Final Fantasy XVI Dev Has A Terrible Answer For Why The Game Is So White

I just rewatched the latest trailer, the one embedded above, and saw a giant winged lady throw ice shards. Apparently that’s not too over-the-top for fantasy realism, but bringing in real people from different races is a step too far. Localization director Michael-Christopher Koji Fox told IGN that the game drew inspiration from Game of Thrones. But even GoT had Black side characters (albeit represented very poorly). FFXVI might be worse about representation than one of the most white-bread shows on prestige television.

So why did the developers decide to include only white characters in the trailer? Yoshida has an answer that sounds entirely like a non-answer. “It can be challenging to assign distinctive ethnicities to either antagonist or protagonist without triggering audience preconceptions, inviting unwarranted speculation, and ultimately stoking flames of controversy,” he told IGN.

I believe that the developers can overcome that challenge without blowing up the internet. If the AAA blockbuster God of War: Ragnarök can feature a Black Angrboda as a major character in its Norse mythology, then a totally made-up world can do the same. Especially if the developers are looking to make Final Fantasy into a modern franchise that feels fresh to newcomers to the series.

These new quotes make me feel very cynical about Yoshida’s comments from a previous interview. In August, he said that he wanted to revitalize the Final Fantasy series, which had become mired in its own longstanding tradition. “In terms of whether Final Fantasy is successfully adapting to industry trends, I believe the series is currently struggling,” he said in the interview with Inverse. You know what doesn’t help with trying to make Final Fantasy not feel like it’s over 30 years old? Giving fans an all-white cast that runs counter to both industry standards and actual history.

For all that Yoshida is lauded for being the man who saved the Final Fantasy franchise, his creativity is also limited by a genre that has never been fair to Black and brown fans around the world. FFXVI may be the most “mature” game in the series, but its outlook on human history is a step backward for modern JRPGs.