A recent and completely unexpected racial controversy has sprung from a surprising source, as creative-minded and literate platforming game Scribblenauts (for Nintendo DS) has been accused of containing a racially-insensitive imagery and connotation that some fans may find offensive. The game utilizes a unique word-to-image system of gameplay that has the player literally writing words on the screen, only to have them matched to the game's internal image gallery and (with luck) become useful items to help the player complete various challenges. Unfortunately, it seems the particular pairing of the word ‘sambo' to an object that bares a strong resemblance to watermelon fruit (both traditionally offensive racial epithets) has caused some to question their unique combination in the first place.
Keep reading for all the details!
Videogame blog Joystiq spoke with the game's creative director Jeremiah Slaczka to help sort out the mess. As expected, the literate/visual pairing of the term 'sambo' to what appears to be a watermelon was not intentional, but rather a cultural misunderstanding. What the game associates to be a watermelon are actually a 'sambo', i.e. fig leaf gourd that looks remarkably like the popular juicy fruit. It's actually a key ingredient in the popular Ecuadorian dish fanesca, a soup made from several ingredients as sambo (fig leaf gourd), pumpkin, beans, and several varieties of grains and is a traditional Christian meal in the region.
As to the uncomfortable pairing of the term sambo to watermelon? "We reuse art," he said. "Fig leaf gourd looks a lot like a watermelon. It's just an alternative name in a giant list of tens of thousands of names."
Slaczka also went on to provide further examples of his company's diversity, which includes developers on Scribblenauts itself, as well as main characters in past games that were black.
The charge of racism is a strong one, and should never be used without strong and conclusive evidence, lest those charged have their reputations and livelihood damaged without merit. One only read the latest headlines to see just how far we've come in this regard, and how far we still need to go.
Given the complexity and enormous undertaking that developer 5TH CELL put into the design and unique literate translation capabilities of Scribblebauts, it's hardly a shocking that some unusual pairings would manage to make their way into the final game. Still, it's a bit surprising that some form of actuary work to help eliminate the more uncomfortable pairings was never used to help avoid what some might consider an obvious candidate for excision. Kudos to the developer for their clarification, and to those gamers who may have otherwise been offended them the opportunity.
Thanks to Joystiq for the great reporting!
blog comments powered by Disqus