Petition for Multi-Cultural Link Picks Up Speed

The controversy surrounding main characters adhering the monotonous white, male template has gotten a lot of notice and attention in the last few years as women become more prominent in the gaming community and games in general continue to become a staple of mainstream entertainment. Pretty much every major franchise has come under fire for not depicting a wider variety of cultural backgrounds and genders in main and secondary roles. The Zelda series is no exception, though this fan base does tend to focus more on the cartoon/reality graphics spectrum more than anything else, kicking the discussion on avatars into the back seat. That might change today with a new movement.

Hit the jump to read more!

There is a petition on Change.org to make Link in Zelda U be “playable as a young, black female.” It is unclear if this call is for the option of another avatar or to make the default, and only, option to be a young, African-American lady. Many of us take for granted the fact that avatars share our gender or skin color and don’t notice or really understand what it feels like to never be able to participate in a game where people look like us. It is an unfortunate result of the industry catering to the population that has been the most vested (monetarily) since gaming began, and that was generally boys of lighter complexions from middle class families.

Now that the consumer base has expanded and diversified, many believe it’s time that the manufacturers acknowledge this change and represent both men and women in strong, lead roles as well as multiple races and cultural quirks. This seems to be an upward battle, as much of the industry claims financial distress at the prospect of reanimating cut scenes with different avatars or that games with only an avatar from a different race and/or gender (different from generic white male) will sell badly.

The movement to diversify game avatars is solid and slowly gaining ground, but it’s a very resistant market when it comes to this particular complaint. Should Nintendo be the first to take overt strides toward a more inclusive industry, and should they start with Zelda? The company has already pioneered family-style gaming and exercising with your console, so it might not be a bad thing to have them lead the charge on this issue as well to prove to the rest of the manufacturers that profits wouldn’t suffer for something like an avatar. Let us know what you think about having a variety of avatars in the comments!

Source: Change.org