‘Eve doesn’t realize her wobbly butt is being watched’: why action game ‘Stellar Blade’ is causing a stir

When Korean game studio Shift Up released an extended trailer for Stellar Blade, has been released exclusively for PlayStation 5 since today, and initially it seemed to cause little stir. It would be a straightforward, hard-hitting action adventure with a graphic style indebted to Japanese anime. FinalFantasy. But the game seemed to contain little individuality. Or at least except for the physical presence of main character Eve. The heroine, dressed in a lycra costume that leaves little to the imagination, is equipped with rather excessive feminine features. And that caused a stir.

Maker Hyung-Tae Kim gave in an interview with vakplatform GamesRadar to know that that was a very conscious choice, and that the developers gave “special attention” to the rear of Eve. Partly because “the player is constantly looking at the character’s back,” but also because he “would rather see someone more attractive than himself” while playing games.

It led to numerous enthusiastic reactions from the gaming community who appreciated such a highly sexualized female main character. Some went even further and see Stellar Blade as a ‘middle finger to woke’, in an era where video game protagonists are often criticized for ‘not attractive enough’. But others are equally uncomfortable with Eve’s design and Shift Up’s rather voyeuristic vision. It raises questions about the balance between artistic freedom and respect for gender equality.

Feminist icon

Game expert Obi Mundorff, himself a member of the LGBTQ+ community, explains: “I don’t think anyone makes a problem of sexy women in games. The Belgian hit Baldur’s Gate 3, for example, is full of seductive characters hanging out half-naked in your camp. Hades highlights flirty Greek gods who only cover themselves with a loin or nipple cloth here and there. Bayonetta is a hypersexual Japanese game about a woman who technically doesn’t even wear clothes – her outfit consists solely of her magical hairstyle. So yes, that balance exists.”

But, says Mundorff, at Stellar Blade there is indeed a remarkable difference. “I get the feeling that Eve doesn’t quite realize that her wiggling butt is being looked at in a sexual way when she slides down a ladder. This is in contrast to Bayonetta, who is even completely naked in her strongest moments, but chooses to do so herself: she is sexy, she knows it and literally draws strength from her sexuality. That’s why she’s such a feminist icon.”

The contrast with the other male characters is also striking. “With their traditional looks and ditto soldier equipment, they seem to come from another game, while Eve herself wears impractical suits while fighting gigantic parasites. At least I think so Stellar Blade feel much more voyeuristic than the other games I mentioned and, ironically, therefore also a lot less sexy.”

Cultural context

A lot has to do with cultural context. For example, gender inequality is still an issue in South Korea and very specific, often unrealistic beauty ideals prevail. For example, there is a lot of pressure to be thin, and the country has the largest number of aesthetic surgeries in the world. And so it is not surprising that sexualized characters play a prominent role in all kinds of media, while a change has been noticeable in the West in recent decades.

Take Lara Croft, in the 90s merely an ‘Indiana Jones with curves’, but since the reboot in 2013 a layered character with everyday proportions. “There is much more room for imperfections today,” says Mundorff, also referring to the realistic laugh lines and downy hairs on the cheeks of Aloy, the main character in the adventure game Horizon Forbidden West.

“Or look at The Last of Us 2 with its two female main characters: a lesbian tattooed tomboy and a toned muscle man with her hair in a tight braid. Their personality determines their appearance, not the other way around. That is a pleasant evolution,” says Mundorff.

Marketing

But there is still work to be done. “For example, I thought it was a shame that you were in roleplaying games Cyberpunk 2077 – a game in which you can completely customize your character – you can be a woman with a penis, but you cannot choose a flat upper body. I’m not going to send an angry email about that, but it does show that not all bodies are represented in games yet.”

The fuss around Stellar Blade Mundorff finds it particularly exaggerated. “The anti-woke gamers have stirred up a controversy that barely existed. There is a small but vocal group that has been struggling with the new female diversity in games for a while now. My theory: that particular group gets so upset every time a female game character doesn’t meet their standards that they think ‘woke’ gamers feel the exact same outrage when such a character is sexy.”

And so Mundorff praises the marketing qualities of above all else Stellar Blade. “Most people didn’t even know that game existed, and now it’s even getting an article The morning.”

Stellar Blade has been released for PlayStation 5.