are you referring to his point that there are, right now, terrible things going on in Africa? It's wrongheaded to dismiss problems with a game just because things are worse elsewhere.
Reply »
Bawk!
Bawk!

w1ndst0rm
3/13/2009 11:52:44 AM

@GusMastrapa:

I think existenceseven21 has a point if we apply it broadly to our society and not specifically to Mr. Jones. Scott can answer if it hits home or not - which he kinda did already with his piece.

What I was wondering if this is Scott's attempt at assuageing his guilt for not speaking out against that game he didn't like last year.

;)
Reply »
GusMastrapa
3/13/2009 5:25:20 AM

@existenceseven21:

Ease up on the scare quotes a bit.

I think you're getting at something interesting here, but I'd like to see you flesh your argument a little more. You're pointing towards actual problems in modern-day Africa, which makes sense, but projecting upon Jones a kind of false concern or self-centeredness is a bit of a leap.

It's not constructive to undermine a discussion about a video game by saying that the real-world issues are more important. That's a given.
Reply »
existenceseven21
3/13/2009 3:41:59 AM

I'm sorry you feel this way about the game. Honestly I feel like many people are up-in-arms over this "racism" in Resident Evil 5. Resident Evil 4 took place in a small village in Spain, with the protagonist killing countless natives, yet no one protested that they was reacism or that the developers were being insensitive to racism. America has been and is strife with blatant racism against all types. Honestly, I believe that all the "concern" over the portrayal Africans as "subhuman" is just a result of relatively recent(if you consider the full scope of human history) that has occurred in Africa. Honestly, this review pisses me off. It is just one more example of how we Americans strive to be politically correct and overly sympathetic in the wrong instances. We see this VIDEOGAME and believe it's our "duty" to speak out against racism that is in a game made by developers who are far removed from the history of American racism. When we Americans see heart-wrenching events occuring in under-devoloped African nations, we immediately recall the racism that was apparent in our history. It's more evident because of the poor infrastructure caused by colonialism and the overall destitute economy of the region, not because of leftover racism from American history. I think your viewpoint is self-centered and ignores the true issue. The problems in Africa continue to occur because certain self-centered elements in the society and an general uncaring by the "Western Superpowers' for the people that are too poor to help themselves. We can sit here all day and say that we should overcome racism and help the poor and unfortunate in Africa, but at the end of the day there's only a small percentage that are going to go out into the world and actually do anything to really help those people. By speaking out against this game, you are trying to relieve your own conscience by lying to herself that this makes a difference to Africans who are dealt a hand in life that isn't deserved.
Reply »
unangbangkay
3/12/2009 11:52:45 PM

This is a great review, Scott, and it touches on issues which will undoubtedly be ignored by some outlets and many players who will abandon the discourse in favor of "just playing the game".

Of course, they aren't necessarily wrong to do so. A game is meant to be played, and as such can be enjoyed (or despised) on as many levels as its players are willing to acknowledge.

My view is likely limited, as I grew up in a racially homogenous society, largely separate from the racial tensions that have shaped the history of America to date.

Resident Evil 5, at least according to your review, was was obviously designed in ignorance of the emotional and historical subtexts that could be gleaned by its players. That absence of sensitivity is sadly present in games on both sides of the sea (though it seems less pervasive in Western games, perhaps due to risk-aversion).

However, I don't quite share your sentiments towards the subhuman portrayals of the hostiles in RE5, maybe this is owing to my limited perspective (and the fact that I have only the demo to reference at this time).

But from what I HAVE seen of RE5, I leave with an impression of pity rather than hostility. I feel sad for this society that has been consumed in its entirety by whatever consumed it, robbing the people of their humanity, leaving them hostile shells of themselves, ugly and hostile. The jackass attitude of Chris and the appearance of Sheva don't help of course (as well as your account of the white lady being victimized by the infected), but I feel for the people of Kijuju (Kijujuans?) the same emotions as I might feel towards a family left with nothing thanks to Bernard Madoff.

Perhaps more selfishly, I also feel a kind of "sucks to be them" thankfulness. Being a well equipped super-agent, a sort of callous self-pity. "Now I'm gonna have to shoot these poor bastards, them-or-me style."

Is that attitude I've drawn any less/more offensive? I'm not sure myself.
Reply »
Bawk!
Bawk!

CG-Prophet
3/12/2009 11:02:23 PM

Good review Scott. This is one game that I have to experience for myself because so much has been said about it prior to launch - and honestly, I hope that all the things you have said in this review are wrong.

But I do know that when two people (whose opinions I respect a lot) say the same things about a game there's a problem..

Mental note: get a human coop partner so i don't have to deal with the A.I.
Reply »
Bawk!
Bawk!

JasonMcMaster
3/12/2009 8:53:48 PM

You know, when I first started playing the game I didn't really notice the way there were absolutely no sympathetic black people because, well, it's the beginning of the game. However, when you hit the snowy white woman, it becomes apparent.

I liked the game overall, gameplay-wise, but the theme and the length kind of soured me overall. Online co-op is good, though.
Reply »

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