Video games have always had a hard time with realistic depictions of the human body. In the decades since their inception and as technology has improved, we have always come to this medium in search of power fantasies. We want to take control of absurdly buff supersoldiers that tear through alien hordes before being greeted by an absurdly beautiful woman at the other end. Appealing to a fairly narrow demographic in its infancy meant this rarely changed either, with men producing experiences for other men who, in most instances, wanted for the same.
Recent years have seen the industry change, however, as triple-A blockbusters pursue more diverse characters and themes both to capitalise on market share and tell more inclusive stories. The explosion of indie development and greater proliferation of resources has also opened the floodgates to more talent than ever, especially those from different genders, races, or minority groups who wouldn’t have had a seat at the table previously. Games have gotten better and better as a consequence, and in ways both big and small, more authentic expressions of self have begun to bleed into the things we play.
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I didn’t go into Coral Island from Stairway Games in search of this representation though. I was oblivious to it for the most part, because on the surface, it seems like Stardew Valley in the vein of Big Hero 6 with cute character designs and the introduction of diving alongside the usual suspects of farming, fishing, spelunking, and winning over your village crush. It replicates the formula to such a charmingly accurate degree that it took me only a few short hours to realise I’d be in it for the long haul. In a year ripe with so many excellent games of this ilk, Coral Island sits atop the pile and for very good reason.
Beyond the satisfying gameplay loop as I grow my farming empire and befriend an ocean kingdom of mermaids, Coral Island delivers a level of normalised diversity which quickly caught me off guard. The town you come to call home clearly takes inspiration from specific Asian influences, with our character moving from the metropolis of Pokyo to a quiet life in the country where all manner of fauna and wildlife can be found.
The town’s population is also a welcome mix of different races and cultures, with many of the younger faces being white or people or colour, a new generation who decided to give rural life a chance, while the elders who preceded them clearly grew up on this land, and will do whatever they can to try and protect it from encroaching capitalist forces. Some of the younger occupants are rather indifferent to the changing times, while others will do all they can to keep them at bay.
You’re an outsider, and much like Stardew Valley, can choose what path you walk down. No matter what you end up choosing, however, the diversity of this town and the characters who call it home remain. You’ll find people of all races, shapes, and sizes with gender rarely seen as a barrier to how one is supposed to look or express themselves. Suki is a character who stuck out to me immediately. She can often be seen walking about town in fitness gear, with clear stretch marks present on the bottom of her slim stomach having given birth years earlier.
Games would normally hide such features away. Suki’s identity as a fitness-first mum with pride in her work and appearance supersedes this though, and never something to be hidden away in fear of judgment. If anything, confidence only makes her more attractive.
Yuri is one of the local clinicians with green hair and luscious arm tattoos, while Pablo and Raphael are hardened blacksmiths, who, despite their manly profession and abundance of facial hair, are otherwise quite timid in their body language and dialogue. How you look on the outside isn’t fully representative of how you think and feel, and even in the early going it seems Coral Island wants to tell emotional stories that deconstruct archetypes and cliches.
Coral Island also places an emphasis on beaches and piers, so it isn’t uncommon to see characters clad in swimsuits in the evening or weekends, metal detecting in search of rare artefacts or partaking in a cheeky game of volleyball. Talk to them, and their usual attire is replaced by swimwear, or whatever seasonal looks they happen to be donning. To see so many characters of different forms having such confidence in their differing bodies goes a long way. Better reflecting real life men and women and what it means to present in such a way is constantly malleable, and placing expectations on how people should appear and behave is not only outdated, but unfair and unreasonable.
We’ve seen more and more games normalise the human body and give us the means to be proud of how we look as opposed to questioning it at every turn, and Coral Island normalises it to such a degree that each new character I meet is a pleasant surprise. It’s also making my choice of romantic partner that much harder because everyone in this damn town is dreamy. Wider hips, stretch marks, or broad shoulders aren’t eccentricities to be hidden away or seen as a part of one’s self to ridicule, because society has conditioned us to do so. If anything, we should be celebrating what makes us different and embrace how our bodies change over the years, because there will only ever be a single one like it. And that makes it special.
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