Black Girl Gamers Hired as Paid Consultant on Forspoken Game: Emphasizes Importance of Black Representation in Gaming Industry

Black Girl Gamers was hired as a paid consultant on the game Forspoken, and they were given an opportunity to play a pre-release build of the game and provide feedback on the overall experience, particularly the portrayal of Frey as a female protagonist of Black descent. While not all of their suggestions were implemented in the final game, some of their input was reflected in the final version. Black Girl Gamers emphasizes the importance of hiring Black writers, developers, and consultants and paying them their worth, as well as partnering with authentic voices in the Black community to promote all games. They hope to see more representation in fantasy games and continue to provide services to help organizations connect with underrepresented and diverse audiences. The consultant enjoyed the gameplay and believes Forspoken has the potential to be a great franchise.

BGG Forspoken Statement

We are pleased to announce that Black Girl Gamers was hired as a paid consultant on Forspoken, which included having the opportunity to play a pre-release build of the game-

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— Black Girl Gamers (@blackgirlgamers) March 20, 2023

I am surprised that SquareEnix put this much effort into this game. I definitely did not think they cared enough. Myself and many others critiqued SquareEnix’s promotional rollout for Forspoken. I think that it would have helped a lot more if they had mentioned that Black GIrl Gamers were hired as consultants. Unfortunately, it’s too little too late. I hope that SquareEnix and other developers continue to work with consultants on future projects. Representation matters.