Whether or not you’re a fan of Sony and Bend Studio’s Days Gone, it looks like the game in question is performing well in the physical sales department despite prominent publication sites and “journalists” calling the horror-survival game “too white” and promoting “child violence.”
It looks like the title deemed as the “straight white male game” that has you killing innocent children, best known as Days Gone, has secured the “biggest physical sales launch of the year” in the U.K. so far.
The above information can be found on website Eurogamer, revealing that Days Gone achieved a milestone in the U.K. despite backlash leading up to the horror-survival game’s launch.
“Impressively for a new intellectual property, Days Gone beat the sales of Capcom’s Resident Evil 2 and Ubisoft’s Far Cry: New Dawn and The Division 2.”
A perfect example of the aforesaid controversy comes IGN’s March 6th, 2019, take on the game, which the absurd piece reads:
“Days Gone makes some interesting choices that kept my play session engaging, and the sections of its story that I experienced piqued my interest enough that I was legitimately frustrated that I couldn’t continue playing at the end of the demo. While I’ll admit that I initially rolled my eyes at yet another Gruff White Male Protagonist™ in a grim world – especially one with such a Gruff White Male Protagonist™-ey name as Deacon St. John – I ended up getting far more invested than I’d initially expected. I shouldn’t be surprised, I suppose – this is a first-party Sony title, and Bend is no stranger to writing around well-developed characters and games with a strong narrative focus, either.”
Publication site Kotaku wasn’t far off either with Jason Schreier noting on the site’s March 6th, 2019, podcast dubbed “Kotaku Splitscreen” something similar:
“[…] I’m intrigued to see where the story’s going. And the performances are really good. I like the main character a lot, even though he’s this typical gruff triple-A white dude biker.”
Website Polygon published a tweet stating that it “feels weird” to kill zombies things called Newts because they resemble children, which the site’s March 6th, 2019, write-up following the tweet reads:
“Playing survival game Days Gone at a recent preview event, I was struck by a particular class of enemy called a Newt. These zombie-like enemies were once human children. Following a global pandemic, they’ve become dangerous enemies to the player character. Killing them made me feel queasy. Even though these little creatures are vile and scary, I found it difficult to let go of the idea that they had been innocent children.
Newts are smaller and weaker than other enemies in the game. They collect on rooftops and other areas, where they evidently feel safe. They will only attack if they’re sure the player is weakened and vulnerable. They also hide in unexpected places, and will launch surprise attacks.
When they attack, they must be killed — just like the other, larger enemies, known in the game as Freakers. The player uses a variety of weapons, including guns and bludgeons.”
Despite all of that noise made before Days Gone hit store shelves, the recent report by Eurogamer depicts the game at the top spot of physical sales in the U.K. as of this moment:
- Days Gone
- Mortal Kombat 11
- FIFA 19
- Red Dead Redemption 2
- Division 2
- Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
- Sekiro
- Forza Horizon 4
- New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe
- World War Z
In other words, Days Gone “is the biggest physical sales launch of the year so far in the U.K.” even if it has you playing as a “white male” killing “innocent children.”
