9 Overused Video Game Criticisms That Make No Sense

3. "Representation Is 'Pandering'"

Representation has become a major talking point across media over the last few years, and given how cinema, TV and games all traditionally skew towards straight white men, it's definitely been refreshing to see more diversity as of late.

But of course, to some, the prospect of playing as anything other than a generic white guy with a giant beard is unconscionable, and presenting players with a female, ethnic or LGBTQ hero is "pandering" to the "SJWs."

For instance, there was considerable uproar over the lesbian kiss in the E3 trailer for The Last of Us Part II, as though a tender moment between two consenting individuals is somehow controversial.

But in 2019, where Donald Trump is the President of the United States, the world isn't quite as progressive and permissive as many hope it to be.

For another example, Ubisoft (finally) letting people play as a woman in Assassin's Creed isn't merely some lazy attempt to score easy political points.

Giving players more options to see someone like them on-screen (where appropriate) is good for everyone - it betters people's sense of self, and allows others to more easily identify with them as, you know, actual human beings.