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Kopanev A., Kopaneva D., Chernykh T. Visual Markers of Russian Ethnicity in Videogames

A. Kopanev
Peter the Great Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography (Kunstkamera) of the Russian Academy of Sciences,
St. Petersburg State University
St. Petersburg, Russian Federation
ORCID: 0000-0002-3385-9677
E-mail: aleksandrkopanev90@yandex.ru 

D. Kopaneva
St. Petersburg State University
St. Petersburg, Russian Federation
ORCID: 0000-0001-6481-4466
E-mail: kvarn@rambler.ru 

T. Chernykh
St. Petersburg State University
St. Petersburg, Russian Federation
ORCID: 0000-0002-1781-9464
E-mail: tatyana9sbs@yandex.ru

 

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ABSTRACT. Currently, video games are a large and rapidly developing area of mass culture, often acting as tools for constructing historical memory. A key feature of video games is their interactivity, i. e., a direct interaction between the player and the game’s objects and images. Interactivity significantly enhances the gamer’s engagement and emotional response to the game. The visual component is essential in video games: game characters typically maintain longestablished appearances firmly rooted in culture. External markers of ethnic identity significantly impact the construction of “us” vs. “them” images. This paper aims to examine visual images of the characters designated as “Russians” in foreign video games and their transformation over time. We analyze the characters’ appearance and other features that mark their identification as ethnic Russians. We identified five main categories of “Russian” characters: a military person, a fighter, a scientist, a fantastic creature, and a bandit, and each of them was examined separately. The authors describe dominant appearance features typical of most Russian characters in video games. These markers show strength, power, mystery, and sometimes some savagery. Notably, the Russian heroes in video games under examination are presented not only as antagonists of the player (or the main character of the video game). On the contrary, they are often allies of the player or directly the main game characters.

 

KEYWORDS: video games, the other, visual markers, ethnicity, Russians

 

DOI 10.31250/2618-8600-2023-4(22)-195-209
УДК 316.77

 

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