Other games are getting it right in terms of character representation, per Virgil and another leading voice in the space - Tanya DePass, the founder of the advocacy group I Need Diverse Games.
The success of her packs, for instance, led Virgil to launch The Black Simmer - a community forum that seeks to advocate for more diversity in The Sims. That said, Virgil’s packs also demonstrate the savvy ways in which creators of color are seeking to solve the issue themselves. Virgil’s creations illuminate the overwhelming lack of representation that is endemic to the gaming space, especially given that a recent International Game Developers Association survey found that 81% of the people who make video games identify as white. In the latest episode of Creator News, Virgil shares that her custom packs have been downloaded more than 1 million times to date, which led her to create other mod packs in realms like hair, clothing, and more.
Amira Virgilwas an avid streamer of The Sims - but she became frustrated when she couldn’t create characters that reflected her reality.Īnd so Virgil, who goes by the online moniker XMiraMira, took matters into her own hands, creating a downloadable ‘ Melanin Pack’ - enabling users to create characters with 18 different skin tones and makeup looks to suit a diverse array of character preferences.
