A PoC Scion please? There is so much untapped potential here.

[SenorPatty]

Are we really pretending that Y'Shtola is white?

This post reminds me of Twitter complaining about live-action Batwoman character not being gay enough.

Had a good laugh but yikes.

EDIT: Can't remember if it was Twitter or Tumblr

[Lanadra]

Give me Au Ra, male or female. Give me Viera. Give me Hrothgar. Also want me some beast tribe presence in the Scions again, how about a Brotherhood of Ash Amalj'aa?

I'm all for some more diversity of cast, but let's have it be in the context of the setting rather than just forcing real world tokenism into things eh? We already know skin color means nothing in the setting. And no, before some smart ass brings it about, I don't care what skin color my above suggestions are.

[RdehlikaJenma]

Imagine complaining about something as arbitrary as the colour of a character's skin when the Scions are comprised of no less than every single Eorzean race.

[EirolOcarrol]

I never have been a fan of the term "PoC". It's a term that serves to divide and oversimplify people. It's claimed that it formed as a replacement for speech or words like "non-white", which centers white people unnecessarily.
That's the only situation I think there has ever been made a particularly good case for it.

Outside of that, it generalize people on the most broad of concepts as historical, and inaccurate, racial concepts. Just by existing it forwards the idea that there is, in fact, a "white race" and races that are not white. Which itself is rooted in colonialism. It's has all of the flaws of the word "Asian" to describe a group of people, and more. When people use the term "Asian" to just mean "East Asian" and in particular, just people in the Sinosphere, or even just Japanese, Chinese, and Korean people, it generalizes and erases the vast number of people in Asia. North Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Central Asia, Western Asia. Which is a problem many in America have noted. How they feel erased and generalized by the term "Asian" and how it is commonly used.

The term PoC is even worse in that it attempts to treat all people "not white" as having a generalized or shared experience. If treating all Asian people as the same is bad(it is), then treating all people "not white" or "people of colour" as the same, is even worse. Creates 'Us vs. Them' ideas. And reinforces the idea that there is a white race and re-establishes and normalizes cultural ideas about race that are rooted in racism. And while not everyone is offended by this, and instead believes this to be a reclamation, "Person of Colour" is derived from the term and and concept of "Coloured People" which was steeped in racist segregation. It understandably has an uncomfortable history, and not everyone is interested in reclaiming the term "coloured".

Our ideas of race today are rooted in colonialism. And there is no "white race" or for that matter PoC race. There are different cultures, and a large variety. European or Western cultures, Eastern cultures, Native and Indigenous cultures, and African cultures all vary widely. And there is no white or Asian race scientifically. There are varying Haplogroups, and it's unknown what all Haplogroups affect everything about phenotypical appearance we associate culturally with "race". But it is known that all of these Haplogroups are shared between multiple groups. For instance, several Haplogroups are shared across Eurasia, that is, both Europe and Asia. Going back to the most ancient of times, both mutations in Haplogroup and appearance were oft formed in tribes to deal with very cold temperatures. Or environments like deserts. But across Eurasia, you'll find that a lot is shared.

But even then, for modern contexts, the concept of being "white" is not only inaccurate. But white is a still colonial and racist social construct in that in America, we are still under the idea of a "one drop rule". Meaning that even the only slightest of ancestry out of an arbitrary "Europe" concept is excluded from whiteness.


I agree when someone else said here that brown or dark skinned would be a much better thing in some cases. Or we could simply say more diverse would be a good thing. Which it absolutely would. These are both different things that I don't think necessarily need be grouped together under the umbrella of "People of Colour" or "Coloured".

On the note of colour, though. I think one of the criticisms to be made here are definitely that of colourism. It's very clear that a lot of the story and the heroes on focused on those of light skin. Across Final Fantasy XIV, darker skinned characters are in fact quite underrepresented. And certainly the Scions themselves, being largely of Sharlayan, are largely European. Sharlayan has been shown to be very culturally European, thus far. And is located in the Western World of Final Fantasy XIV.

And Africa as a whole has been incredibly ignored culturally. One of the closest we have geographically is Ul'dah, which is akin in ways to North Africa. But below that, it's ocean, and unexplored lands. I think that said lands would be a great opportunity to explore African cultures.

Final Fantasy XIV has done pretty well in that a lot of culture is represented, especially in terms of clothing glamour. But there could still be more. I'm looking forward to seeing the "New World" some day, and seeing characters of indigenous ancestry represented, not just clothing or Blue Mage job. And of course, if we ever get a Koshu/Hingashi expansion, Ainu and Ryukyu cultures would nice to be seen represented, as well. One can say that references like "Kamuy" in XIV are already a degree of slight representation of Ainu culture in Final Fantasy.

African culture, which includes many many groups like Khoisan, and also wider Nilotic culture. Are not only underrepresented here, but in wider video gaming. It would be nice to see some form of Africa in Final Fantasy here. With time and attention like they have given to Far Eastern culture.

And the lack of important figures of dark skin is a disappointment, as well. It's still not to late to add cultures and characters that are more diverse.

[korekera]

PoC is a term because of colonization. The Other is a concept that arises because of the dominance of European states during colonial history. Ignoring the term PoC is to ignore history.

[HotPixels]

What color are you referring to, specifically? A poc could be pink red yellow blue purple I mean endless possibilities

[Kolsykol]

I get the whole issue about inclusion yada yada, but seriously.
Your skin color and sexuality is not a personality.

It's really questionable and bizarre imo to like a character simply because of that, I know that we're on the internet and online people seem to think that labels equate to personality but cmon.
People don't seem to be able to make up their minds about Y'shtola either, I've seen people say she's African and '' fix '' her in fanart by literally giving her '' black features '' but then suddenly she's not whenever it's convenient ( I don't think she has ever been, people are rewriting history ).
I get wanting to see characters that look like you etc, but I really think people put far too much weight on that alone too.
It doesn't make the character a good character.

PoC is a term because of colonization. The Other is a concept that arises because of the dominance of European states during colonial history. Ignoring the term PoC is to ignore history.

The entire planet doesn't revolve around the US or the very specific European countries most closely related to the history of the US ( which is also ignoring all of the colonizing and slavery on a mass scale done by Middle Eastern nations and Empires and other '' PoC '' people like the Japanese themselves in very recent history ).
To use PoC in the way and for the reasons people do is also to ignore history or to very specifically zero in on one very specific part of history that is not relevant to everyone.

We're not talking on a forum dedicated to US politics right now, this is a global forum and a game made by the Japanese.
PoC is a strange term imo too because '' colored people '' is meant to be racist as far as I understand and I really don't see how it's any different.
And very specifically excluding '' white people '' which is a term in and of itself that is ahistorical and oversimplifying things from a very US pov too also excludes people with hundreds years of history of being oppressed much of which is still being felt today.

I swear I hate how US-centric the internet is, things are not and have never been this simple.
The US is a very young country with a very young history and Europe is not homogeneous.

[Lauront]

I get the whole issue about inclusion yada yada, but seriously.
Your skin color and sexuality is not a personality.

It's really questionable and bizarre imo to like a character simply because of that, I know that we're on the internet and online people seem to think that labels equate to personality but cmon.
People don't seem to be able to make up their minds about Y'shtola either, I've seen people say she's African and '' fix '' her in fanart by literally giving her '' black features '' but then suddenly she's not whenever it's convenient ( I don't think she has ever been, people are rewriting history ).
I get wanting to see characters that look like you etc, but I really think people put far too much weight on that alone too.
It doesn't make the character a good character.



The entire planet doesn't revolve around the US or the very specific European countries most closely related to the history of the US ( which is also ignoring all of the colonizing and slavery on a mass scale done by Middle Eastern nations and Empires and other '' PoC '' people like the Japanese themselves in very recent history ).
To use PoC in the way and for the reasons people do is also to ignore history or to very specifically zero in on one very specific part of history that is not relevant to everyone.

We're not talking on a forum dedicated to US politics right now, this is a global forum and a game made by the Japanese.
PoC is a strange term imo too because '' colored people '' is meant to be racist as far as I understand and I really don't see how it's any different.
And very specifically excluding '' white people '' which is a term in and of itself that is ahistorical and oversimplifying things from a very US pov too also excludes people with hundreds years of history of being oppressed much of which is still being felt today.

Very well said.

I swear I hate how US-centric the internet is, things are not and have never been this simple.

Same. Especially when things are copy/pasted from the US, usually by grievance groups trying to find a way to clumsily force through the same narratives (that are debatable even in the US' case) and apply them here.

The US is a very young country with a very young history and Europe is not homogeneous.

Too true.

[VelKallor]

But for this and only this I am obligated to agree with you.

No.

Baelsars's loyalty is to the Empire, or at least the one he believed he wanted to serve, and now is in Werlyt , atoning for his mistakes and trying to find peace after the horrors he has seen.

Canonically and otherwise, it would be totally out of character, he has his own path.

[Laerune]

PoC have always been absent in Japanese games. If I am correct only Jrpg where a black character becomes a party-member is Final Fantasy. In other Jrpgs darker skinnen characters are just tanned.
Maybe it's Japanese culture or Asian culture (it's a known thing that in alot of Asian countries darker skin is seen as a sign of poverty), I don't think SE is racist, but I too would like to see more diversity.