Tekken 7 Takes Heat For First Filipino Fighter
As one of the biggest fighting game franchises, there are a lot of eyes on Tekken — especially with its seventh installment set to go from arcades to home consoles all over the world. Developer Bandai Namco is changing the game as well as the cast; Tekken 7 will see fighters from yet-untapped countries. Josie Rizal is the latest of the bunch; while she’s earned some praise for both her flashy moves as well as her Filipino heritage, others aren’t exactly ecstatic to see her.
The issue at hand starts with Josie’s name, but doesn’t end there. The National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) — based in the Philippines — hasn’t taken an official stand or demanded action just yet, but the complaint raised is that Josie is being purposely associated with esteemed doctor and revolutionary hero Jose Rizal. If the NCCA’s consultation with the National Historical Commission goes the wrong way, then they could demand a name change for the character; that in turn could convince series mastermind Katsuhiro Harada to simply drop the character from the roster.
Josie may have been created with good intentions, but it’s not hard to see why others might take issue. Even if she turns out to be the best fighter Tekken has ever had, it doesn’t send the best message when the name of a national hero is associated with — as envisioned by a company from a country thousands of miles away — a young lady who bursts into tears at the end of a match. Harada himself seems willing to cooperate if something happens; the character was created as a tribute to the country, but that can all go south with a situation like this. While it isn’t the first time he’s talked about removing a character, the pressure here is much more serious.
Time will tell what comes of this conflict — and whether or not Josie will ever be able to get ready for the next battle.
