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Is that really true, though? I can't think of any significant examples of games from the '80s or '90s that involved "in-groups punching... on out-groups", unless the out-groups in question were space aliens, nazis, fantasy monsters, hostile AIs, or the like.

Monkey Island is an absolute classic, of course, but this particular point feels almost like a retcon of present-day cultural assumptions into a specific context in the past where the objects of this criticism weren't really quite so present.



Duke Nukem and Shadow Warrior would be pretty obvious examples. Someone else mentioned Leisure Suit Larry.

I'd like to mention Samantha Fox Strip Poker as well, though it's a bit more subtle than "punching".


This is true, but those games were noted at the time for being crude and offensive. There was actually quite a bit of dislike for all of the above, and they were seen at the time as the exception rather that the norm.

I can think of the occasional bad-taste joke in an adventure game, but I don't think it was ever as pervasive as is implied.


That's just some very obvious examples. It's not the only examples.


Duke Nukem is an obvious parody. And most ironically, the franchise always seen has more female fans than comparable genre games.


What do you mean? Would parody exclude the possibility of down-punching? Imitative mocking is always OK?


EG robocop showed lots of police brutality, but it wasn't a movie about how great and normal police brutality was.


You would need to be more specific than that.


I don't think fans indicate acceptability. For example, serial killers have fans.


It's not even a question of it "indicating" acceptability -- being a fan of something is "acceptance" of it.


Your argument being?


Hail to the king, baby.


We can't truly exalt our enlightened present and future without denigrating the past.


“Who controls the past, controls the future: who controls the present, controls the past.”




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