I think I can see the problem.
Speaking as someone whose skill in drawing extends only to the twenty-six letters of our alphabet and the ten Arabic numbers, character design might as well be magic to me. I’ve got a lot of respect for artists who work on the more visual side of the form.
That being said, something weird is going on in the art department for Xenoblade Chronicles 2.
I mean, this isn’t even the first boob related controversy that Xenoblade has stirred. Connoisseurs of breasts in gaming will, of course, remember the decision to remove the breast slider in English versions of Xenoblade Chronicles X.
The Context
At least previous entries in the franchise at least had female characters that looked, you know, human…
Xenoblade Chronicles 1: not revolutionary, but mostly decent costume design for female characters.
Xenoblade Chronicles 2: whatever steaming GARBAGE that is hrhghgkjdhg pic.twitter.com/ac8EZREN7U
— Anna Landin (@AnnaLandin) December 3, 2017
To be fair, it’s not like this character (who is disappointingly called Dhalia and not Chesty La Rue) is technically human.
Dhalia is a blade, a sort of sentient weapon. So, it’s really your fault if her design upsets, aggravates or frightens you.
A lot of people are talking about Dahlia’s breasts. They were more funny to me than anything because of DOA physics. But holy crap her feet are terrifying. pic.twitter.com/0TU8kj0JoA
— Derrick Bitner (@BitnerdGX) December 4, 2017
Other people have pointed out that Dahlia’s designer, Risa Ebata, is a full-blown female. Therefore, that dispels any sexisms, fan service or bad anatomy behind her look.
And to be fair again, art is a journey for everybody. There might be the more conventional paths to that final destination, but, at the end of the day, it’s up to the artists to choose where they will go. They should follow their bliss and act in accordance with their own soul.
On the other hand…
Saying the big-titted snow bunny’s design from Xenoblade 2 is okay because a woman drew it is like saying this Captain America design is okay because a man drew it. It’s just bad anatomy, dude pic.twitter.com/tV9hQzRxr7
— Jingle Brad, Jingle Brown, Jingle Jangle Jongle (@BlasterNation) December 4, 2017
The Response
I just want to take a moment to give a round of applause to the internet for its response to this.
While there has been the usual bile and slime in the comments sections, most people, detractors, and defenders, have at least found a sense of humour about the whole thing.
In the red corner:
all this Xenoblade 2 “controversy” in one pic pic.twitter.com/Q81w8Uk0CS
— MEGA DANNY ロックダニー (@protagkun) December 4, 2017
You: Dahlia from Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is sexist!!!
Me: pic.twitter.com/f5qDjQquuY
— Michelle Catlin (@CatTheUndying) December 4, 2017
And in the blue corner:
Since I still see people making posts about the big titted girl from Xenoblade and her broken spine I made this manmade horror to explain why it works that way.
Can we now please move on to more important things so I don’t have to draw anthropomorphic bunnies anymore? pic.twitter.com/1VkqO3xVme— F Xery (@XyerF) December 4, 2017
you guys I know what to do #xenobladehttps://t.co/eE502mdLmo pic.twitter.com/TbF4krwWR3
— champurrado???? (@loneliestbara) December 5, 2017
Good show, internet. Good show!
I will now leave you with one final tweet about the matter. Consider the controversy resolved.
some label this as a character with unrealistic proportions and an overall bad design, but I see a lot of untapped potential that could’ve been used to make something magnificent pic.twitter.com/KeuZGXf86V
— Shane (@FourScore64) December 4, 2017
Read about the main flaw of The Game Awards here.
