Real, lived experiences are some of the strongest influences in art.
It's AAPI Heritage Month--an annual reminder that Asian and Pacific Islander influences are worth celebrating. AAPI doesn't just include East Asian cultures like Chinese, Japanese, and Korean, but a wide range of racial and ethnic groups including South Asian and Native Hawaiian. As a Filipino-American, I also fall under the AAPI umbrella.
While the term helps rally support and advocacy behind a large chunk of racial and ethnic groups, it can be difficult to define because of that broadness. Those who identify as AAPI often have the perspective of growing up abroad and either coming from a different country or being born to immigrant parents. That opens the door to a unique experience full of its own pros and cons, not quite fitting in with the people from your ethnic group but also not quite fitting in with the foreign culture your family is trying to assimilate into.
It's an experience that isn't easy to explain in just a few words, though some games manage to get the message across in impactful, meaningful ways. In the past few years, we've enjoyed games from AAPI developers such as Venba, 1000xResist, and Butterfly Soup--and those are just the start. Some of these games have AAPI developers directly at the helm and even sometimes feature stories about first- and second-generation AAPI characters.
Outside of that, games like A Space From The Unbound from Indonesia and Until Then from the Philippines are helping to round out East Asian-heavy representation of the cultures underneath the AAPI umbrella, even if they aren't created by Asians overseas. Both types of games give us powerful narratives to relate to and prove how even those who can't personally relate to AAPI heritage can appreciate other cultures and the depth they bring to a story.
To celebrate AAPI month, GameSpot gathered thoughts from AAPI developers and professionals in the gaming industry about what AAPI month means to them and how their identity has shaped their work:
1000xResist
"Our whole mission with 1000xRESIST was to see ourselves, and Asian diasporic stories, in-game and on screen, portrayed with dignity. To realize our desire for these stories to be told in ambitious and experimental ways, that held space for dreaming, yearning, and searching. Our identity and lived experiences are such a huge part of the work we make, and we try to lean into the specific as much as possible. This month really reminds me of the kinds of sacrifices the previous generation made, under hostility and discrimination. I don't want to take that for granted, and I want to fight to continue to tell these stories, especially with and for other AAPI creators." -- Remy Sin, Creative Director of 1000xResist
"AAPI Month has, in the past, left me feeling a bit complicated as someone who is half Korean and--especially growing up--was unsure how I fit into the celebrations as someone 'in-between.' The ways that games have typically interpreted and portrayed 'Asians' as a monolith honestly didn't help much either. What has helped is media--by AAPI developers--that's highlighted the variations, range, and richness of the Asian-American experience. As cheesy as it sounds, games (like Half, 1000xRESIST, Venba, Butterfly Soup 2) have helped me explore my bi-racial, second-generation identity, and I hope we continue to see more." -- Jenny Windom, Communications Director, Ivy Road; Co-Owner, Soft Not Weak; Organizer/Host, Wholesome Games
"Truth be told, AAPI month always felt like a tricky one. You see, most of my life, it always felt like being of Indian descent didn't qualify as 'Asian.' Which is utterly ridiculous because the country is literally in Asia! But even more importantly: 'Asian' celebrations and media usually didn't include people of darker skin tones. I was different but not the 'right kind' of different. The stereotypes and racist remarks that my community was subject to were of violence and filth. On a positive note, though, I do think that diversity culture is slowly changing. I am seeing more people who look like me, with actual personalities, being portrayed on screen. Hey, I even got to write my thoughts for AAPI month on GameSpot, ha!" -- Neha Patel, Composer/Sound Designer
"There is so much to AAPI heritage, but at the end of the day I'm grateful for the sense of camaraderie and joy we can find in each other. Everything I do now is influenced by the support I was surrounded by in my culture. And as we continue to tell our stories, I hope we see more variety in AAPI developers, aesthetics, and themes." -- Victoria Tran, Communications Director at Innersloth
Butterfly Soup
"Every project I've worked on contains a small reflection of my Filipino-American identity in hopes that those who interact with it may see a piece of themselves in it, too. Representation is endlessly impactful, especially in an immersive medium like video games. It welcomes more people to feel a sense of belonging, allowing our imagined worlds to reflect the diverse one we live in today. AAPI Heritage Month is always a lovely reminder of how much pride we all have in our unique cultures and how important it is to celebrate and embrace it within our industry!" -- Belinda Garcia-Maguid, Game Writer and Narrative Designer at Crystal Dynamics
"Three years ago, I met an Asian-American narrative designer for the first time and realized I could also become one. Meeting her broke an imaginary boundary I didn't know I drew between my creative and professional identities, and I remember asking her what it was like being the only AAPI writer on her team. She just shrugged, and said when I joined the industry, there'd be at least two of us. Now, as an early career developer, I'm reminded how representation demonstrates to aspiring AAPI developers that they have a place in games to exist and thrive. Even as the industry struggles, I'm still excited for the day when I can say: 'Well, there's at least three of us.'" -- Anne Zhang-Huang, Associate Narrative Designer at Zenimax Online Studios
"My game is set in Ontario in 1914, and I knew that I would be including a Japanese-Canadian character to honour my family heritage. The first wave of Japanese immigrants to Canada started around 1877. My grandmother on my father's side was born in Vancouver in 1912. Representation in our media is so important because historically this representation hasn't been common--d – Despite the fact that diverse populations were and are the reality, more often than not." -- Julia Minamata, Solo Indie Game Developer of The Crimson Diamond
"The rising tide of AAPI representation lately fills me with so much pride. In Everything Everywhere All At Once, I saw my mother: from her sensible shoes and puffer vest to her toiling in a mom-and-pop laundromat. In the rise of K-pop, I see people who look like me held up as aspirational figures, influencing generations worldwide in the way they look and dress. I didn't have this growing up, though being born and raised in Los Angeles meant that I never felt like a minority (even though I was, in a numerical sense). In my own work, I'm proud to express my diverse viewpoints with my love of character and emotional conflicts; things that don't scream 'the Asian experience' at the forefront, and yet are made up of references from how I grew up and the traits I value. I love AAPI Heritage Month as a beautiful celebration to highlight all the different voices that make our worlds, both real and fictional, all the more interesting." -- Karrie Shao, Lead Narrative Designer & Lead Writer of Pacific Drive
Pacific Drive
"I've lived in the US as a US citizen for 85% of my life and I'm still wondering how long I have to live here to be accepted as an American. As a kid, I assumed things would get better as time went on and never did I think back then attitudes would start going backwards. It's true, if we look back at where racial acceptance was 50 or a 100 years ago, things have gotten better but in my life and where we are, it certainly doesn't feel that way. I see some changes and want a bright future for my teen sons as they navigate their way to adulthood but at the same time I worry. That worry might be just how every parent is with generational divides and the idea of loss and the idea that we won't be around to see our kids' story play out fully into their lives.
"What I like for them to remember is that their differences in their mixed Asian heritage is what makes them unique and instead of shying away from it like I did as a new immigrant kid learning English for the first time., I want them to own it and be proud of it. It's easier said than done but I have hope. The reason we still (for now) recognize AAPI and other non-dominant cultures is because it's important to understand that the US is a land of diversity and a land of immigrants. People in power tend to forget that this country was not theirs but it was taken by bloody conflict and by force. Dominant culture likes to simplify and establish a very narrow set of rules of what it means to be an American but we know it's more nuanced than that. It's why stories and sharing experiences are important and why we and our studio focuses on games about underrepresented cultures and themes. I'm hopeful, cautiously hopeful and I know I've got to do my part in creating interesting experiences to keep pushing the idea of the variety of people that make up this country." -- Chandana Ekanayake, Creative Director at Outerloop Games
"We've made a lot of strides in representation when it comes to video games. Institutions may not be there yet, but I do believe players are! The love and support our game has gotten stands as testament to that. However, video games are a truly global medium. Too often, discussion of representation is limited to works from the diaspora in the West. I would like to see the industry as a whole make more of an effort to pay attention to and support works from underrepresented regions, too. There is a growing game development scene in South Asia that I'm personally very excited about, and I would love all inclusion efforts to reach farther than the Western-centric approach we default to." -- Abhi, Creative Director and Founder of Visai Games
Venba
"Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month is a time of reflection of our immigrant histories, arts, and the unevenly experienced socioeconomic and civic participation. Although there have been brilliant titles in recent years that highlight the unique challenges faced by the Asian diaspora, we devs have more work ahead of us to highlight that Asian experiences aren't interchangeable and monolithic to both the industry and the public. Just as the census has increased ethnic origin specificity (such as including Hong Kong in the 2021 Canadian census), games deserve representation that reflects the complexity of our cultural and civic preoccupations." -- Tanya Kan, Executive Producer and Director at Vivid Foundry
"There was a time I provided cultural consultation on a past title. I remember being shown concept art for the villain who was supposed to be an older man. In one of the iterations, he was wearing a taqiyah, which is a prayer cap worn by men in many different countries around the world who follow Islam. I expressed concern over that specific choice because it belongs to a group of minorities who are rarely represented to begin with. I felt having a practicing Muslim man portrayed as the 'bad guy' could send the wrong message and be seen as disrespectful to those who follow Islam. The artist thanked me for the insight and went in a different direction as a result. While there is a wealth of knowledge that we can find online, there is nothing that beats lived experience when it comes to cultural nuances and making sure all minorities are represented correctly and respectfully." -- Neha Nair, Campaign Marketing Manager at The New Blank
"Games inspire. They inspire players to face challenges creatively; to explore endlessly; to see themselves in unexpected reflections. They inspire gamemakers to design for different minds; to imagine bigger, bolder worlds; to respect the audience's most valuable resource of time. For players and developers both, diversity makes the material for inspiration richer. It widens the pool of perspectives to draw from in making games, and broadens the invitation of play to people across all markers of identity.
"That's the big philosophy, and in practice, my identity has affected my work in treasured ways. It's connected me to fellow devs and players, with precious moments of Pinoy and LGBT pride. It's empowered me to be unafraid in drawing from my own background in what I create. But most importantly, it's made me a stronger, more empathetic, more open-minded observer and listener, who readily welcomes inspiration from others and hopefully inspires others in turn. Happy AAPI Heritage Month and Pride Month! Isang Bagsak!" -- Isa Mari De Leon, Narrative Writer at Riot Games
Source
It's AAPI Heritage Month--an annual reminder that Asian and Pacific Islander influences are worth celebrating. AAPI doesn't just include East Asian cultures like Chinese, Japanese, and Korean, but a wide range of racial and ethnic groups including South Asian and Native Hawaiian. As a Filipino-American, I also fall under the AAPI umbrella.
While the term helps rally support and advocacy behind a large chunk of racial and ethnic groups, it can be difficult to define because of that broadness. Those who identify as AAPI often have the perspective of growing up abroad and either coming from a different country or being born to immigrant parents. That opens the door to a unique experience full of its own pros and cons, not quite fitting in with the people from your ethnic group but also not quite fitting in with the foreign culture your family is trying to assimilate into.
It's an experience that isn't easy to explain in just a few words, though some games manage to get the message across in impactful, meaningful ways. In the past few years, we've enjoyed games from AAPI developers such as Venba, 1000xResist, and Butterfly Soup--and those are just the start. Some of these games have AAPI developers directly at the helm and even sometimes feature stories about first- and second-generation AAPI characters.
Outside of that, games like A Space From The Unbound from Indonesia and Until Then from the Philippines are helping to round out East Asian-heavy representation of the cultures underneath the AAPI umbrella, even if they aren't created by Asians overseas. Both types of games give us powerful narratives to relate to and prove how even those who can't personally relate to AAPI heritage can appreciate other cultures and the depth they bring to a story.
To celebrate AAPI month, GameSpot gathered thoughts from AAPI developers and professionals in the gaming industry about what AAPI month means to them and how their identity has shaped their work:
1000xResist
"Our whole mission with 1000xRESIST was to see ourselves, and Asian diasporic stories, in-game and on screen, portrayed with dignity. To realize our desire for these stories to be told in ambitious and experimental ways, that held space for dreaming, yearning, and searching. Our identity and lived experiences are such a huge part of the work we make, and we try to lean into the specific as much as possible. This month really reminds me of the kinds of sacrifices the previous generation made, under hostility and discrimination. I don't want to take that for granted, and I want to fight to continue to tell these stories, especially with and for other AAPI creators." -- Remy Sin, Creative Director of 1000xResist
"AAPI Month has, in the past, left me feeling a bit complicated as someone who is half Korean and--especially growing up--was unsure how I fit into the celebrations as someone 'in-between.' The ways that games have typically interpreted and portrayed 'Asians' as a monolith honestly didn't help much either. What has helped is media--by AAPI developers--that's highlighted the variations, range, and richness of the Asian-American experience. As cheesy as it sounds, games (like Half, 1000xRESIST, Venba, Butterfly Soup 2) have helped me explore my bi-racial, second-generation identity, and I hope we continue to see more." -- Jenny Windom, Communications Director, Ivy Road; Co-Owner, Soft Not Weak; Organizer/Host, Wholesome Games
"Truth be told, AAPI month always felt like a tricky one. You see, most of my life, it always felt like being of Indian descent didn't qualify as 'Asian.' Which is utterly ridiculous because the country is literally in Asia! But even more importantly: 'Asian' celebrations and media usually didn't include people of darker skin tones. I was different but not the 'right kind' of different. The stereotypes and racist remarks that my community was subject to were of violence and filth. On a positive note, though, I do think that diversity culture is slowly changing. I am seeing more people who look like me, with actual personalities, being portrayed on screen. Hey, I even got to write my thoughts for AAPI month on GameSpot, ha!" -- Neha Patel, Composer/Sound Designer
"There is so much to AAPI heritage, but at the end of the day I'm grateful for the sense of camaraderie and joy we can find in each other. Everything I do now is influenced by the support I was surrounded by in my culture. And as we continue to tell our stories, I hope we see more variety in AAPI developers, aesthetics, and themes." -- Victoria Tran, Communications Director at Innersloth
Butterfly Soup
"Every project I've worked on contains a small reflection of my Filipino-American identity in hopes that those who interact with it may see a piece of themselves in it, too. Representation is endlessly impactful, especially in an immersive medium like video games. It welcomes more people to feel a sense of belonging, allowing our imagined worlds to reflect the diverse one we live in today. AAPI Heritage Month is always a lovely reminder of how much pride we all have in our unique cultures and how important it is to celebrate and embrace it within our industry!" -- Belinda Garcia-Maguid, Game Writer and Narrative Designer at Crystal Dynamics
"Three years ago, I met an Asian-American narrative designer for the first time and realized I could also become one. Meeting her broke an imaginary boundary I didn't know I drew between my creative and professional identities, and I remember asking her what it was like being the only AAPI writer on her team. She just shrugged, and said when I joined the industry, there'd be at least two of us. Now, as an early career developer, I'm reminded how representation demonstrates to aspiring AAPI developers that they have a place in games to exist and thrive. Even as the industry struggles, I'm still excited for the day when I can say: 'Well, there's at least three of us.'" -- Anne Zhang-Huang, Associate Narrative Designer at Zenimax Online Studios
"My game is set in Ontario in 1914, and I knew that I would be including a Japanese-Canadian character to honour my family heritage. The first wave of Japanese immigrants to Canada started around 1877. My grandmother on my father's side was born in Vancouver in 1912. Representation in our media is so important because historically this representation hasn't been common--d – Despite the fact that diverse populations were and are the reality, more often than not." -- Julia Minamata, Solo Indie Game Developer of The Crimson Diamond
"The rising tide of AAPI representation lately fills me with so much pride. In Everything Everywhere All At Once, I saw my mother: from her sensible shoes and puffer vest to her toiling in a mom-and-pop laundromat. In the rise of K-pop, I see people who look like me held up as aspirational figures, influencing generations worldwide in the way they look and dress. I didn't have this growing up, though being born and raised in Los Angeles meant that I never felt like a minority (even though I was, in a numerical sense). In my own work, I'm proud to express my diverse viewpoints with my love of character and emotional conflicts; things that don't scream 'the Asian experience' at the forefront, and yet are made up of references from how I grew up and the traits I value. I love AAPI Heritage Month as a beautiful celebration to highlight all the different voices that make our worlds, both real and fictional, all the more interesting." -- Karrie Shao, Lead Narrative Designer & Lead Writer of Pacific Drive
Pacific Drive
"I've lived in the US as a US citizen for 85% of my life and I'm still wondering how long I have to live here to be accepted as an American. As a kid, I assumed things would get better as time went on and never did I think back then attitudes would start going backwards. It's true, if we look back at where racial acceptance was 50 or a 100 years ago, things have gotten better but in my life and where we are, it certainly doesn't feel that way. I see some changes and want a bright future for my teen sons as they navigate their way to adulthood but at the same time I worry. That worry might be just how every parent is with generational divides and the idea of loss and the idea that we won't be around to see our kids' story play out fully into their lives.
"What I like for them to remember is that their differences in their mixed Asian heritage is what makes them unique and instead of shying away from it like I did as a new immigrant kid learning English for the first time., I want them to own it and be proud of it. It's easier said than done but I have hope. The reason we still (for now) recognize AAPI and other non-dominant cultures is because it's important to understand that the US is a land of diversity and a land of immigrants. People in power tend to forget that this country was not theirs but it was taken by bloody conflict and by force. Dominant culture likes to simplify and establish a very narrow set of rules of what it means to be an American but we know it's more nuanced than that. It's why stories and sharing experiences are important and why we and our studio focuses on games about underrepresented cultures and themes. I'm hopeful, cautiously hopeful and I know I've got to do my part in creating interesting experiences to keep pushing the idea of the variety of people that make up this country." -- Chandana Ekanayake, Creative Director at Outerloop Games
"We've made a lot of strides in representation when it comes to video games. Institutions may not be there yet, but I do believe players are! The love and support our game has gotten stands as testament to that. However, video games are a truly global medium. Too often, discussion of representation is limited to works from the diaspora in the West. I would like to see the industry as a whole make more of an effort to pay attention to and support works from underrepresented regions, too. There is a growing game development scene in South Asia that I'm personally very excited about, and I would love all inclusion efforts to reach farther than the Western-centric approach we default to." -- Abhi, Creative Director and Founder of Visai Games
Venba
"Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month is a time of reflection of our immigrant histories, arts, and the unevenly experienced socioeconomic and civic participation. Although there have been brilliant titles in recent years that highlight the unique challenges faced by the Asian diaspora, we devs have more work ahead of us to highlight that Asian experiences aren't interchangeable and monolithic to both the industry and the public. Just as the census has increased ethnic origin specificity (such as including Hong Kong in the 2021 Canadian census), games deserve representation that reflects the complexity of our cultural and civic preoccupations." -- Tanya Kan, Executive Producer and Director at Vivid Foundry
"There was a time I provided cultural consultation on a past title. I remember being shown concept art for the villain who was supposed to be an older man. In one of the iterations, he was wearing a taqiyah, which is a prayer cap worn by men in many different countries around the world who follow Islam. I expressed concern over that specific choice because it belongs to a group of minorities who are rarely represented to begin with. I felt having a practicing Muslim man portrayed as the 'bad guy' could send the wrong message and be seen as disrespectful to those who follow Islam. The artist thanked me for the insight and went in a different direction as a result. While there is a wealth of knowledge that we can find online, there is nothing that beats lived experience when it comes to cultural nuances and making sure all minorities are represented correctly and respectfully." -- Neha Nair, Campaign Marketing Manager at The New Blank
"Games inspire. They inspire players to face challenges creatively; to explore endlessly; to see themselves in unexpected reflections. They inspire gamemakers to design for different minds; to imagine bigger, bolder worlds; to respect the audience's most valuable resource of time. For players and developers both, diversity makes the material for inspiration richer. It widens the pool of perspectives to draw from in making games, and broadens the invitation of play to people across all markers of identity.
"That's the big philosophy, and in practice, my identity has affected my work in treasured ways. It's connected me to fellow devs and players, with precious moments of Pinoy and LGBT pride. It's empowered me to be unafraid in drawing from my own background in what I create. But most importantly, it's made me a stronger, more empathetic, more open-minded observer and listener, who readily welcomes inspiration from others and hopefully inspires others in turn. Happy AAPI Heritage Month and Pride Month! Isang Bagsak!" -- Isa Mari De Leon, Narrative Writer at Riot Games
Source