Here's what producer of the game himself said on steam about that blant black racism and cultural appropriation of white, greek culture.
"As stated in other contexts, the Greek gods ruled over the entire world, not just ancient Greece. They are called the Greek gods because the Greeks worshipped them, not because they were ethnically Greek. Various artists may choose to ignore this in their portrayal of the gods, but it does not change the source material. As a lifelong student of Greek myth and the game's writer, my foremost goal in my own work was to honor the source material that has inspired me for so long."
As stated in other contexts, the Greek gods ruled over the entire world, not just ancient Greece.
That's not quite how Greeks conceptualized it. It's counter-intuitive to us today but they were comfortable with other peoples' deities being separate and different than their own pantheon yet equally valid and deserving of respect.
They are called the Greek gods because the Greeks worshiped them, not because they were ethnically Greek.
And yet every time the Greeks portrayed their own gods, they are depicted as looking like Greeks.
Okay, so while I'm not a fan I can accept that they do have artistic liberty to design their characters any way they want... but to actually claim that you're being faithful to the original? What a moron.
They absolutely do, I agree 100%, but I argue their choice isn't artistic liberty, but based on ideology and deliberately defy what people imagine these gods are portrayed in popular culture. It's no different from race swapping in reboots and adaptations. The first deity that helps Hadesman is a black Athena, that is a statement: Fuck you, if you disagree with my choice - you're a bigot.
I quit out, check the wiki, saw all the uggos and got to working on fixing this issue.
Take what he said and would the producer say the same if someone made a game where African deities are replaced by white men with blonde hair? Or is artistic liberty one way with people like him? Past trends indicates he'd be big mad.
I'm reminded of a reddit post I saw a while ago asking why gamers set anime girls as their profile pictures, and the best reply was "because I like it and I don't care what you think." If these guys had gone the same rout I'd fully agree with them, but instead they have to wrap themselves up in lies to try and justify something that doesn't even need justification.
Here's what producer of the game himself said on steam about that blant black racism and cultural appropriation of white, greek culture.
"As stated in other contexts, the Greek gods ruled over the entire world, not just ancient Greece. They are called the Greek gods because the Greeks worshipped them, not because they were ethnically Greek. Various artists may choose to ignore this in their portrayal of the gods, but it does not change the source material. As a lifelong student of Greek myth and the game's writer, my foremost goal in my own work was to honor the source material that has inspired me for so long."
Clown world at it's finest.
The same reasoning used to cast Idris Elba as Heimdall.
The same Heimdall who is referred to in Norse myth as
AND I QUOTE
"Whitest of all the gods."
(thanks to Andrew "The Mythology Guy" Sarran for that info)
That's not quite how Greeks conceptualized it. It's counter-intuitive to us today but they were comfortable with other peoples' deities being separate and different than their own pantheon yet equally valid and deserving of respect.
And yet every time the Greeks portrayed their own gods, they are depicted as looking like Greeks.
Clown world, indeed.
There was also the ancient concept of gods being tied to the land their people claimed as territory.
"How shall we sing the Lord's song in a strange land?"
Okay, so while I'm not a fan I can accept that they do have artistic liberty to design their characters any way they want... but to actually claim that you're being faithful to the original? What a moron.
They absolutely do, I agree 100%, but I argue their choice isn't artistic liberty, but based on ideology and deliberately defy what people imagine these gods are portrayed in popular culture. It's no different from race swapping in reboots and adaptations. The first deity that helps Hadesman is a black Athena, that is a statement: Fuck you, if you disagree with my choice - you're a bigot.
I quit out, check the wiki, saw all the uggos and got to working on fixing this issue.
Take what he said and would the producer say the same if someone made a game where African deities are replaced by white men with blonde hair? Or is artistic liberty one way with people like him? Past trends indicates he'd be big mad.
I'm reminded of a reddit post I saw a while ago asking why gamers set anime girls as their profile pictures, and the best reply was "because I like it and I don't care what you think." If these guys had gone the same rout I'd fully agree with them, but instead they have to wrap themselves up in lies to try and justify something that doesn't even need justification.