Saints Row IV Developer Acknowledges Sexism in Games, Says Things Need to Change

The latest title in the Saints Row series has been hailed as an inclusive title for its diverse player character options, which allow players to choose their gender, voice, and more. In spite of the game’s embrace of progressive social norms, some aspects of the game remain problematic, including its depiction of women who aren’t main characters like Shaundi or Kinzie Kensington. These nameless female characters are mainly used as background decoration, leading critics like Anita Sarkeesian to call out the game.

Rather than blindly defend the game, Saints Row creative director Steve Jaros from Volition has said he believes that the Feminist Frequency creator was right to include the game in her latest Tropes vs Women in Video Games installment, and that the industry as a whole should work on improving its portrayal of women.

“This is something we all should be better at,” he said in a tweet. “Yes, the original Saints Row is listed here. Yes, it should be.”

He elaborated on the subject further to Greg Tito at The Escapist, saying that the abuse of women as background content in games is something that needs to be addressed. 

“I think that we shouldn’t be portraying senseless abused women and I think that if I could go back and hop in a time machine I would have done things differently,” he said.

“I think it’s fair to be called out on your shit. I think that it’s a sad man that can never be self-reflective. I think that we tried to go and carry ourselves with respect, and try to respect sexuality and respect gender as much as we can, and sometimes we fail but hopefully we’ll do better and continue to get better.”

Jaros says that thanks to such criticism, the developers at Volition are now mindful of sexually objectifying women in their titles.

The studio took to confirming the release of Saints Row IV for new-gen platforms as well as a standalone expansion pack in which players take on the roles of Johnny Gat and Kinzie Kensington, titled Gat out of Hell.