On December 31, there was a discussion on Reddit and Twitter about the new PlayStation 5 game Stellar Blade. The developers created a 3D scan of a South Korean model and based the body of their character Eve on this scan. This has sparked a discussion in the West: Many developers have distanced themselves from “classic heroines in swimsuits” since 2014.
What kind of game is Stellar Blade?
- Stellar Blade is an action-adventure game that is set to be released in 2024 for the PlayStation 5.
- In a near future, humanity is displaced from Earth by an alien race: The heroine Eve must fight against the aliens with her unit and reclaim Earth.
- The game is being developed by Shift, a Korean studio. It is being published by Sony itself.
“Our protagonist is based on the 3D scan of a model”
This was the announcement for New Year’s Eve: On December 31, the studio reported on Twitter that they had used a 3D scan of the model Shin Ja-eun for the protagonist Eve.
The model is shown in high heels and underwear.
The appearance of women in video games is becoming a political issue
Why is this exciting? In recent years, especially with PlayStation titles, there has been a discussion in the West about whether women in video games should no longer be portrayed as “smooth and unrealistically beautiful.” This trend came from the developers themselves and parts of the gaming press.
The discussion was particularly sparked by Aloy, the heroine from “Horizon Dawn,” who was no longer portrayed as smoothly in new titles but rather looked like a fighter.
The message conveyed was that the classic video game heroines from earlier (like Lara Croft) had fulfilled unrealistic beauty standards that were no longer being adhered to.
The criticism of the character was, “Aloy no longer looks feminine enough.” Generally, parts of the gaming community do not appreciate when things are changed in games for what seems to be politically ideological motives. This is seen as “woke” or “left” and is rejected by parts of the gaming audience.
Now here are the comments: The fact that a classically attractive woman is now taken as a protagonist in South Korea is being extensively commented on Twitter. They like such women there and view the discussion about “unrealistic beauty standards” cynically. It is stated:
- “No one can claim that these are unrealistic body standards.”
- “The left will claim she is not real.”
- “Beautiful! Don’t let Sony censor your work!”
- “I bet 10 US dollars that ‘game reviewers’ will say real women don’t look like that.”
- “Western developers would have made her ugly.”
This is what lies behind it: “Unrealistic beauty standards for women in video games” is a provocative topic that creates a rift between some players and “the press” / “the developers”.
About 10 years ago, a rethinking began among major developers, which can be exemplified by Blizzard or Riot Games:
- In LoL, the developers stated around 2014, they were tired of the 90-60-90 heroines and wanted more “diversity” in the characters.
- At Blizzard, they said in 2014: They wanted to rethink. The developers now had their own daughters, and they found it difficult to answer their daughters’ questions about why the heroines wore swimsuits.
However, many players do not want such “real-life ideas” to encroach into their hobby. They desire gaming as escapism and do not want to be confronted with “such as Lara Croft does not exist in the real world.”
Therefore, it remains a topic with potential for conflict, how “real” or “responsible” games should be. Especially in the USA, such topics are always particularly sensitive, as society there is very divided: These conflicts from real life seep into every area of daily life, including gaming.
More on the topic:
Players argue about the appearance of Aloy from Horizon Forbidden West: She is “not feminine enough”
