Videogames Stereotype Asians (article)

Some popular videogames promote racist, negative stereotypes of Asians that would be unacceptable in other forms of media, says a Canadian researcher.

Robert Parungao studied four of the best-selling games designed and published in the United States during a 20-year span: "Kung Fu," "Warcraft 3," "Shadow Warrior," and "Grand Theft Auto 3."

He said that the games feature evil gangsters, all of them non-white, who "function as narrative obstacles to be overcome, mastered, or ultimately blown to smithereens by the white hero."

"Some say [racist stereotypes in games] is terrible," he said. "Other people in the games community say, 'Lighten up, it's a game, you don't have to worry about political correctness'."

A fifth-generation Canadian of Chinese and Filipino ancestry, Parungao said that with videogame sales at about $30 billion worldwide - making them more popular than movies - negative stereotypes matter.

He admits that not all games, or game publishing companies, promote such stereotypes, but said that racism is rife among many of the most popular games. "These aren't just kids' toys, these are representative of our society and they teach us."

"This is new territory," said Smith. But he said that because games are interactive they may have more effect on a player's real-life behavior than television or film, "being that you're much more engaged with it - or it could have the counter-effect."

http://www.asianpacificpost.com/portal2/ff8080810cd099c7010cd0ddcf54000d_videogames.do.html