|
OMG have you seen the boob job Nintendo gave Zero Suit Samus? They're so full, so perfectly sculpted - a delicate harmony of anti aliased pixelage. They're how boobs are supposed to look. And on Samus, they look REPULSIVE!
In 1986, Nintendo released Metroid - a landmark title in what would become one of the video game industry's most important franchises. Metroid gained notoriety for its solid gameplay, creepy sci-fi tone and fittingly eerie soundtrack. But perhaps Metroid's most significant contribution to video gaming is Samus Aran herself - never before had a video game featured such a capable female protagonist. In an industry dominated by male leads, females are often limited to the sexy-but-helpless-damsel-in-distress role. Not Samus, who is single-handedly capable of exterminating broods of blood-sucking aliens. She's an iconic independent woman, not unlike Beyonce, Hillary Clinton or Betty Friedan.
OK, let's be fair. If Nintendo has a sex symbol, Samus is clearly it. But let's reel off a Sesame Street exercise here - Tifa Lockhart, Lara Croft, Rayne, Nina Williams, Samus Aran. Which one doesn't belong? While the first four VG vixens are all known for their exaggerated femme features and have exuded sexuality since their conception, Samus is the outliar. Until you beat the original Metroid game with a good end time, you had no idea Samus was a woman. Even the instruction booklet referred to her as "him." Her outfit, the Power Suit, covers more skin than a burqa. Samus, therefore, was initially characterized based on her merits - a revenge-seeking (her family was killed by space pirates), strong-willed, ass kicking woman who didn't have to flash curves to turn heads. We always knew she was athletic and capable. Her lack of dialogue (both in-game text and audio dialogue) gives her a sexy mystique that naturally keeps men wanting.
The key difference here is the likes of Lara Croft and Rayne sell games based on the initial "ooo, boobage!" reaction - gamers who think with their groins - followed by (hopefully) decent gameplay, while Nintendo sells Metroid games emphasizing gameplay first. While it's true that Nintendo awards Metroid players who finish quickly or collect all the game's items with progressively revealing photo galleries of Samus, curvature has never been the character's focal point. In fact, Metroid: Zero Mission developers purposely kept Samus's end-game galleries tame.
Fast forward to the highly anticipated release of Super Smash Bros. Brawl, where Zero Suit Samus skimps around with a suggestive whip and form-fitting outfit that makes Jessica Alba's Invisible Woman of the Fantastic Four look like Shirley Temple in overalls. Couldn't Nintendo have made her boobs at least a little more moderate? Even toy company Mattel de-skanked their Barbie doll, ending generations of precedence that incited subconscious insecurities in pre-teen girls...for the sake of social responsibility.
SSBB will be a top 3 seller on the Wii, and is likely a defining killer app for the system. The game will outsell even the best of the Metroid series, a franchise that takes a backseat to Nintendo's Mario and Zelda. Zero Suit Samus's sex appeal will undoubtedly introduce new Metroid players in the same way Marth's presence did for the Fire Emblem series in Super Smash Bros. Melee. But Marth isn't showing off his rippling six-pack or buldging biceps to do it, so why the boob job for Samus?
Samus is like the Audrey Hepburn of the gaming industry - a woman lauded for her acting prowess whose classy physical beauty is merely an added bonus, and if Nintendo isn't careful, Samus's image will quickly drop from Hepburn status to something along the lines of Anna Nicole Smith. The Metroid series is known for its exploration elements, alien ass-kicking and unrivaled gameplay. Nintendo, if you are listening, please save this series from becoming Dead or Alive Beach Volleyball. We know you are better than this.
We understand that sex sells. But at the expense of selling out? OK, so Samus probably needs a skin-tight Under Armor type outfit to hang with the likes of Fox, Sheik and Captain Falcon, but couldn't Nintendo have given her chest a few less pixels in favor of her dignity that they've spent the last two decades building?
Nintendo has long been praised for Samus's positive portrayal of women in video games. If they are not careful, the praise may end with Super Smash Bros. Brawl.
{tag Samus} | {tag Nintendo} | {tag boobs} | {tag Metroid} | {tag SSBB} | {tag Zero Suit Samus}
Trackback(0)
|
TrackBack URI for this entry
Subscribe to this comment's feed
