https://screenrant.com/overwatch-diversity-sigma-bare-feet-problem/
Whilst I don't really agree with the parts about Sigma and Blizzard's portrayal of Mental Health I do 100% wonder why the hell we have yet to see a single black woman on that roster. The community has been very vocal about wanting a black woman to become a playable and well-rounded character since Day-1 and we continue to hear claims of "we listen to the community" and "we respect diversity" and all this crap. Since launch we've now seen 9 characters added to the game, 3 of which have been white women. Why?
The other thing that the article addresses is mental health representation and I've been seeing this same thing voiced by a large number of people over the last few days. Of course the more discussion about mental health and its treatment in media the better, quite honestly. This can only lead to better representation in general the more we talk about it in all its forms, but I can't say I agree so much with this facet of the argument personally.
Hopefully it goes without saying that I believe all mental health representation should be treated with utmost care and respect, but I can't help but feel that this Sigma issue is being blown a little out of proportion. I dare say that a lot of people who are arguing that Blizzard's use of mental health as a cop-out to explain his villainy are subconsciously making that stereotypical assumption themselves without really taking the time to understand what it is that they're trying to critique. I'd be interested in hearing some more thoughts about that especially from people who know a fair amount of Overwatch's lore as Sigma isn't a villain because of his mental state and it's disingenuous to link the two, at least in my eyes. I don't think that there's an issue with the design or the reasoning at all as it is based on the real life practice of minimising harm that can be caused by patients to themselves, and the villainy argument is based entirely on his association with an evil organisation against his will. Please let me know if I'm wrong?
Overall there are a lot of issues that I have with Overwatch, especially when approaching its stance on racial and cultural diversity, but I don't think that comparing it to a mental health strawman (and being very vocal about it) treats that issue with the respect it should deserve this late into the game's life.
Whilst I don't really agree with the parts about Sigma and Blizzard's portrayal of Mental Health I do 100% wonder why the hell we have yet to see a single black woman on that roster. The community has been very vocal about wanting a black woman to become a playable and well-rounded character since Day-1 and we continue to hear claims of "we listen to the community" and "we respect diversity" and all this crap. Since launch we've now seen 9 characters added to the game, 3 of which have been white women. Why?
The other thing that the article addresses is mental health representation and I've been seeing this same thing voiced by a large number of people over the last few days. Of course the more discussion about mental health and its treatment in media the better, quite honestly. This can only lead to better representation in general the more we talk about it in all its forms, but I can't say I agree so much with this facet of the argument personally.
Hopefully it goes without saying that I believe all mental health representation should be treated with utmost care and respect, but I can't help but feel that this Sigma issue is being blown a little out of proportion. I dare say that a lot of people who are arguing that Blizzard's use of mental health as a cop-out to explain his villainy are subconsciously making that stereotypical assumption themselves without really taking the time to understand what it is that they're trying to critique. I'd be interested in hearing some more thoughts about that especially from people who know a fair amount of Overwatch's lore as Sigma isn't a villain because of his mental state and it's disingenuous to link the two, at least in my eyes. I don't think that there's an issue with the design or the reasoning at all as it is based on the real life practice of minimising harm that can be caused by patients to themselves, and the villainy argument is based entirely on his association with an evil organisation against his will. Please let me know if I'm wrong?
Overall there are a lot of issues that I have with Overwatch, especially when approaching its stance on racial and cultural diversity, but I don't think that comparing it to a mental health strawman (and being very vocal about it) treats that issue with the respect it should deserve this late into the game's life.
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