Minorities in Nintendo games

[MaiAriSquee]

Yes?

OH U.

Anyway, on the subject of Beedle, are we talking about the "Indian" shop keeper on a boat? Because he was in Wind Waker too if I'm not mistaken and he did the exact same thing.

...he was Indian?! I thought he was just Awesome. Bahah! I should probably play that game again before I draw any conclusions...

[Chris]

I don't get how Beedle and the Eskimo guy were insensitive?

Beedle is a friendly shop keeper with a loyalty scheme going on.

Eskimo guy was just some lazy guy who made you run his business for him.

Anyway, aren't they called minorities for a reason no?

[Infinity's End]

We need a video game with a main character/hero that is openly gay as hell.

This game gay enough for ya?

[Apothem]

I.E., I'm sending you the bill from my optometrist once he's done replacing my eyeballs... And here I thought the Japanese couldn't get any stranger...

[RoyboyX]

How can Exeter not be black? He is very clearly black.

[Naner]

You might as well prepare to pay two eyeball replacement bills, Inf. Where do you find this stuff?

@RoyboyX: I don't know. It could be that the lighting makes him seem black. One way or another, he isn't very black.

[fox mulder]

Try the Nintendo Channel.

[CapCom]

That's actually an inside joke. During casting for Aliens, the actress who played Vasquez misunderstood the movie and came dressed as an illegal alien. They were teasing her about that. I think it might even have been ad-libbed.

Well, it's true the actress who played Vasquez thought it wasn't a sci fi movie. But the line is in reference to immigration issues. Whether they were trying to be mean or just trying to get under her skin is a bit ambiguous, but I have to wonder about group cohesion there.

I don't get how Beedle and the Eskimo guy were insensitive?

Beedle is pretty overt. The one guy who isn't white lives in a canoe, wears a loin-cloth, and sells fruit. That's pretty stereotypical. He's basically an islander where all the islands are controlled by white people, and the game doesn't bat an eye about that. On the other hand, you can invent some really interesting colonialist narratives about him.

Punch-Out had a pretty international cast. I just played the original arcade game at a bar the other day - great stuff! The animations are very impressive.

Jynx wasn't actually meant to be a black stereotype, but rather, a ganguro girl...I don't really think it's ever a matter of prejudice though, they just don't think of non-Japanese when developing their games.

Exactly. It underscores the fact that Nintendo isn't sensitive to localization. The fact they let something that can be interpreted as blatant blackface is a pretty bonehead move, like the Resident Evil 5 trailer.

[Varia]

In the newest Pokemon, Black and White they have Iris. She's black.



I think Nintendo is trying harder to make more diverse, minorities in the games...
I don't know how well it's working or how well these characters are being betrayed but I think its a healthy move on Nintendo's behave.

As long as these minorities aren't being diminished in any way-- it's good.

[Apothem]

Ever notice how in anime, or anything anime styled, minorities - or at least African Americans - always look like darker Caucasians? That is to say when the Japanese aren't intentionally lampooning an entire race. I particularly like their portrayal of white Americans - apparently we're all blond, blue eyed, arrogant, ubermensch assholes, though I suppose they're at least partially correct. Really the conversation shouldn't be solely aimed at Nintendo, it's all a product of Japanese culture in general, and often humorous.

[CapCom]

Oh yeah, EarthBound has a pretty diverse community, too It's an equal-opportunity world: everyone gets to be strange!

[Naner]

Ever notice how in anime, or anything anime styled, minorities - or at least African Americans - always look like darker Caucasians?

Palette Swap!

Oh yeah, EarthBound has a pretty diverse community, too It's an equal-opportunity world: everyone gets to be strange!

My favorite minority in EarthBound are the dogs.

[Infinity's End]

Ever notice how in anime, or anything anime styled, minorities - or at least African Americans - always look like darker Caucasians?

It's a double-edged sword. Shows have done proper facial features/characteristics, but it only looks good in more serious animes or it has to reflect the style of the show. If you're leaning towards more light-hearted and you do it, the caracature ends up being decidedly "racist."

Compare:
Shaft ("Mushroom Samba" ep of Cowboy Bebop)


to

Staff Officer Black (Dragonball)


Sure CB has some mildly humorous overtones (forgetting the fact that Mushroom Samba is probably one of the funniest eps in the series ), but I think you could still put it up into the "more serious" category. Whereas DB is pure over-the-top fantasy. SO Black could clearly be seen as a "racist" caracature by modern standards.

[FacelessGriffin]

Sure CB has some mildly humorous overtones (forgetting the fact that Mushroom Samba is probably one of the funniest eps in the series ), but I think you could still put it up into the "more serious" category. Whereas DB is pure over-the-top fantasy. SO Black could clearly be seen as a "racist" caracature by modern standards.

Ironic thing about Officer Black is that he was a much more serious character (and probably one of the saner characters in his respective show) compared to Shaft, who was just a silly one-off.

[Dryn]

FOR THE LOVE OF - ANTHONY IS NOT THE FIRST BLACK CHARACTER IN TROID. I thought you guys were superfans. Captain A.C. Exeter from MP2 is the dying guy that stumbles to the terminal in the GFMC Compound, and who's body Samus checks after watching the report. You can clearly see black skin through the chip in the visor.

That looks nothing like a black male underneath the helmet. You're seeing things.

The most non-white playable characters I've seen in a single Nintendo(ish) game is Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn.
The "were-dragons" look... hispanic?

You do know that Spaniards are Hispanic, and they're "white"?