August 08, 2007

Gamers - Is this the post you're looking for? Here it is.

Let me just say I am not a gamer. The last video game I played was; well I have forgotten. I have not seen or played Resident Evil 5 or any of its other versions. I made a comment about the game at Black Looks from the description from the gamers and the short video representing a portion of the game. If you follow the link, you will notice the comments get awfully derogatory, sexist and racist. What gets me, is that the gamers really think they are taking the high road. They mention that it is an equal opportunity killing game, not just a white man killing African zombies. I made this comment, "This makes him a man?" When the comments section closed, the gamers found the blogger Kym Platt's other post at AskThisBlackWoman and came to this site to continue. It has trickled down to a few links, from almost a hundred the first day. I hadn't read the next post until today, it pissed me off that the gamers were still on the attack. So if more visit here and comment, I want you to know why I said what I said.

Apparently you emulate the game in real life and I still want to ask does this make you a man? In the case of woman, does this make you an honorary man? There is no honor in your comments, as there is no honor in killing any race of or people who are weak individuals. It could be only brown eyed people and the intent would be the same. One man with an extraordinary weapon killing mindless people with machetes at best. The story line is not representative of a getting rid of evil in the world. It is an allegory for the strong and privileged to be able to get rid of a perceived enemy of people they fear and deem to be less that human. It feeds into the superiority of the gamer; not skill, intelligence or logic does this test, but gives that visceral thrill. So tell me why Sokari's last statement isn't true and that you feed the bunnies.

2 comments:

A.H. said...

Disturbing. Both the game and the level of response from gamers. So, anyone who objects is a "racist" manifesting the "racism" in their heads. Alas, gamers are not the smartest human beings. Who made the game is irrelevant. The author is not the point. The point is the text, what is being placed before gamers and THAT is a racist fantasy that stereotypes Africans as Black Art followers (media-hyped Voodoo images) such that they become the living dead to be exorcised by White bravery. The clip only serves to show the bankrupt imagination of racism. You are quite right to object.

Hathor said...

I am not sure there is a bankrupt imagination of racism. I am beginning to notice a shift in code words that don't mention race.