[Allison W]

Originally Posted by Femmadian

I've seen this floating around online for the past few days. While the information available about the game is still somewhat limited, there are a few things one could touch on with this...

• Yes, it's true the game developer is not a trans woman. Only the game's protagonist is. The game developer is a man and is writing a game about a fascist woman-only dystopian society.
• The society is described by the developer ("dev") as "post-feminist."

• I suspect you did not read my post. The developer actually weighed in on this: it is "post-feminist" in the sense that the leadership claims that feminist ideals are no longer necessary, when they still are. Take it from the developer:
  
  "I’m using “post-feminist” to mean that the government within this universe claims that feminism’s end goals have been attained and everybody is equal and happy and so there’s no more need for feminism. That is, of course, not true..." (emphasis mine)
  
  Like I said. If you've ever heard the saying "I'll be post-feminist in the post-patriarchy," that is exactly what is being referred to here: the government claims feminism's goals have been reached when they have not, and that is straight from the developer.
  
  

  Originally Posted by Femmadian

  The protagonist, a hired assassin, uses female bodies as human shields:
  
  Link
  
  Link

  This is one of the parts I dislike, but "human shields" is an extremely common mechanic. I've seen it in several games, including non-stealth games--it's a staple of the genre.
  
  

  Originally Posted by Femmadian

  There's this gif from the game found on the dev's Tumblr:
  
  with the caption: "she doesn’t like having her butt slapped"
  Link
  

  ---> Note: another game developer [username: sokuzah] then jokingly comments on the original developer's page: "she should stop dressing so provocatively then"; zero response or reaction from the game developer or other supporters of the game

  Which was inappropriate of that commentator, but I'm actually not seeing where she's dressed provocatively. I also never saw the comment to begin with, because I didn't go digging through that post's mentions; I don't imagine many people did. It's fairly probable that the developer himself did not see the comment. Would you feel better if I asked the developer to publicly inform sokuzah that this is inappropriate? I don't know him, but there are ways to get ahold of people over Kickstarter or Tumblr.
  
  

  Originally Posted by Femmadian

  And then there's this:
  
  Link
  - are these meant to be civilians... the overweight, ugly, and perpetually dour feminists?

  Uh, yes, there are fat women in the game, just like there are thin and ordinary-weight women.
  
  

  Originally Posted by Femmadian

  Oh, wait, yep, our thin, perky protagonist is going to use the large, mohawk-sporting, cigarette-holding lady in blue as a human shield now:
  
  Link

  That's the developer testing the mechanics in the downtown area, where there are no enemies around.
  
  

  Originally Posted by Femmadian

  And then there's this lovely gif from the game:
  
  Link

Originally Posted by Femmadian

In case you didn't catch it at the end, the vaguely dive bar-looking grey building in this feminist dystopia is called Dworkin's. Here's a still for those who may have missed it:

I'm actually not seeing how just naming a bar after a feminist figure is offensive. Was Dworkin an anti-alcohol activist? If so, I could let the developer know; the game is still in development, so he might edit it.

Originally Posted by Femmadian

From the Kickstarter page:
"While carrying out some routine assassinations, Ceyda becomes aware of something: these assassinations are anything but routine. All of these missions involve an organized revolt against the government and foundations of society. As she becomes aware of the force behind it, an ancient organization of otherworldly beings who've guided humanity's advances (and downfalls) since the dawn of time, there's one question lingering in the back of her mind: in a society where being a woman is a prerequisite for being human, does someone who's often not considered a 'whole woman' have any duty to save those who hate her? And would they even believe her if she told them?"

Also from the same source under "Gameplay" offerings:

MEAT SHIELDS: Sometimes running in guns ablaze isn't a good idea. In these situations you can grab civilians or unaware enemies and use them as a human shield. Note that this doesn't work on enemies that lack human empathy! Hostages are also beneficial for gaining access to restricted areas. Just find the right person and make them open the door.

Charming.

Not especially charming, no, but it is a staple of the genre and not unique to this game in any way. Probably the first game I recall playing where human shields are a mechanic is Saints Row 2, and I'm pretty sure that wasn't even the first game to do it--and unlike games like Saints Row 2, you can't kill the civilians afterwards in this one. I myself would have used a different genre for something so politically sensitive.

Originally Posted by Femmadian

The game pits the protagonist against cis/AFAB/bio women and asks "in a society where being a woman is a prerequisite for being human, does someone who's often not considered a 'whole woman' have any duty to save those who hate her?"

Notice, no distinction or implication that any of the women in this "post-feminist" society acknowledge her humanity. Nope, apparently the women in this society are all trans-hating bigots (by virtue of their being born female? By living in a woman-only society?) and it follows that their own humanity is perhaps not a thing worth saving... or is at least a concept needing some armchair philosophizing first.

I'm going to quote the developer directly. You can read for yourself here.

(begin quote)

"One note I’d like to make: you can’t kill civilians in the game. You can only kill robots, monsters, and other assassins/people who’ve killed. Some civilians are nice, some are mean; you can’t kill any of them, no matter how they treat you. Some people have said “she’s angry and killing people who don’t see her as a real woman!” That literally never happens in the game."

"Another note: some people are claiming it’s a game about a trans woman “getting revenge and killing (their words) ‘real’ women.’” No. You’re taking down the government that’s oppressing and killing its own people of any and all types."

[ . . . ]

"The game is not about portraying cis women as enemies. It’s about a trans woman who realizes that both cis and trans women are being manipulated and controlled by gooey monsters who can change form at will and have been controlling every society since the dawn of time..."

(end quote)

So, uh, it's a game about a government conspiracy vs. the people, with a protagonist who, while there are people who treat her as human, is still a second-class citizen in her society and has internal conflicts about defending a society where she's a second-class citizen along the way to making the choice to defend that society, which is about the most normal thing to feel ever. I am also pretty sure the "second-class citizen defending their society while having internal conflicts about defending a society in which they are a second-class citizen" is kind of an established trope and the only thing new here is the exact category to which it is being applied.

Originally Posted by Femmadian

Spoiler: this dystopian feminist society is actually controlled by "demons," a sort of "illuminati" who have controlled "every major society and empire", even, according to the developer's page, Nazis. I'm assuming the developer is referring specifically to Nazi Germany circa roughly WWII but he never quite makes that clear...

Given the developer's previous game was about a closeted gay Nazi submarine captain and his crew fighting demons in the lightless depths of the ocean, I'm going to guess it's referring to Nazi Germany. That's the only Nazi society we've had: neo-Nazis exist, but a "society" they are not.

Originally Posted by Femmadian

"The fate of Plovdiv [the fictional society the game is set in] hangs in the balance as Ceyda [the protagonist] navigates the layers of a conspiracy: Every major society and empire–from the Akkadians to the Shang, from the Romans to the Nazis–has been guided by one immortal force. Plovdiv is now another link in the chain. But how?"

Alrighty then...

I think people can have deep, valid objections to and concerns about this game and they should not be dismissively glossed over as illegitimate or misplaced fears as a result of reading some "scary words" or getting their information from what someone else proclaims to be the "wrong source." I have some pretty serious reservations about what this game purports to be and represent and it has nothing to do with my delicate sensibilities being exposed to scary words or being too stupid or unaware to be able to discern the difference between the credible commentary and the inflammatory (and to be able to decide for myself which is which).

You can, but I do nonetheless expect you to actually investigate the material before passing judgment. My initial reaction was very similar to yours until the developer actually posted about the concerns others were raising about the game (things that should have been clarified from the start, honestly; the developer did not handle the topics as delicately as he should have, and that is on him) and I read them, rather than sticking to previous assumptions based upon limited information.

Can I please get you to read what I am saying? I'm not telling you to have no problems with it--I still do, like the decision to use one of the more disturbingly violent genres in this kind of proximity to such sensitive political issues, as well as the fact that the developer seemed to be caught unaware by just how politically sensitive this entire thing is when he ought to have been prepared for that from the start--but will you read what I am saying?

(Also, thank you for not threatening to come to my house to do a murder over this discussion. Basic civility is in short supply on the Internet these days.)