Since Star Wars Outlaws was revealed, the worst parts of the internet have been riled up – mostly, because the game’s protagonist, Kay Vess, is a woman. In recent years, there has been a rather pathetic movement of mostly-male naysayers online, claiming video games are somehow too diverse, and specifically, that women in video games are no longer “hot enough” in their eyes.
With gaming now more mainstream than it’s ever been, video games are no longer targeted solely at pre-pubescent men – they represent a diversity of experiences and backgrounds, behind the scenes, and on-screen. And yes, that means women are no longer reduced to being slim, busty eye candy to titillate male audiences.
Some folks, who seem to believe that video game women exist only for their pleasure, have targeted Star Wars Outlaws with outrage for this “crime”, with many claiming Kay Vess isn’t sexy enough, and shouldn’t be the protagonist of a new Star Wars adventure.
To be clear: the folks who think this way have rocks for brains – and it appears the game’s creative director Julian Gerighty shares a similar view.
As part of recent previews for Star Wars Outlaws, Gerighty was asked about this online discourse by The Washington Post. His reaction was immediately dismissive, as he believes these “bad faith” arguments are not even worth acknowledging.
Read: Star Wars Outlaws interview: Freaks, found family, and A Fistful of Dollars
“It makes no sense to me and it’s not worth engaging with,” Gerighty said of the discourse. “If you engage with bad-faith people, there’s no nuance and no possibility of real dialogue. So all we can do is make the best game possible.”
Gerighty also expanded on Kay’s design – she’s meant to be “approachable” and “tough” – and discounted the claims of those who don’t think she’s attractive enough. “She’s beautiful, come on,” he said.
The discourse around Kay appears solely focussed on her sharp jaw, softer features, muscular body, and how she presents non-traditional femininity – but it’s unclear how or why it started. As Gerighty says, Kay is a beautiful character, for anyone with eyes to see. But discussing this won’t change the minds of those who’ve chosen to needlessly hate Star Wars Outlaws. As Gerighty makes clear, trying to push back against bad faith arguments is useless – those folks are already set in their ways.
Ironically, Gerighty’s comments arrive in the week following a completely different take from other folks at Ubisoft. Recently, the company issued a statement on Assassin’s Creed Shadows that attempted to push back on racist discourse around the game’s depiction of Black samurai, Yasuke. It was wildly interpreted as an attempt to appease bad faith arguments, and labelled a terrible decision by a number of media outlets – as it seemed to legitimise the discourse.
Gerighty’s stance strikes a much better and more practical tone. In a world of bad faith arguments, it’s best to ignore rabble-rousing and those who stoke the fires of outrage, and focus on making (and enjoying) good games. If you can’t change the minds of those angry few, just move on, and succeed in spite of them. It’s best for everyone.
