"Tekken 7" Pinay Game Character - Named After Jose Rizal Draws more Flaks

Davao, Philippines - Less a than week after, "Josie Rizal" was introduced by Bandai Namco Games, to the public gamers, the Philippine's national hero inspired characters draws more criticisms from educators.

In a tweet, Japanese Bandai's game director, Katsuhiro Harada admitted that " Josie Rizal" was named after the Philippine's national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal.

The "Josie Rizal" character is the first Filipina in the "Tekken" series, and specializes in Filipino martial art eskrima and kickboxing,  said Katsuhiro Harada.

While Gamers and Netizens gladly welcomed  the first Pinay character ever in the Tekken game series, cultural educators are heavily criticizing it.

Quoted from DZRH report, the NCAA said it is not proper to use the Philippine flag as a theme for a daring outfit in the Tekken series character, Josie.

They’re also worried for the possibility that the said character would cause misinterpretation towards the image of the National Hero, thus, they would take actions against the said character.

But the agency admitted that it is difficult to stop other nations from making characters like Josie since the Philippines is popular.

Meanhile in a Philstar post, a professor of the University of the Philippines yesterday also hit the portrayal of a Filipino character.

“(It’s) offensive and unsuited for a big company like Bandai because they have the money to do research,” Gonzalo Campoamor II, professor of Life and Works of Rizal in UP Diliman, told The STAR.

“All it takes is probably an interview with one historian on Rizal,” he added.

Campoamor said he has no problem with the different contemporary portrayals of Rizal as this puts the hero closer to the youth, especially the students.

He suggested a character based on Elias, a character from Rizal’s Noli Me Tangere.

“Elias is the quintessential representative of the Filipino masses,” he said.

Campoamor does not believe that the portrayal of Rizal as Josie will have an impact on the national identity or influence how the national hero is viewed by the public.

“That’s pop culture. Rizal is an institution. He has survived for 150 years.”

His concern is mostly on the failure of Bandai to conduct enough research before it developed a character that portrays a different culture.

“You have all the money in the world. All it takes is simple research,” the professor said to Philstar.

Meanwhile, netizens commented that they see nothing wrong with the said character and instead of criticizing it, we should just be proud that other countries show respect to our talents.

Image credit: Yuriko Tiger via Instagram

Source : Philstar | GMA News | DZRH