Could we have some black characters?

[TheKingofSquirrels]

I don´t want to be THAT guy, but when hearing the description of the new character of Walani, which is that she is Hawaiian in ethnicity, I was hoping it would be a good chance to bring some diversity into the Don´t Starve cast. 

 

 

[grekon]

That is kinda racist bro.

[TheKingofSquirrels]

That is kinda racist bro.

That I want inclusivity?

[orian34]

That I want inclusivity?

Kinda.

[grekon]

That I want inclusivity?

Its just my take on it.

 

I have played many games and while I am not black I have seen a lot of those games have "that one black guy". To me that is racist because it overly focuses on the "race" and this case black skin color. Those characters were not interesting or even half needed for the story. They were there because they were black. That's usually the case really.

 

Some games do not have even one black person, hell there isn't even one Asian person(Hawaii isn't in Asia) in this game right now and whether it should be changed shouldn't be based on how many people from different countries there are but because its cool or thematic.

 

You get it right?

[Goat Slice]

I always have had a head cannon for all the characters is that all their skins are literally white and blank left up to the fans to imagine them as any race they wanted to depict them as in fanart, fanfic, etc.. It's as if the world of don't starve simplifies people's color pallets. (Browsing a lot of DS fanart seems to show a lot of people have the same headcanon.)

 

We'll probably need an official word on something like this though.

[Hexis]

This would be nice, provided the character(s) get a personality besides 'being black'. God knows there's enough of that kind of characters out there already.

 

I'm actually kind of surprised there hasn't been any before, considering how diverse the character roster has always been in terms of character traits, personalities and appearance.

[TheKingofSquirrels]

Its just my take on it.

 

I have played many games and while I am not black I have seen a lot of those games have "that one black guy". To me that is racist because it overly focuses on the "race" and this case black skin color. Those characters were not interesting or even half needed for the story. They were there because they were black. That's usually the case really.

 

Some games do not have even one black person, hell there isn't even one Asian person(Hawaii isn't in Asia) in this game right now and whether it should be changed shouldn't be based on how many people from different countries there are but because its cool or thematic.

 

You get it right?

Yeah, but I didn´t mean incorporate a token black character.

 

Make it cool and thematic like you said. I don´t know. I don´t want it to feel forced either, but with Walani it seemed like a missed opportunity. 

[ThaumicParrot]

I always thought of DS characters as sort of paper puppets, which is why they're white. In fact, I don't the characters are even white, as in ethnicity. They're literally white, like snow or paper. If they made all the characters peachy skin colored I don't think it would look as good, ya know? I'd be perfectly fine with all white characters, as I think they are void of race, but not void of culture, like wolfgang is clearly russian in culture and wilson is an english gentleman. If they made a zulu priest character with paper white skin I'd be fine with that.

[ArcticFox789]

Positive discrimination is always ridiculous. It's either tokenistic or simply patronising to those who benefit (suggesting they aren't good enough to earn themselves the job/role/whatever) and discriminatory (against the majority).

[MoloMan]

Yeah...

[_Q_]

Webber is quite black if you ask me.

[Cyde042]

Webber is quite black if you ask me.

 

Are you saying all black's are monsters?

 

[Kror]

I always thought of DS characters as sort of paper puppets, which is why they're white. In fact, I don't the characters are even white, as in ethnicity. They're literally white, like snow or paper. If they made all the characters peachy skin colored I don't think it would look as good, ya know?

 

I'll add that this way they look a bit like dead/sick, which is pretty good for this game.

 

They are not "white". Well they are white, but not as people use the word. They are literaly just white. Unethnical.

[Codsworth]

Play webber

[YumoS]

I think a black character would fit into shipwrecked. He could be maybe from a Tribe who has skills to control some animals because he is one with nature

[EmilioEstevez]

Oh great, another one of those SJWs.

 

Sure there can be Black characters, but I expect Klei to keep with their consistent style of the game and if they're going to throw in a "Black" character, she/he will have context in the world/style and fit in, and not be some dumb African-American stereotype with stupid cornrows or something.

 

And for the sake of discussion, why do you want a Black character? You utter inclusivity, but then why a Black over an Arab, an East Asian, or a South Asian? How about a Khazak, a Serbian, or a Punjabi? You can say, "well these groups are a small minority." But Blacks are an even smaller minority in gaming compared to some of the aforementioned groups- African-Americans are only 12% of the US population, and not only that but are on average much poorer thus there would be less African-Americans on average that are into gaming than Whites or Asians. Why should there be a Black character, and not another character of a more common race in gaming, like East-Asian or Russian (unless Wolfgang is Russian)?

 

So if you're going to argue based on "inclusivity", then you have no reason to specify "Black" (I assume African-American, "Black" Africans are quite diverse). So then it might be because you want to "identify" with somebody of your own race, in this case a Black character. Then we could also say that you want to play a Black character over an Asian or White character, in which case that might be arguable whether or not it's racist (I don't think it is). If it is not based on racism, then the same problem persists- why should Black people have a character to identify with while other groups/races shouldn't when those groups/races are more common in gaming than Blacks?

 

Regardless, I hope Klei doesn't pander to "social justice" warriors that, in their own, hypocritical racism, only pander to specific social groups under the false argument of their being "oppressed" en masse in society. Likewise, I hope Klei recognizes that groups like this are a vocal minority that are mostly irrelevant despite the illusion of power given to them by current media.

[SirBuizelton]

Uh oh. *runs to his bomb shelter*

[SirBuizelton]

Oh great, another one of those SJWs.

Sure there can be Black characters, but I expect Klei to keep with their consistent style of the game and if they're going to throw in a "Black" character, she/he will have context in the world/style and fit in, and not be some dumb African-American stereotype with stupid cornrows or something.

And for the sake of discussion, why do you want a Black character? You utter inclusivity, but then why a Black over an Arab, an East Asian, or a South Asian? How about a Khazak, a Serbian, or a Punjabi? You can say, "well these groups are a small minority." But Blacks are an even smaller minority in gaming compared to some of the aforementioned groups- African-Americans are only 12% of the US population, and not only that but are on average much poorer thus there would be less African-Americans on average that are into gaming than Whites or Asians. Why should there be a Black character, and not another character of a more common race in gaming, like East-Asian or Russian (unless Wolfgang is Russian)?

So if you're going to argue based on "inclusivity", then you have no reason to specify "Black" (I assume African-American, "Black" Africans are quite diverse). So then it might be because you want to "identify" with somebody of your own race, in this case a Black character. Then we could also say that you want to play a Black character over an Asian or White character, in which case that might be arguable whether or not it's racist (I don't think it is). If it is not based on racism, then the same problem persists- why should Black people have a character to identify with while other groups/races shouldn't when those groups/races are more common in gaming than Blacks?

Regardless, I hope Klei doesn't pander to "social justice" warriors that, in their own, hypocritical racism, only pander to specific social groups under the false argument of their being "oppressed" en masse in society. Likewise, I hope Klei recognizes that groups like this are a vocal minority that are mostly irrelevant despite the illusion of power given to them by current media.

Your points are valid but there's no need for name calling. Come on man.

[EmilioEstevez]

Your points are valid but there's no need for name calling. Come on man.

 

You're right, but I honestly have no respect for people like this to not put them in a category. I consider them the same as "real" racists.

[SirBuizelton]

You're right, but I honestly have no respect for people like this to not put them in a category. I consider them the same as "real" racists.

I can understand that, I just feel like categorizing people is a part of the reason racial tension still exists/did in the first place.

[ImDaMisterL]

... This is slowly starting to become a warzone... unfortunately...

[EmilioEstevez]

I can understand that, I just feel like categorizing people is a part of the reason racial tension still exists/did in the first place.

 

Well I mean in this case I was categorizing people based on their beliefs and values, which is rational and normal. What could be considered irrational, or wrong, is insulting them, but I don't think I was insulting but criticizing by the end of my post.

[SirBuizelton]

Well I mean in this case I was categorizing people based on their beliefs and values, which is rational and normal. What could be considered irrational, or wrong, is insulting them, but I don't think I was insulting but criticizing by the end of my post.

Yeah, I felt like it was healthy criticism too at the end of the post, sorry if that wasn't clear. Just wasn't sure if what was said at the beginning was quite as constructive.

[ifatree]

That is kinda racist bro.

 

but we're all okay with monkey butlers? yeaaah...