It is now evident that Sony emerged victorious at The Game Awards, largely due to the success of Astro Bot. Additionally, Microsoft’s recent announcement to discontinue the production of Xbox exclusives, and going Multiplatform has further shifted the competitive landscape. As a result, Nintendo now stands as Sony’s primary competitor in the gaming industry going forwards, hardware, and exclusive software wise.
However, not all has been without smooth going for Sony. Naughty Dog, arguably the company’s most celebrated in-house studio, recently unveiled its upcoming franchise, Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet.
The trailer provided an eagerly awaited preview of the first game developed exclusively for the PlayStation 5 by Naughty Dog, the studio behind the critically acclaimed The Last of Us: Part II, widely regarded as one of the best-looking titles of the PS4 generation. Prior to that, Naughty Dog also created The Last of Us, which set a new benchmark for visuals on the PS3.
In essence, after four years, we are finally getting a true glimpse of the PlayStation 5’s capabilities, now fully realized by the expertise of a studio known for pushing the boundaries of gaming visuals.
While the points mentioned above are all fine and dandy, Naughty Dog’s newly announced game IP has proven to be somewhat divisive. Despite nearly three decades of flawless success with its acclaimed gaming franchises, I would wager that some Sony executives may be losing some sleep right now about the mixed reception to Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, which has drawn comparisons to the backlash faced by Concord.
Naughty Dog Pushed Unpopular Political Agendas Before, and Got Away With it…Can They Escape Unscathed Again?
While Naughty Dog introduced a lesbian protagonist in The Last of Us (Part I), the studio pushed boundaries further in The Last of Us Part II by featuring a transgender character and a roided up female protagonist/antagonist. In addition, the game controversially killed off beloved character Joel in a brutal and shocking manner. This narrative choice sparked significant backlash from a segment of fans, but it had little impact on the game’s commercial and critical success.
The game has outsold Ghost of Tsushima (over 10 million units sold with some numbers placing its sales at 15 million), and it won the coveted GoTY awards at The Game Awards in 2020.
While going ‘Woke’, or the perception of going ‘Woke’, has been costly to many a company and certain properties (see Concord, Buzz Lightyear, Bud Light, etc.), Naughty Dog has so far been immune to the boycotts. That’s not to say that a less ‘progressive’ effort in the TLoU2 might have sold 5 million units more, but the fact is that even though the game turned a chunk of gamers off, it did sell extremely well (Final Fantasy VII Rebirth would kill for those numbers).
Although the older I have gotten the more I lean towards conservative views, I rated The Last of Us: Part II a 10/10, as I made a conscious effort to separate my personal beliefs from an objective evaluation of the game’s storytelling and technological achievements in 2020. Considering the game’s impressive sales, particularly for an exclusive title, I suspect that many others with similar viewpoints may have also recognized and appreciated the game’s quality, despite the political agendas presented by Naughty Dog.
To put it in simple terms: Yes, the political agendas were there for all of us to see, but the storyline, and the emotional impact that the game provoked in players had nothing to do with Ellie being a Lesbian, or that there was a trans secondary character in the game. It had all to do with Ellie’s Father/Daughter relationship with Joel, and the hatred (mostly for herself) that his untimely demise caused.
At times, a work of art can be so visually compelling that even those who disagree with its underlying message are drawn to experience it for themselves. The Last of Us: Part II stands as an example of such a game—its exceptional visuals and immersive storytelling prompted gamers, of all political spectrums, to acquire the game simply to understand the widespread acclaim it received.
I believe that Naughty Dog anticipates a similar response with this project, and Sony is likely hoping for the same outcome.
However, at this stage, I fear Naughty Dog might have gone a tad too far stirring the proverbial Hornet’s Nest.
Naughty Dog Doesn’t Care, But Sony Might
The fact that our new protagonist is a ‘manly’ looking mixed Asian female is not an accident. Director Neil Druckmann knew full well what he was doing when he made the casting and design choice. He wanted to stir controversy, and the subsequent backlash. Naughty Dog has a built up a lot of ‘good will’ at Sony for its three decades of stellar work, and it is likely that the company has been given a long creative leash on what they can do in its games.
However, there is a fine line between having meaningful inclusion in a game, and just plain shoving agendas in players’ faces. It can be questioned if Naughty Dog, who started development on the game years before the US elections showcased a country that is tired of certain agendas being pushed on our faces by mainstream media, realizes this.
While at face value it does appear that Druckmann is testing how far he can push certain buttons, I am not entirely convinced Bounty Hunter Jordan A. Mun (Intergalactic‘s controversial protagonist) is just another attempt at shoving ‘wokeism’ on our faces without some meaningful substance behind the character.
I could make an argument that a woman who makes a living ‘sword fighting’ robots (like the trailer’s protagonist) would look manly, and muscular in real life. If we are talking about realism that would be true. A woman who fights with a sword requires a certain level of manly strength that would in turn create such a muscular physique.
The bald look, also controversial, would actually be a preferred hair style for someone who presumably takes little to no showers, and has to fight in close quarter combat against enemies.
Conversely, if we are talking realism, a male protagonist would be better suited for such a task. So, there are arguments that can be used in a favor or against such a polemic choice for a game protagonist. But there is a reason female Navy Seals aren’t a thing.
I don’t want to sound misogynistic. My wife is certainly an ultra capable woman in most areas men compete at professionally, and she is a natural entrepreneur. But physical combat isn’t something I think she would excel at if she had to fight against men, or worse, powerful robots while using a sword. A Glock? Sure. Lena Miculek can outshoot me (and 99% of all men) all day, but that isn’t the case in Intergalactic.
As someone who did and competed at a high level in Martial Arts for about a decade, I can attest that an average healthy good sized man, even untrained, will likely win a physical confrontation against a trained woman. Hollywood popularized beautiful women who could be modeling swim wear kicking multiple (many times highly trained) men rear end in movies all the time. But real life is quite different.
If a women ask me for a self defense tip I steer them towards Gaston Glock’s greatest invention, as opposed to Hollywood “Fu”.
As a wiseman once said: “God created men, Sam Colt made them equal”. Words to live by.
Video Games are typically not about realism, however. So, the argument about women kicking rear end and taking names in a virtual world is about as moot a point as the Black Widow doing the same in Marvel films. The fact that Intergalactic features (I assume) interstellar travel with 80’s Sony propaganda being featured in the ship, is enough for me to give the game a “fantasy” pass.
Finally, we don’t know whether Jordan is Straight, Lesbian, Bi, or Trans. The internet was sent ablaze by the mere fact that Naughty Dog, a company that already carried a lot of ultra progressive baggage, went with a non feminine female of a mixed origin to star in their new franchise as opposed to a character that more of the target audience for such game can relate to. So, even as someone who is tired of the “woke” propaganda, I have a duty to step back a let things play out before I crucify the game as a piece of “woke trash”.
We only saw a small trailer. We don’t know what the story is about. We don’t know how good (or bad) the game is based on a trailer. We know Naughty Dog is a progressive company, but they also make great games.
Nonetheless, Naughty Dog has made its bed. The game is deep into development, and a significant financial investment has been made in securing the actress portraying the main character featured in the trailer. At this point, the project is irrevocably set, for better or worse.
Sony executives might be having a few doubts given the Concord flop, the elections result, and the general divisive reception the game has received so far. I don’t know what the cost of development for this game is. The Last of Us: Part II cost around 250 million plus 100 more in marketing expenses. Given the financial investment in that game, despite it selling more than Ghost of Tsushima did, it is up for speculation whether or not the game was immensely profitable at all.
Given that Intergalactic has been in development for 3-4 years, it is likely that it was in the midst of the bulk of development when leftist propaganda in mainstream media was its zenith. The landscape has vastly changed over the last two years with an election showcasing a preference for conservative policies over ultra progressive ones, and consequently, we have seen plenty of companies that embraced certain progressive policies backtracking on their stances.
Neil Druckmann was pretty progressive (as most of Hollywood is) even before the Biden/Harris administration, so I can’t say with certainty that he would have taken another direction here even with the fore knowledge that the American pubic in general would shift away from progressive stances. This leaves Sony in a bit of a nightmarish marketing scenario.
I am not sure that with the recent knowledge in hand (Concord’s flop, Ghost of Yotei backlash, and conservative win in the elections), at least a few Sony executives wouldn’t have tried to convince Druckmann to just create a relatable Male character in order to avoid controversy.
Again, whoever is running the marketing campaign for this game will need to thread carefully.
When Has Naughty Dog Dropped the Ball?
I have been a die hard fan of Naughty Dog since the release of Crash Bandicoot. In my opinion, the studio has never produced a subpar game. In fact, I would argue that they haven’t simply made a “good” game—except perhaps for the original Uncharted. Naughty Dog consistently delivers titles that range from excellent to truly exceptional, often reaching the level of masterpieces.
The company’s proven track record is sufficient for me to consider purchasing the game, even though I am uncertain about the direction Neil Druckmann has chosen for the protagonist. While I was not on board with the inclusion of a trans character in The Last of Us: Part II, I do not believe it detracted from the overall narrative.
Ultimately, The Last of Us, and presumably Intergalactic, are targeted to adult audiences. In this context, I have fewer concerns compared to other scenarios where the target age demographic might differ.
Just like I did with The Last of Us: Part II, I will separate the art from the artist, or the agenda, if any, being pushed.
The next reason why I am hyped up for the game is simple: Naughty Dog always pushes visual tech forward. This will likely be the best looking game on the PS5 (and PS5 Pro) at the time of release, and I have been patiently waiting for this type of exclusive to PS5 experience for four years.
Finally, I hate cancel culture. I hate having to watch what I say, or don’t say, to avoid getting “cancelled”. Therefore, I don’t want to ‘cancel’ this game, at the very least, not on the first glimpse of its initial trailer. I will give it a chance, and I suspect there are many other conservatives that will do the same given Naughty Dog’s track record of excellence. It would be a bit hypocritical to cancel Intergalactic just because Naughty Dog clearly wants to send a progressive message that I might not agree with.
If the game ends up being awesome, then it should be judged by those merits.
Will Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet Suffer From a “Go Woke, Go Broke” Fate?
Forspoken and Concord flopped, but they were ill conceived terrible games. These were games that couldn’t really afford to get the ‘woke label’, or the ultra ‘progressive’ stance strike against them to begin with. Even with Cloud Strife as a protagonist, Forspoken would have been an awful train wreck.
I can’t say the same for Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet. First, I haven’t played the game yet. And second, Naughty Dog doesn’t know how to make bad games. Also, at least so far, Naughty Dog has earned a high level of trust in terms of quality. I can understand disdain for companies like Sweet Baby Inc. who are making millions by “consulting” on progressive matters with game developers, but not so much for a company like Naughty Dog, who has consistently delivered great gaming to audiences for nearly three decades now.
I have no doubt that Naughty Dog is crafting an impressive piece of software entertainment. However, I cannot quite predict that this will be a financial success for Sony, or Naughty Dog with any confidence.
Online reception for different topics and products over the past few years has been telling as to what gamers, and consumers will boycott, or on the other hand, embrace. The fact that Naughty Dog had to turn comments off on their YouTube channel for its Intergalactic trailer might be foretelling of a darker than anticipated fate for the game.
Concord lost Sony $400 million. The online response was largely negative for the game and its character designs months prior and up to the game’s launch. Disney suffered from a similar fate its the Buzz Lightyear film. Online response from family men, and women (you know, the ones that actually pay for their kids to go to see children’s films) was negative as Disney refused to remove a same sex kiss in a children’s movie. The film predictably flopped (though Disney seemed shocked at the turn of events).
Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet appears to be facing similar challenges, and I believe Sony may have missed a significant opportunity to capitalize on millions of potential game sales by not featuring a male protagonist. This issue mirrors the backlash surrounding Ghost of Tsushima’s sequel, Ghost of Yotei, which opted for a female ( Samurai/Ninja) warrior instead. This shift has sparked a considerable amount of online criticism.
It’s difficult to understand how Sony executives might overlook the fact that, regardless of the social or political stance, the company is developing a reputation for being “progressive,” if not “woke.” This perception is particularly noteworthy given that the gaming demographic is predominantly composed of straight men.
Sony will need to thread carefully on how it markets Intergalactic. The game has already been labeled as “woke” by social media critics. That stigma will be hard to shake coming from the same director that delivered The Last of Us: Part II. Many single player story driven gamers are in their 30s and 40s who were not part of the Roblox/Fortnite generation. Many have families, and have adhered to more conservative values. This chunk of the audience composes a massive legion of gamers that could potentially be turned off from the game months before it ever sees a store shelve.
Once a game earns (justifiably or not) the “Woke” label, it is a hard thing to overcome.
Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet better be another Naughty Dog “can’t miss” masterpiece. Otherwise Sony’s in-house studios are in for a rude awakening over the next few years. Once again, I have been a supporter of female protagonists before, my Horizon Forbidden West and even the Last of Us: Part II reviews will attest to this. Aloy and Ellie didn’t seemed forced on the player in those games.
But now, Naughty Dog seems committed to keep threading a fine line that maybe they should have distanced themselves from for at least a new franchise’s cycle of life. It will definitely be interesting to see how the negative online response will influence the game’s eventual commercial success (or failure).
I Have Likely Angered Everyone
By proclaiming myself a conservative, I have likely sent our far leftist readers into turmoil, and by admitting that I will likely buy Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet on day one, regardless of who is the protagonist, I might have fallen out of grace with the far right as well.
In my opinion, I don’t want political nonsense being pushed in my media, and at the same time I won’t outright dismiss a game because the main character might be a symbol of such a political push without giving the game a try.
Such are the difficult lines I must thread, and cross, when making an opinionated article.
That said, this article is more of a warning to Sony Executives. Should they stumble upon it while googling about the game. They need to start listening to their largest target demographic (male 18-35) at some point with new IP, or else, the only thing they truly care about (the company’s bottom line) might suffer in the future for it. They certainly did (suffer) with Concord. Square Enix had to close down the studio that made Forspoken. I am sure there are other less popular examples.
Now, if you will excuse me… I need to get back to S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2!
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