Game journalism backlash - the microcosm theory

Soapyfrog · 2015-01-14T23:21:16.000Z

playingwithknives:

I didnt say they had attacked EU, they wouldn’t even know what it is, they aren’t gamers remember. I posed a question, how do you adapt a strategy and empire game to “be more inclusive” for a person who is ideologically opposed to imperialism and colonialism to the point they denounce Indiana Jones films?

How do you solve a problem that doesn’t exist? You should go into academia!

Busbecq · 2015-01-14T23:25:02.000Z

Soapyfrog:

How do you solve a problem that doesn’t exist? You should go into academia!

Anita Sarkeesian was an academic. Shitlord.

Soapyfrog · 2015-01-15T00:07:03.000Z

Busbecq:

Anita Sarkeesian was an academic. Shitlord.

Now all you need to do is connect the dots. You’re aaaalmost there.

ShivaX · 2015-01-15T00:40:24.000Z

playingwithknives:

I’ve already linked statements from Feminist Frequencys Jonathan McIntosh against colonialism and imperialism, as well as his support for “Je Ne Pas Suis Charlie” and his denunciation of Charlie Hebdo. Claiming Feminist Frequency has no influence or power at this stage in the game is … odd.

Claiming some group no one cares about or ever heard of has any influence at all over game developers is odder.

Seriously. No one gives a shit about these people.

Edit: also what Timex said. How is this so hard to understand?

playingwithknives · 2015-01-15T01:13:53.000Z

Feminist Frequency is Jonathan McIntosh and Anita Sarkeesian. Jonathan is writer director and producer of the Tropes Vs Women videos.

No influence, no power, and no one has heard of them?

Edit: I’ve seen comments from the SJWs condemning the attacks, plenty attacking CH as a racist publication, but I’ve not seen anything defending CHs right to continue producing Mohammed cartoons.

ShivaX · 2015-01-15T02:11:32.000Z

I still have no idea who McIntosh is.

As far as power and influence, they still don’t have any. And if they did, who cares? It would be slim to non-existent.

This is all like listening to someone rant about Obama’s secret police on Fox News. These imaginary groups aren’t coming to take away your freedom and you sure as hell don’t need to kill or threaten anyone over whatever delusions you have about them doing so.

God help us if Game X doesn’t have chicks in boob armor, the world will fucking end and the hobby will be destroyed. What if there is a gay character that doesn’t have a lisp and doesn’t burst into flame every time he does anything?!!?! Oh wait, we got past that ages ago and the hobby is still here and nothing has really changed much.

It’s fucking Chicken Little with GG playing the role of the fox.

magnet · 2015-01-15T05:06:46.000Z

playingwithknives:

I posed a question, how do you adapt a strategy and empire game to “be more inclusive” for a person who is ideologically opposed to imperialism and colonialism to the point they denounce Indiana Jones films?

Sarkeesian is a critic, nothing more. Your question is similar to asking “How can we make a pay-to-win mobile game that Owen Faraday will review favorably?” or “How can we re-theme Monopoly so that Tom Vasel will like it?”

The answer is “You can’t.” So if making such a game is important to you, then be ready to face criticism and accept the fact that your work will not appeal to a segment of gamers.

Aleck · 2015-01-15T05:18:19.000Z

ShivaX:

I still have no idea who McIntosh is.

As far as power and influence, they still don’t have any. And if they did, who cares? It would be slim to non-existent.

Actually, we do have some (minimal) evidence of the effectiveness of FemFreq right here on our forums. At least one developer has indicated that watching those videos opened his eyes (and the eyes of others on his team) to the tropes being brought up in Sarkeesian’s videos. So while it may be hard to indicate concrete impacts of the SJW/GG controversy on specific games in terms of sales, or titles being cancelled, I think we can say that it is having an influence in the industry that may be harder to quantify (but no less real for that).

I do think there are interesting parallels in the fight over the #GamerGate identity and the #JeSuisCharlie identity. For many who initially associated themselves with #GamerGate, it was about ethics in gaming and gaming journalism.* As the character of #GamerGate changed (due to radicalization and stupid tactics by some supporters and demonization by opponents), just about everyone with an ounce of ethics backed away from #GamerGate. I wonder if we’ll see the same thing with #JeSuisCharlie – that is, will the remain synonymous with “I may not agree with what you say, but I will fight for your right to say it!” or will it take the more literal interpretation that some critics are assigning of “I support insensitive, often racially motivated cartoons that are often offensive without having any serious satirical value.”

Personally, I hope the critics of #JeSuisCharlie are laughed out of the room, but in today’s society, who the hell knows what will happen.

It does appear that some people associated with #GamerGate from the beginning were just trolls and assholes, but you don’t get tens of thousands of people talking about something just for the sake of being trolls and assholes. The claims that #GamerGate was just about misogyny or privilege are pretty clearly misplaced, at least when referring to many of the people who identify/identified with #GamerGate.

carltonbauheimer · 2015-01-15T06:18:53.000Z

Ok, I know it is from Breitbart, but I think this piece makes some fair points that are worth looking at. They just posted an interesting piece about everything Feminist Frequency (Sarkeesian and McIntosh) can teach us about the effect of video games on society.

Wallapuctus · 2015-01-15T06:34:15.000Z

So the joke is they can teach us nothing? Is this like that Wisdom of Lobo comic?

forgeforsaken · 2015-01-15T06:39:15.000Z

carltonbauheimer:

Ok, I know it is from Breitbart, but I think this piece makes some fair points that are worth looking at. They just posted an interesting piece about everything Feminist Frequency (Sarkeesian and McIntosh) can teach us about the effect of video games on society.

Yeah don’t give Breitbart the clicks, it’s just a joke article (it’s blank).

Soapyfrog · 2015-01-15T06:49:26.000Z

playingwithknives:

No influence, no power, and no one has heard of them?

I’ll ask again but I don’t think you’ll be able to answer: what power and influence do they wield? What tangible effect have they had?

Edit: I’ve seen comments from the SJWs condemning the attacks, plenty attacking CH as a racist publication, but I’ve not seen anything defending CHs right to continue producing Mohammed cartoons.

Have any of them said at any point that CH does not have the right to publish? Is not condemning the attacks a defence of CH’s right to publish?

Ironic that you raise this bullshit point considering the active and ongoing attempts by GG to suppress and silence criticism of games.

Starlight · 2015-01-15T09:00:55.000Z

Soapyfrog:

Now all you need to do is connect the dots. You’re aaaalmost there.

Yea, you’re an anti-intellectual. Obvious is obvious.

Scuzz · 2015-01-15T10:26:38.000Z

playingwithknives:

I didnt say they had attacked EU, they wouldn’t even know what it is, they aren’t gamers remember. I posed a question, how do you adapt a strategy and empire game to “be more inclusive” for a person who is ideologically opposed to imperialism and colonialism to the point they denounce Indiana Jones films?

Well that person is obviously a trouble maker and a fool, so I would just ignore them. Anyone saying anything bad about Indiana Jones movies (well they can say anything they want about the fourth one) should be shuttled off to a camp for miscreants.

playingwithknives · 2015-01-15T11:53:24.000Z

McIntosh is veritable wellspring of batshit insanity, unlike his partner, who is savvy enough not to go full Suey.

playingwithknives · 2015-01-15T12:34:24.000Z

Newspeak news! (that doesn’t flow very well does it)

“PC Master Race” is now a forbidden phrase

So, a phrase reclaimed, applying humour, cynicism and mockery to Nazi ideology, or just Nazi’s?

Seeing it originated from Yahtzee, I’m heavily betting on the first. Please disagree with me.

Telefrog · 2015-01-15T12:36:28.000Z

Why are you linking to archive.org instead of the actual live pages?

playingwithknives · 2015-01-15T12:42:30.000Z

Ah, I just took the links from /r/PCMasterRace. It’s a GG thing to stop sites getting adclicks. I’ll edit the PC Gamer link to the site itself.

Soapyfrog · 2015-01-15T12:43:31.000Z

playingwithknives:

Seeing it originated from Yahtzee, I’m heavily betting on the first. Please disagree with me.

Sure. It’s not a forbidden phrase. There, done.

Quaro · 2015-01-15T12:50:08.000Z

Telefrog:

Why are you linking to archive.org instead of the actual live pages?

Because a person said they weren’t sure if they liked a joke name anymore… and we all know mild criticism is an outrage – how dare they! So gamers are now at war, organizing boycotts of the site, downvoting it’s steam group or whatever, investigating the author’s personal history, etc. Part of that necessarily includes using archive.org so PCGamer never gets another click on their website. So just a regular day really.

For a group of people that accuse others of being easily offended, it’s hard to imagine a more over-the-top response.