#uplifting thelemic quotes

[visceralcoma]

On this Indigenous Day (“Columbus Day” for the colonizer sympathizers), I want to talk about the game Greedfall.

A game which has been unfairly demonized and wrongly labeled as a game about colonization. 

Now before I get too much into it I want to say... I am saying this as someone who comes from people who were robbed, raped, enslaved, and brainwashed & propaganda’d into believing we were extinct. I didn’t have the privilege and luxury of being raised with my people’s culture but once I learned about it, I made a concentrated effort to learn as much about that side of my ancestry - and I’m still learning. Because even though part of my ancestry is also of the bastards who colonized my people - I think it would be better to concentrate on the culture that was nearly wiped out - to uplift it - remember it and recover what remains and keep it going by learning than to give any voice to the colonizer side of my ancestry. They have their own people to celebrate their culture.

So again, I’m coming out to talk about Greedfall. A game that has been largely mislabeled by many. Especially from other indigenous fans of games. Most notably those in the Dragon Age fandom.

I will also preface this that if you are someone who is triggered by topics and images that remind you of your generational trauma - this is not a game for you. I would never recommend this game for you in particular. 

But this is a game for people who are like me. People who were robbed of knowing their culture from birth; People affected by the continuing influence of British, American, and Spanish imperialism and their colonization, People who are getting to know their culture in adulthood - rediscovering it - connecting and even visiting the (in my case) island where your people came from and being amongst others who are keeping what remains alive.

Because that’s what Greedfall was for me.

It was a story of De Sardet who (spoilers) eventually learns their mother was kidnapped by the Congregation and was born away from the Island of Tir Fradee, raised by the Congregation’s Princess and never once told about their ancestry, their people, and their culture. And they only learn once arriving at the island and discovering the truth.  And while there, you have opportunities to learn about the culture - your culture -  to reconnect with what remains of your blood family, and eventually help shape the future of the island.

Now the game is not without it’s faults. Which I have brought up before. The game has a seriously unbalanced situation when it comes to how the Christian coded baddies are treated better over the Arabic/Muslim coded baddies. The game has a bad problem with white-saviourism (which is framed as the bad ending at least).  The writing is lacking in depth everywhere and not just the stuff to do with the Natives. But for a Double A game - it’s not bad. Especially for the first game I ever really had a somewhat similar backstory of the main character that I could relate to.

Are there problematic topics covered in the game? 100% percent.

But the game is not about colonialism. You do not colonize the island - it is already pre-colonized and you as De Sardet are meant to broker peace to find some cure for a plague that is ripping the continent up. Now this does mean the main character starts out aligned with colonizers, but through the course of the game - the things you uncover...it shows the organization you start off with... is the baddies and you can turn on them. Give power back to the Natives and drive the Congregation and all the other groups (Theleme and the Bridge Alliance) off. Which I’ve never seen done before in a game (pls correct me if I’m wrong here).  Even Dragon Age doesn’t let us give back land to the Dalish and drive out the humans (at least not yet...*eyes dragon age 4 suspiciously*). 

So again... the game is not all bad. But if you’re triggered by things that remind you of your generational trauma, don’t play it.  But also do not demonize those who enjoy the game.  Why?   Well.. I’m going to quote the biggest and loudest person (who never played the game btw) who came down hard on the game when it was released.  “You can enjoy something and still be critical of the things you don’t like about it, and wish for better." - Dalishious 2017

#greedfall #greedfall critical #da fandom critical #yes the da fandom critical tag is relevant