After Stellar Blade controversy, Microsoft warns of “exaggerated proportions”

Gaming News After Stellar Blade controversy, Microsoft warns of “exaggerated proportions”

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A controversy that is causing quite a stir

In April 2019, the Korean studio UPSHIFT revealed for the first time Project Evean originally planned action-adventure game PC, PlayStation 4et Xbox One. The time has finally come in September 2021 UPSHIFT announces an exclusive release on PlayStation 5et Project Eve received its final name in September of the following year. Baptized Starbladethe game is set in the far future where aliens were calling NA:tives

drove the people from the earth, and that was it eve, the protagonist to retake the planet from the hands of the invader. She is supported in her mission by Adama human survivor who will lead them to humanity’s last bastion: Xion.

Since its announcement Starblade has attracted a lot of attention not only because of its exclusivity. First of all, there was the postponement of the launch, which was originally supposed to take place in 2023, but was postponed April 26, 2024

. But the controversy that arises the most is Starblade has nothing to do with its release and everything to do with the design of the main character. As a matter of fact, Shift up was recently criticized for his voluptuous body eve, which many fans consider to be hypersexualized. The developers justified themselves by saying that the 3D model is based on the Korean model Shin Jae-eunBut the debate remains open, and not just in fan circles…

Microsoft has chosen its side

While the controversy surrounding Starblade is in full swing on the Internet, an industry giant took the opportunity to express its opinion on the subject in complete discretion. If we are to believe the words of Microsoft on the page with the title Product inclusion campaign On their developer website, the issue of representing marginalized communities in video games is a major concern Microsoft. In particular, on this page we find a part that highlights questions to ask yourself when creating characters, as you can see below:

Does your design reinforce negative gender stereotypes?

• Have you introduced unnecessary gendered elements and unnecessary barriers around gender into your code or design?
• Are female protagonists equal to their male counterparts in terms of their skills and abilities? Are they equipped with clothing and armor appropriate to their duties? Do they have exaggerated proportions?
• Do your male characters express various emotions such as joy, sadness and vulnerability when the narrative requires it?

Visible, Microsoft would like to avoid the current controversy Shift upsince these are exactly the “exaggerated proportions”. eve, and especially their body-hugging outfits and the animation of their shapes are causing a stir in the community. Quite the opposite of the controversy by Aloy

In Horizon: Forbidden Westanother exclusive Sony, where the main character’s appearance caused a lot of offense because she wasn’t feminine enough for some. As a developer, it’s difficult to find the right balance, but that’s probably exactly the case Microsoft tries to achieve this by offering this little checklist.