In Class last Tuesday, we dissected Audre Lorde’s article, “Age, Race, Class, and Sex: Women Redefining Difference.” One piece of Lorde’s article that stood out to me was the idea of a mythical norm, an idea or state that people perceive the “regular” or “average” person to be. The ones that do not share the qualities of the mythical norm are considered different. Lorde mentions that the american norm is classified as “white, thin, male, young, heterosexual, christian and financialy stable,” (Lorde pg. 116). 

When I think of the idea of a mythical norm, my first thought went to Jason West and Vince Zampella. These two are the co-founders of Infinity Ward and are responsible for creating the Call of Duty series. The mythical norm can be seen clearly with this series’ protagonists, as most games involve a young, thin, white male main character fighting the evil organization that happens to be in that particular game. In 2010, West and Zampella left Infinity Ward to create Respawn Entertainment, who are the developers behind the Titanfall series and Apex Legends. 

Since the creation of Apex Legends, West and Zampella have tried to make their games as inclusive as possible. The roster in Apex Legends is very diverse, consisting of two women of color with Bangalore and Lifeline, a non-binary character with Bloodhound, and an openly gay man with Gibraltar. As Apex Legends continues to grow and add more characters, we will continue to see more diversity and representation within the game.

Although the idea of a mythical norm is still present in video games, There are games that try to be inclusive and break that idea. I hope that future developers follow in Respawn Entertainment’s footsteps and create a cast of characters that is diverse, lively, and fun to interact with.

Works Cited:

Lorde, Age, Race, Class, and Sex: Women Redefining Difference, Sister Outsider, 2016