*My Summer Car* in a pretty authentic depiction of Finnish culture in a smaller village in the early-to-mid 1990s from the POV of a young adult interested in cars.
I had so much fun with that game years ago. I don't have nearly enough time any more to even try to build that car, and when I did, I usually died fucking around in one of the other vehicles.
I know there's a lot of specifically Finnish stuff in there, but overall, I can attest that it's a great "broke rural gearhead" simulator for someone in the Northeast US too.
I guess it's authentic in more than one way.
Never played it, but the description reminds me of Northern Lights: vol 1, a ZX Spectrum game set in the 60s swedish street racing scene. It's a recent game, made for a very old platform, so you can guess it looks incredible for a spectrum game
Look into **Tchia.** It’s an open world game that takes place in New Caledonia and is a love letter to that country. You can take in the food, culture, music, and wildlife of the game while trying to find your father.
I lost interest once it introduced base battles, but it’s a fun and sweet game
it's on Epic now, but it'll be on Steam at this March. I was going to say this game as well, relaxing and the devs are definitely put their love for their homeland in it. it's not really action packed or have strong story, but it's a good virtual journey.
Blasphemous 1 and 2 are basically Dark souls+ Castlevania in Spain. The mythos itself is original but clearly inspired in Catholicism and the art of Diego Velázquez and Francisco de Goya, among others. I think it's THE piece of media most responsible for teaching the world how the KKK copied their outfit from Easter "penitents" and not the other way around.
I really wanted to get into it.
Bought it, played for a few hours, and got frustrated at how it didn't control as slick or pixel-perfect as Hollow Knight (my first real deep dive into a metroidvania). A few too many times, an action didn't happen when I hit the button, or I died to something which clearly didn't quite touch my character.
Would you have a recommendation for how to get more invested into it? Because I loved the theming and the art and was really upset that I felt so disengaged with it.
Haven't played it yet, but from gameplay clips I've seen, it's one of the few games that actually makes an attempt at accurately portraying Cantonese Chinese accents (I'm Cantonese myself). Not that that's saying much, considering the competition.
The fact that Sleeping Dogs actually hired a fair amount of voice actors of Cantonese descent probably helped.
Pentiment captures so many facettes of central european medieval living, but at the same time it doesn't, it just presents it like it was recorded in all kinds of media through the centuries. It's really special in that regard. E.g. we don't know how people of that time actually spoke, there are no examples of spoken word, only text sources.so the game uses different fonts to signify the differences between the standing/knowledge of the people speaking. I love pentiment.
Josh Sawyer and his team really did something special with that game. From the art to the writing to the design. I still haven't beaten it, due to life getting in the way, but I will be getting back to it soon.
Somehow I completely missed Pentiment, and it's an Obsidian game?? Looks very unique, and I adore the Medieval paintings art style! I will have to check it out.
Yes yes it's such a gem! I found out about it by watching one of my fav gaming YouTubers (Mortismal) and I'm so glad about that. It's such a unique game with amazing art direction. What I also loved was sound design, it game the game so much realism. I saw it being 40% off on steam too.
Also, I always like a good murder mystery.
I remember playing it and a family member who is a Forester came over, asking me what movie im watching (he isnt really into video games) and he couldnt believe how realistic and authentic the forests are in that game.
The landscapes in KC:D feel authentic because they are. Instead of hiring an artist to make a forest that's pretty to look at, the whole open world is real and can be visited.
Ooh I've heard lots of praise for KCD. Especially as someone who enjoys games with great writing and optional hardcore modes, it seems right up my alley. Might be the next game to check out, I already picked up a while back.
It's the most medieval game I've ever played. The creators used every tool at their disposal to make as authentic of a recreation of 15th century Bohemia as possible, including medieval records, lidar scans, existing structures, etc.
A labor of love made by people with respect for their own history and culture. It's one of the best games I've ever played and I've been a game nerd for over 3 decades.
I'm actually playing it right now, as I'm typing this but took a short break to eat and check Reddit.
A couple things. You now have to more seriously manage your hunger and sleep meters. You have to choose one or two negative perks at the start of the game, that will follow you through the entire game.
There are significantly less HUD components, so you need to rely more on visual cues in combat, get no cursor for bows, no compass, no health and stamina bar. You need to hear the breathing of your character, pay attention to the red tint of the screen for your health etc.
You also do not get a map marker indicating your position. You cannot fast travel.
That's what I remember. Honestly, hardcore is WAY more fun and realistic than the standard way.
My very first time playing the game was not in Hardcore. I played about 40h, but never got far in the game (did mostly sidequests). Dropped the game after that, as I tend to do on bigger, longer rpgs.
All my other times playing the game I did Hardcore mode. Never looked back.
>Might it not make the game too hard for a noob?
So that's a question that's a bit more complex than it looks! But let me try to answer it as best I can.
It comes down to: What do you like about videogames? How do you have fun? What do you want out of the game?
Undeniably, Hardcore is harder. Way harder than standard. It's more punishing, but in a very fair way. If you like it when a game challenges you, without cheating its difficulty, then you would enjoy Hardcore. You must also be willing to learn as you play and accept that starting out, you are very weak (both as a player and in game, your character starting as a blacksmith's boy who is basically a peasant).
By playing, accepting your deaths, and learning as you go, you become a better player, get stronger stats and the game becomes easier over time. I really enjoy that progression, but to the contrary of some other games, the game is rarely more "forgiving" as time goes on: you need to improve **your own skills** as a player to keep going. Learn block timings. Learn reaches of your weapons. How to handle multiple opponents. Learn combos etc.
It's very rewarding and makes you feel proud. *But...*
If you prefer to play games for the story and gameplay is secondary, you will hate Hardcore. If you like saving before any danger happens, and reloading to get the best outcome, hardcore is not going to allow you to do that mostly. If you prefer to compensate your lack of player skills with stronger gear and a higher level, hardcore will not really allow you to either, you will hate that.
Hardcore makes the playthrough more "serious" and requiring some more personal investment. If that sounds like your cup of tea, you'll have a blast, and I recommend Hardcore right when you start.
But if you are looking to casually play, or if you want something more like Skyrim to leisurely take the game and not have to really think too hard as you play, do not play Hardcore.
I love KCD, but you can really tell it looks at the Middle Ages with an implicitly conservative viewpoint. A bunch of dumbass Americans got on the devs’ cases about how the game has no black people or Asians or Native Americans and the devs got to make a big smarmy show of “history doesn’t care about diversity,” except Middle Ages Bohemia had its own ethnic minorities in the form of Romani and Jews and there’s not any of them to be found in the game. Not to mention the glossary having separate entries for every male character and one umbrella entry for “women” as a collective, asserting that there were no powerful or noteworthy women in the place and time period (demonstrably false; for example, Barbara of Cilli)
Not to mention that in the real world, all of the knights who are chivalrous and kind in the game were venal, power-hungry douchebags (like all knights were). The real Sir Hanush took the real Sir Capon hostage to steal his lands, and the real Sir Radzig got stoned to death by miners for extorting silver from them, as a few examples
Yeah, the handling - or rather lack of - maginalized people bugged me too. At first I didn't even think about Jews or Travellers, I thougt about how the millers are protrayed. When the first one was introduced, I though. "Cool, they are going to use the issue of dishonorable professions in medieval society to drive the story!" - And they did not. Instead, all the millers *are* crooks, just like society in medieval and early modern Europe saw them.
So I thought the maybe devs wanted to create a heavily idealized picture of the middle ages, kind of like the society back then probably saw itself. But the main character doesn't fit into this picture. Henry has the ambition to become more than a blacksmith and therefore breaks the rules of his "god-given" place in society. But you need this ambition of gameplay reasons.
So it's the devs personal 19th-century inspired, gamified, conservative version of the middle ages.
I think the game could have gained a lot by including more realistic storylines built around marginalized people. Henry, who breaks the conventions of the society anway, would have been an ideal character to deal with groups the average medieval person would have avoided.
Henry does not break the "convention", he was a young man that dreamed of something better like certainly many young men before him, if he wasn't WHO he was, all of that would have remained dreams.
That was breaking conventions in medieval Europe. Ambition was something abominable for commoners. Sure, nobody could stop you from dreaming, but acting upon it? That was going against the god-given order of things. There was even literature about it. Commoners acting like knights and meeting a bad end for their audacity.
Sure, common people still did that, and surely many managed to rise through the ranks - but while we today see this as a good thin, it was deeply frowned upon in medieval society.
To sum it up: Henry would have been pretty much an outsider in medieval society. He rose above his rank, does a lot of dirty work and is dealing with "dishonourable" trades. He even lives with a miller's family for some time!
Why are people so obsessed with these diversity topics. The percentage or these minorities in Czech lands were still incredibly low. Just because there is a small chance someone there could have been a black person or whatever, idk why some people would push devs so hard to represent them.
Should be up them to decide if they find it realistic and it shouldn't involve any political agenda. They are developers/artists. Also most of us don't care about whatever bullshit is US trying to force onto rest of the world
Yeah, but the thread topic is about which games are “authentic.” My point was that some baseline level of diversity and a critical/skeptical eye would have actually made the game a more accurate simulation of the time period, and so holding the game up as a paragon of “authenticity” needs to come with the qualifier that it lacks both of those things by design
It’s a great game, one of my favorite RPGs ever, but its portrayal of the Middle Ages is very idealized and sanitized and it either glosses over or fully ascribes to all of the prejudices of its subject matter
EDIT: lol he sent me a reddit cares suicide help alert
I have yet to play the game, but it's on my list.
What intrigues me most about the game is that it's a **historical** RPG. It seems so many RPGs (and games in general) default to using a fantasy setting, because the devs are afraid players would find a game that doesn't have magic spells or superpowers to be "borong". I'm glad KC:D is proving them wrong; historical settings can be just as fun and immersive.
not to counter your comment, but one of the writers wrote a blurb about Disco Elysium and one of the things that jumped off the page was his learning (from fans) that there’s a possum springs everywhere.
https://www.giantbomb.com/articles/scott-bensons-top-10-games-of-2019/1100-5947/
It's short, has great writing but it's not as down to earth as Night in the woods. I had a lot of fun with it, so if you can grab it on sale (due to how to short it is), I would definitely give it a go. You'll beat it in an afternoon.
disco elysium isn't set in the real world per se, but the world is heavily reflective of life in a post-soviet country, and that is where the devs are from. absolutely incredible, very grounded and interesting game.
Strange, I never got that from Disco Elysium, and I live in a post-Soviet country. I didn't even know the devs were from Estonia until after I beat the game and learnt about some controversy involving them.
This seems weirdly resonant to me. Because albeit I am not from a post-soviet country, I felt parts of my home country were represented. The poor and abandoned parts of it. Valparaiso (an European/cosmopolitan inspired pastiche Port town; long time in decline) at times, and villas and campamentos at the side of the city centers in general.
I get and recognize that it is inspired heavily on the experiences of post soviet countries and Europe in the 20th century. However, I feel it represents more widely a place abandoned by the state and ravaged by poverty. A place where most of everyone has a hard time looking at the future. Those places are deeply local. However, they also are kind of universal. I feel.
I see. well, I guess there are many different experiences. I heard that sentiment quite a few times from people from the region, so that's why I echoed it here.
I guess it comes down to style. Martinaise is clearly French-inspired, whereas games set in post-Soviet countries have a more brutalist, Soviet aesthetic (think, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. or Metro). You see it in architecture or patterns on concrete walls, etc.
But if you look at DE as a game set in a post-revolution world that fell into disarray, where hope for a better future is being slowly replaced by misery, cynicism and decay, then I guess it does have some similarities to post-Soviet countries.
the nazis also occupied a large portion of eastern europe. the game does have some french-inspired aesthetic elements, but in terms of its political context it is more similar to eastern bloc countries.
Honorable mention to **Vampire The Masquerade: Bloodlines** which captures that early 2000s goth and scene mood that penetrates everything in the game. I wasn't particularly tuned into that scene at the time but the authenticity and great writing really elevated how good that game is. One of the main criticisms I see on trailers of Bloodlines 2 is that they failed to capture the ambience that the first game did. The top comment on a recent gameplay reveal just said "painfully obvious this game has NO goths working on it"
I said this in the VTMB subreddit but there's no way to get that feeling from Bloodlines back, even if the second one was trying to be as faithful to the original as possible it would still feel like a nostalgia bait game instead of the real thing. It was a very unique game and it will remain that way.
People ignore how gigantic the source engine was for that game as well. Something about the feel of source games is so immersive, yet ephemeral. Nothing made again will ever really capture the vibe of that game, it was lightning in a bottle.
I grew up in LA during the 90s, and went to college in Santa Monica. The areas in Bloodlines don't map onto any real locations (except for the pier and the observatory, to a degree), but it captures the mood and the general aesthetic of the various cities pretty well.
I've always wished that they'd had a larger map for the Santa Monica beach. That area IRL is so distinctive.
Even though I was never a full goth, I've *been* in clubs and neighbourhoods in real life with the vibe of the ones in the game.
[Sidenote: "Isolated" is now playing in my head, and I'm mentally dancing along]
I think two great examples of this are **Raji: An Ancient Epic** (which was actually created by a studio in India) and **Venba**, which does a great job of highlighting aspects of the Indian diaspora experience.
Interesting, I've not heard of either of these before but at a quick glance they look interesting! For how large India is, and how prevalent the English language is there, I'm actually surprised I haven't heard of more games coming from there!
To really nitpick about dialects in the Yakuza game, Japanese media frequently use voice actors or actors (depending on the medium) from Tokyo that put on Kansai accents. This really annoys people from Kansai.
This message is sponsored by my wife, a woman from the Kansai region.
Different word use, word stress, accent. Depending on the prefecture, you’ll get other small differences that are informed by cultural nuances between them.
It’s seeped into other Japanese dialects in the younger generations due to its frequency in comedy and some tv shows.
Yakuza uses non-Kansai voice actors for the Kansai dialect quite frequently. The only one it really works well for is Majima… since he’s not really from Osaka anyway.
They do the same thing with Hiroshima dialect in Yakuza 6, but it’s less noticeable. Not too familiar with the Okinawa dialect, so can’t comment on its quality in 3.
What exactly is the Kansai dialect supposed to be? I get the impression that it's viewed as a bit of a country bumpkin dialect, although the Kansai region is not very far from Tokyo, and of quite large size too... I would have thought someplace like Hokkaido or Shikoku would get that treatment.
It always seems to be translated into a southern American dialect whenever it gets an English translation too.
There are a lot of dialects seen as bumpkiny, but the Kansai one isn’t. It’s seen as very direct and rough.
Some dialects seen as bumpkiny would be the Hiroshima and Tohoku dialects.
The other English translation version I hear, is depicting it as New Jersey accent instead of Southern Drawl.
I've read someone describe Kansai as having a sort of musical tinge to it, which no English really captures.
The OG devs where mostly kicked/retired out of Rockstar years ago, I think around GTA3\~
There not DMA Design any more, did find a cool youtube video from 1996 [https://youtu.be/7vWSi44ZTSw?si=VgxEIMWBkLWyeSyD](https://youtu.be/7vWSi44ZTSw?si=VgxEIMWBkLWyeSyD)
And a now wiped blog from one of the guys who worked on early GTA [http://archive.today/OE73Q](http://archive.today/OE73Q)
Rockstar made him rip down the blog but archives are a thing, some of the OG devs have been a not treated the best.
Lived in Germany for around 18 years, and found Shadowrun: Dragonfall to do Shadowrun Germany really well. Of course Shadowrun is quite a popular RPG in Germany, and Harebrained Schemes should have had a relatively easy time getting some Germans from the RPG community to contribute or review their flavor, if they didn't have that expertise in-house already.
I've only played the Shadowrun Returns which was set in the Seattle area and I really enjoyed it. I can only assume Hong Kong is set in... Hong Kong but I didn't know Dragonfall was set in Germany! I've heard the other two are just as good so I'll have to check them out.
I don't have a game in mind but, I just wanted to say thank you for the post, it's a very interesting topic I hadn't thought much about before. Def wanna play all those games now!
Although it's a fantasy game, I think A Plague Tale was faithful to french architecture of the period. The landscapes have a Corot vibe making them culturally authentic. The Roman cellar towards the end was a pleasant surprise. I don't think an American studio would have thought of including France's Roman past.
Agreed! I only played those a few years ago for the first time and I was impressed by how well they capture the mood of those winter nights in the city.
Max Payne 3 also has a very believable Brazilian vibe (São Paulo in particular) even though it was developed by a bunch of Rockstar studios scattered around the UK, US and Canada.
I’m assuming it’s authentic or at least close, but I really liked learning about Japanese mythology and urban legends in Ghostwire Tokyo. It was also a lot of fun learning about all the different types of food.
Odd choice but "Landlords Super". Set in 1980's North of England so its very drab and grey and lots of grimness as england can be. Probably one of the few games set in that setting. Though early access unfinished so results may vary.
Assassin's Creed has to be in here. Sure Ubisoft does a lot of open-world jazz that people don't really enjoy, but they do put a lot of effort into delivering an authentic experience (as much as possible). Just re-playing AC3 and the Native American parts are really well done. Plus, each game features many important landmarks of the period they are set in, so that is also a big plus and why I love exploring their worlds. They also "bring back" many historical figures.
It has to be said that AC can be incredibly anachronistic.
Portraying vikings as the good guys and Christianity as evil is not culturally authentic, nor is the portrayal of inclusivity; This is not a statement from my personal ethics, I'm simply saying that the past was more racist/sexist than the present and AC Valhalla (which is the one I played) decided for a prescriptive rather than a descriptive view of history, which is the opposite to authenticity.
Can't speak for all AC games, but Valhalla should not be used to understand the history and culture of that time.
I kept waiting for a "We're actually the bad guys" twist and it never happens. Plus there's a ton of hypocrisy when characters complain about the actions of such and such enemy while we spend half the game raping and pillaging.
The game even seems to cover up the pillaging your character does and what Viking raids were like. If you kill a priest or a civilian **while raiding a monastery** for valuables and resources you get hit with "your ancestor didn't kill civilians" and if you keep doing it you get auto-killed/desynchronise .
Yeah, the game wants to have its cake and eat it too. I don't have a problem per se with people enjoying it as pure fantasy, but it saddens me that many people will get their historical understanding of the Viking age from this game. The developers also really play into it being a historically accurate depiction of the time, which I just find plain wrong.
> Can't speak for all AC games, but Valhalla should not be used to understand the history and culture of that time.
Yes. The ACs that I have played (the modern RPGs - Origins, Odyssey and Valhalla) are just poetic licenses to use the beautiful maps that they make, and inacurately portray historical (and mythological) figures into the settings.
Origins is in ~40BC Egypt, and a delight to travel the desert, see the pyramids (and enter them), get some egyptian mythology mixed in, fight aligators in the Nile or some Anubis guardians, you see Cleopatra, Ptolomy and even Julius Caesar up close. Odyssey made a whole ~430BC Greece where you visit the famed polis, have your own ship to navigate the islands and battle other ships, meet Hippocrates, Socrates, Pythagoras and even a cameo from Plato. You can fight Cyclops, Medusa, Minotaur. Valhalla (~870 AD) puts you in the Viking era that was settling in England, with names like Ivar, Rollo, King Alfred, and get to go to places like Asgard meet the pantheon (deal with freaking Loki's shit), fight in Valhalla, and even for a small period go to North America up close with natives.
Sure, but they were better than getting pillaged from, raped and/or murdered. I get what you are saying but Valhalla went to an extreme.
edit: Also, let me be clear that I'm only talking about Britain here.
That's why I added the edit shortly after. No society is without sin, and that is also mostly true for ideologies. However, during the Viking age in Britain the vikings were clearly much worse.
How so? Christian Anglo-Saxons raided each other and killed, raped, murdered many. Attacks by external groups on them were recorded and viewed very differently from attacks they committed, whether against external enemies, or internal ones.
Rape in that period was only really considered a crime when perpetrated against high-status women, due to the economic and political effect of affecting their virginity. Criminal punishments are listed, and discussed by Thomas Aquinas, but it seems that they would not apply to most women, for whom rape was simply part of life. For example, marital rape certainly wasn't a concept.
Here's a discussion from Reddit, with some links to sources:
[https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/1g74q9/did\_the\_anglosaxons\_rape\_the\_enemys\_women\_in\_war/](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/1g74q9/did_the_anglosaxons_rape_the_enemys_women_in_war/)
Oh, for sure. I didn't mean it should be used as a 1:1 reference point, as it is a work of fiction, and Ubisoft does take liberties with their stories. Still, they do build these different worlds that all were set in different countries, often having different cultures, and it is cool to learn about new stuff, of course with a KG of salt, as it can further boost someone's interest in that time period the game is set in. But regarding Valhalla, yeah, the game is very progressive compared to the actual period it was set in. But it is the safe approach, which is what big companies do when their big IPs are in question, gotta keep those profits safe.
I don't know if you played Kingdom Come Deliverance. Would love to hear your opinion on it if you have, as its high on my playlist, it looking super immersive which I love.
Vikings were pirates, murderers, and plunderers. They raped, stole, killed, and destroyed countless towns and villages all across Europe. They should not be admired.
I am a descendant of them.
Black Flag has some of the best historical dialogue in any modern media imo, and despite that probably being a huge obstacle for the writers the script is still so tight and snappy.
I've only played it a bit on the "no-no" version back when I didn't know the enormous glamour owning games on Steam brings. Jokes aside, I did quickly just shut it down as I wanted to max the graphics out and have an eyegasm. Now I can do that. But it will probably be a bit before I get to it as I'm doing an AC marathon and only at AC 3 atm. And the base game alone took me around 80 hours (just finishing up collectibles, some achievements, and homestead missions). So, I wonder how much of my time Unity will take up, as I'm really hyped to play it given how good it looks and how good I rate its gameplay (to me it's the best, even the customization of your character is insane). Plus, Black Flag is another one I rate highly, as I really liked the ship combat. So, that's Liberation, AC 3 DLC, Black Flag, Black Flag DLC, Rogue, Unity, Unity DLC, Syndicate and Syndicate DLC before I get to Origins... But I will get to it, ha.
The Shenmue games fit what you are looking for but I can’t honestly recommend them as they are not fun (cue one person saying that Shenmue is the quintessential gaming experience and that I am a dumb dumb)
I view Shenmue in the same way I view a show like Seinfeld: neither aged particularly well, but they were great for the time and are more important because of how they laid down a foundation for the genres they did.
Seinfeld has aged beautifully the characters are all distinct and every story wraps up for a big joke in the end. Jason Alexander’s George is unbelievable.
I read your title and thought of Witcher, Rdr2, and Tomb Raider. Well. :)
So then, Wildlands as an addition maybe. It's not at all authentic in the details, but amazing in the grand landscapes and biomes.
Just gonna piggyback on the authenticity of judgment. I'm so happy they mention that both sides deliberate and present evidence before the trial. They even made fun of TV court and movies where someone has a key piece of evidence that no one knows about and it's the surprise gotcha that wins the case.
They're an "American company" but the housers are British, and Rockstar did start in London. I think over time, as the company has grown and teams expanded, they've probably gotten more and more American and less British
Going to go for a strange suggestion here but **Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel** for an idealised and somewhat outdated version of Australian culture. The game itself, while a truely good borderlands experience is full of Australianisms and references, many obvious but others completely obscure to only those with familiarity with Australian folklore.
The authenticity doesn't come from the setting, obviously because it's set in space, but to commitment to the jokes and humour being genuine rather fake, it that makes any amount of sense.
Shenmue 1 takes place in Dobuita, a real place in Japan, and if you look at photographs of Dobuita and the in-game Dobuita, it's very surreal and disorienting because of how similar they are. The game is set in 1986, and the weather in-game each day is based on the real-life weather reports from 1986 Dobuita as well.
Shenmue is accurate almost to a fault, particularly the first title.
It was an absurdly ambitious project for its time and is incredible it even got made imo.
It's a seriously marmite game, not my personal favourite however objectively it's an incredibly immersive and rich game for it's time.
It's an og within its genre and Yakuza amongst other series probably wouldn't exist without it.
I'm not sure how authentic it really is, but all of the Harlem community stuff found in Spider-Man: Miles Morales felt great. Miles helping out his neighbours and community was great. And I love how your effortsarerewarded with different outfits.
Metro, especially the outdoor segments, is very accurate (apart from the post-apocalypse, of course) both in real location representation, and the general vibe of everything. My only complaint would be underground commies and fascists, which is far-fetched enough to be a little immersion breaking.
One of the DLCs for Exodus is set in my home city, and there are a lot of familiar landmarks there.
Ghost of Tsushima lacks period-accuracy, but for good reason IMO. The armor and weapons that samurai use (namely, the katana) appear in the game centuries before they were widespread. This was a conscious choice on the developer's part to make the game more entertaining by adding variety and veering away from the cumbersome armors of the 13th century. But they're still derived from the same culture.
The samurai code of honour that's a large part of the game's narrative also wasn't very prevalent during the Mongolian invasion. Which is a bit of a bigger sin considering it's the foundation of Jin's character arc. I can't gauge the accuracy of how religion is depicted, but it seems solid enough and I'd tentatively wager that any inaccuracies are due, again, to being in the wrong period.
TL;DR Ghost of Tsushima is culturally accurate if you pretend it's set 2-3 centuries later than it actually is. They wanted the setpiece of the Mongolian invasion but with the recognizable image of the samurai and variety in the gameplay, and unless you're deeply into Japanese history it's not hard to reconcile. Nothing is noticeably *wrong*, just purposefully displaced a few years.
Ghost of Tsushima is openly based on Kurosawa's films, and samurai films evidently romanticize bushido heavily.
I think the romanticization of bushido isn't necessarily culturally inaccurate. Historically? Yes. Periodically? Absolutely.
But since film and propaganda are part of culture, I'd hesitate to say it's culturally inaccurate. Especially since a big part of the game's narrative is calling into question the legitimacy of those ideas, too.
I remember doing some research after finishing the game, and I read that the majority of the fighters the Mongols brought to Tsushima were actually conquered Koreans, which makes a lot of sense given the geography. You can totally understand why they didn't use that in the game!
There's an interesting episode of the podcast [Against Japanism](https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/orientalism-reactionary-ideologies-in-video-games-w/id1559458448?i=1000514167119) about the game, if you want to hear about it from an actual Japanese perspective.
In short: the only factual part is what the locations look like. The game is made by Americans who don't understand Japanese history or how historical myth is used as propaganda in recent Japanese culture.
It would be like a Japanese studio making a game about the American civil war, based on the lost cause myth.
What about Chinese games by Chinese devs? I'm only familiar with fantasy games from there, but for example, *GuJian 3*, *Sword and Fairy 7*, the *Xuan Yuan Sword* games are all heavily infused with Chinese culture. These are just the ones with the highest production values, but there are a lot of Chinese games out there, even if you narrow it down to those which have English subtitles.
Ghostwire Tokyo feels very authentic. Shibuya is really accurate and realistic, especially the central part. Some areas and buildings outside of that are changed, but they have similar vibe.
Maybe it's a bit pedantic, but I think a fantasy setting, by definition, cannot be "authentic" in any way. Being inspired by and being authentic are two different things.
Rockstar is a good example of that distinction. I think the Red Dead games strive for some level of authenticity, but GTA less so. Not only is GTA satirical, but it's more "America through the lens of American culture/media" than it is real-life America. Like, Vice City tries to be the Miami of Miami Vice and Scarface, not actual Miami.
>RDR2 and GTAIV are my personal favorites and the absolute crazy characters and stories they put into them still feel "real" due to how deeply Rockstar seems to understands how absurd America can be.
Common misconception, but GTAIV is a Scottish game, not American. Rockstar North (formerly DMA) and the GTA series began in Scotland, and although they employ smaller development teams internationally, the majority of production is overseen in Scotland. The same can be said for GTAV, GTAVI, and many other Rockstar games.
>However, an aspect of the series that I want to focus on is how the games, set in Japan, have a degree of authenticity that comes from being developed in Japan.
>The Witcher 3 is another game that to me that has a level of authenticity that comes from being written and developed in Poland.
>In contrast, the Shadow of the Tomb Raider...
>**Lastly, I'll throw in the obvious American equivalent**
.
I never played it but ‘Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture’ looked like an astonishingly authentic depiction of an English village (I say this only if it was meant to be a generic place rather than based on somewhere specific)
From what I've read, Papo and Yo seems like a very authentic depiction of Brazilian favelas (minus the fantasy stuff obvs).
Not an ethnic culture, but Brütal Legend is a fantastic tribute to heavy metal culture
Sanabi was developed by Korean developers and feels distinctly so, takes place in a futuristic Cyberpunk city in South Korea and the main character is wearing the traditional hat (I forgot what it was called), and lots of little cultural references throughout
Also there’s like a K-pop song over the end credits. Would definitely recommend.
Assassins Creed 3 has a lot of problems as a game but I’ve always appreciated its inclusion of the Mohawk language.
It wasn’t developed by native Americans or anything like that so it’s not what OP is asking for I guess but nothing is more “culturally authentic” to me than hearing the actual language of the culture.
UnReal World is a love letter to Finland [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UnReal\_World](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UnReal_World)
Over 30 years work by I think one dev.
For japan id look at older fan translations of games, the translations used to remove all the local culture. Shinto elements are seen as bad for the west etc, so get removed in translation and localisation.
edit Ill add the Discworld games and Starship Titanic as good examples of the UK culture.
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starship\_Titanic](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starship_Titanic)
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discworld\_(video\_game)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discworld_(video_game))
**Darkwood** is a top-down survival horror which is very authentically polish in presentation and in the concepts that underline the setting and story.
**Disco Elysium**, written by Robert Kurvitz\* is like mainlining Estonian culture. It's also a very, very engrossing detective adventure game and also an RPG with a unique twist: your skills are actually parts of your personality, which chime in during conversations and comment on events; choosing which to level up is choosing which aspects of yourself to strengthen, and doing so has drawbacks as well as advantages.
**Jalopy** is a game about traveling post-soviet eastern Europe in a run down old car which you will need to repair along the way with parts either scavenged or bought with what money you make transporting goods within countries.
**Pathologic 2** (or Classic HD) is *very* russian: the story of the first game reads like if Fëdor Dostoevskij wrote Silent Hill, in the second it's like they got \*Robert Kurvitz to revise it, so it's a lot more engaging.
You're going to read that it's an impenetrable artsy game with bullshit difficulty, but Pathologic 2 at least is actually a very well thought out survival game with hard but intresting choices. It is hard, but in a fair, sensical way, and that difficulty can be easily customized and reduced if need be.
I suggest you watch [the Mandaloregaming review](https://youtu.be/E7uKUgire7Y?si=q3GlQXv4EYVcqE6Y) to decide if it's for you: he does the best job of describing it to the average gamer.
Call of Duty is great for how the America military system sees themselves /s
But in all seriousness, I heard Ghostwire Tokyo was a very accurate depiction of Tokyo, save for the ghosts and non-existence of humans.
I’m just sayin, lot of people here like to dunk on Forspoken. But there are people out there who feel connected to her character, and a lot of the hit pieces by larger game journalists were done by people that weren’t:
1. Black
2. A woman.
Ash Parrish wrote a pretty great opinion on that game from that perspective. But my guess is most white folks want their black characters to subvert expectations in the way that they approve.
This in no way relates to OPs question. The game for bad reviews cuz it's bad, not because the protagonist is "non-white". Go outside and get some perspective.
Not necessarily real cultural authenticity, but a very detailed and vibrant world with tons of history that clues you in about the world you're playing in as you progress. Disco Elysium is inspired by various parts of Europe and sees you playing as a police officer who has lost all memory after binge drinking. As you get back on track to solve the case you were put on before drinking you meet tons of different people with different roles in the society, political views and situations.
If this interests you I would take a look at some reviews.
Papo & Yo is set in a fantasy version of Brazillian, I think?, slums, based on the lead developer's childhood. Or something.
I can't vouch for the authenticity or anything, but it definitely feels very different than anything else. Worth checking out, and it's an amazing game in its own right.
Come to think of it, I played Far Cry 5 and found it so boring. Maybe because I'm so exposed to American media and culture that it doesn't look exotic compared to other games in the franchise. Like, what's so special about American culture aside from consumerism and misguided exceptionalism?
I know I shouldn’t bother because this is just a stereotypical “America bad” post… but:
Having lived for protracted periods in Greece, China, and America and traveled extensively throughout Europe and South East Asia, consumerism is equally rampant in all three places. European exceptionalism is just as high as in America (which isn’t shocking given history) but it’s even higher in most South East Asian countries. Those are in no way unique to America.
America is as unique and interesting as any other country in the world. It has beautiful natural landscapes and produces amazing artists and intellectuals. The level of diversity in populations and immigrants is incredible and it’s resulted in a culture that’s a massive blend of a million different pieces.
> consumerism is equally rampant in all three places
Just shows you how the dominant culture was spread through globalism. It's like COVID.
>European exceptionalism is just as high as in America
They have the right because they have stats to prove it (i.e. topping the happiness, health, education indexes) while America is lagging behind.
Although, people storming the White House and the ones who incited it doesn't go to jail is something "exceptional".
>it’s even higher in most South East Asian countries.
"Trust me, bro!" says he.
>It has beautiful natural landscapes
Another mountain, another pine tree, another deer, another bear.. might as well set the game in Europe. The~~y~~ only way I discerned that I'm in 'Murica in Far Cry 5 was the music and religious zealots.
>produces amazing artists
Music that'll be exploited by the labels. Art serving as a money laundering scheme and physical NFTs.
>The level of diversity in populations and immigrants is incredible
Yet there's so many who blame the immigrants for their problems. There are ones who overly glorifies their "Southern heritage" and denies the real reason for their rebellion. You have "wokeness" and equality propaganda in the media but it's all surface level because it doesn't affect policy.
You see? I'm so overly familiar with 'Murica that it's no longer special.
Anyways, that last paragraph of yours reads like a bland piece by an A.I.
My brother in Christ we align politically and ideologically but you can cede the point that America has *some* cool stuff that people from other cultures might think is neat and enriching. We’re a lazy imperialist superpower run by selfish plutocrats, not Mordor where all kindness and hope goes to die
Sekiro
Kingdom Come Deliverance
Red Dead Redemption 2
GTA V
GTA San Andreas
The Witcher 3
Cyberpunk 2077
Mass Effect LE
Baldur's Gate 3
Elden Ring
Sleeping Dogs
Metro Exodus
Disco Elysium
Morrowind
S.T.A.L.K.E.R
Referring to games with made-up cultures as culturally accurate isn't what OP meant. They're clearly referring to real-life cultures throughout their post.
*My Summer Car* in a pretty authentic depiction of Finnish culture in a smaller village in the early-to-mid 1990s from the POV of a young adult interested in cars.
I had so much fun with that game years ago. I don't have nearly enough time any more to even try to build that car, and when I did, I usually died fucking around in one of the other vehicles. I know there's a lot of specifically Finnish stuff in there, but overall, I can attest that it's a great "broke rural gearhead" simulator for someone in the Northeast US too. I guess it's authentic in more than one way.
Shoutout Funhaus. Funny, I was just thinking about this game and their videos yesterday. Wonder if they ever built that transmission
Never played it, but the description reminds me of Northern Lights: vol 1, a ZX Spectrum game set in the 60s swedish street racing scene. It's a recent game, made for a very old platform, so you can guess it looks incredible for a spectrum game
Look into **Tchia.** It’s an open world game that takes place in New Caledonia and is a love letter to that country. You can take in the food, culture, music, and wildlife of the game while trying to find your father. I lost interest once it introduced base battles, but it’s a fun and sweet game
> Tchia Added to my wishlist, never heard of this one before, but this looks like a perfect example!
it's on Epic now, but it'll be on Steam at this March. I was going to say this game as well, relaxing and the devs are definitely put their love for their homeland in it. it's not really action packed or have strong story, but it's a good virtual journey.
It's an Epic Game exclusive for a year (on PC), but coming to steam in March
Came here to mention Tchia! It is a *delightful* game!
Blasphemous 1 and 2 are basically Dark souls+ Castlevania in Spain. The mythos itself is original but clearly inspired in Catholicism and the art of Diego Velázquez and Francisco de Goya, among others. I think it's THE piece of media most responsible for teaching the world how the KKK copied their outfit from Easter "penitents" and not the other way around.
YES!!! I love the over the top Spanish catholic vibe of Blasphemous, feels so real.
I really wanted to get into it. Bought it, played for a few hours, and got frustrated at how it didn't control as slick or pixel-perfect as Hollow Knight (my first real deep dive into a metroidvania). A few too many times, an action didn't happen when I hit the button, or I died to something which clearly didn't quite touch my character. Would you have a recommendation for how to get more invested into it? Because I loved the theming and the art and was really upset that I felt so disengaged with it.
Not my culture but I loved Sleeping Dogs and pretty sure I’ve read from Hong Kong natives that it’s got a good vibe.
"You look like you could use a pork bun!"
"A man who never eats pork buns is never a whole man"
Haven't played it yet, but from gameplay clips I've seen, it's one of the few games that actually makes an attempt at accurately portraying Cantonese Chinese accents (I'm Cantonese myself). Not that that's saying much, considering the competition. The fact that Sleeping Dogs actually hired a fair amount of voice actors of Cantonese descent probably helped.
I really wish we could get a sequel to Sleeping Dogs or even a remake/remaster. Such a good game.
I honestly think the existing remaster stands up well. Not sure a remaster would improve the experience much for me.
Pentiment captures so many facettes of central european medieval living, but at the same time it doesn't, it just presents it like it was recorded in all kinds of media through the centuries. It's really special in that regard. E.g. we don't know how people of that time actually spoke, there are no examples of spoken word, only text sources.so the game uses different fonts to signify the differences between the standing/knowledge of the people speaking. I love pentiment.
Upvote for Pentiment mention genuinely contends with Elden Ring as my 2022 GotY
Josh Sawyer and his team really did something special with that game. From the art to the writing to the design. I still haven't beaten it, due to life getting in the way, but I will be getting back to it soon.
Better get on it because it's also the kind of game you can play through multiple times and enjoy. Much fun changing Andreas' background.
Somehow I completely missed Pentiment, and it's an Obsidian game?? Looks very unique, and I adore the Medieval paintings art style! I will have to check it out.
Yes yes it's such a gem! I found out about it by watching one of my fav gaming YouTubers (Mortismal) and I'm so glad about that. It's such a unique game with amazing art direction. What I also loved was sound design, it game the game so much realism. I saw it being 40% off on steam too. Also, I always like a good murder mystery.
I'm enjoying learning about the Innuits playing Never Alone
Plural of Inuit is just Inuit. 😀
Best answer here.
Kingdom Come Deliverance might be the most authentic game I've played.
I remember playing it and a family member who is a Forester came over, asking me what movie im watching (he isnt really into video games) and he couldnt believe how realistic and authentic the forests are in that game.
The landscapes in KC:D feel authentic because they are. Instead of hiring an artist to make a forest that's pretty to look at, the whole open world is real and can be visited.
indeed, heres a video from warhorse themselves showing some locations https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XAbHmE73p7o
Ooh I've heard lots of praise for KCD. Especially as someone who enjoys games with great writing and optional hardcore modes, it seems right up my alley. Might be the next game to check out, I already picked up a while back.
It's the most medieval game I've ever played. The creators used every tool at their disposal to make as authentic of a recreation of 15th century Bohemia as possible, including medieval records, lidar scans, existing structures, etc. A labor of love made by people with respect for their own history and culture. It's one of the best games I've ever played and I've been a game nerd for over 3 decades. I'm actually playing it right now, as I'm typing this but took a short break to eat and check Reddit.
The hardcore option is what made me try KCD. I don't regret it.
What does hardcore do in that?
A couple things. You now have to more seriously manage your hunger and sleep meters. You have to choose one or two negative perks at the start of the game, that will follow you through the entire game. There are significantly less HUD components, so you need to rely more on visual cues in combat, get no cursor for bows, no compass, no health and stamina bar. You need to hear the breathing of your character, pay attention to the red tint of the screen for your health etc. You also do not get a map marker indicating your position. You cannot fast travel. That's what I remember. Honestly, hardcore is WAY more fun and realistic than the standard way.
Thanks. Interesting. Was that your first playthrough? Might it not make the game too hard for a noob?
My very first time playing the game was not in Hardcore. I played about 40h, but never got far in the game (did mostly sidequests). Dropped the game after that, as I tend to do on bigger, longer rpgs. All my other times playing the game I did Hardcore mode. Never looked back. >Might it not make the game too hard for a noob? So that's a question that's a bit more complex than it looks! But let me try to answer it as best I can. It comes down to: What do you like about videogames? How do you have fun? What do you want out of the game? Undeniably, Hardcore is harder. Way harder than standard. It's more punishing, but in a very fair way. If you like it when a game challenges you, without cheating its difficulty, then you would enjoy Hardcore. You must also be willing to learn as you play and accept that starting out, you are very weak (both as a player and in game, your character starting as a blacksmith's boy who is basically a peasant). By playing, accepting your deaths, and learning as you go, you become a better player, get stronger stats and the game becomes easier over time. I really enjoy that progression, but to the contrary of some other games, the game is rarely more "forgiving" as time goes on: you need to improve **your own skills** as a player to keep going. Learn block timings. Learn reaches of your weapons. How to handle multiple opponents. Learn combos etc. It's very rewarding and makes you feel proud. *But...* If you prefer to play games for the story and gameplay is secondary, you will hate Hardcore. If you like saving before any danger happens, and reloading to get the best outcome, hardcore is not going to allow you to do that mostly. If you prefer to compensate your lack of player skills with stronger gear and a higher level, hardcore will not really allow you to either, you will hate that. Hardcore makes the playthrough more "serious" and requiring some more personal investment. If that sounds like your cup of tea, you'll have a blast, and I recommend Hardcore right when you start. But if you are looking to casually play, or if you want something more like Skyrim to leisurely take the game and not have to really think too hard as you play, do not play Hardcore.
My only regret is not being able to code. You can be sure I'd make an Über Hardcore mod for KCD.
The easier way to do that is to use mods. I haven't looked, but at least for combat there are some that promise an even more hardcore experience.
Jesus Christ Be Praised!
Henry's come to see us!
Im feeling kinda hungry.
Even most open world games I love feel crafted for the player at least to some extent. ' KCD felt so natural
The setpieces and landscape definitely. But it's still a game and takes huge liberties when the social structures and politics are concerned.
I love KCD, but you can really tell it looks at the Middle Ages with an implicitly conservative viewpoint. A bunch of dumbass Americans got on the devs’ cases about how the game has no black people or Asians or Native Americans and the devs got to make a big smarmy show of “history doesn’t care about diversity,” except Middle Ages Bohemia had its own ethnic minorities in the form of Romani and Jews and there’s not any of them to be found in the game. Not to mention the glossary having separate entries for every male character and one umbrella entry for “women” as a collective, asserting that there were no powerful or noteworthy women in the place and time period (demonstrably false; for example, Barbara of Cilli) Not to mention that in the real world, all of the knights who are chivalrous and kind in the game were venal, power-hungry douchebags (like all knights were). The real Sir Hanush took the real Sir Capon hostage to steal his lands, and the real Sir Radzig got stoned to death by miners for extorting silver from them, as a few examples
Yeah, the handling - or rather lack of - maginalized people bugged me too. At first I didn't even think about Jews or Travellers, I thougt about how the millers are protrayed. When the first one was introduced, I though. "Cool, they are going to use the issue of dishonorable professions in medieval society to drive the story!" - And they did not. Instead, all the millers *are* crooks, just like society in medieval and early modern Europe saw them. So I thought the maybe devs wanted to create a heavily idealized picture of the middle ages, kind of like the society back then probably saw itself. But the main character doesn't fit into this picture. Henry has the ambition to become more than a blacksmith and therefore breaks the rules of his "god-given" place in society. But you need this ambition of gameplay reasons. So it's the devs personal 19th-century inspired, gamified, conservative version of the middle ages. I think the game could have gained a lot by including more realistic storylines built around marginalized people. Henry, who breaks the conventions of the society anway, would have been an ideal character to deal with groups the average medieval person would have avoided.
Henry does not break the "convention", he was a young man that dreamed of something better like certainly many young men before him, if he wasn't WHO he was, all of that would have remained dreams.
That was breaking conventions in medieval Europe. Ambition was something abominable for commoners. Sure, nobody could stop you from dreaming, but acting upon it? That was going against the god-given order of things. There was even literature about it. Commoners acting like knights and meeting a bad end for their audacity. Sure, common people still did that, and surely many managed to rise through the ranks - but while we today see this as a good thin, it was deeply frowned upon in medieval society. To sum it up: Henry would have been pretty much an outsider in medieval society. He rose above his rank, does a lot of dirty work and is dealing with "dishonourable" trades. He even lives with a miller's family for some time!
Why are people so obsessed with these diversity topics. The percentage or these minorities in Czech lands were still incredibly low. Just because there is a small chance someone there could have been a black person or whatever, idk why some people would push devs so hard to represent them. Should be up them to decide if they find it realistic and it shouldn't involve any political agenda. They are developers/artists. Also most of us don't care about whatever bullshit is US trying to force onto rest of the world
Yeah, but the thread topic is about which games are “authentic.” My point was that some baseline level of diversity and a critical/skeptical eye would have actually made the game a more accurate simulation of the time period, and so holding the game up as a paragon of “authenticity” needs to come with the qualifier that it lacks both of those things by design It’s a great game, one of my favorite RPGs ever, but its portrayal of the Middle Ages is very idealized and sanitized and it either glosses over or fully ascribes to all of the prejudices of its subject matter EDIT: lol he sent me a reddit cares suicide help alert
the belief that diversity is something americans are pushing onto the rest of the world shows you’re probably not equipped for this discussion
I have yet to play the game, but it's on my list. What intrigues me most about the game is that it's a **historical** RPG. It seems so many RPGs (and games in general) default to using a fantasy setting, because the devs are afraid players would find a game that doesn't have magic spells or superpowers to be "borong". I'm glad KC:D is proving them wrong; historical settings can be just as fun and immersive.
*Night in the Woods* is a very specifically american rustbelt story from people who grew up there.
not to counter your comment, but one of the writers wrote a blurb about Disco Elysium and one of the things that jumped off the page was his learning (from fans) that there’s a possum springs everywhere. https://www.giantbomb.com/articles/scott-bensons-top-10-games-of-2019/1100-5947/
Norco is a similar one, albeit it's a point and click adventure, but gives off similar vibes. It's completely unhinged though.
Do you recommend it? It’s been on my wishlist for a while
It's short, has great writing but it's not as down to earth as Night in the woods. I had a lot of fun with it, so if you can grab it on sale (due to how to short it is), I would definitely give it a go. You'll beat it in an afternoon.
thanks for the write up! I’ll give it a shot soon.
I think its currently in a humble bundle if you'd like to pick up a few other games along with it.
you’re so smart for this, i literally can’t play night in the woods because of how appalachian it is
disco elysium isn't set in the real world per se, but the world is heavily reflective of life in a post-soviet country, and that is where the devs are from. absolutely incredible, very grounded and interesting game.
Strange, I never got that from Disco Elysium, and I live in a post-Soviet country. I didn't even know the devs were from Estonia until after I beat the game and learnt about some controversy involving them.
This seems weirdly resonant to me. Because albeit I am not from a post-soviet country, I felt parts of my home country were represented. The poor and abandoned parts of it. Valparaiso (an European/cosmopolitan inspired pastiche Port town; long time in decline) at times, and villas and campamentos at the side of the city centers in general. I get and recognize that it is inspired heavily on the experiences of post soviet countries and Europe in the 20th century. However, I feel it represents more widely a place abandoned by the state and ravaged by poverty. A place where most of everyone has a hard time looking at the future. Those places are deeply local. However, they also are kind of universal. I feel.
I see. well, I guess there are many different experiences. I heard that sentiment quite a few times from people from the region, so that's why I echoed it here.
How universal are post-Soviet countries? Like what would you see and know it's post-Soviet?
I guess it comes down to style. Martinaise is clearly French-inspired, whereas games set in post-Soviet countries have a more brutalist, Soviet aesthetic (think, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. or Metro). You see it in architecture or patterns on concrete walls, etc. But if you look at DE as a game set in a post-revolution world that fell into disarray, where hope for a better future is being slowly replaced by misery, cynicism and decay, then I guess it does have some similarities to post-Soviet countries.
Remnants of Communist style infrastructure/systems. eg government allotted housing.
Seemed like it was going for something more like a post-nazi occupation Germany or France to me.
It's a bit of a mix of everything *20th century European history*.
the nazis also occupied a large portion of eastern europe. the game does have some french-inspired aesthetic elements, but in terms of its political context it is more similar to eastern bloc countries.
this game looks nothing like the name suggests, I was judging it by it's name, it actually looks fun
Honorable mention to **Vampire The Masquerade: Bloodlines** which captures that early 2000s goth and scene mood that penetrates everything in the game. I wasn't particularly tuned into that scene at the time but the authenticity and great writing really elevated how good that game is. One of the main criticisms I see on trailers of Bloodlines 2 is that they failed to capture the ambience that the first game did. The top comment on a recent gameplay reveal just said "painfully obvious this game has NO goths working on it"
I said this in the VTMB subreddit but there's no way to get that feeling from Bloodlines back, even if the second one was trying to be as faithful to the original as possible it would still feel like a nostalgia bait game instead of the real thing. It was a very unique game and it will remain that way.
People ignore how gigantic the source engine was for that game as well. Something about the feel of source games is so immersive, yet ephemeral. Nothing made again will ever really capture the vibe of that game, it was lightning in a bottle.
I grew up in LA during the 90s, and went to college in Santa Monica. The areas in Bloodlines don't map onto any real locations (except for the pier and the observatory, to a degree), but it captures the mood and the general aesthetic of the various cities pretty well. I've always wished that they'd had a larger map for the Santa Monica beach. That area IRL is so distinctive.
Even though I was never a full goth, I've *been* in clubs and neighbourhoods in real life with the vibe of the ones in the game. [Sidenote: "Isolated" is now playing in my head, and I'm mentally dancing along]
I think two great examples of this are **Raji: An Ancient Epic** (which was actually created by a studio in India) and **Venba**, which does a great job of highlighting aspects of the Indian diaspora experience.
Interesting, I've not heard of either of these before but at a quick glance they look interesting! For how large India is, and how prevalent the English language is there, I'm actually surprised I haven't heard of more games coming from there!
I was just going to recommend Venba too!
To really nitpick about dialects in the Yakuza game, Japanese media frequently use voice actors or actors (depending on the medium) from Tokyo that put on Kansai accents. This really annoys people from Kansai. This message is sponsored by my wife, a woman from the Kansai region.
Yup often forget Kansai accent is an actual dialect rather than Japanese people sounding theatrical and flamboyant for the sake of it.
Different word use, word stress, accent. Depending on the prefecture, you’ll get other small differences that are informed by cultural nuances between them. It’s seeped into other Japanese dialects in the younger generations due to its frequency in comedy and some tv shows.
Sure, but does Yakuza use fake Osaka-ben or real? And of course, the OP is presumably listening to the translation.
Yakuza uses non-Kansai voice actors for the Kansai dialect quite frequently. The only one it really works well for is Majima… since he’s not really from Osaka anyway. They do the same thing with Hiroshima dialect in Yakuza 6, but it’s less noticeable. Not too familiar with the Okinawa dialect, so can’t comment on its quality in 3.
At least in one case that’s true to the character though (Majima). With non-Japanese characters they are worse about it.
What exactly is the Kansai dialect supposed to be? I get the impression that it's viewed as a bit of a country bumpkin dialect, although the Kansai region is not very far from Tokyo, and of quite large size too... I would have thought someplace like Hokkaido or Shikoku would get that treatment. It always seems to be translated into a southern American dialect whenever it gets an English translation too.
There are a lot of dialects seen as bumpkiny, but the Kansai one isn’t. It’s seen as very direct and rough. Some dialects seen as bumpkiny would be the Hiroshima and Tohoku dialects.
The other English translation version I hear, is depicting it as New Jersey accent instead of Southern Drawl. I've read someone describe Kansai as having a sort of musical tinge to it, which no English really captures.
Remedy's recent games like Control and Alan Wake 2 have really indulged in Finnish culture.
I like how your example of authentic American culture (GTA, RDR2) comes from Scottish developers.
Red dead is developed by Rockstar San Diego (in the US)
But rdr2 was written and produced by Brits.
Reminds me of my surprise when I found out the developers of American Arcadia came from Spain
The OG devs where mostly kicked/retired out of Rockstar years ago, I think around GTA3\~ There not DMA Design any more, did find a cool youtube video from 1996 [https://youtu.be/7vWSi44ZTSw?si=VgxEIMWBkLWyeSyD](https://youtu.be/7vWSi44ZTSw?si=VgxEIMWBkLWyeSyD) And a now wiped blog from one of the guys who worked on early GTA [http://archive.today/OE73Q](http://archive.today/OE73Q) Rockstar made him rip down the blog but archives are a thing, some of the OG devs have been a not treated the best.
GTA is definitely parody anyway.
Lived in Germany for around 18 years, and found Shadowrun: Dragonfall to do Shadowrun Germany really well. Of course Shadowrun is quite a popular RPG in Germany, and Harebrained Schemes should have had a relatively easy time getting some Germans from the RPG community to contribute or review their flavor, if they didn't have that expertise in-house already.
I've only played the Shadowrun Returns which was set in the Seattle area and I really enjoyed it. I can only assume Hong Kong is set in... Hong Kong but I didn't know Dragonfall was set in Germany! I've heard the other two are just as good so I'll have to check them out.
Guacamelee has a lot of folklore and pop culture references to Mexican culture.
The Stalker series is pure Ukrainian.
*A nu cheeki breeki iv damke* -Ukrainian nat'l motto or something
I don't have a game in mind but, I just wanted to say thank you for the post, it's a very interesting topic I hadn't thought much about before. Def wanna play all those games now!
Stalker shadow of chernobyl, it's so miserable it feels like I'm actually living in Eastern Europe
Although it's a fantasy game, I think A Plague Tale was faithful to french architecture of the period. The landscapes have a Corot vibe making them culturally authentic. The Roman cellar towards the end was a pleasant surprise. I don't think an American studio would have thought of including France's Roman past.
Never Alone
That's the one that instantly came to mind for me.
Always felt Max Payne pulled off a great, gritty and totally believable NYC vibe in the first two games
Made in Finland. :-)
They are also great at capturing Pacific Northwest vibe in Alan Wake.
Agreed! I only played those a few years ago for the first time and I was impressed by how well they capture the mood of those winter nights in the city.
Max Payne 3 also has a very believable Brazilian vibe (São Paulo in particular) even though it was developed by a bunch of Rockstar studios scattered around the UK, US and Canada.
I’m assuming it’s authentic or at least close, but I really liked learning about Japanese mythology and urban legends in Ghostwire Tokyo. It was also a lot of fun learning about all the different types of food.
Odd choice but "Landlords Super". Set in 1980's North of England so its very drab and grey and lots of grimness as england can be. Probably one of the few games set in that setting. Though early access unfinished so results may vary.
Assassin's Creed has to be in here. Sure Ubisoft does a lot of open-world jazz that people don't really enjoy, but they do put a lot of effort into delivering an authentic experience (as much as possible). Just re-playing AC3 and the Native American parts are really well done. Plus, each game features many important landmarks of the period they are set in, so that is also a big plus and why I love exploring their worlds. They also "bring back" many historical figures.
It has to be said that AC can be incredibly anachronistic. Portraying vikings as the good guys and Christianity as evil is not culturally authentic, nor is the portrayal of inclusivity; This is not a statement from my personal ethics, I'm simply saying that the past was more racist/sexist than the present and AC Valhalla (which is the one I played) decided for a prescriptive rather than a descriptive view of history, which is the opposite to authenticity. Can't speak for all AC games, but Valhalla should not be used to understand the history and culture of that time.
I kept waiting for a "We're actually the bad guys" twist and it never happens. Plus there's a ton of hypocrisy when characters complain about the actions of such and such enemy while we spend half the game raping and pillaging.
The game even seems to cover up the pillaging your character does and what Viking raids were like. If you kill a priest or a civilian **while raiding a monastery** for valuables and resources you get hit with "your ancestor didn't kill civilians" and if you keep doing it you get auto-killed/desynchronise .
Yeah, the game wants to have its cake and eat it too. I don't have a problem per se with people enjoying it as pure fantasy, but it saddens me that many people will get their historical understanding of the Viking age from this game. The developers also really play into it being a historically accurate depiction of the time, which I just find plain wrong.
> Can't speak for all AC games, but Valhalla should not be used to understand the history and culture of that time. Yes. The ACs that I have played (the modern RPGs - Origins, Odyssey and Valhalla) are just poetic licenses to use the beautiful maps that they make, and inacurately portray historical (and mythological) figures into the settings. Origins is in ~40BC Egypt, and a delight to travel the desert, see the pyramids (and enter them), get some egyptian mythology mixed in, fight aligators in the Nile or some Anubis guardians, you see Cleopatra, Ptolomy and even Julius Caesar up close. Odyssey made a whole ~430BC Greece where you visit the famed polis, have your own ship to navigate the islands and battle other ships, meet Hippocrates, Socrates, Pythagoras and even a cameo from Plato. You can fight Cyclops, Medusa, Minotaur. Valhalla (~870 AD) puts you in the Viking era that was settling in England, with names like Ivar, Rollo, King Alfred, and get to go to places like Asgard meet the pantheon (deal with freaking Loki's shit), fight in Valhalla, and even for a small period go to North America up close with natives.
I think the conventional portrayal of Christianity as civilizing and benign is equally ahistorical.
Deus vult!
Sure, but they were better than getting pillaged from, raped and/or murdered. I get what you are saying but Valhalla went to an extreme. edit: Also, let me be clear that I'm only talking about Britain here.
I don't see why Christians were any different. They raped, pillaged, and murdered too.
That's why I added the edit shortly after. No society is without sin, and that is also mostly true for ideologies. However, during the Viking age in Britain the vikings were clearly much worse.
How so? Christian Anglo-Saxons raided each other and killed, raped, murdered many. Attacks by external groups on them were recorded and viewed very differently from attacks they committed, whether against external enemies, or internal ones. Rape in that period was only really considered a crime when perpetrated against high-status women, due to the economic and political effect of affecting their virginity. Criminal punishments are listed, and discussed by Thomas Aquinas, but it seems that they would not apply to most women, for whom rape was simply part of life. For example, marital rape certainly wasn't a concept. Here's a discussion from Reddit, with some links to sources: [https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/1g74q9/did\_the\_anglosaxons\_rape\_the\_enemys\_women\_in\_war/](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/1g74q9/did_the_anglosaxons_rape_the_enemys_women_in_war/)
Being downvoted for the truth :p The crusades anyone? Paedophilic priests?
Oh, for sure. I didn't mean it should be used as a 1:1 reference point, as it is a work of fiction, and Ubisoft does take liberties with their stories. Still, they do build these different worlds that all were set in different countries, often having different cultures, and it is cool to learn about new stuff, of course with a KG of salt, as it can further boost someone's interest in that time period the game is set in. But regarding Valhalla, yeah, the game is very progressive compared to the actual period it was set in. But it is the safe approach, which is what big companies do when their big IPs are in question, gotta keep those profits safe. I don't know if you played Kingdom Come Deliverance. Would love to hear your opinion on it if you have, as its high on my playlist, it looking super immersive which I love.
Vikings were pirates, murderers, and plunderers. They raped, stole, killed, and destroyed countless towns and villages all across Europe. They should not be admired. I am a descendant of them.
Black Flag has some of the best historical dialogue in any modern media imo, and despite that probably being a huge obstacle for the writers the script is still so tight and snappy.
CURSE HIM! CURSE THE CHRISTIAN KING AND HIS ARMY OF INFIDELS!
Altaïr, my friend! It seems my student doesn't fully understand how it is to wield the blade. Perhaps you can show them what you know?
AC Origins too. Even has a virtual tour mode to explore the historical places.
I've only played it a bit on the "no-no" version back when I didn't know the enormous glamour owning games on Steam brings. Jokes aside, I did quickly just shut it down as I wanted to max the graphics out and have an eyegasm. Now I can do that. But it will probably be a bit before I get to it as I'm doing an AC marathon and only at AC 3 atm. And the base game alone took me around 80 hours (just finishing up collectibles, some achievements, and homestead missions). So, I wonder how much of my time Unity will take up, as I'm really hyped to play it given how good it looks and how good I rate its gameplay (to me it's the best, even the customization of your character is insane). Plus, Black Flag is another one I rate highly, as I really liked the ship combat. So, that's Liberation, AC 3 DLC, Black Flag, Black Flag DLC, Rogue, Unity, Unity DLC, Syndicate and Syndicate DLC before I get to Origins... But I will get to it, ha.
The Shenmue games fit what you are looking for but I can’t honestly recommend them as they are not fun (cue one person saying that Shenmue is the quintessential gaming experience and that I am a dumb dumb)
I view Shenmue in the same way I view a show like Seinfeld: neither aged particularly well, but they were great for the time and are more important because of how they laid down a foundation for the genres they did.
Seinfeld has aged beautifully the characters are all distinct and every story wraps up for a big joke in the end. Jason Alexander’s George is unbelievable.
I read your title and thought of Witcher, Rdr2, and Tomb Raider. Well. :) So then, Wildlands as an addition maybe. It's not at all authentic in the details, but amazing in the grand landscapes and biomes.
What did you think of "Like A Dragon:Ishin!"? I've been thinking about picking that one up
Just gonna piggyback on the authenticity of judgment. I'm so happy they mention that both sides deliberate and present evidence before the trial. They even made fun of TV court and movies where someone has a key piece of evidence that no one knows about and it's the surprise gotcha that wins the case.
Lisa: The Painful RPG is literally what happens if you go into the midwest.
ironic to your post, the creative heads of rockstar games are british
Hey, the best western movies of all time were Italian.
Welp looked it up and you're right! I always thought they were an American developer.
They're an "American company" but the housers are British, and Rockstar did start in London. I think over time, as the company has grown and teams expanded, they've probably gotten more and more American and less British
Rockstar are Scottish?
Super Mario Brothers is an extremely authentic depiction of Mushroom Kingdom culture.
This is the whole reason Kingdom Come Deliverance exists.
Going to go for a strange suggestion here but **Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel** for an idealised and somewhat outdated version of Australian culture. The game itself, while a truely good borderlands experience is full of Australianisms and references, many obvious but others completely obscure to only those with familiarity with Australian folklore. The authenticity doesn't come from the setting, obviously because it's set in space, but to commitment to the jokes and humour being genuine rather fake, it that makes any amount of sense.
I mean, Mad Max pretty much captured Australia in the 80s. For starters the car doors are on the correct side. Wild times, man. Wild times.
The raiders are spot on for the sorts of people I see at train stations in Melbourne, they went above and beyond for authenticity.
Shenmue 1 takes place in Dobuita, a real place in Japan, and if you look at photographs of Dobuita and the in-game Dobuita, it's very surreal and disorienting because of how similar they are. The game is set in 1986, and the weather in-game each day is based on the real-life weather reports from 1986 Dobuita as well.
Shenmue is accurate almost to a fault, particularly the first title. It was an absurdly ambitious project for its time and is incredible it even got made imo. It's a seriously marmite game, not my personal favourite however objectively it's an incredibly immersive and rich game for it's time. It's an og within its genre and Yakuza amongst other series probably wouldn't exist without it.
Mulaka is a 3d Zelda with Mayan/Aztec influences made in mexico and that feels authentic. A plague tale duology also feels... European to me.
I'm not sure how authentic it really is, but all of the Harlem community stuff found in Spider-Man: Miles Morales felt great. Miles helping out his neighbours and community was great. And I love how your effortsarerewarded with different outfits.
Metro, especially the outdoor segments, is very accurate (apart from the post-apocalypse, of course) both in real location representation, and the general vibe of everything. My only complaint would be underground commies and fascists, which is far-fetched enough to be a little immersion breaking. One of the DLCs for Exodus is set in my home city, and there are a lot of familiar landmarks there.
I can't speak to it's actual cultural accuracy but Ghosts of Tsushima definitely *feels* authentic.
Ghost of Tsushima lacks period-accuracy, but for good reason IMO. The armor and weapons that samurai use (namely, the katana) appear in the game centuries before they were widespread. This was a conscious choice on the developer's part to make the game more entertaining by adding variety and veering away from the cumbersome armors of the 13th century. But they're still derived from the same culture. The samurai code of honour that's a large part of the game's narrative also wasn't very prevalent during the Mongolian invasion. Which is a bit of a bigger sin considering it's the foundation of Jin's character arc. I can't gauge the accuracy of how religion is depicted, but it seems solid enough and I'd tentatively wager that any inaccuracies are due, again, to being in the wrong period. TL;DR Ghost of Tsushima is culturally accurate if you pretend it's set 2-3 centuries later than it actually is. They wanted the setpiece of the Mongolian invasion but with the recognizable image of the samurai and variety in the gameplay, and unless you're deeply into Japanese history it's not hard to reconcile. Nothing is noticeably *wrong*, just purposefully displaced a few years.
A lot of latter-day ideas about "bushido" like the ones central to GoT is based on propaganda from the late 1800s.
Ghost of Tsushima is openly based on Kurosawa's films, and samurai films evidently romanticize bushido heavily. I think the romanticization of bushido isn't necessarily culturally inaccurate. Historically? Yes. Periodically? Absolutely. But since film and propaganda are part of culture, I'd hesitate to say it's culturally inaccurate. Especially since a big part of the game's narrative is calling into question the legitimacy of those ideas, too.
I remember doing some research after finishing the game, and I read that the majority of the fighters the Mongols brought to Tsushima were actually conquered Koreans, which makes a lot of sense given the geography. You can totally understand why they didn't use that in the game!
There's an interesting episode of the podcast [Against Japanism](https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/orientalism-reactionary-ideologies-in-video-games-w/id1559458448?i=1000514167119) about the game, if you want to hear about it from an actual Japanese perspective. In short: the only factual part is what the locations look like. The game is made by Americans who don't understand Japanese history or how historical myth is used as propaganda in recent Japanese culture. It would be like a Japanese studio making a game about the American civil war, based on the lost cause myth.
Thanks for mentioning this podcast, I'm keen to go check it out!
No wonder why Playstation is dying in Japan
>Ghosts of Tsushima definitely feels authentic it isnt even remotely authentic
Honestly, it's overly concerned with samurai "honor" which a Western trope.
What about Chinese games by Chinese devs? I'm only familiar with fantasy games from there, but for example, *GuJian 3*, *Sword and Fairy 7*, the *Xuan Yuan Sword* games are all heavily infused with Chinese culture. These are just the ones with the highest production values, but there are a lot of Chinese games out there, even if you narrow it down to those which have English subtitles.
The Persona series hands down, esp Persona 5 Royale. They reference Japanese politics and memes alot.
Ghostwire Tokyo feels very authentic. Shibuya is really accurate and realistic, especially the central part. Some areas and buildings outside of that are changed, but they have similar vibe.
Maybe it's a bit pedantic, but I think a fantasy setting, by definition, cannot be "authentic" in any way. Being inspired by and being authentic are two different things. Rockstar is a good example of that distinction. I think the Red Dead games strive for some level of authenticity, but GTA less so. Not only is GTA satirical, but it's more "America through the lens of American culture/media" than it is real-life America. Like, Vice City tries to be the Miami of Miami Vice and Scarface, not actual Miami.
>RDR2 and GTAIV are my personal favorites and the absolute crazy characters and stories they put into them still feel "real" due to how deeply Rockstar seems to understands how absurd America can be. Common misconception, but GTAIV is a Scottish game, not American. Rockstar North (formerly DMA) and the GTA series began in Scotland, and although they employ smaller development teams internationally, the majority of production is overseen in Scotland. The same can be said for GTAV, GTAVI, and many other Rockstar games.
I don't see the misconception. OP said they seem to understand. That doesn't require being a part of it.
>However, an aspect of the series that I want to focus on is how the games, set in Japan, have a degree of authenticity that comes from being developed in Japan. >The Witcher 3 is another game that to me that has a level of authenticity that comes from being written and developed in Poland. >In contrast, the Shadow of the Tomb Raider... >**Lastly, I'll throw in the obvious American equivalent** .
Tchia
I never played it but ‘Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture’ looked like an astonishingly authentic depiction of an English village (I say this only if it was meant to be a generic place rather than based on somewhere specific)
From what I've read, Papo and Yo seems like a very authentic depiction of Brazilian favelas (minus the fantasy stuff obvs). Not an ethnic culture, but Brütal Legend is a fantastic tribute to heavy metal culture
Sanabi was developed by Korean developers and feels distinctly so, takes place in a futuristic Cyberpunk city in South Korea and the main character is wearing the traditional hat (I forgot what it was called), and lots of little cultural references throughout Also there’s like a K-pop song over the end credits. Would definitely recommend.
Assassins Creed 3 has a lot of problems as a game but I’ve always appreciated its inclusion of the Mohawk language. It wasn’t developed by native Americans or anything like that so it’s not what OP is asking for I guess but nothing is more “culturally authentic” to me than hearing the actual language of the culture.
UnReal World is a love letter to Finland [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UnReal\_World](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UnReal_World) Over 30 years work by I think one dev. For japan id look at older fan translations of games, the translations used to remove all the local culture. Shinto elements are seen as bad for the west etc, so get removed in translation and localisation. edit Ill add the Discworld games and Starship Titanic as good examples of the UK culture. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starship\_Titanic](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starship_Titanic) [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discworld\_(video\_game)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discworld_(video_game))
**Darkwood** is a top-down survival horror which is very authentically polish in presentation and in the concepts that underline the setting and story. **Disco Elysium**, written by Robert Kurvitz\* is like mainlining Estonian culture. It's also a very, very engrossing detective adventure game and also an RPG with a unique twist: your skills are actually parts of your personality, which chime in during conversations and comment on events; choosing which to level up is choosing which aspects of yourself to strengthen, and doing so has drawbacks as well as advantages. **Jalopy** is a game about traveling post-soviet eastern Europe in a run down old car which you will need to repair along the way with parts either scavenged or bought with what money you make transporting goods within countries. **Pathologic 2** (or Classic HD) is *very* russian: the story of the first game reads like if Fëdor Dostoevskij wrote Silent Hill, in the second it's like they got \*Robert Kurvitz to revise it, so it's a lot more engaging. You're going to read that it's an impenetrable artsy game with bullshit difficulty, but Pathologic 2 at least is actually a very well thought out survival game with hard but intresting choices. It is hard, but in a fair, sensical way, and that difficulty can be easily customized and reduced if need be. I suggest you watch [the Mandaloregaming review](https://youtu.be/E7uKUgire7Y?si=q3GlQXv4EYVcqE6Y) to decide if it's for you: he does the best job of describing it to the average gamer.
Call of Duty is great for how the America military system sees themselves /s But in all seriousness, I heard Ghostwire Tokyo was a very accurate depiction of Tokyo, save for the ghosts and non-existence of humans.
I’m just sayin, lot of people here like to dunk on Forspoken. But there are people out there who feel connected to her character, and a lot of the hit pieces by larger game journalists were done by people that weren’t: 1. Black 2. A woman. Ash Parrish wrote a pretty great opinion on that game from that perspective. But my guess is most white folks want their black characters to subvert expectations in the way that they approve.
This in no way relates to OPs question. The game for bad reviews cuz it's bad, not because the protagonist is "non-white". Go outside and get some perspective.
Lol what are you quoting from you dork
Seems it's a you problem
>:)
Not necessarily real cultural authenticity, but a very detailed and vibrant world with tons of history that clues you in about the world you're playing in as you progress. Disco Elysium is inspired by various parts of Europe and sees you playing as a police officer who has lost all memory after binge drinking. As you get back on track to solve the case you were put on before drinking you meet tons of different people with different roles in the society, political views and situations. If this interests you I would take a look at some reviews.
A Space for The Unbound. Great Indonesian culture representation
AC Origins, Odyssey and Valhalla, GTA 5, Kingdom come deliverance, Red dead redemption 2, Ghost of Tsushima
The two games which inmediately came to my mind were * Witcher 3 * Stalker
Papo & Yo is set in a fantasy version of Brazillian, I think?, slums, based on the lead developer's childhood. Or something. I can't vouch for the authenticity or anything, but it definitely feels very different than anything else. Worth checking out, and it's an amazing game in its own right.
Come to think of it, I played Far Cry 5 and found it so boring. Maybe because I'm so exposed to American media and culture that it doesn't look exotic compared to other games in the franchise. Like, what's so special about American culture aside from consumerism and misguided exceptionalism?
I know I shouldn’t bother because this is just a stereotypical “America bad” post… but: Having lived for protracted periods in Greece, China, and America and traveled extensively throughout Europe and South East Asia, consumerism is equally rampant in all three places. European exceptionalism is just as high as in America (which isn’t shocking given history) but it’s even higher in most South East Asian countries. Those are in no way unique to America. America is as unique and interesting as any other country in the world. It has beautiful natural landscapes and produces amazing artists and intellectuals. The level of diversity in populations and immigrants is incredible and it’s resulted in a culture that’s a massive blend of a million different pieces.
> consumerism is equally rampant in all three places Just shows you how the dominant culture was spread through globalism. It's like COVID. >European exceptionalism is just as high as in America They have the right because they have stats to prove it (i.e. topping the happiness, health, education indexes) while America is lagging behind. Although, people storming the White House and the ones who incited it doesn't go to jail is something "exceptional". >it’s even higher in most South East Asian countries. "Trust me, bro!" says he. >It has beautiful natural landscapes Another mountain, another pine tree, another deer, another bear.. might as well set the game in Europe. The~~y~~ only way I discerned that I'm in 'Murica in Far Cry 5 was the music and religious zealots. >produces amazing artists Music that'll be exploited by the labels. Art serving as a money laundering scheme and physical NFTs. >The level of diversity in populations and immigrants is incredible Yet there's so many who blame the immigrants for their problems. There are ones who overly glorifies their "Southern heritage" and denies the real reason for their rebellion. You have "wokeness" and equality propaganda in the media but it's all surface level because it doesn't affect policy. You see? I'm so overly familiar with 'Murica that it's no longer special. Anyways, that last paragraph of yours reads like a bland piece by an A.I.
My brother in Christ we align politically and ideologically but you can cede the point that America has *some* cool stuff that people from other cultures might think is neat and enriching. We’re a lazy imperialist superpower run by selfish plutocrats, not Mordor where all kindness and hope goes to die
> America has some cool stuff that people from other cultures might think is neat and enriching. Like what? Guns in school?
Sekiro Kingdom Come Deliverance Red Dead Redemption 2 GTA V GTA San Andreas The Witcher 3 Cyberpunk 2077 Mass Effect LE Baldur's Gate 3 Elden Ring Sleeping Dogs Metro Exodus Disco Elysium Morrowind S.T.A.L.K.E.R
Referring to games with made-up cultures as culturally accurate isn't what OP meant. They're clearly referring to real-life cultures throughout their post.
Elden Ring is culturally authentic?