Erica Anderson
Erica Anderson | |
---|---|
First game | Catherine |
Voiced by | EN: Erin Fitzgerald[1] JA: Junko Minagawa[1] |
Erica Anderson is a fictional character in the 2011 video game Catherine. She is a transgender woman, and her portrayal was considered controversial by Western audiences. She is a confidant to the protagonist, Vincent Brooks, working for the Stray Sheep bar, who, like her, suffers from potentially fatal nightmares. She is portrayed by Erin Fitzgerald in English and Junko Minagawa in Japanese.
Erica received mixed reception; her treatment in Catherine and
Concept and creation
Erica's features are generally feminine, but her eyes bear resemblance more to game's male characters'.[2] She exhibits dominant body language as well as body language that demonstrates sexual confidence.[2] Characters react with disgust to the idea of one character having sex with her and she is referred to by her deadname at multiple points, both in-universe and in the game's credits.[2] Erica is also subject to nightmares that are said to only affect men.[2] She is portrayed by Erin Fitzgerald in English and Junko Minagawa in Japanese.[1]
Appearances
Erica first appears in the video game
Reception
Since appearing in Catherine, Erica has received a widely mixed reception, with some praising her personality and presentation with others criticizing other character's attitudes towards her. Writer Matt Kim suggested that her coming out scene was used to embarrass Toby, who had sex with her.[5] Writer Mattie Brice was critical of Erica, calling her an "extremely problematic character." She felt that the hints that exist of her gender, when viewed in hindsight, come off as malicious. She particularly cites characters' aversion to her and disparaging of her femininity. She felt however that her actual character is great and relatable, but the way she is framed in the game "doesn’t provide any optimism for trans-folk and their allies."[6] The Guardian's Matt Kamen agreed on the hints, stating that the game "[reflects] the real fears and stigmas trans people face."[7] Writer Bella Blondeau writes in TheGamer that much of the reaction to Erica is "based in blind anger and a seemingly deliberate misconstruing of the game’s intent, messaging and morality." She notes that Erica is a refreshing character, passing perfectly, and not letting herself be defined by her trauma.[8]
Writer Ana Valens cites a scene in the Full Body edition of the game where Erica does not
Japanese audiences received Erica more positively.
References
- ^ a b c "Erica Anderson Voices (Catherine)". Behind The Voice Actors. Archived from the original on June 7, 2019. Retrieved June 7, 2019. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its opening and/or closing credits and/or other reliable sources of information.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: postscript (link) - ^ a b c d Christenson, Emil; Unéus, Danielle (September 2017). "Transgender in Games: A Comparative Study of Transgender Characters in Game" (PDF). Uppsala Universitet. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 31, 2019. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
- ^ Moyse, Chris (January 9, 2019). "Catherine will be bringing a lot of DLC friends to the party in Full Body". Destructoid. Archived from the original on April 3, 2019. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
- GamesRadar. Archivedfrom the original on June 3, 2019. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
- US Gamer. Archived from the originalon June 3, 2019. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
- ^ Brice, Mattie (31 August 2011). "It's Time to Talk About it: Atlus, Naoto, and Transphobia". Archived from the original on May 31, 2019. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
- ^ Kamen, Matt (April 14, 2013). "A diversity challenge for developers". The Guardian. Archived from the original on June 3, 2019. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
- ^ Blondeau, Bella (2019-09-03). "Catherine's Erica Is An Imperfect Character For Our Imperfect World". TheGamer. Archived from the original on 2023-08-11. Retrieved 2023-08-11.
- US Gamer. Archivedfrom the original on June 3, 2019. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
- GamesRadar. Archivedfrom the original on June 3, 2019. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
- GamesRadar. Archivedfrom the original on June 3, 2019. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
- ^ Johnson, Astrid (January 10, 2019). "Wot I Think: Catherine Classic". Rock Paper Shotgun. Archived from the original on April 5, 2019. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
- Vice. Archivedfrom the original on May 24, 2019. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
- ^ "The Transphobia At Atlus Needs To Stop". Nightmare Mode. May 28, 2012. Archived from the original on May 24, 2019. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
- ^ a b Hashimoto, Kazuma (February 28, 2018). "[Discourse] Catherine, Trans Identities, and Representation in Japan". Anime Feminist. Archived from the original on June 3, 2019. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
- ^ Cutts, Charlotte (February 11, 2017). "New Year's evil: the eponymous Catherine". Destructoid. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
- ^ Pixie the Fairy (January 30, 2013). "I'll face myself: Transcending the gender binary in games". Destructoid. Archived from the original on March 28, 2016. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
- ^ Davis, Ben (February 14, 2015). "Experience Points .04: Catherine". Destructoid. Archived from the original on April 2, 2019. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
- Advocate. Archivedfrom the original on March 15, 2019. Retrieved June 4, 2019.