At this point, if you still can’t wrap your head around the fact that your entertainment, your escapism is being hijacked by identity politics and phony ethics, then congrats, you’re a lost cause. You’ll never snap out of the conditioning.
Consumers aren’t blind anymore; they’re catching on to the absolute mess that globalist ideologies of progressivism and inclusivity have unleashed on the gaming industry. AAA developers? They’ve torched their reputations, sales, and long-term viability to score ESG brownie points. Instead of delivering games that actually entertain, they shovel out products dripping in tokenized diversity, built by feminists for feminists.
Western gaming is rotting from the inside out, and the stench has exposed the corruption of media shills and so-called “journalists” who tirelessly demonize consumers as racists, sexists, or perverts simply for rejecting woke propaganda parading as entertainment.
And nothing embodies this circus of bullshit better than The Game Awards. Geoff Keighley’s annual clown show is just a nepotistic love fest for developers who’ve mastered the fine art of pandering. Think the Oscars, but worse and for video games.
Every year, they dangle nominations in front of gamers like bait, only to reward the most preachy, least deserving titles. Last year? Games like ATLUS’ Metaphor: ReFantazio raked in awards for narrative, art direction, and role-playing, while Palworld and Stellar Blade got snubbed. Why? Because pandering to progressive agendas has become the industry’s default setting.
The whole system’s rigged. Heteronormative portrayals of women? Erased. Instead, we’re force-fed inclusive, androgynous brown “men” with vaginas. It’s the same blatant corruption you see in Hollywood.
Case in point: Sonic the Hedgehog 3 didn’t make the cut for Best Picture at the Oscars. Why? Because it didn’t tick enough diversity boxes under the Academy’s ridiculous new inclusion standards.
In a blatant attempt to shove “equitable representation” down everyone’s throat, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences rolled out new eligibility criteria for the Best Picture category at the Oscars. These bullshit standards otherwise force films to hit specific quotas for on-screen representation, themes, narratives, and the makeup of production and marketing teams.
The supposed goal? To make damn sure women, racial and ethnic minorities, LGBTQ+ individuals, and people with disabilities get their time in the spotlight both in front of and behind the camera, by ostracizing movies that don’t adhere to such initiatives.
But, like in the gaming industry, this forced diversity crap comes at a serious cost. Creativity gets butchered, storytelling gets neutered, and anything that doesn’t kiss the ass of these political checkboxes is tossed straight into the trash.
The Academy’s diversity and inclusion criteria for Best Picture eligibility align closely with the social aspects of ESG principles, showcasing how corporate and institutional agendas infiltrate creative industries. Films like Sonic the Hedgehog 3, which prioritize traditional storytelling and established franchise characters, often face criticism for failing to meet diversity quotas in casting, production roles, or thematic focus.
While the stated aim is to promote representation, these mandates increasingly subordinate creative freedom to the rigid expectations of ESG scoring.
BlackRock, one of the largest asset managers globally, has been a staunch advocate for ESG principles under CEO Larry Fink. Known for championing “forced behavioral changes” within corporations, BlackRock’s strategies push for adherence to diversity, environmental sustainability, and governance initiatives.
This influence extends into the entertainment industry, where hiring practices, casting decisions, and even storytelling themes are reshaped to align with ESG objectives. Companies that stray from these standards risk losing both investment and shareholder confidence, creating immense financial pressure to conform.
Within the film industry, ESG-aligned strategies have driven studios to adopt policies ensuring increased representation of underrepresented groups, at the expense of established characters or historical accuracy.
Disney, for example, has become notorious for race-swapping characters in live-action adaptations, a practice stretching far beyond high-profile examples like The Little Mermaid or Nick Fury in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This trend reflects a broader corporate agenda where creative liberties are sacrificed to achieve ESG goals, sparking widespread criticism among audiences.
This is the essence of “diversity and inclusivity” in the modern motion picture industry. Rather than fostering original creativity, the focus has shifted to inserting diverse and ethnically representative actors into prominent roles, even to the point of rewriting history to meet mandatory social and ethnic guidelines.
These standards have become prerequisites for filmmakers seeking recognition at the annual nepotistic award ceremonies, prioritizing compliance over genuine artistic merit.
The disqualification of Sonic the Hedgehog 3 from Oscars contention highlights the growing tension between corporate-driven diversity mandates and fan expectations. Entities like BlackRock, which promote ESG compliance as a pathway to equity and sustainability, prioritize adherence to rigid criteria over audience approval.
The result? A beloved franchise penalized for failing to meet externally imposed quotas, leaving fans disillusioned.
Sonic the Hedgehog 3, grossing over $338 million at the box office, is a hit based on the immensely popular Sonic the Hedgehog franchise from SEGA and unlike the vast majority of theatrical films released these days actually turned a profit.
The movie features a blue hedgehog, a red echidna, a yellow fox, and the latest installment introduces Shadow the Hedgehog, whose color just happens to be black. Apparently, though, nothing is considered truly “diverse” unless it’s completely drenched in queer representation and or shades of brown.
The snubbing of Sonic the Hedgehog 3 at the Oscars highlights a larger cultural shift driven by ESG principles and institutional diversity pressures. The film itself is undeniably diverse, with characters like Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and the iconic crew all part of a globally recognized franchise.
The film’s cast is also ethnically diverse, featuring Idris Elba, who voices Knuckles the Echidna, a Black actor, alongside live-action cast members such as Natasha Rothwell and Shemar Moore. Yet, despite all of this, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 was overlooked by the Oscars in favor of 207 other films that strictly adhere to the increasingly rigid diversity and inclusivity guidelines such as The American Society of Magical Negroes, Moana 2 and Wicked.
In contrast, last year’s Oppenheimer, a biographical drama about J. Robert Oppenheimer, the physicist behind the Manhattan Project during World War II, received critical acclaim and swept multiple Oscar categories, including Best Picture.
Naturally, given the time period it depicts the 1940s, Oppenheimer didn’t include tokenized Black actors in prominent roles, which may have contributed to its success. It was, after all, a “historically accurate” film focused on real-life events.
But here’s where the hypocrisy lies: Sonic the Hedgehog 3, a movie beloved by audiences of all ages and backgrounds is snubbed simply for failing to adhere to the Academy’s new, arbitrary diversity mandates. Meanwhile, Oppenheimer got a pass just last year in fact despite its glaring omissions.
The Oscars have long been accused of favoring certain genres, with prestige dramas often being viewed as “artistic” or “important.” This preference for highbrow filmmaking may be why Oppenheimer was immune to the diversity mandates while Sonic 3 was left out. On the other hand, movies like Sonic 3, which bring joy to millions and foster a diverse fanbase, are often dismissed as “lowbrow” or not deserving of serious recognition.
This creates a clear two-tier system within the Oscars: films are held to a higher standard based on their genre and perceived cultural significance, while others, especially those that don’t adhere to prescribed social norms, are ignored. The Oscars’ alleged commitment to diversity and inclusion is exposed as nothing more than a performative act rather than a genuine effort to embrace true inclusivity.
Rather than promoting authentic diversity, the Academy has imposed a one-size-fits-all formula that punishes films unable, or unwilling to meet arbitrary criteria.
If the likes of Jeff Fowler, Josh Miller, and Pat Casey want to see Sonic the Hedgehog 4 at the academy awards, they’ll have to toe the line, pushing unnecessary “diverse and inclusive” human filler into the next film adaptation of the beloved blue hedgehog. The focus would ultimately have to shift away from creative storytelling of Sonic to facilitate the new diversity standards, an ironic twist for a movie that’s already as diverse as they come in the world of animated franchises.
