Black Republican
Member
honestly, its cool that they did this, but focus testing isnt the be all. Sometimes developers have to buck trends and change perceptions themselves rather than follow a trend
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Sony was nervous about Horizon's female protagonist, did lots of focus testing
- Thread starter Nirolak
- Start date
TheOctodad
Member
People who refuse to play this game because it's a female protagonist are going to miss out on an amazing game.
Best thing GG can do is make the game the best it can be so people can't miss out on it.
Best thing GG can do is make the game the best it can be so people can't miss out on it.
autoduelist
Member
Or perhaps the sales of titles like Heavenly Sword were why some were wary to have a female protag.
Messofanego
Banned
Wouldn't a mal protagonist basically be an antagonist?
dat latin 
astroturfing
Member
i thought the character was the worst part about the reveal. annoying tacky design and a very annoying voice.. might be just me though, dunno.
I think you need to consider why they are fretting about it.
Is it because of their own issues with female protagonists, or is it because of realistic concerns of gamers issues with female protagonists? While either way it's sad, where we should put the blame differs greatly based on the answer to the above.
If it's the latter, it's hard to fault Sony execs. They have to make decisions based on sales expectations. They are a publicly traded company.
Ragnorok64
Member
Aside from some blue accents on her outfit and, possibly, the braids she has like nothing going on. Nothing striking about her face, her build is middle of the road, and her overall color scheme is just brown.
She'd be more memorable as a "sexy cave girl", though tons of people would hate that. I'm not even sure I'd want that. They could have made her a brawny cave girl, especially tall, surprisingly short, anything. As it is right now it's like they left all the sliders in the middle.
KoopaTheCasual
Junior Member
Genuinely curious how you found her "tacky"? This is the first I'm hearing this complaint.
Not every character needs to be cartoon-ized. We've never seen a "normal" and stocky looking girl like her be the sole protagonist in a major budget title before, and that bears repeating.
Orochinagis
Member
Lol in what world is this an ugly person?
She looks pretty clean to be in a wild world.
No tribal threats on her design outside the outfit is she new to that world?
IAmRandom31
Banned
I think the extent of the internal dialogue was souly for the show personally. I have a feeling she will have internal dialogue ala so many other games now but to the extent of the demo? No.
I think that was used to showcase the character and personality of Aloy without having to do any cutscenes or interactions with other tribespeople. Through the internal dialogue you heard her have a respect for the things and a bit of sadness or remorse when she was forced to take out the Watcher. It was smaller and near helpless so she didn't like taking it out.
It also showed she was seasoned in what she was doing and knew the dangers from each type. Showed she is thrilled by the hunt as much as scared of it so she is intelligent and respectful of everything around her.
You got a good glimpse at her entire character without ever breaking from the gameplay. I thought that was brilliant but most likely will not be in the game once it hits. Not to that extent anyway.
I think that was used to showcase the character and personality of Aloy without having to do any cutscenes or interactions with other tribespeople. Through the internal dialogue you heard her have a respect for the things and a bit of sadness or remorse when she was forced to take out the Watcher. It was smaller and near helpless so she didn't like taking it out.
It also showed she was seasoned in what she was doing and knew the dangers from each type. Showed she is thrilled by the hunt as much as scared of it so she is intelligent and respectful of everything around her.
You got a good glimpse at her entire character without ever breaking from the gameplay. I thought that was brilliant but most likely will not be in the game once it hits. Not to that extent anyway.
Here's hoping that the game delivers on it's great first impressions and sells really well.
A wild world without water?
Dice//
Banned
...
I don't mind male characters. As long as they don't feed BROTASTIC MANLYMEN JOCK ACTION HEROES bull crap I'll play the hell out of a male lead game.
Yep, also thought Laura Bailey. Her and Jennifer Hale are kind of the Nolan North and Troy Baker of female voice acting.It sounds like it could be Laura Bailey to me but idk
when she was like "Ah come on" and "Here we go" I heard glimpses of Fetch .
Maybe I am misinterpreting it, but I similarly had the impression when people talk about Edge of Tomorrow and basically get defensive in the way of "yes, she's a love interest, but at least it's tucked away"
http://io9.com/holy-shit-you-guys-are-really-going-to-like-edge-of-to-1580285851
The author is basically saying
"She's a great female heroine because she doesn't have time for love"
TatteredHat
Member
I was more surprised at how clean the machines looked, it's like they all came out of the car-wash 5 minutes before the demo.
Zen_Arcade
Banned
To be fair, the video game industry would be way better as a whole if developers stopped trying to do this. It's beyond boring at this point, and far too many protagonists are cookie cutter action heroes. I don't know why you're saying the bolded like it's some out there opinion to have. It doesn't match up with that feminazi line at all, because the manlymen jock action hero thing is actually a problem.
...
I don't mind male characters. As long as they don't feed BROTASTIC MANLYMEN JOCK ACTION HEROES bull crap I'll play the hell out of a male lead game.
Fushichou187
Member
So you'd still be fine with Horizon having a female protag if the VA direction and design were better? How would you have liked to see her designed then, given the aesthetic they are going for in this game? Same with VA, or was it more the fact that she was chatty during the hunt as opposed to not liking the voice itself?
Emperor_Uriel
Member
This is actually a far more valid and reasonable statement than it was likely meant to be.
Dice//
Banned
i dont really care, but as a girl, if I have a choice I'd rather play as a femal since I usually play as mals.
Messofanego
Banned
Fallout doesn't even have much greenery or beautiful nature for its post apoc world (which makes sense), and yet the protagonists look pretty clean
Dice//
Banned
(Psst, that's the point, hence the initial eyeroll gif)
Deified Data
Banned
Really? After reading the Horizon threads on GAF you can't believe they were apprehensive? A lot of people find the idea of female leads, especially in action games, threatening to their flimsy sense of masculinity.
Fallout doesn't even have much greenery or beautiful nature for its post apoc world (which makes sense), and yet the protagonists look pretty clean
Character creation happens pre-war, so you look just about how a comfortable suburban family would look.
Fallout doesn't even have much greenery or beautiful nature for its post apoc world (which makes sense), and yet the protagonists look pretty clean
Character creation takes place before the bombs drop.
I grew up on a steady diet of tomb raiders so for me it doesn't matter what gender the protagonist is as long as it suits that role. Horizon having a female lead? Seems fine. But the character design?
Meh. I think it's the high hairstyle just makes her look very weird and awkward. It would be a bit like Joel rocking a mullet.
Meh. I think it's the high hairstyle just makes her look very weird and awkward. It would be a bit like Joel rocking a mullet.
Good thing they didn't have to change much, I always hate it when a game's vision has to shift because someone is skittish about this or nervous about that.
Screw business and marketing, give me what comes straight from the developer mind unfiltered.
So they should relax.
She looks great, both my girlfriend and I are hyped about getting to play this, I'm not really one to play female characters, but that's only when character creation is involved.
Screw business and marketing, give me what comes straight from the developer mind unfiltered.
So they should relax.
She looks great, both my girlfriend and I are hyped about getting to play this, I'm not really one to play female characters, but that's only when character creation is involved.
Clinton514
Member
Fallout doesn't even have much greenery or beautiful nature for its post apoc world (which makes sense), and yet the protagonists look pretty clean
But aren't they emerging from a well stocked fall out shelter?
Zen_Arcade
Banned
Oh, my bad. I thought you were being sarcastic and implying that it didn't exist (Like the feminazi thing clearly doesn't) after you posted that GIF.
Dice//
Banned
machinecaliber
Member
When did internal dialogue become such a bad thing? Are developers not suppose to strive for or try to invoke some sort of relatable realism to their world's or what? It's like do all these people who hate it so much just freaking loath stuff like Uncharted then or what.
Kai Dracon
Writing a dinosaur space opera symphony
Nanomachines, son. Clearly they incorporate nanotechnology that maintains their metallic structure.
(Actually, considering the advent of advanced materials such as hydrophobics, long lasting machines that always look as good as new may not be so strange.)
astroturfing
Member
stocky.. as in slightly fat or something? seemed thin to me but ok.
i dunno, the overall design just came off as tacky/silly, with the trinkets and fur and the hair and all. not pleasing to my eye, that's all. if there was a movie with a lead character like that i couldn't take it seriously. kind of a tasteless design, IMO.
BreezyLimbo
Banned
To be fair
There is a precedent that games with female protagonists tend to not sell alot.
Remember Me, Mirrors Edge, Beyond, Beyond Good and Evil, Heavenly Sword, Wet, etc.
I'm excited for the game, but I understand that funding a game like this to be a AAA title is..risque.
Ragnorok64
Member
It's clear they wanted her to look normal. But that's what makes her boring.
curiouscharles
Member
i, for one, welcome our new female protagonist overlords.
jokes aside, this e3 was a huge step forward in terms of acknowledging women exist, and also need to be portrayed as sweet awesome badass heroes in our videogames.
jokes aside, this e3 was a huge step forward in terms of acknowledging women exist, and also need to be portrayed as sweet awesome badass heroes in our videogames.
I don't think anyone minds internal dialogue, just the amount of it in that short time. I don't think Drake talks that much as in that demo
Synless
Member
As a man with 99% of my gaming friends being male. Never once has a female protagonist swayed mine or their opinion of a game, or caused them not to purchase.
Yup.
Though I suspect the most jarring portion was when she was supposed to be stealthy. Whether it is implied to be an internal dialog or actually being verbalized (as it seems many took it) ... it's still a bit odd in those situations either way. At least that much of it?
I still think much of the concern is peoples' previous run-ins with bad overly talky protagonists - poor writing, numerous repeats, poor voice acting, etc.
Pai Pai Master
Banned
No they're in their home
She didn't really talk that much though? Maybe before the action started but that was all world-building exposition.
Xplatformer
Member
Agree.
Even though I'd much prefer playing as a male protagonist...i can't wait to play this game.
Clinton514
Member
I hear you. For me there are a lot of characters in games that I cannot relate to at all but I play them just the same. This one being female doesn't make me want to play it any more or less.
I am absolutely excited about Horizon and so far I'm loving the main character and her design, but I can totally understand people who'd prefer a game with a main character they can more easily identify with. For instance I'm a guy, but I just can't get into The Witcher series because I can't identify with or relate to Geralt. I've tried and tried but every time I do it just doesn't feel right.
Emperor_Uriel
Member
Right, which is a terrible message to send.
Empowering is not "boys can't have me because I'm cool" it's "I'm cool enough to romance who I want, when I want." We just never get to see female characters driving the romance, they're always either the objects of desire or the passive recipients of it.
The only time female characters are allowed to be the ones doing the desiring is when they're either A) A seductive villainess or B) pursuing another woman, which leaves the 97% of real world hetero/bisexual women without good representations of empowered women in relationships they can identify with.
Morrigan Stark
Arrogant Smirk
This is why it makes me laugh whenever people defend a design of protagonist (invariably a straight white male) as "artistic vision". Yeah sure, on intensely focus-tested business products like most AAA games, yeah that's totally what happened.
Yep, this.
I think Horizon looks awesome and I'm glad they are going full steam ahead with their vision of the game including a female protagonist. However, it's pretty funny to me how people in this thread can't seem to grasp at all why they'd be just a little nervous running with a female protagonist. This is a culture/community dominated by men (from both a dev and consumer standpoint) and I think it's a safe assumption to say that men more readily identify with male leads. Hopefully a game like this comes out and shatters that assumption, but until then, it's a pretty safe one for the business people to make (especially when not many risks or veering away from the status quo have been taken yet).
Clinton514
Member
Ahh. I feel so out of touch for not paying attention to E3 this year. Apart from a trailer here and there.
Dice//
Banned
I think we need a gender topic based on this topic: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1065063&highlight=
Some of the responses in here are kinda sad and lack any sort of empathy to the growing market of female players.
DeepEnigma
Gold Member
I agree. I love her design, and stoked to see more.
Their art team is god tier!