Denby Grace, the senior producer for 2K Games’ Mafia II has apologised for a flip answer to a rather stock interview question in which he said “gay space marines” were the biggest problem facing video games.
Asked “what do you think is the biggest problem current games suffer from?” Grace told MTV Multiplayer: “It’s a very good question and maybe a little general for a concise answer. An obsession with gay space marines.”
That didn’t go over so well with GayGamer.net, which asked 2K Games for a response to Grace’s remarks. The site got an apology instead. Grace called his own comments a “thoughtless remark” that attempted to make light of “the hyper-macho ‘bromance’ featured in a lot of military shooters… I apologise unreservedly.”
His full statement is at the link.
Mafia 2 Producer Apologizes [GayGamer.net]
Palstran
Thursday, September 23, 2010 at 12:01 PMthat pic is classic!
Why do people still use the term gay for such things? Are they still in year 8?
PiMan
Thursday, September 23, 2010 at 12:09 PMThis wasn’t ‘gay’ in that sense Palstran, this was ‘gay’ as in homoerotic. Giant muscular men who love nothing more than hang out with other giant muscular men holding large phallic objects.
Mr Waffle
Thursday, September 23, 2010 at 12:04 PMI like how you can pretty much mouth off and offend anyone as much as you want, and then come back later and make an apology and everybody will forget.
Aaron
Thursday, September 23, 2010 at 12:20 PMPeople make flip and off colour comments all the time, especially when trying to be witty for an interview. He’s hardly the Devil! for doing so.
And he had the stones to quickly fess up to being thoughtless and apologise. A real a hole move would have been refusing to apologise.
From following the chain of events it hardly seems like he used his apology as a get out of jail free card.
Aaron
Thursday, September 23, 2010 at 12:25 PMThe bigger a-hole move would have been to ‘stand by’ a poorly considred flip remark/attempted joke. Taking some douche first amendment stance. Plenty of people make flip remarks in interviews that they don’t consider on the spot, it doesn’t mean he’s the devil or a homophobe.
I think it was pretty big of him to apologise straight of the bat and fess up to being thoughtless, others haven’t for similar remarks (Infinity Ward springs to mind). Reading what happened and his response, it doesn’t sound like he was using his apology as a Get Out of Jail Free card.
Aaron
Thursday, September 23, 2010 at 12:26 PMDamn double post, for the record I think my second draft was better written.
MILDLY IRATE VIDEO GAME GUY
Thursday, September 23, 2010 at 12:10 PMDisappointingly, the only game that could let you RP as a gay space marine, Mass Effect and Mass Effect 2, doesn’t. Oh Garrus, Kaiden, Jacob… Denby Grace forbids it!
Braaains
Thursday, September 23, 2010 at 12:22 PMJust because they haven’t come out yet doesn’t mean they’re not gay. You can’t seriously look at the likes of Gears of War or Killzone 2 and suggest there’s not some kind of homoerotic undercurrents to a lot of it.
And don’t even get me started on Army of Two, although I guess that wasn’t in space.
Restless
Thursday, September 23, 2010 at 12:13 PMWhy are any terms not used in their original context? Gay used to mean happy! The homosexuals over at GayGamer.net shouldn’t be upset that Denby Grace was clearly making reference to happy space marines … wasn’t he? Oh that’s right … they’re gays not homosexuals … year 8 was awesome … I could say something sucked by calling it gay! People need to get over themselves sometimes! Denby Grace said nothing wrong! I hate it when people think they paid for the copyright to certain words! That’s so gay!
Warlok
Thursday, September 23, 2010 at 12:18 PMI do not think there was any need to apologize to any one.
Tee
Thursday, September 23, 2010 at 12:36 PMBecause “gay” was later used as a derogatory term for homosexuals. Since then, gay people have been able to take the word back, and now people are trying to make it into a derogatory word yet again. Think the N word for black people.
Fury
Thursday, September 23, 2010 at 1:03 PMCall the cotton wool brigade!
Shoitaan
Thursday, September 23, 2010 at 1:04 PMA forced apology to gay space marines everywhere…
Lamenters win again…
If you don’t get it, you aren’t supposed to get it.
DerangedStoat
Thursday, September 23, 2010 at 3:27 PMI’d watch your words Shoitaan, heresy is enforced with an Imperial Fist!
Steven Bogos
Thursday, September 23, 2010 at 2:15 PMI really don’t get why gaygamer got their knickers in a not over this. He’s not using ‘gay’ in a derogatory sense, he’s using it in a literal sense.
The homoerotic vibes between Marcus and Dom are almost too obvious. I swear to god Marcus was secretly happy when Dom had to kill his wife.
Another victory for the political correctness brigade
Blake
Thursday, September 23, 2010 at 3:06 PMCouldn’t agree with you more Steven, for once, used in a literal (close enough) sense, the mere mention of the word has upset people =/.
I think if he was indeed implying that the overly macho homo-eroticism in games is a problem then he is both;
A) correct
and
B) not obligated to make an apology for the remark, regardless of how flippant it was.
It’s an excellent show of character that he was apologetic for offending given that it was obviously not intended, and there appears to have been no effort for a grab at the publicity this may / will generate.
Michael
Thursday, September 23, 2010 at 3:14 PMPeople find anything to complain about these days. If something like this offends you, take a teaspoon of concrete and harden up.
OzHuski
Thursday, September 23, 2010 at 5:16 PMGeeze… Get over it. Seriously whats the issue? I think he/she (cant tell with that name!) was just making a light hearted joke which I think is both humorous and witty. And how can you not love that picture of the space marine?? Its bloody classic!
I think they need to take a chill pill over there and chillax.. People take things too bloody seriously these days.
StudiodeKadent
Saturday, September 25, 2010 at 11:21 PMIt was a flippant remark and nothing insulting. I have friends of every sexual preference and none of them, including the gay ones, were offended by the remark. Especially since the bleedingly obvious homoerotic macho-bromance stuff is placed in a gaming genre usually considered the height of conventional masculinity.
I admit the comment made wasn’t exactly a deep and thoughtful digression on what Gears Of War/Army Of Two’s manlove says about the ideas of masculinity held by most gamers. But it was clearly not a “homophobic” remark.