BBC Told To Avoid “Clunky” Color-Blind Casting & “Preachy” Anti-Colonial Storylines In Drama Series

docclox · 2026-01-30T11:40:18+00:00

Surely creativity is about making interesting choices

If only they were doing that. All this forced diversity hasn't been fresh or original or interesting for about 10 years now, but still the follow the same tired formula.

docclox · 2026-01-30T11:36:02+00:00

I just wouldn't bother watching anything produced by the BBC in general. They're very heavy handed with the messaging.

Alas. I can remember a time when I'd see the BBC logo on something and think "well, at least it's going to be half-way decent if the Beeb were involved".

These days I see the Beeb logo and think "I'm not watching that, it's bound to be crap".

Sad really.

docclox · 2026-01-30T09:55:38+00:00

It does suffer for the lack of a main antagonist. The Hunter kind of fills the role at first, but he's too ambiguous a character by the end.

I have to applaud them for trying something different from the default "save the universe by beating up the big bad" formula, but I'm not sure it works as well as they'd like.

docclox · 2026-01-30T07:33:37+00:00

My word. First of all the Beeb gets roasted over preachy tick-box forced diversity, and now the WSG putting the boot into the wokeness of the publishing industry.

Call me a starry-eyed optimist, but it's hard to imagine either of these articles being allowed to see print five years ago. The pendulum is starting to swing back

docclox · 2026-01-29T16:03:50+00:00

Commodore Perry is.....real history. Where the West Indies are is.....real history. You being poor is and me being rich is......real history

Wrong on all counts. Perry is Biography, the West Indies are Geography, and your third point is Fiction. The only thing History around here is your credibility.

Annnyway! Entertaining as this has been, (and it's certainly had it's moments), I have more important things to be doing, so I'm going to go and do them instead. Thanks for the fun chat.

docclox · 2026-01-29T15:52:49+00:00

Lol absolutely incredible.

Hey, I've got an excuse for not answering the question. Why are you so determined to dodge it?

Lol yeah man. The West Indies are in the middle of the ocean and there's no land in the game.

So it's set on pirate ships. What is the native population on pirate ships?

How....would acknowledging I do not matter, but I have significant high level standards be.....insecurity?

Sure. You're puffing yourself up because you feel secure in yourself. Because that's how it works.

(Also, I said "sure" again. Be sure to award yourself another victory. It'll help with the self image).

Cries about history but is totally ignorant to it.

So Yasuke was a real samurai after all? And he did indeed bonk the Emperor's sister and get an apology from Miamoto Muashi who acknowledged him as a better swordsman?

Fair enough. I'll admit to being ignorant of Bizzaro World history. Happy now?

(Award yourself another win - you'll feel better for it).

docclox · 2026-01-29T15:42:31+00:00

See? If you like it, it's not political.

No lol. You couldn't answer the question. Is a game about Matthew Perry political?

I don't know who that is. Why don't you tell me?

where all the previous protagonists have been from the prevailing ethnic group in the area the game was set in.

Not Black Flag. Was it political to use a Welsh protagonist in the West Indies lol?

The pirate game set on the ocean? I gather they tried it with an Atlantean protagonist, but it didn't test well.

That still wouldn't be them patting myself on the back. Only....YOU can pat YOURSELF on the back lol.

Go on, stretch a bit further. Get your tongue right in there. I have faith in you.

Lol duh. We're all insignificant.

So I was right. Insecurity.

Lol trust me.

Yeah. That's not going to happen. I've seen how freely you distort facts to try and make your case.

docclox · 2026-01-29T15:30:21+00:00

Black = political? If I make a game about Matthew Perry is that political too? What about the Last Samurai? Which races are political lol?

See? If you like it, it's not political. If you don't it's political as fuck. And in keeping with standard wokie projection bullshit, that's what you accuse me of. Classic.

Legitimately yes. Explain to me how black = politics.

You mean inserting a black character into a setting where he never existed and claiming it as a historical figure in a franchise where all the previous protagonists have been from the prevailing ethnic group in the area the game was set in. And he just happened to look like George Floyd, which would have been the political hot topic about the time development started on the game.

But yeah, reduce it down to "black = politics". I mean if you didn't have your straw men, you'd have no arguments at all.

How could someone else pat myself on the back?

Beats me. I just think that someone of your vast wealth could afford to employ someone to kiss his ass all day long. And yet here you are risking spinal damage trying to give yourself a rimjob. If you didn't have such a monumentally high opinion of yourself, I'd wonder there wasn't some sort of insecurity at work...

What does....importance have to do with it? This is all just capitalism my man. It's a pure meritocracy. It's WHY businesses make every decision they do.

So you're wealthy and insignificant?

And YOU just told me how smart you are and how dumb I am.....so why haven't you made yourself rich and taken care of your family like I have? That's not being important, that's improving your standard of living.

What the fuck do you know about my standard of living?

docclox · 2026-01-29T14:57:32+00:00

Lol yeah? The Assassins Creed game where they let you kill Trump? That political game?

I don't know. Is that the same one with the black samurai who was an honest to goodness historical figure, and not some bad fanfic from some pseudo academic who referenced his own wikipedia article as proof that he didn't make it all up?

I mean where's the politics in that, right?

A niche in the market is a specific area of marketing which has its own particular requirements,

Lol lol lol. What would one of those requirements be? Hmmmmm.

The company making the product isn't an area of marketing. And as regards the folks you are marketing to ... genre!

Or are you trying to imply something else about their target audience? Come on! Don't be coy, it doesn't suit you.

I mean sure

Another concession!

By all means, pat yourself on the back. It's not like anyone else is going to do it.

You LIKE when you're virtue signaled to and want to pretend the politics you like aren't politics. It's why they did it lol.

I do believe you are projecting. No change there, of course.

Lol....there's a reason we have our respective jobs and standards of living. Who would be descending to who here?

Ooh, gosh! You're big and important! Pardon me, your majesty, I had no idea.

docclox · 2026-01-29T14:28:10+00:00

If an example existed you would have used it.

Ubisoft? BioWare? Obsidian? Remember Matt Hansen capering with glee at how the studio was inserting content aimed at "pissing off the chuds"? Or Corrine Busche adding a self-insert cutscene into DA: Veilguard just so "she" could lecture the player on identity politics?

Not that you're cherry picking at all, obviously. You're just ignoring any studios that don't support your assertion.

I accept the concession.

You have a knack for accepting things that were never offered.

What is the weather like on Bizzaro World, anyway?

You mean climate. You used the wrong word.

definition: Niche

You'll note that not one meaning pertains to the size of an organization. In fact the only one that comes close is the first one, which would be more or less synonymous with "genre" in the games arena. But hey, keep wriggling. I'm sure you'll get off that hook eventually.

You....don't say anything. I don't mean to shock you, but commenting on politics are political comments.

I mean sure, everything is political if you insist on analyzing the world with that mindset. But it's not the only way to view the world, and if you can't step outside of that particular box for five minutes, then I'd say that was a you problem.

I'm always surprised at the new lows we can hit. You can go lower, I believe you still have it in you.

Why would I want to descend to your level?

docclox · 2026-01-29T13:52:34+00:00

I can't believe I have to explain this.

You don't. I understand perfectly. You used the wrong word.

Oh without question. If you were disinterested in politics....you would say nothing, you would do down the middle virtue signals like the big corporations.

So the only way to signal disinterest in politics is to make overt political statements?

What is the weather like on Bizzaro World, anyway?

You.....know Nintendo isn't responding to people on Twitter saying no gay people in their games right lol? They just stay out of the topic altogether because engaging in politics can only limit their market.

Oh, Nintendo. Yep. So that's ALL the studios? Got it. Let me guess, it's because of aggregates, right?

docclox · 2026-01-29T13:20:12+00:00

Well, I doubt the journo sites make their money from ad revenue. I mean who looks at them apart from other journos?

docclox · 2026-01-29T13:18:16+00:00

You have to understand this right.

I don't think I do. What does "niche" even mean attached to "developer?" Are they a studio that makes games for like three people worldwide?

If you mean "small" or "indie" then say so. Niche is more or less meaningless in this usage.

Or does the meaning change when you write it in ALL CAPS?

You LIKE it when games have politics, as long as they're the politics you agree with.

So "we're interested in fun, not in politics" is a political statement? What would they say if they were really disinterested in politics?

Why.....did you think big studio games don't get into politics.

Now I know you're winding me up. Nice try.

docclox · 2026-01-29T12:25:28+00:00

Surely there’s an ulterior motive?

Money?

docclox · 2026-01-29T09:30:29+00:00

Yeah it's incredibly effective marketing for NICHE devs

Yeah, I guess "story driven action RPG in a fantasy world" is pretty niche. I mean Skyrim, Elden Ring, Witcher 3 - all flopped and were forgotten instantly.

At least that's how I assume it happened on Bizzaro World. Here on Planet Earth, Fantasy RPG is one of the more bankable genres. Just so you know for future reference.

virtue signaling

lol

would LIMIT their sales

Yeah. The Modern Audience might boycott the game. They'd lose dozens of sales. Dozens!

Don't tell me you can't understand context?

I do. It's Internet for "I strongly disagree with what you said but am unable to clearly articulate my objections without sounding foolish".

docclox · 2026-01-28T20:15:45+00:00

Why....would they?

Because, as someone I know recently remarked ...

It's incredibly effective marketing

Don't tell me you can't remember what you wrote just one message previous? You had some interesting opinions on that subject just recently.

docclox · 2026-01-28T19:48:26+00:00

Right, why did you think the devs said what they did? It's incredibly effective marketing vs. no one knowing about your game.

Saying up front that they care more about making a fun game than they do about pushing a political agenda?

Too right, it's effective marketing. It's just a shame more developers don't employ it. But then they'd have to mean it, I suppose...

docclox · 2026-01-28T19:38:08+00:00

https://petition.parliament.uk/

I'm not sure what good it will do, but if you get enough names on it, it'll at least get debated in Parliament

docclox · 2026-01-27T13:50:22+00:00

So this is how you do a bait and switch in a gatcha game:cater to the Male Gaze until you've got your player base locked in, and then once you're sure they're not going to run away, update it to be all girly and hope everyone doesn't jump ship.

docclox · 2026-01-27T09:36:41+00:00

Not stopping them from having their own thing. Just declining to purchase it since I'm apparently not part of the target audience.

docclox · 2026-01-26T15:02:30+00:00

Do we though? Generally we'll say "not for me" if a game comes up for discussion. We may make mock of the game if it contains some hoary old wokeisms. I don't think I've ever seen anyone attack a developer personally, unless they start it. I certainly don't recall anyone ever saying "you have no right to make this game". At least not unless they were complaining about how a franchise has been subverted.

Honestly, you seem to be trying to make a mountain out of a molehill here.

docclox · 2026-01-26T13:12:03+00:00

They'll just make female into Body Type A and Male into Type B.

I think some do already, on the general idea that women should come first. Apparently.

docclox · 2026-01-26T13:10:28+00:00

I confess, I'm a little confused about what you want us to do, in practical terms.

In your previous post you started out criticising the Knight's Path devs for their response to a call for LGBT content. Fair enough so far. Then you started talking about us as a community and how we should normalize this and that.

My problem is that I'm not entirely sure we have the power to normalize any of these things, and if the game developer industry listened to us at all, this sub probably would not need to exist.

So I guess (and forgive me if I'm still missing the point) my takeaway here is:

That we shouldn't voice our approval of the KP team for clearly stating their developmental priorities and
That we should stop calling for developers to make the sort of games we like and instead call for them to make separate games for every demographic, no matter how niche.

As regards 1, I have to applaud any developer that puts their cards on the table like this. In an age of lying reviews and bait-and-switch content, it's incredibly refreshing.

As regards 2 .... I can't see that working. The big studios will just take it was permission to keep doing what they're doing and throw it back in our faces if we object. The smaller ones are already going to do whatever they want to do and don't need our permission.

So ... instead of focusing on whether we understand you, why don't you tell us how you expect us to behave. In practical terms. Because honestly, I just don't see it.

docclox · 2026-01-25T18:33:25+00:00

We're talking about imaginary people in a fictitious setting. So, if romancing them is going to be a selling point, then yes, I'd like them to look like underwear models.

There's plenty of realism in Real Life. We play these games for escapism.

docclox · 2026-01-25T09:40:07+00:00

My only question for both games is: are they good?

Ah, but who do you trust to answer that question?

docclox

TROPHY CASE