A minority as one of the main characters, Yay or Nay?

[arekpowalan]

This poll is created in an attempt to determine the significance of JRPG characters in the modern game making's standard which have "unconventional" physical, racial, and personality designs within the game's setting. Ths kind of character in question is designed as an important or playable character in the plot, ignoring a possibility that the character will become the satellite, empty Hollywood-ish sidekick character as described in the "Black Best Friend" archetype. Characters that fit in this debate usually come in two cetegories, as follows:

1. Case A

The characters are only minority for an artistic or intercultural depiction. They are created and developed as if they are regular JRPG main characters despite the different appearance and personality. It's also very likely that the racial depictions are totally interchangable without hurting the characters' attributes. Such characters may:

1.1 Have major involvements in the plot to the point they attain their own characteristics, backgrounds, motivations, backgrounds, and subplots.
1.2 Have no racial/minority problem in the narrative.
1.3 Have character developments that doesn't involved overcoming minority issue.
1.4 May contain stereotypical characteristics, but they do not overwheim their personality.
1.5 Relatable to people in real life regardless of their races.

Examples:

Spoiler

Official Example:Barret Wallace of Final Fantasy VII: His initial appearance is of a masculine, black, angry man. However, him being black has very little to do with the game's plot and theme. His personal anguishes do not come from him being black, but from the losses of his comrades during the Shinra conflicts. As a playable character, he develops as a leader/sub-unit role. His personality issue usually deals with him being blinded with vengeance and become unreasonably stabborn. If Barret were a white person, very little would have changed about his character, but he might not have been one of the most Iconic black men in JRPG's history.
 

My Example:

Minerva Eiffel is a transferred French student into a Japanese highschool. She gets involved in the murder of her father and accidentally becomes a magical girl, where she joins up with 4 of her classmates to solve the mysteries around the town and defeat supernatural enemies that killed her father. Minerva doesn't act like a stereotypical fench woman, but she shows a lot of interest in Japaense culture, her friends' lifestyles, and the French maid suit's trend. Her personal problems involved sorting out her family and schooling problems, finding out the true reason behind her father's death, and seeking revange against the murderer. Minerva's character could have been replaced by another Japanese girl, but she stays for an artistic value.

2. Case B

The characters are designed as a minority because the game deminds the themes surrounding racial issues and problems. The characters will be designed to have significant characteristics that directly involved in certain plot points and personal conflicts, so "getting over" the minority issue is the key to develop these characters, as they:

2.1 Have major involvements in the plot to the point they attain their own characteristics, backgrounds, motivations, backgrounds, and subplots.
2.2 Have racial issues that are directly related to the narrative.
2.3 Have character developments that partly comes from such minority issues, involving how they deal with their personal problems, the other people surrounding them, and the questions regarding their existences and self-values.
2.4 May contain stereotypical characteristics, which may or may not be lampshaded and be important in the narrative
2.5 Relatable to people in with similar racial problems.
 

Examples:

Spoiler

Official Example:Arche Klein from Tales of Phantasia. Arche is a half elf, which triggers a lot of personal problems as seen in both her backstory and during the main plot. Half-elf is an unwanted race in the game's setting, which causes her to live half of her life without her elvish mother, who is fiorced to go back to her hometown and leave her behind. Arche is unable to visit her mom because the elvish hometown is ridiculously racist toward her, and the result of her sneaking into the town cause problems to her friends and her own's self esteem. Her being half-elf also affacts her love life as she will outlive her human boyfriend. In this case, the story's theme and plot cause Arrche to be a deeper character, as she is developped from an otherwise stereotypical "happy girl".

My Example:

Jonathan Jesse is a Jewish university student during WWII. Due to the German Nazi's holocaust happening at the time, he is retred from the university and is on the run from the army. He is rescued by anti-Nazi protagonists, who determines to keep him safe at all cost. Unfrotunately, the tension from the war and the trauma caused from him losing his father and sister have made him rash and reckless. He would rather die trying to save his family rather than hide like a coward. His attitude causes a lot of problem whenever he deals with his best friend. Eventually, he has to learn that he has to stay calmer to deal with his problems. In this case, Jonathan's character is created from the situation, and changing his racial background will affact the whole character.

My main questions regarding minority characters being main characters are that whetehr they are suitable or acceptable in our time and era, and whether they have greater or worse potential than normal characters.in term of developments in popularity. Please answers and explain why you like or hate these types of characters. In addition to the querstion, if you have an additional opinion on the interesting usage of minority characters in fictions, please do share.

Thank you in advance.

 

[StrawberrySmiles]

I won't even read most of your post, but yay. So many people, ESPECIALLY minorities want to see themselves represented in a game!

Develop the character as a person, regardless of what they look like.

Just do it! XD

 

[Bastrophian]

I didint read the whole thing either....sorry. But i think it would be refreshing, so yes. The hard part is NOT accidentally perpetuating racial stereo types....so be careful.     

 

[Simon D. Aelsi]

@Mela and DS: You really should read the whole post...


@OP: Case B. Deffo.

 

[odinnightowl]

while i don't want to sound arguementative. My questions is , Why in this day and age does the color of some one's skin matter what they do. In the end as far as a video game goes it it but a bar to slide left or right or option to choose the skin color be it white black yellow green blue or purple is just a setting and shouldn't matter any way.

 

[Wavelength]

I'm not sure there's really a right answer to this; do what's best for your own work.

I'm really tempted to have a few "Case A" minority characters (or families) in my games but I worry that it would just make them stand apart from the other characters in ways that I don't intend.  So I haven't taken that plunge yet.  I kind of like to play within the comfortable standard of "generic white", where the character's white appearance doesn't necessarily equate to any of the context that "Caucasian" brings in our real world.

 

[Kes]

One of my main characters is a black woman, but she is in a world where really that doesn't matter, and she's got bigger problems to face.  So she's an example A person.  I see no compelling reason why someone's colour should automatically mean that it's a main issue, so I have no problem with treating her as 'normal' in that sense.  

 

[Alexander Amnell]

I would go with case A over B for three reasons.

1. It's kind of annoying that we don't see more none-white protagonists in games. Do we really live in a world still where most people would refuse to play as a character that doesn't have the same amount of pigment in their skin as they do? To me that whole 'identity argument' is just a lame excuse for developers to stay in their own little box and never make anything remotely interesting or exceptional. It's also kind of degrading to take such an assumption, really? Are white people really presumed to be that bigoted just as a general rule that they are unwilling to experience a game from another perspective?

2 I am not at all immersed in the cultural pejorative from which such 'racial issues' are created and ran with, and could not hope to accurately depict an unbiased viewpoint tackling the subject matter. Simply put, if I tried to create a game like that I'd end up offending most everyone with my somewhat extreme views on what actually causes racial issues in the first place. if I were to consider such an endeavor I'd want to assemble a team to bounce ideas off of that consists of someone from each 'culture' that I am trying to represent, otherwise it would just end up as another judgement piece attempting to shame or uplift different people for their cultural viewpoints and I'm sick of seeing those.

3. I'm sick to death of the misinterpretation of a cultural identity as being a racial issue. Everywhere you look these days people are coming in and race baiting cultural grievances until we end up with this white oppressors v. everybody else mentality that isn't just skewed but in most cases ends up completely outside of the realms of reality for the situation at hand. So many brave men and women from different racial background stood up in the face of real violence and animosity to prove that their skin color didn't make them any different than anyone else; that humans are just humans and I believe personally that by going back now and identifying ourselves based on our skin color is an affront to everything that has been accomplished thus far. Racism can't be stopped that way, the more we identify ourselves by a racial identity the more inherently racist society becomes, even if as an unintended consequence, as long as we choose to divide ourselves culturally because of our race/ancestors there will always be an unbreakable divide in our minds that asserts for us how very different we are, and we'll always be racists at heart.

 

[Matseb2611]

I think it's a good idea. It adds a fresh feel to the game to play with someone other than your typical heroes. I voted for Case B, but I don't mind too much either way. Just that if we're going for main being a minority, might as well involve that in the plot, because that would be very interesting. The player certainly is intrigued by the main character's race. Why not make it part of the plot?

And when I say this, I mean really make them different. Don't just make them look like a human but with different colour skin or funny eyes. Really change their look. Have you ever played Of Orcs and Men? In that game you get to control 2 main characters, one is an orc and another a goblin. They both would be considered hideous by our standards, but damn, the game makes them so likeable yet at the same time developed so realistically, that you really end up caring for them and want to see them succeed.

 

[Warpmind]

Ehhhhh, I'm really on the fence with this one...
 

If you make an issue of the "minority" status, that's an immense can of worms that can degenerate in so many ways - most commonly into accidental bad stereotypes and unwitting racism or "oh, look at me, I'm so progressive" vibes - unless handled with extreme care.
On the other hand, if you make pretty much no issue of it at all, just liberally disperse NPCs of all sorts of skin colors in a happy mishmash throughout the game world, the party might suddenly look a bit odd for having only one "minority" character.

Also, if you make a character whose primary distinguishing feature is being a minority, then for the love of all that is holy, study said minority and the issues they actually have to contend with in the time and place the game is set (or closest earth-comparable if a fictional setting), or you'll risk ending up with the equivalent of Mickey Rooney in Breakfast at Tiffany's.

(Come to think of it, it was fairly smoothly handled throughout much of the David Tennant series of Doctor Who.)

What I'm basically trying to say is, it's fine to include various skin tones in your game, but be careful as all hell with how you portray ethnicity as an issue.

 

[Petite Elite]

As for Case A: 

Personally, I don't think this question bares asking. Skin colour and gender are literally irrelevant, so I wouldn't bat an eyelid if I saw a game with a black or female main character; it wouldn't register as being different because I'd see no difference. 

Sure, it's disheartening to see so few games feature a "minority" as the protagonist, but it may as well be a coincidence that most games feature white men as far as I'm concerned. It doesn't affect my views on anyone (besides the game developers, of course, but they're just doing their job).

Basically, if someone asked if they should change their protagonist to a minority, they're asking if they shouldn't change anything at all.

For Case B: 

Pretty much what Warpmind said

 

[Dragnfly]

I've run into some people who won't play a game if the lead is female, so black, hispanic or klingon boycotts can't be too far off. And I say screw `em. Let those people miss out on good games. By minority, I figure you mean not-white. I just mention this because I, a large white man, have been places where I'm the minority and felt the hammer of prejudice. ... it sucks.

I think the big deciding factor with how you handle your minority lead is at what point in the planet/nation/etc's social development the story takes place. In your WW2 example race was extremely important in the world at that time. But for something like FF7? Is racism even a factor there? No. Barret being black is cosmetic. That's how they wanted him to look. So if you have a minority lead or not should be decided by your setting and what reason you plan for them to be a minority.

The Record of Agarest War series, with it's 12 main races, handles racism by looking more at the character's views on that race's position in the world and where they came (which god created them) more than their physical features.

Personally, I think the problem is the mindset that your skin colour determines how you act. Just the other day a guy got kicked off the bus for shouting rape threats at girls because they weren't accepting his sexual harassment. He accused the bus driver of kicking him off solely because he was native. Then another dude, also native, sitting up front said "You're Dene, aren't you? There's nothing in our history, culture, stories or teachings that say we're supposed to act like a $%&^ #$%^." and he got applause from everyone on the bus.

My current project doesn't really have real races and they're all far from proxies for real world ones (i.e. there's no might-as-well-be-Japan) but people will no doubt draw similarities to real cultures so I'm looking forward to the discussions on if my dark-but-not-black-skinned 1st generation male lead is Hispanic, Native American or Egyptian. Spoiler: the skin tone for that region is purely a cosmetic decision, and there's no earth equivalent to that region due to physics.

So long as the developer is careful about WHY their lead is a minority, and giving proper representation if they are one, it can only enhance the game. Of course giving proper representation seems to be the world's problem.

 

[Matseb2611]

I think there's a bit of confusion. I am pretty sure majority of us here (if not all) are against racism in real life, but we can't deny the fact that it happens, and likewise it can happen in our own fictional settings. It all depends on the society in your game. Unless your society is extremely advanced and progressive, there WILL be racism in it or any kind of division where one group of people will be made to feel inferior to the other. Trying to ignore it and make all races equal in a society where this wouldn't make sense will only make your game feel less realistic.

 

[Makio-Kuta]

Well I accidentally held delete when I didn't have the text box selected and lost my whole comment... Good bye wordy comment. I'll paraphrase it:

Basically, I voted Case A because that is how I personally tend to create my characters, but Case B is equally as important and neither one is right or better than the other. It depends on what sort of story you want to tell and what sort of developments you want your character to have. Both are extremely important.

And like warpmind said, if you are going to deal with Case B, make sure you study up on what you're talking about if you are dealing with something you have never personally experienced. And if it is personal experiences you are applying, it might be good to talk to others in similar situations to help broaden the perspective.

 

[Wavelength]

Alright, I apologize up front here because I'm about to be a bit of a jerk - but with all of the support for clearly including "minority races" as main characters (which I agree is a great thing to do if you can do it justice) that I'm seeing throughout this topic, I look at the pictures in everyone's signature and avatar and (with a single exception in the 20-person Artoris banner) everyone is white!!

Is it that you see the same wisdom I do in a "generic white" anime art style that's supposed to carry no connotation to races in our real world, and diversity is represented more through personality and background than through obvious physical features?  Or is there something else going on here?

 

[Makio-Kuta]

I'm confused by the statement 'generic white' anime style. Majority of characters in anime are Japanese not Caucasian and I can think of a lot of examples in anime where you can tell a character didn't come from Japan.

Also, the first post uses race in examples, but the opening paragraph mentions more than just racial diversity. things that don't just have to do with appearance can't be gathered from an image alone. Characters with disabilities for example.

I think the trends in the signatures (which I can't see right now on mobile, so excuse me if this is wrong) are just a sign how these types of conversations are important. Because even though a lot of people say they support the idea, they are not executing it themselves.

 

[Matseb2611]

Alright, I apologize up front here because I'm about to be a bit of a jerk - but with all of the support for clearly including "minority races" as main characters (which I agree is a great thing to do if you can do it justice) that I'm seeing throughout this topic, I look at the pictures in everyone's signature and avatar and (with a single exception in the 20-person Artoris banner) everyone is white!!

Can't speak for everyone, but in my defence, why is the concept of race only limited to being black or white? I like to explore the concept of races through made up fantasy races. Many major characters in my games, including many playable ones, are of a non-human race. I have aliens, I have demons, I have robots, you name it all, I've got it. In fact, non-human/meta-human/sub-human characters often appeal to me more in RPGs and I find them a hell of a lot more interesting and relatable. When it comes to fiction and games, you can't restrict the concept of race to just white human or black human. There's a lot more to it than that.

 

[odinnightowl]

Alright, I apologize up front here because I'm about to be a bit of a jerk - but with all of the support for clearly including "minority races" as main characters (which I agree is a great thing to do if you can do it justice) that I'm seeing throughout this topic, I look at the pictures in everyone's signature and avatar and (with a single exception in the 20-person Artoris banner) everyone is white!!

Is it that you see the same wisdom I do in a "generic white" anime art style that's supposed to carry no connotation to races in our real world, and diversity is represented more through personality and background than through obvious physical features?  Or is there something else going on here?

My avatar picture the only way you can say he is white is due to the fact he has a face. The artist i had draw him personally for me felt like drawing a face. The race he is doesn't matter one way or another as it was more for the armored look then anything else. Also this avatar is meant to respressent me on various online game si play. I am a Large white male and thus my avatar is a reflection of myself. If i was any other race it would have been changed in that manner. My other picture i tend to use is Auron from final fantasy 10 . Do i choose him because of his skin color or anything of that manner? Nope i choose him because he is awesome,carries a massive sword which he uses generally with 1 hand. 

 

[Wavelength]

I'm confused by the statement 'generic white' anime style. Majority of characters in anime are Japanese not Caucasian and I can think of a lot of examples in anime where you can tell a character didn't come from Japan.

Anime characters' skin tends to be white (almost literally so).  It's not supposed to represent Caucasian and I don't really think the style is supposed to specifically represent Japanese either.  Even when characters are from different countries their physical characteristics tend to be somewhat similar.  Nationality/Ethnicity is almost an Informed Attribute.  That's what I mean by "generic white anime style".  I'm not explaining this particularly well, but I think the point of the style is to kind of make race a non-object, rather than glorifying any one particular race.

Also, the first post uses race in examples, but the opening paragraph mentions more than just racial diversity. things that don't just have to do with appearance can't be gathered from an image alone. Characters with disabilities for example.

For sure.  The Jewish religion is another "minority" the OP mentioned, but I think race is the most interesting part of this discussion, so I chose to focus on it.

I think the trends in the signatures (which I can't see right now on mobile, so excuse me if this is wrong) are just a sign how these types of conversations are important. Because even though a lot of people say they support the idea, they are not executing it themselves.

This is partially what I was trying to get at in my last (perhaps inflammatory) comment.

Can't speak for everyone, but in my defence, why is the concept of race only limited to being black or white? I like to explore the concept of races through made up fantasy races. Many major characters in my games, including many playable ones, are of a non-human race. I have aliens, I have demons, I have robots, you name it all, I've got it. In fact, non-human/meta-human/sub-human characters often appeal to me more in RPGs and I find them a hell of a lot more interesting and relatable. When it comes to fiction and games, you can't restrict the concept of race to just white human or black human. There's a lot more to it than that.

Elves, dwarves, catpeople, "aliens", robots and demons might be called races but they're actually different species.  I'm not trying to be pedantic here - they are different lifeforms in largely the same way that people, dogs, and insects are different lifeforms.  And that can be a really interesting theme on its own in a game, or a good allegory for "fantasy racism", but I feel it's a very different thing from including people of different looks and ethnicities in your game.

 

[Chaos Avian]

This is a rather interesting topic here. Unless you're someone who is outright racist, racism is usually something more subconscious and some people don't even realize or fail to see how something they said or did was even racist. Not just skin colour but insert any concept, like blue and reds and it will still be the same concept depending on who is more "successful" or "dominant". It's there and very likely it will always be there.

Most cases I agree that more people opt or use Case A just for as mentioned before cosmetic use, but I opted for Case B one being that I'm interested in seeing these kind of issues handled (without it being a clean cut stereotype) and also because I'm easily the type that's all for controversy. Challenging what is "normal" and what not.

Most of the time unless the story forces it, I usually do use Case B, but it's not always with the usual White, Black, Asian, Hispanic, Indian, etc. It's usually robots, demons, elves, other fantasy creatures, etc. The difference is, is that it's not really noticeable or it doesn't stand out as much unless it reflects our own world/ society,i.e. skin tone, gender and ethnicity. Heck, go into religion and/ sexuality as well and it's a new can of worms. I don't really agree with the term ethnic minority because that's all dependent on location, so it has a stigma when you hear/ see it. Go places like Jamaica and China and guess who the "minorities" there are. Ahh, so many topics to play around with... I just wish more people would be more free and experimental with more controversial themes. We ARE indie developers after, not a AAA company that need to keep a "good image".

Research, talk to people, gather information. It will broaden your mind as well.