The role of Asian Americans in video games these days is still very low, often relegated to background or support characters, if at all. Video games still have a long way to go in terms of having non-stereotypical Asian-American representation. We’ve scoured through our gaming collections to find some of the best examples of Asian-American characters in video games thus far.
Name: Chell
Series: Portal
First Appearance: Portal (PC)
Bio: Supposedly adopted, there are little known details about this silent heroine’s background. While it’s a stretch to actually say Chell is concretely Asian American (She originally was designed to be a character where there was little importance in her back story or description.), her model in real life is Alésia Glidewell, a Japanese-American voice actress.
Name: Mei Ling
Series: Metal Gear Solid
First Appearance: Metal Gear Solid (PlayStation)
Bio: Chinese-American Mei Ling, a specialist in data and image processing, designed technology to help the series’ protagonist, Solid Snake. Throughout the first game, she guided Snake along his quest by explaining technology as well as offering advice by way of Chinese proverbs. And to avoid being too stereotypical, she also quoted lines from Western literature.
Name: Aya Brea
Series: Parasite Eve
First Appearance: Parasite Eve (PlayStation)
Bio: Yes, blonde-haired, blue-eyed Aya Brea is Japanese-American. The protagonist of the Parasite Eve series, Aya, an NYPD detective with powers generated from evolved mitochondria, is set out to stop malevolent beings also genetically altered by mitochondria. If you couldn’t tell this is a sci-fi series with some blood-soaked moments.
Name: Nick Kang
Series: True Crimes
First Appearance: True Crimes: Streets of L.A. (Xbox, PlayStation 2, GameCube)
Bio: This Chinese-American police officer doesn’t like to do things by the book. Starting out as a policeman suspended due to disobedience, Nick is recruited to investigate a series of bombings within Chinatown, which may be tied to Chinese Triads. This begins series of cases which lead Nick down a path of revenge and retribution.
Name: Ada Wong
Series: Resident Evil
First Appearance: Resident Evil (PlayStation)
Bio: Remaining an enigma through numerous games in the Resident Evil series, Ada Wong has her Chinese-American background alluded to in the first game of the series through a letter written by her boyfriend although she didn’t make a physical appearance until the second game. Often seen as a double-crossing character, Ada destroys zombies and other creatures created from viruses and genetic warfare, as well as helping main character Leon Kennedy throughout numerous installments of the series.
Have your own list of favorites? Tell us about it in the comments below.
Photos: Valve, Konami, Square Enix, Activision via IGN, Capcom