You can put the racist claims to waste now. There is a black female lead along with Chris Redfield and Sherry Birkins.

On a side note, you think we'll finally see Steve again? Wesker did that whole speech about how he'll revive him to study the T-Veronica virus in RE:CVX. Besides...he did die from getting pushed. He deserves at least a less lame death.

On another side not, notice how Claire is not looking at naked Steve's face when he dies? Claire is a pervert.

What? Black female lead confirmed? Source or it didn't happen.

Seriously though, maybe Steve's wicked hung or something and she can't take her eyes off of it.
Or maybe it's still big and lizard-like and green. That'd cause a few glances too.

http://www.rehorror.net/thirdeye06/re5_4.jpg

She's on the bottom right. Though this scan makes her look more native American.

Was racism ever a issue with Resident Evil ?
Apart from a few web comics I have never seen anyone mentioning jack about it.
Also yeah, Id say shes native american or possibly hispanic.

avykins:
Was racism ever a issue with Resident Evil ?

It is NOW, since RE5 has you taking a white man into Africa to shoot black people. But you expect that sort of thing from the knee-jerk reactionary crowd. I don't recall anyone making a ruckus about a white man going into Spain to shoot a bunch of Spaniards.

The funny thing is I hear more about this issue from people saying it's not racist (Which it is not.) than I do from anyone saying it is. It's also interesting to note that to even use the words racist or racism in this context is actually an abuse of the terms. (Percieved) bigotry is not the same as racism though bigotry is indeed a component of racism. Oh and for the record Spanish is no more an ethnic group than Jew, or Muslim, or Christian, or English despite what some would have people believe.

People have to realize this is the Japanese we're talking about. Sure they are racist, but not how everyone else is. To them either you are Japanese or you are baka gaijin morons (of any skin color). Since the game features all non-asians, the point of racism is largely moot.

So, you people just summed up Yahtzee's first review...congratulations.

I don't mind being called the term baka gaijin though. It has a nice catchy ring to it...unlike the terms we have in English.

Grampy_bone:
People have to realize this is the Japanese we're talking about. Sure they are racist, but not how everyone else is. To them either you are Japanese or you are baka gaijin morons (of any skin color). Since the game features all non-asians, the point of racism is largely moot.

I assume you're Japanese then? If not, what exactly makes you qualified to dole out such sweeping generalisations?

The problem with Resident Evil V is that the black African peasants are racist caricatures. Go look and stuff from the first half of last century (Tintin, Tarzan ext)and you'll notice the African blacks are portrayed as savage, primitive, animalistic, barely human. Of course they can only be defeated/rescued by imperialistic whites. Exactly how the not-zombies are portrayed in Resident Evil 4.

To the best of my knowledge there is no motif of Spaniards acting the same way.

If there is a competent "civilized" black character in the game, it could make the game less xenophobic.

Here's some archival footage from Bamboozled. Look for the Africans. www.youtube.com/watch?v=C45g3YP7JOk

The problem with RE5's depictions is that to Europeans it's no concern to them because they don't have quite the same ah...unique history as America. The vast majority of the population in this country was alive and vividly remembers a period where people shot at swarms of African-Americans in real life.

The L.A. riots were 16 years ago. Martin Luther King Jr. was shot 40 years ago in Memphis. 62 years ago Disney released a movie about slaves having a grand time on the plantation and singing with cartoons. 146 years ago the Emancipation Proclamation was signed.

Even if the game does feature a black protagonist, it doesn't change the fact that those sorts of images still disturb a lot of people and bring up a lot of ugly memories.