Animal Crossing’s ‘Space Buns’ hair controversy erases black fans

Animal Crossing: New horizonsThe big winter update was the cause of much celebration in November, as the new hairstyle options allowed some black fans to represent themselves more fully in the game. But what was meant to be an inclusive addition to the life simulator is became controversial, especially as non-black fans began to appropriate and bleach hair options.

The problem came to a head when an Animal Crossing player on social media made the mistake of calling the new puffs “space buns,” a cute nickname used to describe the hair styles popularized by stars like Ariana Grande. While this article may be the most discussed example of the controversy, discussions over whether or not non-black gamers could wear the new hairstyles – or whether they were exclusively black hairstyles – began quickly. after Nintendo revealed that they existed in the first place. . Now that the hair is widely available, the conversation has largely focused on what the new options really are and what fans should call it.

This apparent confusion over hairstyles has prompted some fans to explain that while puffs can look like buns, if you zoom in you’ll notice that the new backs are textured differently from the standard options. Some took it even further, noting that Animal Crossing has portrayed something like space buns in games like Pocket camp, and they don’t look like the new puffs of New Horizons.

Part of what makes it a tired issue for some black fans is that the series has taken a long time to recognize this segment of its user base. New Horizons overall, it’s better than previous iterations, which meant that players who wanted to have darker skin in the game tan their characters for hours, if not wearing masks, just to represent themselves in the game. Game.

As reviewer Funké Joseph said in Gamespot in June: “My villager can be me now, and I love it, but it took so long. It’s hard for me to congratulate Nintendo for including it now when I, and so many others, needed it years ago. The representation bar is so daunting that businesses are praised for including content that should have been there since [the] start; whether we are celebrating having our hair in a game as a ‘win’ or having a black character who is not stereotypical as something innovative.

Speaking to Polygon on Twitter about the space bun controversy, Joseph added: ‘It’s obviously a black hairstyle, something people have pushed hard to get in and the obvious trolls will say things like’ space buns xP ‘in a seemingly quirky way, but know what they’re doing, who they’re deleting.

On social media, reactionaries took the opportunity to dwell on the issue, often posting photos of white characters wearing Afro puffs as if in defiance. Opinions on this phenomenon differ; some black players have proclaimed that they have no problem and it doesn’t matter what other fans wear in the game. The players Polygon spoke to for this story recognized that they couldn’t necessarily control what others would do. The potential problem is that by calling them space buns, fans erase the context of a hard-earned and long-awaited inclusion in the game.

“At least call them afro puffs if you have to wear them,” says Morgan, an Animal Crossing fan, who enjoyed the new update.

“So these people took a hairstyle and renamed it so they could pretend it’s not a black style,” she continued in a Twitter message. Morgan told Polygon that since write a tweet where she asked people to stop calling them space buns, she has been hassled by users who point out that she has pronouns in her bio, among other things. This, in turn, led Morgan to believe that it wasn’t Animal Crossing at all – some of the people arguing about the puffs may not even be gamers, but rather people who bristle at the mere idea of ​​racial inclusion wherever it appears. .

This is just the last battleground for observers who may have no interest in the large Animal Crossing community. Namely, a moderator of the largest Animal Crossing community on the internet told Polygon that in their forums fans spoke widely about the issue with respect, even if they disagreed with each other. Rather than becoming a harassing spear, the puff talk faded pretty quickly.

“I don’t like paying attention to users like that, though,” Joseph said of the Space Brigade. “I’m just happy these hairstyles are here for my whole family !!”