Variety, inclusion, and diversity the buzzwords in video game development with the addition of Singaporean and Malaysian characters

A character based on a Malaysian influencer was added to Hyper Scape by Ubisoft. Creative director wants every player to ‘find a champion they want to play as’

More Southeast Asian characters are being added to other games, too, from a Singlish-speaking robot to a fighter based on the Indonesian goddess of the sea

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Noor, a character in the game Hyper Scape who hails from Pekan, Malaysia. More characters with Southeast Asian origins are appearing in video games. Photo: Ubisoft

Published: 12:15pm, 24 Sep 2020Updated: 12:35pm, 24 Sep 2020

From a fighter robot that speaks in Singaporean slang to a Malaysian influencer who dons a head wrap, a variety of Southeast Asian characters have begun cropping up in video games – giving the region’s gamers a chance to play as someone they can relate to.

Malaysian influencer and fashion lover Noor makes an appearance in Ubisoft’s new battle royale game, Hyper Scape. The character hails from Pekan, Malaysia, and goes by the name Noor Azimah Yusof. She is 23, and wears a head covering like a turban.

Jean-Christophe Guyot, creative director of Ubisoft, says the French company put a lot of effort into designing each character.

“Hyper Scape is a unique and rich universe with strong characters, each with their own motivation to fight in Neo Arcadia,” he tells the Post, referring to the game’s virtual city.

Malaysian influencer Noor makes an appearance in Hyper Scape. Photo: Ubisoft

The game takes place in a gloomy 2054, with the characters segregated into a richer crowd working in mega-corporations and a bottom percentile struggling to make ends meet. One way to improve your life is through a battle royale in Neo Arcadia, a “100 per cent urban and futuristic playground that fosters intense and vertical close-quarter combat”.

Guyot believes the addition of characters such as Noor shows the advances the gaming industry continues to make. He says highlighting Southeast Asia was “a natural choice” for the team because of the region’s rapid development. “We wanted to show that Hyper Scape – the future of the internet – was available and accessible to people from any background, religion, culture, socio-economic status.”