Capcom spokesperson Chris Kramer has suggested that the election of Barack Obama has stirred up the racism argument that has dogged
Resident Evil 5.
A
Wall Street Journal article contains the paragraph, "Mr. Kramer also contends that Americans are more sensitive about issues of race in the wake of President Barack Obama's election. 'There are probably some cultural awareness levels that are not there [for Japanese developers],' he says."
It's worth noting, of course, that
Resident Evil 5 (in which most of the zombies are black Africans) has attracted criticism for its racial content
as far back as mid-2007. While Obama's candidacy for President had been announced earlier in the year, he was still a long way from the White House.
Kramer also asserted that arguments that the game is racist caught Capcom off-guard. "When this issue came up last year, it caught us by surprise", he said. He also pointed out that the
Resident Evil franchise contains "zombies of all creeps and colors", including the Spanish zombies dubbed "Las Ganados" or "cattle" from
Resident Evil 4.
Mary Flanagan, professor of digital media at Dartmouth College, offered a different take. "It's not to say we can't allow for transgression, but there are so few depictions of Africans in games", she said.
Does having a white chap (and his cappuccino-skinned partner) shooting a horde of black zombies make
Resident Evil 5 racist? Give us your take in the Forum.
Source:
wsj online