May 2013 – Colin McMahon

Special Address: Mysoginy and Rape Culture in the Media World Part One

Posted on May 31, 2013 by Colin McMahon

Hey guys, getting serious again. For anyone who does not wish to think deeply, get offended or question social norms: I have written a nice and cute article on the new Sonic game, I would advise you to read that. Okay? You’ve been warned. This address does not deal with a pleasant topic. Today’s special address begins to deal with rape culture, which for the purpose of this article will be defined as “a concept which links rape and sexual violence to the culture of a society, and in which prevalent attitudes and practices normalize, excuse, tolerate, or even condone rape” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rape_culture). As this topic is tragically large and extends into much of the media world, I will do my best to be as focused as possible. However, before I dive into it, I would like to do a brief follow-up on the last Special Address.

For those of you who don’t want to scroll down, simply look here: http://redringsofredemption.wordpress.com/2013/05/06/special-address-an-open-letter-to-facebook/. Facebook, being as large and as powerful as it is, did not act quickly. It would take a group of dedicated individuals (http://www.womenactionmedia.org) to join in and help us achieve victory. They led their own campaign against facebook (briefly highlighted in this article here: http://www.buzzfeed.com/ryanhatesthis/facebook-still-doesnt-consider-rape-jokes-to-be-hate-speech) and I am very proud to say that Facebook has listened and now the two are working towards improving the culture. Here is the link to the official statement: http://www.womenactionmedia.org/fbagreement/. I would like to extend a thank you to everyone involved in bringing this matter to Facebook’s attention. This is definitely a step in the right direction. I’ll of course follow Facebook’s content and monitor just how noticeable the change is.

However, WomenActionMedia addressed the larger problem which my past article did not. The debate of rape culture. Let me clarify what I mean by debate: there is no debate that rape culture exists. Some people may deny it but some people also deny evolution due to a lack of “evidence”. Some people are willfully ignorant and no amount of sane conversation will convince them of anything they don’t want to believe. Those people are on the lowest rung of humanity and I am not going to waste breath and words trying to address them. Rape culture exists so the debate becomes: how do we cure it?

One last quick digression, I would like to make clear a difference between rape culture and sexually themed vulgarities. Words like cunt, dick, prick, pussy, cock, tit, boob, balls, asshole etc. are not part of rape culture in and of themselves. Can they be used to perpetuate it: yes, however any close examination of the English language reveals a certain affection for use of sexual organs and terms for profanity. It’s a comment on us as a culture to be sure but not at all in the same category. There is nothing inherently wrong in using these terms so long as their usage is not restrictive (example: men can be as an annoying bunch of cunts as women can any day. Likewise ladies, some of you are dicks too). Should you resort to profanity right away: no. Yet if it really offends you, I advise that you take a closer look at the world and what is happening in it. There are a lot worse issues out there to trouble a civilized mind than who called who a shithead. Let’s address one right now:

This is a real example of rape culture. It is both extreme and disturbing and was taken from this article here: http://sgvnowproject.weebly.com/rape-culture-sexism–misogyny-in-gaming.html. I want to make it clear that I do not agree with some of the arguments used in the above link as I find that they ignore gaming on a much larger context. There is a level of misogyny in gaming that is sad but I wonder how much higher it is than other media forms. For example:

Painting depicting Perseus and Andromeda.

There are many paintings and sculptures from this period that depict nudity and violence. In a large number of them, women are involved in both. Yet there is much less scrutiny for classical art than there is for video games. I’d like to make clear that that last sentence was not intended to evoke any type of argument that paintings are as misogynistic as video games or that either, in themselves, promote rape culture. Furthermore I acknowledge that classical art does not have nearly as large an impact on today’s world that video games enjoy. I simply wish to make this point: this is not a new problem, it has existed for a long time. Now is the first time we can track it.

On some levels this is a good thing. Yes, PhrixuZ is a horrible human being but his words are linked to his account. Microsoft, Sony, Nintendo and many other corporations do not tolerate this level of abuse. That account was banned to punish the individual, I guarantee it. Did he make a new one: probably, like I said this is not a problem that has of yet been solved but please mind the “progress”.

The world has come a long way since that painting was created. Back then, if you wanted to insult someone you either had to write a letter or tell them to their face. Either way, it was correspondence with no level of anonymity. This is not the way we communicate today: welcome to the age of anonymity. Thanks to the internet, everyone now has a voice: what a double-edged sword that has become. The more anonymous the arena, the greater the likelihood of extreme comments. Look at the comments page on Youtube some time. Now look at politicians (in their public addresses). Note the difference.

So why am I saying this? Let me make it clear: I am not trying to excuse the excess of rape culture in any way. The current height it enjoys in anonymous forums is staggering and above the level of acceptable. There will always be idiots that will say anything if they think they can get away with it but I’ve even caught myself using the term once or twice without thinking. This is what must be targeted and one of the double-edged dangers.

Rape may just be a word but it carries with it a current lack of education. Rather than paraphrase, I will quote an article that does an excellent job of addressing the issue:

“If, after reading that, you’re still on the pro-rape bandwagon (Oh, sorry, does that sound ridiculous? That’s because it is), I’ve got more. As I was personally sorting through this, one of the questions that kept popping up in my mind was ‘games are all about violence, and rape is an act of violence, why should that be precluded when saying ‘I’m going to shoot you in your f*cking head’ is okay?’

“I was having a hard time reconciling that particular issue, so I asked someone who knew more about the whole thing and could lend me some words to help. Alex Duffy provided me with the following response, and I think it’s just plain fantastic.

“‘The difference between rape and murder is that there is no murder culture. By that, I mean our society has fully accepted murder as absolutely horrible crime. It’s (almost always) fully investigated and afterwards there are pretty much no questions like ‘Were they asking for it?’ ‘What were they wearing?’ ‘Did they ACTUALLY not want to die?’. It’s always taken seriously. There is rarely victim blaming or objectification. Rape is a different story.'”

Sorry to include so much of the quote but I felt that it was absolutely fantastic and very to the point. Full article here: http://gamersagainstbigotry.org/2012/07/why-you-should-stop-saying-rape-casually-in-games/

Like many of the problems in today’s society, rape culture is born out of ignorance. There will always be those too stupid to listen but they are a small minority on the planet. Humanity is ready to think and evolve and this is one issue we can all definitely work on. In further articles I shall dive into specifics, examining certain movies, video games and books to track the evolution of this problem (Duke Nukem Forever and Metroid: Other M will be discussed in the next part). Education is the key to evolution. I don’t want rape to become known as the “r” word (since we turned nigger into the “n” word and that didn’t do much to cure racism, if anything it has perpetuated it – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dF1NUposXVQ) but I do agree that it is used too casually.

I also feel that we, as a species are on the right track to removing rape culture and making sure it is regarded as the serious problem that it is. Call me an optimist but wait until I have finished my argument. And anyone else out there wishing to weigh in, please do so. Any and all comments are read and appreciated. I will respond and further debate any issue you wish (although I will save things for the later parts of the article).

Apologies if this sounded like a stream of consciousness, it was one. Please enjoy these other articles to get more involved on the issue. Please return next week for part two.

http://www.shakesville.com/2009/10/rape-culture-101.html

http://critdamage.blogspot.ca/2012/05/quit-pretending-there-isnt-videogame.html

http://whatculture.com/gaming/xbox-live-defense-against-racism-or-free-speech-restriction.php/2

Thoughts? Comments? Am I full of it or onto something? Let me know now in the feedback section of this article.

Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed is a Poor Man's Mario Kart… But is that a Bad Thing?

Posted on May 31, 2013 by Colin McMahon

With game releases being slow this time of year (tons of announcements, not much in the way of things to play), I have decided to try and insure that my Wii U goes at least a couple more weeks before it begins to collect dust. Sonic, in this day and age, might not be the first name that comes to mind when one speaks of extending hours spent playing video games. The once-AAA mascot has seen his name fade into obscurity over the past decade with sub-par titles such as Sonic the Hedgehog (a 2006 reboot for the 360 and PS3 that gave Sonic a human love interest… not kidding), Sonic Unleashed (he was a werewolf in that one, excuse me: werehog), and Sonic Free Riders (just no). It is with his new underdog cult status that Sonic has attempted to rebuild his legacy over the past couple years (Sonic Colors and Sonic Generations serving as beacons of hope). Simply put, when 2D platformer games go 3D, they sometimes do not have a smooth transition. Sonic is the best example of this case. He has been without identity since Sonic Adventure debuted on the Dreamcast back in 1998. It is in this spirit of seeking identity (and not finding it) that I will discuss Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed.

This game came out for everything: Wii U, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC, 3DS, Vita… literally every major platform on the market. This turned out to be a very good thing as I don’t think this game would hold quite the same appeal if it had been say a Nintendo exclusive. Why is that: because about twenty minutes in it becomes very apparent what type of game you’re playing.

Now substitute with Sonic characters and lower expectations accordingly.

This game really feels like a Mario Kart entry. From the racers to the courses to the power-ups, it has everything we have come to expect when Nintendo gets behind the wheel. However, like most of Sonic’s recent outings: this game doesn’t hold a candle to the Mario product.

Before I start analyzing the game I want to mention the name. Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed, sequel to Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing. Now here’s a series with a name that just rolls right off the tongue, huh. There’s not many more ways you could screw up a title (see Wii U and Xbox One for more ways to screw up a title). Problem number one: competing brands. This problem was in some ways solved by the sequel as it removed Sega from the title. I will argue, however, that this was not the way to go. Sonic is not the name he once was: his titles are no longer synonymous with quality (if anything the opposite). Since this is a game with multiple Sega characters, I suggest simply sticking sonic to the box and calling all future entries Sega All-Stars Racing. Comes out a lot better. I don’t think I’ve said this title’s full name once while describing it in conversation (I’ve taken to simply calling it Sonic All-Stars Racing). When you’re trying to build a brand, you need a brand name. When challenging Mario Kart, you need something that encompasses the essence of the game just as quickly and easily. Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed has way too much going on to be marketable.

A title so long it is obscured by the game's roster. — A title so long it is obscured by the game’s roster.

This brings me to my next topic: the characters. We got a lot more going on than Sonic in this game. Characters from properties like Super Monkey Ball, Jet Set Radio, Nights into Dreams, Shinobi, and even Skies of Arcadia feature in the racing roster. If you are unfamiliar with all of those series… now you know why Sonic is in the title. Even Wreck-It Ralph (from Disney’s new movie of the same name) makes it into the cut. I know this is a nitpick but can I just show you Wreck-It Ralph’s racer real quick:

There’s nothing wrong with it. Cool little truck there. What about this though:

There was an actual race car in Wreck-It Ralph, racing was actually kind of a big part of the movie. Including this racer would have been a much cooler tie-in as well as allowing Vanellope von Schweetz a roster highlight as well. Before you ask, there is no Sugar Rush stage either. Pretty disappointing use of license there, Sega. Hopefully it will feature into the next Mario Kart.

But anyway, back to the character roster. The point I’m making is that it’s kinda weak, despite the fact that it reaches across Sega’s entire library. They really don’t have the character roster the way Nintendo does. Like Mario Kart doesn’t even dip into the full Nintendo library yet it contains more racers that I would be interested to play as. God help Sega if Nintendo even decides to take the Smash Bros. series into racing games (please Nintendo, make it happen).

But racing games go far beyond their drivers. Let’s talk about the stages. This is where Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed really doesn’t measure up to the Mario Kart series. The stages kinda suck. They’re long and vibrantly colorful but too much so in both areas. Without the transforming mechanic, the race ways feel very dull (this becomes obvious in the last grand prix, which is made up of stages from the first game). Even with the transforming, I still don’t feel the same draw to the raceways. Too bad because they are doing everything in their power to be memorable. There is so much going on on the courses that it can become distracting. At one point I stopped racing because I simply didn’t know which way to go. There was no immediate road that looked more real that anything else going on in the background. I had to wait for other racers to come and crash through the wall in front of me (don’t make it so you have to crash through walls in one course in a racing game) so I knew where to go. This is not the best design.

These tracks are not horrible by any stretch. There is nothing, however, on the level of say a Bowser’s Castle or a Rainbow Road in the bunch (or even a Toad’s Turnpike). They’re all flashy so the effect kind of wears out after a while. Really I could have used one or two more down-to-earth stages to help the more epic raceways stand out. That’s enough about the courses though, got to talk about the power-ups.

The power-ups in this game are bland imitations of the power-ups in Mario Kart. Wow, that didn’t take as long as I thought. Okay I’ll go more into it. They’re not bad, they do their job. There is nothing as devilishly fun as hitting someone with lightning or dispatching the blue shell of death. Instead of that we get bees… and puffer fish… and fireworks… what do these have to do with Sega? For instance: we got a Shinobi course and racer so why is there no ninja star? Just off the top of my head right there.

I know I’ve been very negative in this review but I’m just proving a point. This game is not the AAA challenger to Mario Kart. It is, however, still a very fun racer and as close as you will most likely come to experiencing Mario Kart without purchasing a Nintendo console. So for all the Microsoft, Sony and PC owners out there who want a fun racer: this game is pretty good. For us Nintendo owners: it is enough to satisfy until the main event arrives (Nintendo is unveiling Mario Kart Wii U on June 11th, get excited).

Oh and if there was anyone out there hoping this game would be the next Diddy Kong Racing: it’s not.

Diddy Kong Racing allowed for multiple vehicle-types on the same course. Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed regulates it to sections. — *Diddy Kong Racing* allowed for multiple vehicle-types on the same course. *Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed* regulates it to sections.

Oh, one last thing to include: does it seem odd to anyone else that Sonic needs a race car to go fast? Am I the only one who wonders about that?

Thoughts? Comments? Am I full of it or onto something? Let me know now in the feedback section of this article.

A Hugely Enjoyable Evening with the Tigercats, the Smittens and Making Marks

Posted on May 29, 2013 by Colin McMahon

First off can I just say that music is one of the best things about summer? For the first time in months, going outside is not a chore but a pleasure. If you live in a city, wondering the streets changes from an “oh my god how quickly can I get home” moment into a “what can I explore” moment. It is in that spirit that I stumbled upon a very cool little bar in Montreal called Inspecteur Epingle last Saturday night. My reward: an excellent evening of music with three bands that are rising on the radar.

Every venue attended has different perks and drawbacks and before I address the bands, I would like to preface my review by first highlighting how the setting affected my experience of the music. If you’re like me then super huge high-energy crowds make you uneasy at the best of times. This is tragic of course as it limits the enjoyment of large shows and concerts and can turn you away from an otherwise great experience. Yet while concerts may not be the way to go, we can still enjoy live music. Venues at bars become, for instance, greatly improved. Who doesn’t love relaxing with a drink and listening to good music? I was pumped to hear some tunes in a cool place like Inspecteur Epingle. It has a great atmosphere and is one of the nicer places I’ve been to in Montreal. That being said, and I say this only to list a drawback of smaller, more closed in locations: some of the vocals were overpowered by the music. This was in no way the fault of any of the musicians playing, simply the reality of competing sounds in a tight space. So keep in mind those disclaimers. One that note, on with (the review of) the show.

The first band to play was Making Marks. This band from Norway (formally known as My Little Pony) had a sound that my photographer described as “cute”. My first reaction to this was that they were a lot more than cute. However, as I thought on this I came to see the simplicity in the remark. “Cute” in this sense does not refer to anything childish or small in stature. Making Marks capture a sound of innocence and charm in a way that few other bands playing today can accomplish. I dare you not to be won over my the pleasant melodies of this indie pop band. My personal favorite song from them that night was “Hard To Be Good”, I advise you all to check out the link here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oig4TIAv-zA. It’s even more appealing when you hear it live, trust me on that one.

Part of Making Marks charm comes from their everyday-apparel look — Part of Making Marks’ charm comes from their everyday-apparel look

Next up I am very happy to congratulate a band from New England (Burlington, Vermont specifically) on their excellent performance. Twee band (which is a more fun way to say indie pop band) The Smittens were without two of their members that night but lacked nothing in presence (thank you very much Canadian border guards – you successfully defended your country from indie vocalists). Their style factored in a humor that was as wonderfully quirky as their music.

The Smittens member, Colin Clary , had all the charm of a more musical Zach Galifianakis

My personal favorite that night from the Smittens had to be their song entitled “First Bus”, although it was a hard choice to narrow down. I will provide a link to a version here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GAAmSr1KRk while saying that the version I heard had a very different energy to it. Again, one of the wonders of live performance (and why I encourage experiencing it whenever possible).

Last but certainly not least (in fact my favorite band of the night), the Tigercats. There is a lot to say about this rising band from the United Kingdom. They are the youngest band that played tonight although you wouldn’t know it from the harmony they convey. As with the two bands before, they specialize in pop music. The Tigercats convey musical energy in a way that will have even the most unreceptive audience members unconsciously tapping along before the end of the first song. Catchy is not a strong enough word to describe their style. Their lead singer bore a certain vocal similarity to Smashing Pumpkins lead, Billy Corgan (and that is not a compliment I hand out lightly). Last personal favorite of the night, “Full Moon Reggae Party”: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2UJCNptGNRg (really just check out the entire album, Isle of Dogs, it’s awesome).

The lack of shoes also make for a noticeable visual presence as well. One of many reasons to see the Tigercats live.

Now obviously, if indie pop isn’t your thing then this show is not for you. However, if you’re like me and love relaxing on summer evenings: this is a show to check out. The energy is just perfect for making sure that everyone in the room has a great time. For those out there in Montreal looking for a slightly different indie experience: might I recommend checking out Seb Black at Katacombes this Thursday night.

Tigercats, The Smittens, and Making Marks are currently on tour across the United States. I fully recommend checking them out.

Photos courtesy of Andy Fidel.

Thoughts? Comments? Am I full of it or onto something? Let me know now in the feedback section of this article.

Month: May 2013