I’m genuinely curious
2 Likes
the character design can be seen as racist by a large portion of the world. if overwatch wasnt being treated like a serious e-sports game they could do it humorously and get away with it, but even that way as they see themselves now it could be considered very racist.
fat authoritative asian woman named Mama Hong, how does it not seem racist on paper?
EDIT: Imma move this up here cause this topic is hitting the point where people are reading the first 10 posts and skipping to reply and I keep getting alerts on this thread people replying at me thinking I’m picking sides or something and I’m not. I’m but if I was it would be for MH
7 Likes
She’s not? Didn’t everybody lover her for being ridiculously unique and absolutely wish she’s an actual hero?
26 Likes
Forget Doomfist we wanted Mama Hong. Imagine throwing a slipper at Hanzo’s head and getting a headshot.
31 Likes
The community loved her, but according to Jeff she was one of the most controversial heroes along with Hammond
I think calling an ability “Manslaughter” has to do with it.
2 Likes
But… but…
She’s got one of the most genuine designs out there. REAL people look like Mama Hong, not Widowmaker or D.va.
4 Likes
I feel like it falls under the realm of people wanting Jetpack Cat - they just like it for the memes of it.
Having an ability called Manslaughter, and having a hero design that can easily be interpreted as stereotypical/racist may not fly well.
3 Likes
I’m quite certain there are plenty of real women who are more akin to D.va than to Mama Hong, at least superficially (which is all we really have to go on).
Maybe they’re not genetically engineered to be blue and sociopathic, but…
2 Likes
Well this community is very big on racial representation being done properly or at least it being done in a positive light. Mama Hong is a stereotype and if the sensitive ppl here won’t attack it, the people outside the community will.
She’s probably based off the landlord from big trouble little China. Or was it Kung fu hustle?
2 Likes
I always have to think of this character from Kong Fu Hustle when someone brings up Mama Hong.
18 Likes
Lion Roar.
OP pls nerf.
1 Like
Guess you’ve never been outside yet. Spoiler alert, girls with their bodies are all over, especially college towns.
3 Likes
If she was controversial to the devs it would be in the same sense Hammond was considered controversial at release, with a great many people raising their eyebrow thinking it was a radical departure tonally inconsistent with the Overwatch lore/aesthetic/universe of heroes up until that point. He wasn’t met with much fanfare unfortunately, even though people have come to accept him and he fits very neatly into the roster.
I would love Mama Hong tbh. A no-nonsense asian woman that’s been through some sh*t. Possibly a leader in the Asian mafia or a war vet. Maybe even an engineer that builds mechs or something.
I think if done properly she wouldn’t be reduced to a stereotype and would be insanely unique!
6 Likes
I still believe she will be a character soon. Probably after this crazy Omnic dude, and/or Echo.
Can’t portray an asian as fat an authoritative but we can portray australians like fat serial killers or amputee explosive maniacs without batting an eye.
Double standards again.
1 Like
Mama Hong is a stereotype that’s not instantly racist because Mama Hong is actually a stereotype of Lady Landlords because she exists in just about every color there is. Y’know, the lady with the curlers in the middle of the day, aerodynamic slippers, long-lasting cigarettes, worn-down robe, and she’s usually a bit outta shape.
That aside, she doesn’t really have a place in Overwatch naturally. She’d have to be roped in somehow. Though regardless, being a stereotype of a landlord lady isn’t very nice to successful landlord ladies who already get enough crap because they are ladies (welcome to our crappy world!) - and ofc she’d be inherently more for comedic effect than Junkrat or Hammond. So there’s just so many hoops to jump through for a comedic relief/semi-insulting/random Hero… For what reason besides the memes?
However, having her reworked to look more like a rough business lady with a “Mama Hong” personality wouldn’t be too offensive. It’d essentially means she’d be like Ashe, except she gets her hands dirty up close and doesn’t have people fight her battles for her. And she’d be downright horrifying to cross. They could make her Canadian to avert the Canadian stereotype too lmao.
1 Like
Only one of those things has been any kind of recurring trope in media with some suuuuper sketchy history behind it, though.
Like, it’s the difference between Soldier:76 getting some loving ribbing for his dad-like tendencies (“Get off my lawn”, the Grillmaster outfit, etc.), as opposed to if they turned him into Homer Simpson (bumbling incompetent Sitcom Dad). The first kind is cute and likeable, the second could be potentially bothersome.
Mama Hong would have to be very, very carefully designed to not come across as racist, and/or as misogynist, and/or so completely cartoony that she doesn’t seem like a real person alongside the other heroes.
Doesn’t mean it can’t happen, but her premise is a bit inherently fraught.
That said, I’d love to see more older women in the game, and/or any woman who is on the heavy side (as opposed to “gently thicc and wearing a parka”), and/or any woman who isn’t conventionally attractive and is also not treated as a joke because of that.
2 Likes
I think what a lot of people consider racist about the design we’ve seen is that they gave an asian character cartoonish “squinty eyes” instead of normal eyes like everyone else. The other asian characters in the game have regular human eyes; the one picture we’ve seen of Mama Hong has eyes like an asian joke character in South Park. If they could make her face less of a questionable caricature it would be fine.