Our Favourite Muslim Characters In Games
During Eid Al-Fitr, or commonly known as Hari Raya in Malaysia/Indonesia, is celebrated by more than 1.5 billion Muslims around the world. As it marks the end of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan when Muslims fast for a period of one month.
To commemorate this occasion of blessings and happiness, let’s celebrate the representations of various Muslim characters in video games. While many Muslim characters in games tend to accentuate certain negative stereotypes, these are several that buck the trend and show that Muslims can be portrayed in a positive (or neutral) light.
Cypher – Valorant (PC)
One of Valorant’s most defensive characters hails from Rabat, Morocco. His real name is Amir El Amari and has spent the majority of his youth in poverty, going in the information broker trade to survive.
As the majority population of Morocco is affiliated with Islam, it’s safe to assume that Cypher is Muslim, or used to practice it at one point in his life before doing the things he do in Valorant. Heck, he says “Salam Alek” when he kills a copy of himself in deathmatches, which means “peace be with you”; that’s as Muslim as you can get.
Shaheen – Tekken 8 (PC & Consoles)
Shaheen is a new fighter in the iconic fighting game franchise, having only been recently introduced in 2017’s Tekken 7. He hails from Saudi Arabia, wears the traditional Arab headwear keffiyeh and subscribes to the Military Fighting Style, a highly acrobatic technique that includes somersaults, slides, and kicks.
His name ‘Shaheen’ means ‘royal white Falcon or Hawk’. Before even featuring the character in the game, Tekken producer Katsuhiro Harada asked Muslim players for feedback if they deemed Shaheen to be offensive in any way. He was received favourably but some called out the character for being too flashy and similar to Altair from the Assassin’s Creed franchise (see above).
Of course, that didn’t stop the Tekken community from labeling him as one of the game’s top-tier characters, with good buttons and strings to keep the offensive pressure on a high. Just ask pros like Korea’s Lowhigh and The Philippines’ AK.
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