This fucking sucks man. Stranger than Heaven, the next game from Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio, already looked like something that was extremely my jam. A Yakuza-like game from the Yakuza studio, steeped in Jazz Age iconography and aesthetics? Sign me the hell up. But RGG obliterated all that hype, completely and utterly turning me off from the game, with the announcement that Tupac Shakur will be making an appearance.
The announcement featured a short glimpse of his character in the game wearing what looked to be Japanese-style clothing, with the iconic bandana tied around his forehead making it unambiguously Tupac. To explain this digital resurrection, the developers of Stranger than Heaven brought out Snoop Dogg. Snoop, who also appears in Stranger Than Heaven, said that he and his son (who together run a joint gaming company, Death Row Games) worked with the Shakur estate.
“It just made sense to put him in this game,” he said, as though the blessing of a man who signs his name to anything and everything as long as the money’s good will make this anything less than an ugly act of zombie capitalism. How did it make sense Snoop? That man was murdered roughly 30 years ago. The first Yakuza game didn’t exist until almost a decade after he died. Apparently, this is A Thing with RGG, who is also bringing back Bunta Sugawara, an iconic Japanese actor known for his roles in numerous yakuza movies and died in 2014, in Stranger than Heaven. Though it’s not much, RGG Studios has confirmed that AI was not involved to recreate Shakur. “RGG Studio is treating this integration with the utmost respect for his legacy, crafting every aspect in close collaboration and without the use of AI, including his character design based on archival footage and photographs,” read the press release.
We’re not at risk of forgetting about Tupac; that man is a hip-hop legend whose place in musical history was solidified long ago. This is about money, cashing in on a likeness because it seems to fit the vibe or lends caché to something that really didn’t need it at the expense of a man who is not alive to say no. It sucks. So much. And it didn’t have to be like this.