Poll: So Castle Crashers was awesome -- until it forced me into being a lecherous jerkface

[RJ 17]

I'm with the OP's sister on this one. I think you're putting just a touch too much thought into it. It's a game about proverbial "knights in shining armor" saving the "damsels in distress". It's also a game based around violence, so a pvp scuffle here and there isn't out of place.

But then again, no one has the right to tell you what should or shouldn't offend you...as you're the only one that knows what you find to be offensive.

Personally I honestly never think of gender or racial issues when I play a game...seems to me that's politicizing my favorite pass time. And since I play games for a momentary respite from the issues of the real world, I don't enjoy bringing politics into them. So yeah, I've never really viewed anything in any game as being an attack on a gender, race, or sexuality. They're just games, no need to think that every little thing in them is a social commentary on something or that it's condoning/promoting any particular view towards a gender, race, or sexuality. Then again, I'm a straight white male so I'm probably not the best person to be talking about what is and isn't offensive.

As I said: to each their own. If you find it to be offensive then ok, your reasons are your own (though likely shared by some others as well).

 

[Saulkar]

I'm with the OP's sister on this one. I think you're putting just a touch too much thought into it. It's a game about proverbial "knights in shining armor" saving the "damsels in distress". It's also a game based around violence, so a pvp scuffle here and there isn't out of place.

But then again, no one has the right to tell you what should or shouldn't offend you...as you're the only one that knows what you find to be offensive.

Personally I honestly never think of gender or racial issues when I play a game...seems to me that's politicizing my favorite pass time. And since I play games for a momentary respite from the issues of the real world, I don't enjoy bringing politics into them. So yeah, I've never really viewed anything in any game as being an attack on a gender, race, or sexuality. They're just games, no need to think that every little thing in them is a social commentary on something or that it's condoning/promoting any particular view towards a gender, race, or sexuality. Then again, I'm a straight white male so I'm probably not the best person to be talking about what is and isn't offensive.

As I said: to each their own. If you find it to be offensive then ok, your reasons are your own (though likely shared by some others as well).

I just want to say that you should be a model in discourse on this site. You disagree but are polite about it. Sadly something lacking across the great interwebz.

EDIT: I might want to add, and this may be my own cynicism showing through, the Escapist as well. As much as I feel this to be one of the safest forums on the web, its own cynicism seems to be its own downfall.

 

[Riotguards]

i can see how on one hand you could look at it and point "Look women being subjected to maiden in distress again, boo hoo!" but then what about the man who has to do all the hard work, have no personality other than killing everything in his way, risking his life to save a women whom is just as faceless as the male except she's pretty much the driving force for the entire adventure

would you say it was fairer if the man said "no F*** it i'll let that person die" and thus the game ended with the man leaving


i've said it once and i'll say it again, it doesn't matter if its a man / women protagonist or a man / women goal the only thing that matters in games is gameplay and story, if you want to make it a man / women thing then quite frankly you're not a gamer in my opinion

 

[Dr. Crawver]

I appreciate the sentiment you have, and 9 times out of 10, I would agree with you, but thank you for putting context as an option as context is always the key. In castle crashers it's a stylised over the top portrayal of knights in medieval times. I mean the boss you just fought before that was a barbarian who must've been 20+ foot tall. It's all taken from tales of old and made more ridiculous. And old medieval stories are full of duels to fight for the fair maidens affection. It was just another trope taken from the old stories and made absurd again by the fact that you go right to the duel before she's even had time to dust herself down.

As for you deciding you're playing as a woman, that's fine I guess. They are designed to be ambiguous as to who they are. But to get upset when they're not pure blank slate characters is not a fair thing to do I feel. And equally they are designed to be male, once again a trope the setting (no female knights, women were ALWAYS the damsels).

If this happened in a different beat'em up that didn't have this context, then I do agree there might be more of an issue here. But as it stands, it's a comedic game in a setting with a set-up that I believe it is ok.

 

[Bombiz]

This isn't an excuse but when Castle Crashers was released feminism in gaming wasn't really a thing and there wasn't that much of a discussion about not trivializing women in the gaming industry.

Yes it was. In 2010, the only real difference is that nobody had threatened to rape Anita Sarkeesian yet and someone could ask for a female protagonists without the entirety of the MRM showing up to yell at them.

really? cause I remember it being released in 2008.

 

[RJ 17]

I'm with the OP's sister on this one. I think you're putting just a touch too much thought into it. It's a game about proverbial "knights in shining armor" saving the "damsels in distress". It's also a game based around violence, so a pvp scuffle here and there isn't out of place.

But then again, no one has the right to tell you what should or shouldn't offend you...as you're the only one that knows what you find to be offensive.

Personally I honestly never think of gender or racial issues when I play a game...seems to me that's politicizing my favorite pass time. And since I play games for a momentary respite from the issues of the real world, I don't enjoy bringing politics into them. So yeah, I've never really viewed anything in any game as being an attack on a gender, race, or sexuality. They're just games, no need to think that every little thing in them is a social commentary on something or that it's condoning/promoting any particular view towards a gender, race, or sexuality. Then again, I'm a straight white male so I'm probably not the best person to be talking about what is and isn't offensive.

As I said: to each their own. If you find it to be offensive then ok, your reasons are your own (though likely shared by some others as well).

I just want to say that you should be a model in discourse on this site. You disagree but are polite about it. Sadly something lacking across the great interwebz.

EDIT: I might want to add, and this may be my own cynicism showing through, the Escapist as well. As much as I feel this to be one of the safest forums on the web, its own cynicism seems to be its own downfall.

Thank you. I really try to remain polite and civil even when I disagree with someone. There's a couple reasons for that:

1: I don't know anyone on this site. And chances are, anyone I've ever gotten into a discussion with on the internet is someone that I don't know either. So why should I care about what they think? It's not like their opinions have any affect over me or my opinions what-so-ever. As such, I just prefer to offer up my own opinions without adding any venom to them because there's simply no need for it at all. I mean seriously, what's the point of getting all nasty with someone you've never even met?

2: At this point, most people expect a venom-fueled argument and names and nastiness to be found in disagreeing posts. I like to go against expectations. :3

 

[Depulcator]

If you are this offended by a small part of a rather old(ish) game, then maybe consider doing more research on a game before you buy it.

 

[Dragonlayer]

Personally I think its quite disgusting the way the game depicts male characters as blindly driven by lust for the lost princesses, implying battle hardened knights will butcher their comrades in an instant because of a pretty face.

I'm pretty sure that actually happened quite a lot during the Middle Ages...

And I can't tell if OP is being serious, or is just baiting.

While women were used a lot as war booty (heh) during the Middle Ages (and indeed, to this day really), brothers in arms didn't just snap and slaughter their friends because a woman could now be kissed.

Personally I think the OP is a master of satire, hence why I gave an equally nonsensical "problem".

 

[Something Amyss]

I was merely saying that I sympathize with Persephone, and can see how someone can easily slip into their own narrative, especially if they ignore, or aren't constantly subjected to, elements that contradict that.

And I was merely using your statement as a launching point. Which I explained.

im not being insincere, i really freakin' hate anita

Yes, we know. And your willingness to stop at nothing to express your hate for her, even attributing to her things she doesn't say, is obvious. Your response here, however, was the equivalent of the "I'm not touching you" argument. It's so blatantly insincere to bring it up in that sort of way, yet you claimed you didn't get why I wouldn't take you as sincere in another thread.

really? cause I remember it being released in 2008.

My bad. I went to check the release date and I guess I got the PSN release date. I couldn't, offhand, remember when it came out.

However, if you replace "2010" with "2008" in my prior statement, it still holds. This isn't something that sprung up in the last couple years.

 

[NuclearKangaroo]

im not being insincere, i really freakin' hate anita

Yes, we know. And your willingness to stop at nothing to express your hate for her, even attributing to her things she doesn't say, is obvious. Your response here, however, was the equivalent of the "I'm not touching you" argument. It's so blatantly insincere to bring it up in that sort of way, yet you claimed you didn't get why I wouldn't take you as sincere in another thread.

i dont think you know what insincere means

"even attributing to her things she doesn't say"

you mean that time i said shes not a gamer, because she said shes not a gamer, i must have misinterpreted the part where she said she doesnt play video games, i mean when someone says "im not a fan of X" its such an statement open to so many interpretations

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gcPIu3sDkEw

if you are going to say ive made up things about her, id like to see you provide an example, and yet again i ask you, if you want to make this personal, send me a PERSONAL message, dont derail the thread just to slander me

 

[ClanCrusher]

When you put the fighting in that sort of context, it does put a bit of a damper on the game, I'll admit. I don't agree to the school of thought that being a 'parody' automatically excuses you from criticism, nor does cloaking yourself in the title excuse you when you're pulling the exact same crap that the more 'serious' games are doing.

I wouldn't say that having to fight my friends (who were sitting on the couch with me while I was playing this game) completely killed the enjoyment of the game for me, but I do think it's important to keep pointing out things like this, because as a depressing majority of people in this thread have made clear, it's still a rampant problem.

Fun Alternative Solution: Instead of taking the kiss or fighting each other, the knights could simply have the option to move onto the next stage, leaving the princess behind for a funny little gag moment.

 

[the December King]

I was merely saying that I sympathize with Persephone, and can see how someone can easily slip into their own narrative, especially if they ignore, or aren't constantly subjected to, elements that contradict that.

And I was merely using your statement as a launching point. Which I explained.

Except that you also implied that I should have clearly seen how SR2 was going, and Persephone was completely blind sided by her not knowing the way Castle Crashers was going. Making Persephone more of a victim, and me more of an idiot? Which is why I thought it best to clarify my position, just in case.

 

[Zendariel]

As others have said, it was probably meant as an homage to old beat em ups where you fight your friends for usually the same reason and is played as a kind of joke and as a reason to get some pvp action.

That said personally it left a bad taste for me. It's not a fun joke, or at least to my taste, it wasn't done very well and it really didn't feel like it fit the game(This can be argued but it felt really forced for me).

To be completely honest though the humour was pretty hit and miss for me anyway, it was a fun coop beat-em-up parody game with some parts being better than others and some more or less off-putting.

And for people saying it's castle crashers and no reason to get upset, well just no. if something upsets a person, saying that it should not because it's just a quirky game does not make it any less upsetting. You don't need to "look for SJW stuff" in games to be upset by something.