Any chance "Ghetto Blaster" could be renamed to "Boom Box"?

[cferejohn]

I appreciate that's the name of the card in the actual game, but boy is that term loaded and pejorative. If it can't be done, it can't be done, but I at least wanted to say something.

Thanks

[thoun]

I (the dev) and the publisher are both french. What is the issue with that name exactly ?

[SanchezMonkey]

I (the dev) and the publisher are both french. What is the issue with that name exactly ?

The English version of the Wikipedia page explains it relating to different countries.
The most charitable version is "often impoverished".

There are stereotypes depending on the country and history as well to take into consideration.

[peDrome]

As a life-long black guy, I don't mind weighing in...

First off, I appreciate your position as someone for whom a particular negative connotation doesn't have cultural resonance. I also appreciate that you didn't just dismiss cferejohn's concerns but instead asked for an explanation. So, as far as I'm concerned, this is an honest mistake on your part and not an intentional reference or jab.

In the US, from about the 60s onward, a ghetto specifically meant a low-income, underdeveloped part of a city whose only residents were (initially and almost exclusively) black or brown. In your defence, "Ghetto Blaster" became associated with boom boxes because of their prevalence in urban black communities. You think of boom boxes and it's not long before you think of break dancers. So you're not wrong in using the phrase the way you're using it, but keep in mind no one called them ghetto blasters by way of a compliment. Think: "I'm sick of these no-good hoodlums loitering around and blaring their ghetto blasters!" and you have in idea of how the term would have been used.

This, however, isn't the biggest issue.

Unfortunately, especially in the US, racist imagery often equated black people with apes. So, by having apes using "Ghetto Blasters" you've unintentionally stepped into a huge racist trope that for some audiences is basically saying that your game is about uncivilized black people blasting their "jungle music".

Of course it isn't. Of course you're not saying this at all, but this is a deep, racialized historical quagmire. And this particular card coupled with your game's premise has you standing knee-deep in it.

[Fear No Equal]

To reinforce the (very) eloquent and comprehensive explanation above - as an American with even a mildly alert consciousness of race in out country, I saw the term "ghetto blaster" in a game about apes and IMMEDIATELY thought "um, is this game made by the kind of people I want to support or recommend?" It's definitely concerning and if I hadn't seen a response thread I'd have made one myself.

[mdpeterson42]

As a kid who grew up in the suburbs of Southern California in the 80's, literally the only name I knew for that device was "ghetto blaster." There was no negative connotation that I was aware of - it's just what it was called. I asked for a ghetto blaster for Christmas. It was only later that I learned about the term and its negative meaning. So, I can understand how an honest mistake could be made.

[thoun]

Thanks for your inputs.
I asked the publisher and they agreed to make the change, it was of course unintentional.
The new name should be visible within 24 hours.

[Tehslony]

This was a super wholesome thread I'm just loving this community. Really refreshing to see mature discourse online... sad that I'm surprised by it.

[Rykar]

Does my old heart good to read a discussion like this that leads to a nearly immediate and positive change. Bravo to all involved.

[peDrome]

This was a super wholesome thread I'm just loving this community. Really refreshing to see mature discourse online... sad that I'm surprised by it.

I'll be honest and say that I was bracing for, "Keep your politics out of my game!," kickback, and have been pleased to have only seen the opposite. Then again, for all the talk about how the internet is a cesspool, everywhere I've posted about my own game design activities online--Reddit, "Twitter", etc.--I've only ever received positive responses and genuinely constructive criticism. This community overall has been an uplifting one!