Last week, Ubisoft raised eyebrows when it issued a vaguely-worded apology for “some elements” in Assassin’s Creed Shadows‘ promotional materials that had “caused concern” among some fans.
Fans widely attributed the statement as referring to the ongoing backlash towards the game’s inclusion of historical figure Yasuke as a Black samurai and its dual protagonist. Moderators of the main Assassin’s Creed reddit this week described the topic as a “tedious discussion” that Ubisoft’s statement had only “exacerbated”.
In contrast, Ubisoft creative director Julian Gerighty has now acknowledged online criticism of Star Wars Outlaws – specifically, the aesthetic appearance of main character Kay Vess – by stating that “bad-faith” debates are “not worth engaging with”.
“Kay is meant to be approachable, a petty thief who ends up barreling through this story, making bad decisions and centered with a lot of humour, humility and toughness. That’s what’s important to me. And she’s beautiful, come on,” Gerighty told The Washington Post, referring to a narrative being pushed by some on YouTube and social media that video game women were no longer ‘attractive enough’.
“It makes no sense to me,” Gerighty continued, “and it’s not worth engaging with. If you engage with bad-faith people, there’s no nuance and no possibility of real dialogue. So all we can do is make the best game possible.”
Star Wars Outlaws, developed by The Division studio Massive Entertainment, is now less than a month from launch. Set during the Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, it features open world action with a story focused on the scrapes of Kay Vess, a Han Solo-esque scoundrel.
Gerighty is heading the project as creative director, after previously directing The Division 2, The Crew, and working as an associate producer on the Splinter Cell series.
“Despite being a blatant mix of all things Ubisoft, Outlaws feels like a proper Star Wars adventure,” our Ian Higton wrote this week after an extended hands-on with Star Wars Outlaws.
Last month, Ubisoft boss Yves Guillemot spoke out to condemn “malicious and personal online attacks” directed at Assassin’s Creed Shadows’ development team in the wake of the game’s reveal.
Assassin’s Creed boss Marc-Alexis Coté has also addressed the matter, and discussed how he reacted to a tweet from billionaire X and Tesla owner Elon Musk criticising diversity in game design.
