Why I personally am upset with Ubisoft about AC: Unity

[Matthew Jabour]

We've all seen the controversy surrounding Ubisoft, Assassin's Creed: Unity, and the lack of women. All this time, I've heard arguments from either side. "It's sexist!" "It's not sexist!" "We need more female protagonists!" "We've already got a lot of female protagonists!" All in all, everyone seems to agree that this has, at this point, been blown way out of proportion.

But in all the arguments, there's a reason I'm upset with the all-male ensemble of Unity, one that has not yet been touched on by most:

I like to play as a female character sometimes.

I find it fun to, occasionally, play as a woman in games, in the same way that I sometimes like to have hot sauce on my hamburgers. It's a matter of choice, is what I'm saying. And I do enjoy games better if they let me choose between male and female. Now, if I'm the only one who feels this way, I'll probably come across as a sexist or a pervert, who picks female characters for the sake of ogling them. But I'm willing to bet I'm not. I'm sure some people out there know what I'm talking about, and the others, at least, recognize it as a legitimate point.

Why does this matter? Because I am a consumer expressing desire for a product, and Ubisoft is failing to provide. They are declaring that they see no reason why anyone would ever want to play as a female character in this game. "No, they'd rather be another generic white guy," is their stance. Rule #1 of providing a product: the customer is always right. If people clearly want something in a game, you should give it to them, if only in service of your bottom line. Even if it's purely cosmetic, you still have a lot to gain. If half the Assassin's Creed community said they wanted sombreros, Ubisoft would have a DLC lined up within the month. And yet, they see no reason to shell out to add a woman as a protagonist.

And that's why I'm upset about having a cast of all males in Assassin's Creed: Unity. Because Ubisoft never even considered that I or anyone else would want to play as a woman. It's not just about gender politics. It's about giving people what they want.

P.S. No, I'm not being entitled for demanding something from a product I want. Ubisoft's making millions off us with this franchise, the least they could do is include multiple character options.

 

[BathorysGraveland2]

I haven't played any Assassin's Creed games before, so I'm unsure on it, but are the protagonists fleshed out characters with back stories? The option to play a female character is fine in a game with a character creation, but for a game that has a more focused, designed protagonist it's more restrictive. For example, could you think of anyway they could allow you to play a female character in The Witcher? You can't fuck with the protagonist much because he's a detailed, focused character with history and a back story. So having the "option" isn't really viable if the protagonist is well-defined. As I said, I don't know if Assassin's Creed has very well thought-out protagonists, or if the gender would not matter whatsoever, but it's a point to think about.

 

[ShinyCharizard]

Don't. Give. A. Fuck.


Let's ask some more important questions shall we.

Are the controls less of a clusterfuck this time around?

Are there effective stealth mechanics?

Can we still roam the high seas firing our broadsides, whilst singing sea shanties?

Are there less eavesdropping and tailing missions?

 

[CrazyBlaze]

Don't. Give. A. Fuck.


Let's ask some more important questions shall we.

Are the controls less of a clusterfuck this time around?

Are there effective stealth mechanics?

Can we still roam the high seas firing our broadsides, whilst singing sea shanties?

Are there less eavesdropping and tailing missions?

1. No one knows until the game comes out sadly.

2. Apparently there should be better social stealth that you can upgrade. Also a crouch button.

3. Doubt it. Which is sad because that was a lot of fun.

4. Doubt it but apparently there will be different ways to complete those types of missions. Like just killing the person you are tailing or eavesdropping on and getting a note. Or getting information about that mission from another part the game. The downside is that there might be more guards in the area making your mission harder because you can't just kill them all with easy due to counter kills and kill streaks being removed.Also apparently the missions are supposed to be more open ended allowing for more approaches to complete it.

OT: Sure it would be cool to play a female in another AC game but I would hate the choice to pick the gender of the character due to the fact that a large focus in AC is how character centric it is. A good part of these games live and die on its characters (the other parts being gameplay and story).

I do think it would be cool if in a future game they gave us two storylines where you could switch between a husband and wife team. Each has their own strengths and weaknesses and each have their own missions to play.

I'm also glad on the way they are handling coop. Playing as the main character at all times is the best way to handle a game with such an emphasis on the character. I mean it would suck to have one character Arno and everyone else rather generic characters. Alternatively they could have a whole different set of characters with their own story but lets be honest that would only be like five hours at most and be kinda meh. I would rather play as the same person I have been running around with for 15 plus hours than some random throw away character.

 

[Elfgore]

When did it go from "Hey, Timmy! Let's go play a video game!" "Which One?" "Mario!" "Cool, bro!" to "Hey, Timmy!" Let's play a game!" "What game?" "Assassin's Creed Unity" "NO! How dare you suggest that?! That game doesn't let you play as a member of the wannpupu tribe of South Sudan!"

Seriously, if you're not playing a game because of what the character has between their fucking legs, the color of their skin, or whatever else you guys can think off. I feel sorry for you. Do you even care if the game is you know fun? *gasp* Fun in a video game?! I must be talking crazy.

Would diversity be nice, sure it would. Never hurts anyone. But when I hear people say this, you come off as entitled. Game developers have zero reason to give you this. Just like you have zero reason to buy their game. Doesn't matter anyway, enough people will still buy it. You also use the term people, I think "myself" would be more appropriate. I wouldn't mind a female assassin, but I'm not going to skip over a potentially fun game because it doesn't have one. The only reason there was any kind of outburst is because of why they stated they didn't want to put in the effort. Just like you don't have to put in the effort to purchase the game.

 

[Maximum Bert]

I would lol if they had a DLC female character now. I think it would be a good move business wise if it didnt sell they they can say well it seems people dont care if it did then they make more money.

Personally I dont care and im sure most people dont either.

 

[L. Declis]

I would also like to play as a female.

I can apply this to Legend of Zelda (I hope Link is a girl), Metal Gear Solid (I hope we get a female lead some time, maybe a Boss based story?), Ass Creed as mentioned and hopefully the next Watchdogs game...

But now I think about it, Dark Souls I play as a woman, Mass Effect I play as a woman, Dragon Age I play as a woman, Child of Light I played as a girl, Final Fantasy XIII I played as a woman, Civ 5 I play as a woman (in charge of a mostly normal race obsessed with tourism), and yeah, actually, MOST of my games I play as a woman.

So I don't mind if this one doesn't, because I'm getting pretty served on that front.

My personal annoyance is the lack of race. In Dark Souls, I'm a large Asian woman (based on Brienne of Tarth) and I think it's pretty cool to have her kick ass and I did the same in Saint's Row, but I can't think of any other games. Hell, I found Sleeping Dogs cool for including a Chinese bloke.

 

[Zhukov]

Huh?

Wouldn't that be like me getting upset with Bethesda because they keep making open world games, but I prefer more linear games with better pacing?

Damn it Bethesda, I'm a customer expressing a desire for a product and you're failing to provide!

 

[krazykidd]

Then look, if playing as a woman is so important to you and if you think the consumer is always right, then do not buy the game. I'm willing to bet, ubisoft doesn't give a shit. They are going to sell like hotcakes regardless . Look i like playing as a sprite with boobs as much as the next guy, but ubisoft does not have to give you anything. At all. Hell if they wanted to , they could pull a Phil Fish and just cancel the entire game.

I'm not saying you aren't allowed to want a female character, and ask ubisoft for it, but ubisoft can say No. Like they did. Now, you have 3 choices:

A) Buy the game regardless
B) No buy the game because of that.
C) Whine and moan on internet forums.

Make your choice.

 

[Seraj33]

I liked the gaming industry better when gameplay and graphics and general enjoyability mattered over the amount of one gender it had in it.

Seriously. You wont give women higher wages or equal rights by making every game have the mandatory "nopenisplz option".
If a game has a male main character, then let it have a male main character.
If a game has a female main character, then let it have a fucking female maincharacter.

Now go reproduce and teach your children that women and men should always be treated with equal respect.

In this case. Either you play the game and enjoy it instead of hating it for something that in all honesty, isnt as much as an issue we make it out to be. Or you just go play another game. Or you go outside. The choice, is, yours.

 

[ShinyCharizard]

Don't. Give. A. Fuck.


Let's ask some more important questions shall we.

Are the controls less of a clusterfuck this time around?

Are there effective stealth mechanics?

Can we still roam the high seas firing our broadsides, whilst singing sea shanties?

Are there less eavesdropping and tailing missions?

1. No one knows until the game comes out sadly.

2. Apparently there should be better social stealth that you can upgrade. Also a crouch button.

3. Doubt it. Which is sad because that was a lot of fun.

4. Doubt it but apparently there will be different ways to complete those types of missions. Like just killing the person you are tailing or eavesdropping on and getting a note. Or getting information about that mission from another part the game. The downside is that there might be more guards in the area making your mission harder because you can't just kill them all with easy due to counter kills and kill streaks being removed.Also apparently the missions are supposed to be more open ended allowing for more approaches to complete it.

Thank you for actually answering those =)

I will be sorely disappointed if there is no naval component. That was unbelievably fun.

 

[Godhead]

I'm personally upset with Ubisoft because they still restrict legitimate PC costumers with a very clunky and needless piece of DRM in requiring Uplay, especially if one purchases it through Steam.

Also I have yet to be in an Assassin's Creed game where I get to be a Mall Santa while on a mission to kill Pol Pot, and I find that racist.

 

[Lieju]

When did it go from "Hey, Timmy! Let's go play a video game!" "Which One?" "Mario!" "Cool, bro!" to "Hey, Timmy!" Let's play a game!" "What game?" "Assassin's Creed Unity" "NO! How dare you suggest that?! That game doesn't let you play as a member of the wannpupu tribe of South Sudan!"

Seriously, if you're not playing a game because of what the character has between their fucking legs, the color of their skin, or whatever else you guys can think off. I feel sorry for you. Do you even care if the game is you know fun? *gasp* Fun in a video game?! I must be talking crazy.

You think this kind of thing is new?

When I was a kid, I loved playing Super Mario 3. It was my favourite game ever.
Boys told me I wasn't allowed to play as a guy, and other girls mocked me by saying I wanted to have a penis.

Because I wanted to play a male character, and when we were playing, I wanted to be Mario.

Because he was the protagonist.

I have been bothered by the lack of female representation in games for like 25 years, just because you never saw a problem doesn't mean others were fine with it.

And how is saying you'd like to play as a woman the same as saying you can't enjoy the game? We aren't allowed to criticize things?

And a lot of people seem to think white cishet men cannot possibly want to play as someone different from them, is that the case? Because I think that's a bit unfair, AC unity is going to sell well anyway, would men really recoil away in horror because they had to play as someone with ladyparts?

 

[Elfgore]

And how is saying you'd like to play as a woman the same as saying you can't enjoy the game? We aren't allowed to criticize things?

And a lot of people seem to think white cishet men cannot possibly want to play as someone different from them, is that the case? Because I think that's a bit unfair, AC unity is going to sell well anyway, would men really recoil away in horror because they had to play as someone with ladyparts?

Oh no. You can criticize things. I can also criticize your critiques. I never said you couldn't complain either. From the sound of everyone who does speak for more representation seem to only care about that. Not the other 99% percent of the game, but just the gender or ethnicity of the protagonist. Like that will make or break the game for them

My last part you didn't quote says my opinion on that. I'd gladly play as a woman as much as I would a man. If they released a new Assassin's Creed game with a female protagonist I'd play it all the same without complaint. I wouldn't mind seeing a female protagonist in GTA, I'm fine playing as a woman in Infamous. Women in games don't terrify me. I'm not going to force them in though. I could see some dudebros complaining and giving hell for playing as a girl. I think the females added in COD got some shit from them.

The big issue I see with complaints of female representation is how do you guys want it to happen? How can you make it happen? Is there any way to do it without taking away some people's artistic view? These are actual questions I'd like answering.

 

[nomotog_v1legacy]

I haven't played any Assassin's Creed games before, so I'm unsure on it, but are the protagonists fleshed out characters with back stories? The option to play a female character is fine in a game with a character creation, but for a game that has a more focused, designed protagonist it's more restrictive. For example, could you think of anyway they could allow you to play a female character in The Witcher? You can't fuck with the protagonist much because he's a detailed, focused character with history and a back story. So having the "option" isn't really viable if the protagonist is well-defined. As I said, I don't know if Assassin's Creed has very well thought-out protagonists, or if the gender would not matter whatsoever, but it's a point to think about.

I like to cite saints row 2 when there is this talk about defined vs custom characters. That game let you customize all kinds of visual qualities on your character (including sex), but your character still managed to be well defined. They had a flushed out personality, backstory, and relationships. Allowing people to customize the look and style of their character doesn't prevent the character from being well defined.

I don't really expect customization in an AC game though. (I don't really have a good argument to support that idea.) For my two cents I think you have a better case to argue unity should have had a female main character outright.

 

[Lieju]

The big issue I see with complaints of female representation is how do you guys want it to happen? How can you make it happen? Is there any way to do it without taking away some people's artistic view? These are actual questions I'd like answering.

Something like AC is hardly a small indie game made according to someone's singular creative vision.

And even if it was, it doesn't just come from nowhere.
People will have attitudes like 'but it's too risky', or 'we don't want to send this kind of message'...
They are made by groups of people, but what kinds of ideas find their way to the final product are influenced by a lot more than 'artistic vision'.

And why are everyone's artistic views necessarily good?

What if someone's artistic vision was that AC Unity should be all brown? Or in a cartoony style?

Would you worry about criticizing those choices?

 

[suitepee7]

Also a crouch button.

hold it... the 7th main entry into the series, and they're finally adding in my biggest gripe with the franchise?

if you're not shitting me, you are the first person to make me even remotely interested in AC:U!

 

[Gankytim]

What happened to people who wanted to play fun games?

I don't care who the character is, could be Bayonetta, could be Spyro, could be Dante, doesn't fucking matter as long as the game is fucking good. Fuck narrative, fuck story, fuck that cancerous "cinematic experience" attitude. GAMEPLAY should be the top priority, shit like avatars and characters should take a back seat.

And I already know what's gonna follow, that tired and smug "Oh so you don't want games to grow and mature?" or "Games aren't your cis, het, white, ablest, gender binary, restroom inequality, [insert every other SJW "I WIN THIS ARGUMENT" buzzword here] toys anymore" argument.