• Home
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Ethics
  • Submissions
  • Contact Us

Grimag

  • Popular
  • #GamerGate
  • Topics
    • Culture
    • Industry
    • News
    • Opinion
    • Retro Games
    • Reviews
  • Submit An Article
Home Why As A Black Man I Prefer White Women In My Games

Why As A Black Man I Prefer White Women In My Games

Reggie James

Reggie is a 27 year old black man currently living in California. He has been playing video games for over 20 years and currently works as a hardware engineer. If you're looking to be offended you can follow him on twitter at TNAMEAT

January 5, 2015 Opinion
  • Facebook
  • Twitter

I am a proud African-American male I’m in my late 20’s and I’ve been gaming since I was old enough to pick up a controller. I champion for women of color in television, film, radio and even on magazine covers but I realized recently that I don’t care if they’re in my video games. In fact I prefer that they aren’t.

That may sound shocking to some, perhaps even a tad off putting but it’s the honest truth. I do not care for black women or even various “women of color” in my games. I put “women of color” in quotations because last I checked the skin tones of white women were indeed a color, but I digress.

The answer to this is complex in many ways but at the same time relatively simple: I find video games to be a fantasy; an escape. That’s not to say that in life I don’t prefer the aesthetic of Caucasian women but I am not always surrounded by them. When I turn on a game console or fire up my PC I am trying to transport myself into another world, a more entertaining and in some ways aesthetically pleasing one.

Or just straight up pleasing

Or just straight up pleasing

I don’t find most non-Caucasian women aesthetically pleasing; particularly black women. They just don’t do it for me, and to be perfectly frank whenever they are a significant part of a video game I can feel my interest in the product wain. It’s not just due to their lack of personal beauty to my own eyes it also has to do with how women of color are generally written in video games.

While Asian women tend to buck the trend, most women of color in games are either bland or over the top—there is nothing in between. They just are never very fun characters to play and or interact with.

Take Sheva for instance, from the popular Resident Evil series. She was brought in as a character to appease people when a white protagonist found himself in Africa for a storyline. This is all good and well, but Sheva, despite a bodacious rack and supple ass, is not very interesting. She’s sexy by default due to the rest of the female population being mutated zombies. But there is no real sexual interest in her, at least not for me. And SPOILER ALERT—after a while I could feel myself counting the minutes until Jill Valentine, the sexy, confident and wildly popular white female protagonist came onto the scene.

Sheva, trying to be cool

Sheva, trying to be cool

Once Jill arrived, Sheva became the 3rd string character, and what little interest I had in her faded away. I know I cannot be the only person who felt this. I don’t say this to be mean, or even to suggest she could have been better written. It’s a Resident Evil game, and one where the hero punches a boulder to advance. This is not a world where script and logic have to be married to one another, but it didn’t make logical sense that I would care about Sheva once Jill was fully in the picture.

There aren’t many but if there was a video game with a black woman as the main character I’m pretty confident I wouldn’t buy it, unless critics were screaming it was the best game ever. And even then I wouldn’t trust it. The video game industry doesn’t know how to write black female characters well, and I don’t care if they ever learn how to. That’s not why I buy their products.

Name one black female character from video games that anybody really likes or cares about. I’m including black men such as myself in that challenge. Alyx Vance from the Half-Life series is probably the only one anyone can remotely name, and I know plenty of folks who are not a fan of her character.

When I turn on my copy of Dead or Alive Beach Volleyball as a black man I want to oogle Tina Armstrong, Helena Douglas and Christie. It’s why I love Tomb Raider and the sex mini games in God of War. White women are just more appealing in video games, because when we enter a fantasy world that’s what we want—fantasy. And sometimes as a black male that fantasy is a bunch of sexy white women; jumping, fighting and bouncing around.

Jill, here to save me from Sheva's boredom

Jill, here to save me from Sheva’s boredom

Read More: 3 Ways Women Have Ruined Video Games

Jan 5, 2015Reggie James
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
A Great Game That Lets You Smoke Nazis Without Jamming Politics Down Your ThroatESPN's Hit Piece Against #Gamergate Was Lazy And Irrelevant
More From Reaxxion
  • Are SJWs Running Out Of Things To Be Outraged Over In Games?

  • Could Social Justice Warriors Survive In Metro 2033?

  • The Roguelike That Saved My Faith In Roguelikes

Don't Miss Reaxxion's Best Articles!
Every Monday we send an email that recaps the week. Enter your first name and email below to make sure you don't miss out...

We guarantee 100% privacy
Your information will not be shared

Reggie James

Reggie is a 27 year old black man currently living in California. He has been playing video games for over 20 years and currently works as a hardware engineer. If you're looking to be offended you can follow him on twitter at TNAMEAT

January 5, 2015 Opinion
Top 5 Posts Of The Week

  • Parasite In City Is A Great H-Game That Is Full Of RapeParasite In City Is A Great H-Game That Is Full Of Rape

  • Why We Need To Fight Against Transgender AcceptanceWhy We Need To Fight Against Transgender Acceptance

  • How Transsexuals Are Ruining E-SportsHow Transsexuals Are Ruining E-Sports

  • Nintendo: An Unlikely Anti-SJW HeroNintendo: An Unlikely Anti-SJW Hero

  • The Easiest Way To Understand #GamerGateThe Easiest Way To Understand #GamerGate

Amazing Email Newsletter
Don't miss a post! Every Monday we send an email that recaps the week. Enter your first name and email below to make sure you don't miss out on our best articles...
We guarantee 100% privacy
Your information will not be shared
Recent Posts
  • Reaxxion Is Closing
  • Crusader Kings II Will Steal All Your Free Time
  • Will Half-Life 3 Ever Be Released?
  • 3 Things Games Must Not Apologize For
  • Z Nation Is Actually Kind Of Awesome
RSS Newest Articles From Return Of Kings
  • Return Of Kings Is Going On Hiatus
  • How To Conquer Writer’s Block
  • 2 Signs To Identify A Liberal In Disguise
  • Comfort Will Not Give You Meaning In Life
  • The Devolution Of The West Can Be Seen Through Popular Sports
RSS Newest Articles From Roosh
  • President Joe Biden Is A Blessing
  • Email Provider AWeber Shut Me Down After An “Investigation”
  • The Way Of The Pilgrim
  • Demons And The City
  • Roosh Hour #59 – The Future Of Tyranny
RSS Latest Forum Threads
  • President Joe Biden Is A Blessing
  • Forum Rules & FAQ
© Kings Media 2014-2015 • About • Advertise • Submissions • Contact Us • Privacy Policy • Terms Of Service