This is kind of/sort of a reply to Gigantor’s most recent blog and even the wonderful Podcast about how it is to be 30 something and still gaming!
If you asked me where Metal Gear is right now I’d say “Raiden just became a ninja cyborg!” and “Snake recruits enemy soldiers by knocking them out and whisking them to his hidden lair via reverse parachutes!” As much as you want to brag to me about Metal gear’s maturity and sophistication as a series, it’s also ripe with silly satire and very sexy women! Even in the first game Psycho Mantis would talk to me about Castlevania as I snuck around in boxes, left out nudey magazines for perverted soldiers, and tried to stop terrorists from building a super mech. (It looked kind of like the lower body of a robot chicken by the way.) At some juncture Meryl taught me “Women have more hiding places than men.” with her charming trademark smirk! At least to me personally, the adult humor added to the MGS experience. If it had taken itself too seriously I’m not so sure I’d be quite as reverent of the overall series as I am today. (Though admittedly I haven’t followed it quite as closely as people like Gray-haired. He‘s the true MG expert!)
Beyond all this, I hit an epiphany in the movie theater. “Gaming” is not more widely accepted. Don’t believe me? Try breaking out your portable game system amongst a bunch of adults and teens in a quiet room when you‘re 35. If you don’t feel at least a little awkward or slightly ashamed then congratulations! You’ve reached a type of personal nirvana and peaceful enlightenment only a few of us are liable to attain.
The truth is gaming is still under attack and under scrutiny everywhere we look. The pc crowd is trying to make games “less offensive” and “more user friendly”. Overall gaming is still considered a “boy’s club” and men who play games often still fight an epic inner struggle against nasty words such as “entitlement”, “misogyny”, and “sexism”. Seriously, it really sucks to have a penis right now. Us men are painted as stupid sexists and as outright monsters on a regular basis. I’m not stating this to undermine the importance of female-oriented problems. I’m merely bringing to attention men get the short end of the stick in many instances too. This is not a one-way street. There’s victims and victimizers on both sides.
You know what’s sad? Many of us are starting to buy into all this. We feel ashamed just because we’re gamers. We feel as if we have a right to tell the creators of our products how to edit their works to appeal more to our “personal tastes“. Let me stand corrected. The tastes of the “oppressive mob” we have adapted for ourselves to fit in so we will not be ridiculed by our peers.
"It's okay if you do "not" like this design. My problem is when you try to shame me merely because I "do" like this design!"
"By the way,where was the public's outcry when poor Raiden had to do this naked!"
Gigantor actually brought up an interesting conundrum. It went something along the lines of “Gamers want their hobby taken seriously yet they let stuff like this (Quiet the sniper’s Metal-Gear design) slide!” Firstly, know that I love ya,Gig! I’m not wanting to start an argument at all. However, I feel as if it’s my right to say Quiet is Kojima’s design (Not that of us gamers) and that I personally see nothing wrong with the concept shown. Why? I don’t game to impress other people. I don’t game to be seen as an intellectual giant. I don’t game to push my cultural values onto another culture. I game because I enjoy it. Don’t feel bad. I lost sight of that for awhile too. At the end of the day games are about fantasy fulfillment. They don’t need an agenda behind them and they don’t have to fall into the narrow constraints of “right” and “wrong”.
We need to stop believing in the rainbow pipe dream that all games will one day cater to everyone and they will one day by seen as high-art by the collective masses. Yet there “will be” more unique games embodying different perspectives and there “will be” an impressively large crowd that can always appreciate what games have done for us as a society! Don’t game to fit in. Don’t game to impress a girlfriend or impress a boyfriend. Game because you’re a gamer!
I really don't see how this design is under so much shit when no one said a word about Jack from Mass Effect 2. Maybe that game was just lucky to have released in 2010.
I had no problem with Jack either. She kind of reminded me of a punker biker chick straight out of extreme 80's culture. lol. But I see your point. She was a pretty controversial design.
I'm just mad games get attacked for the dumbest little things. For example Killer is Dead's gigolo mode. For one thing the whole game is a parody of James Bond (a character known for being a seductive womanizer) and secondly the very word "gigolo" degrades men more than woman. The mini game is a satirical wink to Bond and his various female conquests yet people take it seriously and flip out about it as if it's worse than a real woman getting stoned to death.
ME2 was lucky to be released by a western critical-darling developer . The rules do not apply equally to everyone in game "journalism".
That definitely factored in at least a little, but I was more focusing on how people don't give a shit about this really, it's just a hot button issue. It's like how they bitched about Tomb Raider and Bioshock Infinite's "ludonarrative dissonance" when Uncharted did the same thing over five years ago even though those developers fall in the same safety zone Bioware does from critics. They just follow what's hot at the time, which back then was...did we actually enjoy games back then?
People did complain somewhat about Miranda and her costume which looked more like body paint on her bare ass than a real costume, and the gratuitous close-ups of said painted ass. Bioware didn't throw that stuff in for artistic effect, they did it because sex sells. Whether that was an idea that came from EA brass or from Bioware producer Casey Hudson himself, it was still a case of "sex sells." And Machocruz is exactly right. Bioware was, at the time, a can-do-no-wrong critical darling while Konami is a "dirty Japanese developer" in the eyes of the Western press.
Personally, I think the outcry is a bit stupid. MGS is military fantasy. I didn't care about Miranda's painted ass, I rather liked the Sorceress and Amazon designs in Dragon's Crown, and I'm kind of "meh" about Quiet's design.
Andrew
I'm not saying Quiet's design is the best thing since blue-berry slurpies but at the same time it doesn't really offend me or jump out at me as something that's a grievous injustice. It's disconcerting heterosexuality is the new "Man-baby-immaturity" button. Lately I feel as if the gaming press in America is trying to shame me for being a straight male. Whether I like pin-ups or the females in Dead or Alive it all goes back to me being a walking Peter-pan complex.
Casey
I'm sure there are a lot of people that simply jump on the bandwagon. Aka, they do it to feel accepted, not because they actually strongly believe in the statement being expressed. It's sad but you're right Cas,human beings have a herd mentality. I'm not saying there cannot be indvidualistic expression but when people organize into mobs the collective IQ begins dropping exponentially!
Andrew
That's a huge problem I have with the gaming media. GTA,Saints Row,Halo,and Mass-Effect are NEVER brought up in negative connotations whereas Dragon's Crown,MGS5,and Killer is dead take their turns at the whipping line. American game journalism casts many stones but never looks at itself in the mirror.
I think this is blowing up in a big way because of the whole thing with the sorceress of Dragons Crown. Let me rephase that, Dragns Crown started the yelling and the screaming and this continues it I think is best way to put it actually. I dont see the problem, the creator wanted a more sexy verison of the character and bam their it is. Atleast thats what a article I read said....Hope it was right. I might only be turning 24 september 10th but Ill never be ashamed of gaming. I love it, I live it, I breath it. No one can change that. People will attack games but hey, let them haters hate! We wont let them get us down BrokenH!
The sorceress in Dragon's Crown definitely was the spark that reignited the fire, Nicole. Personally I find it silly folks get so irate over this petty stuff when there are much worse problems out there. But you're right. Never be ashamed to be a gamer!
You know this blog reminds me on 1up under my age and that games were my hobby a couple of people left comments like wow your 47 and play games really!! And im thinking well I could be out smoking dope and drinking like these fools that made the comments probably do. But the bottom line is if your over 35 and adults see you playing etc they automatically label you as a nerd etc but I dont let it bother me cause theres alot worse things I could be doing. And im proud to be a gamer and I went to the dictors office reading a Skyrim strategy guide and didnt care who saw me.
I'm totally with you. I never understood the smoking and drinking crowd,Lee. Sure, once in awhile I kick back alittle rum and some smirnoof coolers but doing it almost everyday for a whole year? I just don't have it in me.
Besides, I literally watched my brother drink himself to death so that wizened me up real quick!
Sadly I "do" have quite an addiction to caffeine. lol.
Coffee and cigs are my addiction and im trying to quit the smoking but staying with the caffeine lol!!
It's hard weening yourself off both. lol. Going without caffeine gives me headaches. I can only imagine how awful withdrawl from nicotine is. 
The headaches go away. When I first cut back on caffeine I had a headache for a week. I put up with it though and it went away. I still have coffee off and on but not all day long like I used to. I didn't cut back for any health reason either. I just wanted to feel less affected by the caffeine.
Yup, once your tolerance for caffeine is high you don't get a kick out of it anymore. I've been cutting back too and substituting caffeine with ginseng!
I actually started thinking about this when reading the article you mention but didn't get around to posting. Since you reminded me I will put it here. This is not necessarly aimed at you or even the initial poster, just some observations I had on the topic.
Maybe I live in a totally different world but I don't get it. I have never cared if gaming became acceptable. I guess I never knew it wasn't truth be told. If I have to wait in a waiting room or wait for an airplane, I whip out my DS. Never have I felt awkward about it or been approached or looked at weird because of it.
Also, I have never had anyone take issue with the fact that I am a grown adult and play video games. Many people I work with play video games. If I go to a party or a bar, chances are a conversation with someone will evolve into video games for at least some portion of the night. Yes, sometimes these other people play call of duty or madden. Just as often it is a JRPG or a Zelda or often something even more obscure that gets brought up.
I actually see this topic come up a lot on various game sites and I just wonder where this place is that gaming is so shunned upon. Often I wonder if it is just paranoia on the part of the party?
I by nature am not one who feels the need to justify what I do, but in reference to gaming, I literally never come across situations where it is even pertinent.
It could be paranoia. I started gaming when it wasn't as accepted. Not to say it was totally taboo (Yes,other people in my HS were gamers) but we were a smaller crowd. I also remember getting picked on for reading Dungeons & Dragons books on the bus so again,maybe that has added to some sort of weird paranoid psychosis on my part. lol.
I cannot explain why I felt "weird" breaking out my psp in the theater. It just sort of crept up over me in a wave of anxiety. Yet I have no problem playing my psp at the laundry mat. (Go figure!)
Yeah, I remember in eigth grade kids making fun of gaming. I also got made fun of for skateboarding and I think back then, everyone got busted on for something. Kids just need to pick I guess.
I do think the theatre thing would be weird. I was just talking today about being in a movie and all the kids these days seem to be playing and texting on their cell phones. Why pay good money to be in a theatre only to ignore what you went to see. If it is just because it sucks that much, walk out and save your time at least. That is the difference between that and the laundry mat.
In this case I had 25 minutes before the movie. I just needed to kill some time. I agree,fiddling with distractions "during" a movie seems to defeat the purpose. I don't get it!
People are always doing two things at once these days. When you have a smart phone with all that access to information and ability to instantly text a friend, you're going to use it all the time. Someone should do a movie where you have to interact with your phone at the same time. The movie goers are doing it anyway. Why not integrate it into the experience? It's creeping into gaming too with the Wii-U's game pad alongside your TV and what Microsoft is planning with integrating the Surface tablet with Xbox One. (I forget the name of the game that will let one person use a tablet while the other plays with the controller in the same game. It was mentioned on the Wired's Gamelife Podcast last week).
That's a good idea actually! Smart phone interactive movies could be the next big thing.
Actually I just remembered that they did it in Japan with the Professor Layton movie.
Gotcha. That makes sense.
That said, if you had the extra attention span to notice others were around and you felt weird, maybe the game you were playing wasn't that good. A good game commands full attention lol!
It actually was a good game. (Jeanne D'Arch) It was more because a lot of people kept getting up to get food,find their children,or change their seats. I can tolerate crowds but they still make me nervous.
TV, SPORTS, COD. These are the things you can be associated with. Anything else is just fodder for Big Band Theory and will get you ostracised to some lonely nerd island. Say hello to Gilligan. He'll be your only friend.
(I can't get enough of that Xbox One Reveal remix video. I think it's a profound statement of mainstream interests)
Ah the jock-bro-box. Well,that's how they were premoting The Xbox One originally. lol.
It is all Miley Cyrus's Fault.
Oh,Miley! You rebellious scamp! Yes, it's weird there's an uproar over Quiet but noone brought up Miley's recent antics. Well, that's a bit unfair. Miley is to music and Quiet is to videogames. Of course gamers are going to have tunnel vision and bitch more about the gaming related stuff. Still, I don't see Quiet as that terrible. In my opinion the skins of people have gotten really thin.
I agree with you. I avoided that blog because I try to limit my agruements with my friends. 
I didn't see what the fuss was about. The character's outfit was trashy and unrealistic, but I still thought it was kind of hot. 
It's only my opinion, so I didn't feel the need to push it when the majority of people that made comments seemed to not like the chick's design. It actually didn't think about "shamng me for liking it" angle. I normally pick up on that, but since Gig is a long time friend, I just didn't notice. 
It's true though, gaming is still a "nerd's hobby". I started a new job a few months ago. There is a guy I work with that's a gamer (about 35yrs), but he's the "weird, talks about gaming & anime with people that aren't into gaming & anime all the time" type of guy. It doesn't bother me, because I enjoy gaming & anime, but I understand my other co-workers getting annoyed by it. 
Sadly, they talk about him behind his back and everything that he does that's unusual to them, they say it's because "he's always playing those games". He lives with his mother... "he's spending all his money on those games". He doesn't have a girlfriend.... "he's always playing those games". He's not responsible... "he's in his fantasy world playing those games". He doesn't have a life.... "he's always on those games". I make it no secret that I play games too. A lot. But they don't jump on me about it. But, to their defense, the guy is a bit socially arkward. I try to help them understand that's why he's different and not just he plays videogames. I had a couple conversations with some of them about gaming being just as normal as the other hobbies out there. They had little to say in response. It's probably the reason no one says anything to me about my gaming.
I do not talk "games" and "anime" to just anyone. They have to sort of give signs they are into those things too before I'll bring it up. That's probably your friend's biggest problem. He's bringing up these things around close minded people who judge him for it.
I can understand a bit of the arguments from your other co-workers side. However, not everyone can afford games AND being social. Like it or not, "hanging out" and "dating" usually cost money too so when you can do only one or the other the choices are limited. If there wasn't a cheap movie theater close by I think I'd be forced into seclusion as well.
The new hypocrisy seems to be it's okay to be a successful geek but if you struggle as a geek that makes you twice as big of a loser. Aka, the stigmatism attached to our sub-culture is still there. We like to think it's gone away but it really hasn't.
As for gigantor, I like him too! It was good seeing him after being gone so long. I simply did not agree with his blog. But that's okay. Friends don't have to agree on everything. I just wanted to give readers a decent counter argument so the vibe around here wouldn't be solely one sided.
Our culture is so weird. Gaming is for children, yet it's prefectly accepectable for a grown ass adult to get outraged and cry over a ball game they're sitting on the couch watching. I don't know if that's funny or sad.
I feel ya,James. lol. It's kind of crazy that way. Or sitting at home gaming makes you a loser yet it's perfectly acceptable to get drunk and make an ass of yourself because that's just a "normal Friday night". Society's "rules' are stupid.
I don't get the TV show watching. I used to room with a friend who came home every day from work to sit in front of the TV and watch "his shows". I used to hate seeing that routine every day. I just can't get into an endless parade of episodes that last all year long. It's like living in the show's world day after day. Also, TV is such a passive activity that I can't stand it more than the couple hours of a movie once or twice a week. I need to interact with something like a game.
In my case I don't watch television shows until they're on netflix. lol. I dunno,just feels more comfortable for me that way. But I agree. I rather game,draw,write,or see a movie.
I got Merlin in the mail from Netflix but couldn't get myself to watch it, so I sent it back.
I think this has more to do with other things than gaming. Gaming is probably brought up because as you said, that is all he ever talks about. It sounds like this guy has crossed form hobby to obsession from how you describe him. Anyone who constantly talks about only one thing to people who are not interested will usually draw ire and any perceived shortcomings they may have (not responsible, no social skill, lives at moms) will obviously be blamed on the one and only thing he is obsessed with. I think this has nothing to do with being a witchhunt on games because as you said, they don't give you grief about it. I imagine he has some issues psychologically and unfortunately that makes him a target. Hobbies are great and all but if they keep you from getting your shit together (which from how you describe this person that is what is happening) it may be time to get some counseling because it can be unhealthy.
It's kind of complicated. Sure,maybe this guy James is describing is a momma's boy with arrested development issues. However, I've also been in situations where it was difficult to choose what to do for enertainment based on my income. There are pros and cons to both getting another game and spending that same cash on socializing and going out with friends. One thing that hinders me is being a pedestrian. My friends mostly have vehicles and they cannot seem to grasp I'm more reclusive simply because my transportation options are limited. I used to pay for their gas when they came to see me but eventually they stopped calling and stopped visiting. I don't know if this was due to classism or simply distance. Probably the later! My friends were good people and I'd hesitate to label them as snobs.
Beyond that I was pretty happy to discover a cheap movie theater and the fact the new laundry-mat has a bar and lounge to make interacting with people more natural. But if those places ever closed down I'd go back to being a loner because of the situation as opposed to it being my personal choice.
I didn't say he didn't have any no social skills. He's just a bit awkward. From what I know of him, he has friends and will hang out at a bar or someone's house. I think he assumes other people want to talk/hear about gaming as much as he does. Gaming is what he loves and excites him to share. Sadly, he doesn't seem to notice the "I'm not interesting" cues the other workers will give him from time to time. I only brought it up because it was about how they saw him and how they used him to support their views of gaming. It's similar to that old joke that some black people say about rich black men marrying white women. If anything goes wrong in the rich black man's life, the response is, "He shouldn't of been fucking with them white girls". As if his partner being not black has anything to do with all his problems.
Gotcha,James. In that case your friend's doing good. He doesn't seem to have any problems other than being enthuaistic about gaming at inconvenient times. Truthfully, I probably have more "troubles" than he does. (Everything from bi-polar disorder to occasional anxiety attacks)
As for women,they can be pretty demanding regardless of their skin color. lol. Not to say there are not nicer more down to earth women out there too. I'm just not that lucky at finding the good ones and when I do they're often already married.
If they're married, you could probably just wait it out. Many marriages end. Out of all my friends I know from college that got married, most of them divorced within about 5 years. Marriage doesn't mean forever now-a-days.
Hello! I don't really know much about Metal Gear. I'm only really familiar with the 2-D ones on NES, and the only thing I did with those as a kid was hide in the box and run around. Other than that, I only know about Metal Gear through Ape Escape tie ins.
While she could probably use a light jacket or something, that army lady still looks tough and cool.
I hope you get a chance to read my PAX articles. Links are on my new blog! --Cary
I'll try my best,Cary! Shortly things are going to get busy again so if there's a delay don't take it personal! I think it's great you got to go to Pax. I'm kind of envious. 
Yes, gaming is definitely not as mainstream as movies. I also am too embarrassed to whip out my PSP in public. The only time I have is when I'm studying in an empty library! Sure, you see people playing on their iPhones all the time, but that also can easily be passed off as texting or browsing the internet. It may also be because casual gaming (or gaming with one hand) is more accepted than hardcore gaming on PSP!
I wonder if I'd feel different gaming on an iphone,Kev. It's an interesting question to ask. lol. There's definitely a stigma attached when I pull out my psp in certain places. However other places make me feel more mellow. It's difficult for me to explain and grasp fully myself.
Gaming never was, and never will be as mainstream as TV/movies. Even the cell phone games mainstream business publications keep blathering about are only diversions for ADD people to keep their hands busy while they're sitting on the toilet, and once they find something less demanding the mobile games industry is going to follow Zynga and implode.
That said, I don't really give a damn about mainstream acceptance. If I'm waiting at the doctor's office, I reach for my 3DS, not my iPhone, because as much as I otherwise like my iPhone, it is a shitty game platform. My wife is a gamer. I have nothing to prove to anyone. If they think I'm weird, fuck them, that's their problem, not mine.
Normally I have that attitude too,Andrew. That's why it was weird when I felt uneasy brandishing my psp in the theater before the movie. I never thought I'd feel embarrassed but I kinda did. It was as if the awkwardness of high school came back to visit me or something. lol.
Video games are still a young medium. I believe one day it will be widely accepted but that's a few more decades down the road at least. A certain generation of people (specifically the critics/naysayers) need to die off as well. ;)
I recall being made fun of in high school because I was known as a movie nut and I made little effort to hide it. That's ridiculous but that's what happened. Whether or not a hobby is widely accepted or not, enjoy it.
Picked on for being a movie buff? That's a new one on me. Though I guess people can misconstrue it as "If you know everything about every film you need to get a life!". Then again, anyone who loves something that much gets the same reaction. Kinda weird how we ostracize others for enjoying things. Isn't that why those thing exist in the first place,to be enjoyed?
Well, teenagers aren't always the shining example of proper behavior. Now it's just that small percentage of adults who keep acting that way. There are not more of them; they just have the louder voice.
I love gaming. I play handhelds out on trips and I wear video game t-shirts. I don't care if it makes me a "hipster" or not, shirts like that just describe me. However, there are so many aspects that I really don't like. The childish arguments, the crazy idol worship of game companies, figures, games etc..., the ridiculous back lashes to healthy criticism. There's just so much that just drains that love out of me so quickly which is why I'm rather sheepish at times to say I'm a gamer. I don't care to much about mainstream acceptance when at times there's so much negative crap we have to sift throw in our video game communities.
I miss the simpler days. I noticed when I first got into gaming everybody seemed kind of cool with each other. Then came the age people started to take the console wars seriously. Then came the people determined to find sexism within everything gaming related under the sun. Then came the online griefing, moral grandstanding, and pseudo philosophical ranting. It's true,sometimes it's difficult to be apart of the gamer culture and be proud of it. However, I take solace in the fact gaming helped me meet many wonderful people. That's its' silver lining.
But that isn't exclusive to video games, either. Look on any Forbes or Fortune article about smartphones and you'll find people supposedly mature enough to be involved in the business community at high levels throwing shit at each other regarding their preferences for iOS/Android. Or Apple vs. Samsung. Cars are even worse, especially in the Chevy/Ford debates or the US/foreign car wars. Women in the 50s used to fight about Maytag washers vs. Whirlpool washers.
You have a point,Andrew. But I still find the bickering exhausting regardless if its' more about smart phones or videogames. lol.
This comment really confuses me. You infer games are not mainstream accepted but also mention video game shirts make one perceived as a hipster. So they are not cool but are cool in society's eyes?
Sorry about that, I wrote that in a rush before I had to go to work. Though in a way, that paradox holds true. I mean think about how prevalent gaming is in society, yet careers are not highly advised and any mainstream press is really limited beyond any controversy. The shirts are just more like commercials and free press for games, if you really think about it.
Really? People were throwing a tantrum at that design? Sure, I can see why it isn't "apropiate", but it doesn't look that "offensive" to be honest IMO.
Anyway, I agree that there still is some stigma on gaming and its acceptance as an important medium, and that for some people the sight of an adult playing Pokemon is weird. As for me, I just try to ignore that. No mather if they tell me that "it's for kids only", i'll still game on untill I get tired (that, if it ever happens. Who knows if i'll be like Rodney in the future lol).
It's a turbulent issue. There are times I feel as if gaming has become more accepted but there are other times I think it's vilified just as much as it was during the early 90's when Mortal Kombat was all the rage!
Metal Gear is James Bond with a technology/military/magic realism skin. Voyeurism and erociticism are part of the package. Quiet's design would be out of place in a military story and setting striving for versimilitude, but Metal Gear is not that. Do people not remember Sniper Wolf, Meryl's swishing bottom, and bathroom pervery in MGS? How about Eva and Boss's inexplicable cleavage exhibitionism in MGS3? The Beauties' sexy sashaying after you beat their mecha form, and the optional photo shoot and accompanying cheeky poses?
That's what infuriated me. When I saw Quiet intially I was like "Oh,another Kojima design!" and didn't even bat an eye. Then suddenly David Ellis (He worked on a couple of Halo related projects as a producer for 343 studios) labels Quiet's design as disgusting on twitter and Gamespot is all over the tweet like flies drawn to shit. A few years ago this kind of stuff would be a non issue,Chris.
I carry my PSP or my 3DS with me wherever I go. So do most of my friends. We are all in our 30s. Maybe it's just me, but the older I get the less f@cks I have to give... I feel more secure and at ease the older I get.
Quiet's design looks cool. I can see why some people are going to find it offensive, but I feel it stays pretty true to the franchise. If Quiet's design is a deal breaker for someone, I'm pretty sure the Metal Gear series as a whole isn't going to be their cup of tea. We are adults. This game is for adults. Entertainment for adults often contains sex and violence. Maybe the series should have a few more Raidens in in to balance out all of the Quiets... Either way I feel the news articles about it are more about getting page views then actually having real discussions about the topic.
What gets me is when social justice warriors (only referring to the folks who take it too far) try to label me as "childish" for liking anything heterosexual men would like. Everything is objectfication this or sexism that. And if you politely disagree with these people you'll get labelled as a misogynist beast,Ceva. It's all so ridiculous. We cannot even have a mature discussion about this without assumptions and blanket statements being flung around like bladed frisbees!
It's the attacks and name calling that really needs to stop. We can't have conversations about this stuff until it does. I know I just sound like a broken record at this point, but this facet of online discussion is holding us back.
Quiet's design is all about making her a more marketable character. It's exploitative, not hateful. Making her sexy might make her more popular and might make Konami more money. People have a right to be upset about it, but not to attack the character of people who don't agree with them. I didn't like the fan service in High School of the Dead. It really bothered me... really, really bothered me... I didn't attack the creator's character. I also didn't tell the people who did like it that they were "bad people"... Sigh. I am a broken record... lol.
I remember Eva being very sexy in MGS 3. lol. There was at least one scene with her wearing a bikini. A part of me thinks yeah,Quiet was made attractive to help MGS5 sell better. But another part of me knows she'll have more to her as a character than simply "looking good". For example,Raiden was a total joke character for me for awhile. He was remembered mainly for running around naked and looking bishonen. But then it was revealed he was a clone of Snake, had a pregnant girlfriend named Rosemary, and eventually he became a bad-ass cyborg. What I'm saying is I'm glad my first impression of Raiden wasn't set in stone. He turned out to be a deceptively deep and very human character.
As for "Highschool Of The Dead" it's exactly why I didn't freak over Quiet. lol. Quiet is rather "vanilla" compared to the panty shots,jiggle boobs,and other fan-service in HOTD. Personally I could shrug off the fanservice but I did wish several times the kids had gone up against something more creative than standard zombies. What about Asian themed vampires,flying bat mutants, or werewolves? Horror has a diverse bestiary of monsters if illustrators and writers would bother using it!
You're right. I'm sure Quiet will be just as badass as she is sexy.
While George Romero style zombies are nothing new to us in the West, I think it was probably a pretty novel idea to make an anime about it in Japan. I personally can't think of too many other zombie anime titles... I do remember 3X3 Eyes, but that had a heavy eastern mythology bent to it... Also, I think the fan service in HOTD bothered me so much, because there was a good show behind it. It is what it is.
I know Jim Sterling is a pretty controversial figure in gaming media, but his latest Jimquisition states my feelings on issues like Dragon's Crown and Quiet perfectly.
Jim kinda flip-flops. I love the guy,don't get me wrong.(He's actually one of my favorites. Jim seems like he would be a very nice person irl.) I just notice sometimes he advocates white-knighting and other times he advocates "I just want games to be fun. Get over it!". It's difficult to tell where Sterling really stands overall. I'm certainly for equality and seeing more unique games by female developers in the near future! But at the same time I rather not be shamed for being a straight male.
You're right,by the way! In Japan Romero style zombies probably seem kind of new. That is if you don't count games like Resident Evil and the Siren series. lol. I really wish the newest Siren game had come to the 360. It looks really fun.
Great words Ben. I'm luckily in that boat of being someone who can game in public, while at the same time not being some little brat who mommy and daddy buy games for so that they don't have to be a parent. It's a pretty narrow age range, but hopefully that sort of positive stigma will be able to stick with my age group as games are getting closer to that magical line of "art/not art".
I'm not normally a fan of the mature women designs such as Quiet or Bayonetta or the Dead or Alive or any fighters like it. I'm more into the cute and innocent, modest proportions type stuff. To put it bluntly, I'm more into youth (may explain why my girlfriend is a little over three years younger than me! haha!), but surprisingly I really like Quiet. I just can't put my finger on it. Her design has actually gotten me interested in MGS5 and I'm probably going to pick up the HD collection on PS3 if I get a job sometime soon.
Sadly, for those of us who want to make games, this is a hard thing to do, designing characters everyone likes. What I'm going to hope for with my biggest game would be, having an equal amount of main guys and girls, having armor that is actual armor, having moments where they are all equally fanservicey, and making sure both genders have elements that are what will make the opposite gender like them. And if sexism is called out... well, then those are the folks that are the clear-cut victimizers. That's the best we can do!
I learned long ago "the perfect character" doesn't exist. No matter how thoughtful you are someone is going to take offense,JB. All you can hope to do is create a fictional world honest to yourself and for those people who will actually enjoy it!
amen to this. I LIKE my hobby to remain a niche hobby that only caters to those that actually play them. I don't want it to go mainstream and be competely accepted among the common man. Look what's happened with user friendler games, gamers that now offend when a decade ago they wouldn't have been a blip on the radar given our gamer "use to" moments in gaming and this whole "games as art" travasty!
To hell with those that look at me funny when I whip out my PSP in a waiting room. I want go get my game on damnit!
I swear metaphorical skins are getting thinner and thinner,mate. I agree with you 100%!
I game because it is one of the few ways that I am able to de-stress. My wife wonders why I spend so much time playing videogames... I wonder why she spends so much time on Pinterest.
We need to remember to look at the whole picture when it comes to videogames. Quiet does have a potentially questionable wardrobe, but why? At this point Kojima has said that there is a reason she is scantily clad. We just need to wait for the complete picture before we make a big deal about it...
I just wish people could do what you suggest. Aka,wait to play the game before flinging half assed judgements. Btw,did Cat-woman in Arkham City get this much flak? I can't remember!
Do what you have to do to be happy with yourself. Shame is simply an emotion used to hold you back from doing what you want to do and how you want to do it man.
Be a gamer, be proud. And to anyone who gives you a wierd look for bringing a PSP out in the middle of a movie theatre, well fuck 'em. Never let yourself be held back by the opinions and motives of others.
I love gaming. I will game when I'm eighty. That is all.
"I didn't out grow listening to music, watching movies, or reading books. So why would I out grow playing video games." This is my standard response to anyone who thinks its odd for a 35 year old man to like playing video games. I also still like watching cartoons. Point is its my life and if I'll be damned if I will let anyone shame me for the things that I enjoy. Personaly I think watching Amercian Idol or pro sports for that matter as a complete boring waste of time, but if thats what you like, knock yourself out. Also my deffinition of a nerd is anyone who is fanatically obsessed with a hobby. So if you rock a team jersey & face paint on game day and or dabble in fanasty leagues your are a full on class A nerd.