I don't know whether I should put this in Chit Chat or Gaming. :dry: I don't even have a PS Vita, but this game caught my attention because it deals with homosexuality and transgender issues (or feminism depending on how you look it). Here's the article I was reading: Denial of the Self: Queer Characters in Persona 4 - GameSpot.com From what I've gathered from the comment section, the author is a transgender woman (which I'm not sure). Her criticisms of the game are valid, especially to us who are so familiar with the LGBT issues. However, the comments in reply to her article greatly baffled me, calling it biased and a political agenda (?). Granted I haven't played the game, but completely dismissing her point of view just because the game never officially stated that the character is gay (even though strongly hinted) is a fail argument to me. And it doesn't matter what the culture in Japan is like, the unfair treatment of LGBT characters is there and she did a good job bringing it up. Homosexuality is illegal in some countries, but we don't ignore it because of the cultural differences between us. Anyway, just have a read.
I've played the original version on PS2 and it is a very good game. Executive meddling meant that Kanji and Naoto were not allowed to "remain" gay and trans respectively, but apart from that it's great. It is a little irking on having a trans character as awesome as Naoto have his identity just be like "I just wanted to be taken seriously as a detective" tacked onto the end of his plot arc after being treated like a legit transman beforehand. Plus, they use this to veto Kanji's homosexuality as he was attracted to Naoto throughout the game and in the end it was just "He's straight because Naoto is actually a girl!". Apart from that, it's really an amazing experience of a game.
Loved the game and loved and agreed with the views expressed in the article. Kanji was by far my favourite character in the game, partially because I went through periods in my life where I felt the same and I felt for him and his story. However, they treated his character development really poorly and I remember trying to develop a social link with him hoping that the main protagonist and Kanji would become boyfriends, but nope... The game tried to show some signs of acceptance, but they really handled the two stories in a conservative manner. What a shame. However, overall the game was top notch, I loved it.
I have played the PS2 version and watched the anime series as well. I agree with the author's argument, but she forgot the fact that the game's original developers (and the setting of the game) is from Japan, a place where being out and about in terms of sexual orientation and/or gender isn't really condoned like it is in the West. The country's approach to homosexuality is analogous to an unofficial DADT. And if someone is out, most likely they'll be treated similarly to how Kanji and Naoto were. So although ATLUS USA translated the game into English, the company wanted to keep as much of the game's original content as possible, such that the Japanese culture was correctly portrayed, even if that meant keeping content that can be perceived as slights against the LGBT community. EDIT: I think the author is likely aware of the cultural differences, so her bringing up of the unfair treatment of Naoto and Kanji is valid.
That's what I meant to say. Just because Japan is different in culture doesn't make it any more right for them to do so, and doesn't make her wrong for pointing out the problems. It's a bit strange though cos I thought Japan was very tolerant of the LGBT?
Well, I absolutely love the game, and series in general. I remember I actually played through Kanji's section back when I was still coming to terms with my own sexuality, so it did irk me a bit that they ended up not even making that the issue, but rather his "love of sewing" or whatever. Although, overall I still did like Kanji's and Naoto's characters and development for what they were. I mean, although Naoto's ended up being less about being transgender, it did touch on sexism and misogyny as issues. But yeah, I can understand how it would be a bit annoying when a game based around facing yourself and acceptance can take these themes then end up discarding them right at the characters most critical developmental stages, especially when so many could identify with them.
Japan's not necessarily supportive of LGBT people and issues. I believe it's seen more as 'don't ask, don't tell'. Like... Whatever you do behind closed doors is fine, as long as it remains behind closed doors, and as long as you uphold your reputation and have a family and etc. It's quite different from Canada and the U.S., that's for sure.
