World of Warcraft is changing some female representations in the game. That isn’t inherently bad – only when the explanation is lacking. At least that’s what the MeinMMO-WoW demon Cortyn thinks.
The sexism and discrimination scandal at Blizzard has revealed many problems with the developer. Workplace harassment, suppression, and degradation of women, all the way to sexual assaults, have scratched more than just the image of one of the once greatest and most popular developers in the world.
Blizzard has taken some measures, fired employees, and created new positions to prevent such issues from occurring again. Changes are also being made in the games. In Overwatch, the cowboy McCree is losing his name, and references to problematic developers have been removed from World of Warcraft.
However, recent developments from the PTR regarding Patch 9.1.5 are causing mockery, derision, and confusion. The image of a reclining woman has been replaced – with a bowl of fruit.
I am not one of those people who just scream “Where will it end?!” with every change and already see everyone only allowed to drive at walking speed on the highway when discussing a speed limit. Similarly, I do not believe that these adjustments will continue indefinitely until everything is just genderless, shapeless blobs.
But still, I miss a very important point from Blizzard that could simply be fixed with communication: What is the plan? What is currently the line you have chosen? How do you define inappropriate content and in what form will it be adjusted?
Good changes, bad changes
That they removed the insult “Bitch” from Sylvanas in the English client is fair enough. That the achievement named “Bros. Before Ho Ho Hos” was renamed is good. I also found it inappropriate at the time and somehow directed against women. I could also understand giving the characters like Sylvanas or Jaina newer models with somewhat more modest, but definitely cooler clothing.
My personal limit was clearly exceeded for the first time when Blizzard simply patched out the succubi from Hearthstone. Even from the standpoint that Hearthstone wanted to be a bit more family-friendly than World of Warcraft, I found that highly ridiculous, as succubi were simply an established element of the Warcraft storyline.
Such personal limits exist for all players, and they vary slightly from person to person. However, it can still be relatively easily changed if one would just communicate clearly and openly why something is being changed. Doing it without a comprehensible reason does not help with acceptance.
And that is where – as is often the case with Blizzard – the crucial detail is missing: communication.
It is completely lacking again. Sure, the changes are still on the PTR of Patch 9.1.5 and therefore not live yet. But Blizzard has known for quite some time that there is datamining, for example on Wowhead, and that such details are usually found within a few hours. I also cannot believe that they didn’t see the backlash coming from a community that observes every change with eagle eyes.
(The previous sentence was actually funny, as there is also a name of a city changed on Argus. Argus. Eagle eyes. … okay, back to the text.)
Community is worried and mocking
This has now caused quite a stir in the community. While a few pictures with female representations might be quite indifferent to most, it raises questions for other areas of the game that are more than just a bit of background atmosphere.
The most well-known example here is the “Den of Mortal Delights”, which translates to the “Court of Earthly Delights”. A whole area in the Black Temple, full of scantily clad handmaidens in the form of humans, blood elves, succubi, and Shivara. It was the huge harem for Illidan and his demon hunters, topped with a boss fight against “Mother Shahraz,” who accompanied every ability with an obviously ambiguous remark.
That was cool. The place was atmospheric, is still unique in World of Warcraft, and also helped shape the image of the (then) “evil Illidan,” who simply sprawled out here and made himself at home as the ruler of the shattered world, decaying in decadence.
Exactly such places and experiences are now causing concern among some in the community. Because if an image with “harem reference” is changed, are they not also going to remove a whole harem?
One thought leads to another, and the previously mentioned “Where will it end” panic spreads. Will the next target be the flirtatious lines and jokes of all player characters? Will revealing transmogs be revised to lose their revealing nature? Will succubi also be replaced by demon dogs in WoW?
All these worries could be swept away with a written page of explanation. It would only take a few words to smother all this panic, concern, and derision in the bud.
Good reasons would help, if there are any
Because it might well be that there were good reasons not just to slightly revise the image of the reclining woman but to completely replace it with another motif. Perhaps the harem parallel, which one can quickly associate with the image, has caused a few emails over the years that expressed legitimate criticism. Perhaps there are cultural spheres where this representation is seen as the epitome of the oppression of women and not just as art, as it is the case with us.
And that’s exactly the problem: We don’t know it and so far haven’t been told either. That’s why jokes are currently being made in the subreddit that every transmog with a bit of skin needs to be revised or any stone formation that reminds of a phallus should urgently be replaced with fruit. Or that all women in Illidan’s harem should be replaced with fruit plates:
Worse still, in some areas this is even causing the opposite of what is probably intended. Because without clear explanation, one only feeds the classic troublemakers who are now shouting their disgusting slogans under the Reddit posts in the style of: “Typical, a woman is groped once and the feminazis at Blizzard ensure that all breasts disappear from the game.”
So Blizzard, as with all the other problems surrounding World of Warcraft, please talk to your community. Explain the standards by which changes and adjustments are made. Explain why you see certain content as problematic and why it is no longer up to date, even in the context of a fantasy world.
Because if you continue to do this, you justifiably attract the mockery and derision of the community, who has no understanding of it. And then it really appears as if this is just blind and misguided activism that only happens because you currently have a lawsuit hanging over your head.
