Africa in gaming. An example from CoD MW3...

[Quellist]

So, while playing through CoD, there's a portion where you travel to Africa, Sierra Leone to be exact, and the attackers use Hyenas as attack dogs. Really now? Why not simply have them use lions or maybe elephants?

And yeah, I know there are incidents where Hyenas have been tamed, or even domesticated, but it's not like every African has a pet hyena. During the Chernobyl section did the Russians use pet wolves? No.

How utterly silly.

You have answered your OWN QUESTION.

The game depicts one incidence where hyenas are domesticated and used as attack dogs, NOT that "every African has a pet hyena"

Just that, as you reasonably say: "there are incidents where Hyenas have been tamed". And those incidents are depicted.

Russians in COD4 didn't have pet wolves, they DID have trained attack dogs, because they could afford them.

ITT: people blowing shit out of proportion to be sensationalist and inflammatory.

Maybe I am blowing this out of proportion, but I'm getting tired of Africa and Africans being misrepresented in games. And yeah, there are incidents where it happened, so why didn't the Chernobyl section have attack bears or wolves? That's happened before?

And Africans can afford dogs. This is just simply something that looked cool, so they signed off on it, but they'd never do the same for a European section. And that's my issue.

Now if the Chernobyl section had featured attack Bears on Unicycles i would probably have bought the game just for that, sometimes stereotypes sell i guess..

 

[KwaggaDan]

So, while playing through CoD, there's a portion where you travel to Africa, Sierra Leone to be exact, and the attackers use Hyenas as attack dogs. Really now? Why not simply have them use lions or maybe elephants?

Sorry to burst the bubble, but there are afrikan regions in wich people use Hyenas has attack "dogs". Hey are more viscious and harder to master, but there are many cases of this fact. They even perform Hyena "dog fights".

And Elefants have been tamed has a way of transport. So yeah. I think you should study before you post. sorry ;D

I did. I know that there is hyena fights in East Africa, but the cases of proper domestication are pretty rare. No more so than successfully domesticating a lion or a tiger. Hyenas can get used to humans fairly quickly, but they are by no means tamed (or domesticated).

Same goes for elephants.

The point I made is why not just use dogs, you can even use species that exist in Western Africa.

 

[Flip-Shying]

Why would they use lions or elephants over hyenas? Hyenas make far more sense because they are actually used in real-life. People don't have lions, elephants, or hyenas wondering around their back-garden in Africa.

Yeah, but the domesticated hyena is just as rare as a domesticated lion. My whole point was, if they were going to use hyenas, they might just as well have used lions or elephants...

Tamed hyenas are far more likely to be used and seem more reasonable, people have tamed them in the past. Besides, a hyena is closer to the canine attack-dog tradition used in previous CoD games.

 

[Freaky Lou]

Guys, he's not just randomly finding something to blow out of proportion. It seriously would get annoying seeing stereotypes like that EVERY time your country's depicted.

But @ OP, the reason it happens is that when a game developer sets a stage/mission in an exotic country, they want to really crank up the exotic so that it'll feel as different from other places you've been as possible. That's why they always use only animals that are exclusive to the region, instead of the more common dogs, cows, chickens, etc. that you see everywhere you go. That's why the painted natives in mud huts chucking spears in Resident Evil 5. Obnoxious, yes, but it's easy to see why they do it.

Maybe we just need a game that's set entirely in Africa, made by someone who actually knows Africa (RE5 REALLY doesn't count.)

 

[KwaggaDan]

Why would they use lions or elephants over hyenas? Hyenas make far more sense because they are actually used in real-life. People don't have lions, elephants, or hyenas wondering around their back-garden in Africa.

Yeah, but the domesticated hyena is just as rare as a domesticated lion. My whole point was, if they were going to use hyenas, they might just as well have used lions or elephants...

Tamed hyenas are far more likely to be used and seem more reasonable, people have tamed them in the past. Besides, a hyena is closer to the canine attack-dog tradition used in previous CoD games.

Coincidentally, when I was doing my research before writing on the topic, I came across an article where they say the Hyena is closer to the feline tree than the canine one. I see the template they used, but why not just use dogs? That's my big gripe...

 

[KwaggaDan]

Guys, he's not just randomly finding something to blow out of proportion. It seriously would get annoying seeing stereotypes like that EVERY time your country's depicted.

But @ OP, the reason it happens is that when a game developer sets a stage/mission in an exotic country, they want to really crank of the exotic so that it'll feel as different from other places you've been as possible. That's why they always use only animals that are exclusive to the region, instead of the more common dogs, cows, chickens, etc. that you see everywhere you go. That's why the painted natives in mud huts chucking spears in Resident Evil 5. Obnoxious, yes, but it's easy to see why they do it.

Maybe we just need a game that's set entirely in Africa, made by someone who actually knows Africa (RE5 REALLY doesn't count.)

Yeah. I've come to that conclusion as well. I guess the lesson here is that everyone gets stereotyped in some way or another when you're represented in games. And even if the venting helps a little, it's still unlikely to change. And besides, they could have made it a whole lot worse. And yeah, RE5 really doesn't count, if I'm honest, but it makes for a fun example.

 

[ToastiestZombie]

It gets worse. Wait until you see the stereotyped attack dogs that appear in the Northern Ireland stages.

Spoiler

DAWWWW, how would I ever want to snap that fluffy wuffies neck.

"OH GOD ITS EATING ME, ITS EATING ME!!"

OT: Meh, it would be more silly for them to have been using trained guard dogs since I dont think the African militia can afford them. This actually makes sense, what else could they use? Also, I dont think many people would be able to tame a lion to kill humans, but not some humans.

 

[KwaggaDan]

Snip

Spoiler

[Edit] I've renamed the Subject because the last title didn't really depict the content.

My issue here is how Africa is being depicted in gaming. I'm not taking potshots at CoD. Far Cry 2 and RE5 made the same mistakes.

No hate, just give us some examples of other games that absolutely and completely correctly depict some other culture/continent/country without resorting to any sort of stereotyping.

I think this thread established that everyone, everywhere has been stereotyped in gaming. Russians are always villains, Africans are backwater, Americans are crime capitals and the Japanese are weird.

Honestly I can't really think of a successful game that didn't take liberties with the source material. It's kinda sad, but that's just the nature of entertainment, I guess?-

True, but stereotypes are there because many people play them off naturally, they aren't simple jokes, but more like half-truths.

I don't think many people of the world would even first think about the majorly non-black countries or people of Africa when asked about it. I know it's hard sometimes, but what is the answer to rid oneself from such stereotypes? I don't think there are many answers to that question.

Some stereotypes are fun and true. Being a Finn, I know that the joke "How do you ruin a Finn's day? - Sit next to him/her on the bus even if there are many free seats." ..rings true, because we as a collective people care about personal space. Even when getting kisses on the cheek from hot Spanish girls I always feel it's damn awkward, and I'm not the only Finn in that pot. Same probably goes with many black African pirates/crims/gangsters who want a badass killer Hyena as their domesticated attack pet.

Yeah. You're right. It just gets annoying because you never see anything else, apart from Afrika (the game). But generalisations are here to stay. I can't think of any media that has escaped from it...

 

[Zero47]

You know Africa isn't this massive hellhole right? And I'm tired of people depicting Africa as this nightmare world. Because it's not.

And as for the shoe thing, we're talking about cultural stereotypes. Which is different from a shoe thread. Something along the lines of "Why are fat people in games always computer nerds" would be more apt as a comparison.

As I've said before, my issue was that Africa is depicted as a backwater hellhole, where everyone who doesn't shoot you wants to mug you. That is what gets to me.

If you find yourself in the wrong place Africa is a massive hellhole. Same deal with any other country except for the fact that in Africa this shit happens in full view more.

You're talking about cultural stereotypes because you're hyper sensitive to it. You see a cultural stereotype where there is none. You'd have a point if you'd see those Africans hold buckets of KFC because this is actually a derogatory depiction, hyena's aren't.

 

[repeating integers]

That is THE OFFICIAL launch trailer.

Ahaha, that is an awesome trailer. And people say CoD takes itself too seriously...

 

[Thaluikhain]

Apparently, hyenas are listed as "threatened" in Sierra Leone.

DOn't shoot the hyenas!

Its probably because people keep training them to be attack dogs and then they get shot.

If they were properly trained, they'd get shot less, you'd think. They need better schools, no hyena left behind.

...

Oh, and I would add that most nations in Africa do tend to be third world, which is fairly close to "hellhole" in most people's eyes, but I think attack hyenas is going for a different stereotype.

 

[DanielDeFig]

As someone who spent a lot of years growing up in African countries, I can safelay say that I have yet to play or hear about a game that portrays Africa with anything resembling basic amount of respect, or even proper research.

And I find it sickening that no-one on this thread seems to be taking the OP's issue/point seriously.
It's not about depicting Africa "realistically", it's a game after all. But depicting it accurately, and not falling back on stereotypes that are old enough to be considered offensive and even racist (Resident Evil 5), is something that I think should be a minimum for representing any culture in any entertainment medium.

 

[Flip-Shying]

Why would they use lions or elephants over hyenas? Hyenas make far more sense because they are actually used in real-life. People don't have lions, elephants, or hyenas wondering around their back-garden in Africa.

Yeah, but the domesticated hyena is just as rare as a domesticated lion. My whole point was, if they were going to use hyenas, they might just as well have used lions or elephants...

Tamed hyenas are far more likely to be used and seem more reasonable, people have tamed them in the past. Besides, a hyena is closer to the canine attack-dog tradition used in previous CoD games.

Coincidentally, when I was doing my research before writing on the topic, I came across an article where they say the Hyena is closer to the feline tree than the canine one. I see the template they used, but why not just use dogs? That's my big gripe...

Agreed. They should have used dogs but I suppose they just wanted to make it seem more 'African'.

 

[Slayer_2]

It's Modern Warfare... The previous game in the series featured a segment where a lone man hijacked a nuclear sub and reprogrammed a missile to detonate in the atmosphere above DC to create an EMP effect... Realism isn't what they're going for.

 

[Zero47]

Ha... dude, you're thinking African-American stereotypes with the KFC reference... Out of touch, ignorant or simply a bit racist with your assumptions?

You're right, ad hominem arguments are always effective. How does referencing a silly stereotype make me out of touch, ignorant or racist anyway? You're playing the racist card all day without reason and to be honest it's people like you that make me "racist". Yes I put racist between brackets because it's not race that annoys me, it's the sensitive attitude towards anything that could be interpeted as racism if you stretch your mind far enough. Even when you're facing actual racism online you ought to have built up a shield for that shit by now. Bottom line is you're gonna get hate online if you deal with it like a whiner (I refer you to "gingers do have souls"-guy).

EDIT: On second read, I probably misunderstood your comment somewhat. I've never really found the KFC stereotype to be exclusive to African-Americans, but if you really want a African specific read watermelons instead. No point in arguing over semantics.

 

[Thaluikhain]

Ha... dude, you're thinking African-American stereotypes with the KFC reference... Out of touch, ignorant or simply a bit racist with your assumptions?

Actually, no, although it's a US thing, it's prompted cries of racism when you have that sort of thing in nations where you don't have that stereotype, presumably by people who assume that the rest of the world is like the US.

On the other hand, if the people who create the thing are USAliens, I could see a problem with it.

 

[DanielDeFig]

If you find yourself in the wrong place Africa is a massive hellhole. Same deal with any other country except for the fact that in Africa this shit happens in full view more.

You're talking about cultural stereotypes because you're hyper sensitive to it. You see a cultural stereotype where there is none. You'd have a point if you'd see those Africans hold buckets of KFC because this is actually a derogatory depiction, hyena's aren't.

KFC? You're trying to apply an american racist stereotype, to ALL dark-skinned ppl? Most ppl in Africa wouldn't even get it, or know what KFC is.
Replacing dogs with Hyenas, just because the level is suddenly in an African country? That IS a derogatory and offensive stereotype.

 

[SonOfVoorhees]

Do they have attack hyenas? I dont know much about Africa, but they do have a on of hyenas that live there and its just a game. So who cares. Actually....why hasnt is PETA bitching about rats when their is hyena death going down?

 

[ToxinArrow]

Wait a goddamned minute here....

You're saying something in a Modern Warfare game is both ridiculous AND unrealistic?

You'd better go and tell Ripley, 'cuz he isn't gonna believe this shit.

 

[Treblaine]

On the other hand, if the people who create the thing are USAliens, I could see a problem with it.

You keep using that word... what the hell does it mean?

Because Google gives me nothing.