Mario Kart 8 criticised for lack of skin color diversity

[Demyx. 10,064]

Just...*sigh*

 

Paste Magazine have published their thorough review of Mario Kart 8. However, during the review the author Casey Malone decides to take some time out to criticise the game’s character roster due to a lack of skin colour diversity. Malone notes that after 30 years there’s still no Mario characters of colour, with the overwhelming majority of characters being white. Here’s what he had to say.

“The other notable omission is in the cast of characters’ diversity. After 30 years there are still zero Mario characters of color, a problem that Mario Kart 8 highlights by lining up all the characters on a single screen. When it comes to human characters, Mario Kart 8 is overwhelmingly white. Of the 29 drivers, 14 are human (including Toad and Toadette), and every single one of them is white. While it’d be atypical of Nintendo to introduce new characters into a Mario Kart game, it’s also where the deficit is the most obvious, and during play I found myself disappointed that Nintendo’s stable of characters so painfully fails to reflect the diversity of its audience.”

http://mynintendonews.com/2014/05/16/mario-kart-8-criticised-for-lack-of-skin-colour-diversity/

 

Also, there is plenty of skin color. They've got green people and shit. 

Edited May 16, 2014 by Squirting Demyx

[Tails 6,692]

I honestly don't care what these critics think. I'm still going to buy it and will still enjoy the game regardless.

Edited May 16, 2014 by Tails

[baptiscool19 68]

Are you freaking kidding me ?

 

 

 

 

Of the 29 drivers, 14 are human (including Toad and Toadette)

WHAT

[Frisk 3,460]

95% of all Nintendo Wii's, Wii U's, and Nintendo DS's are white. Coincidence? I think not.

[Fierce Deity Link 926]

It's a game from Japan, what do these people expect? If Nintendo decided to just put one black person in, there'd be a ton more complaints.

[Robbie the Wise 5,050]

Why is anyone taking this seriously?

[MyDixieRect 2,061]

The game's also very agist as well. Where's Teen Mario? Teen Luigi? Teen Peach? Teen Donkey Kong? Nope it's all babies and adults like those are the only two ages that exist.

 

The game also makes a statement against abortion only featuring characters that have been born. Where's Zygote Bowser? 3 month embryonic King Boo?

 

It's also homophobic. Where's Dry Bones' gay older brother Dry Boner?

 

Face it, Demyx, the game is discriminatory in every way and that's just a fact.

[Caxkj 481]

*Criticism so stupid any facepalm meme has left because of it.* 

[Kaweebo 3,617]

I understand that diversity and race and trans and gays and bis and all that stuff are hot topics now, but come ON. It's friggin' Mario.

 

This is made even worse by the fact that Mario games are made by Japanese developers who came up with these character designs. Not white people. If THEY see no problem with making stylized cartoon characters (most of whom aren't even human) have pasty white skin, I think the author of this article can let it go, as well. 

Edited May 17, 2014 by Kaweebo

[Hero of Winds 2,576]

No color diversity? What about the Mii drivers?

[Roxas Illini 49]

This from the guy who brought us the KH3 for Wii U hoax.

[Demyx. 10,064]

This from the guy who brought us the KH3 for Wii U hoax.

I didn't make this one up.

[Setrex 1,031]

People will find a way to complain about anything these days. The fact they included Toad & Toadette as white humans is all the more ridiculous. 

[Hero of Light XIV 2,381]

Ok, I could understand if people started complaining about the small number of black characters in Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy (though FF has some notable exceptions), but Mario? FREAKING MARIO!!?? Why? Just...just- WHY!? How could anyone, ANYONE, ever think that sort of thing actually matters to people!? I mean what kind of a basis is that to criticize the game on? NOBODY CARES. I'm convinced that he just wanted to say something to bash the game on and he couldn't think up of anything creative, so he got lazy and just made shit up! I mean.......A MARIO GAME!? SERIOUSLY!!?? 

[OmegaForte 1,674]

Bashing Nintendo is a new trend for bait clicks. When it does excellent, it's not coral enough to be posted on websites.

 

Oh and these journalists and people who hire them can go firetruck themselves. I can do a better job and I only had journalism classes in Middle school.

Edited May 16, 2014 by OmegaForte

[MasterRoxas13 340]

I don't want to go on a rant but the entrainment business as a whole needs more diversity, it is easy for a majority of people who have light skin say it is isn't a big deal, when they are constantly being represented in the business as a whole due to the fact that they are the majority in first world countries . Its like me, a male claiming its not a big deal that woman are not shown to be the main heroes in works of fiction as much as man, when male heroes are being constantly represented in most works of fiction. Lets not be hypocrites people.

 

However this should not be taken out on Mario Kart since it is a simple and innocent franchise.

Edited May 16, 2014 by MasterRoxas13

[Jilly Shears 2,144]

Yes I'm pretty sure the Mario series would be an excellent place for social commentary.

[Exiblade7 1,917]

Lack of color diversity? I just don't see it. The game looks good the way it is.

[Sonic 487]

[Sora96 17,256]

Who the heck are Paste Magazine?

[Dio Brando 5,810]

WTF really,the one who wrote the article is freakin r**arded.

 

And to quote myself from a facebook post I made

 

Not to mention  the easy solutions those dumbfiretrucks didn't use:COLOR YOUR MII BLACK!!There now you have a black character.Holy firetrucking shit how's is this even possible?Who pays those assholes to fabricate those dumb accusations against Nintendo?Sony's Jack and Daxter barely has black characters if not at all.In Viva Pinata from Microsoft you can't do gay marriage between Pinatas and no one blinked an eye.But suddenly people are having it against Nintendo just because they were under the press's fire for dumb shit like this?Oh my god if this affected the sales of Mario Kart 8 and Smash 4 because people are canceling pre-orders for stupid shit like this.I'll ram my head to a wall and quit gaming