Japanese "Consultant" Used By Ubisoft And The New York Times To Attack Gamers Over ‘Assassin’s Creed Shadows’ Was A Sweet Baby Inc. Employee
In a recent collaboration between Ubisoft and The New York Times, a weak af effort was made trying to shift the narrative surrounding the increasing controversy of Assassin’s Creed Shadows... But what's been uncovered regarding Sweet Baby Inc's involvement just blew this wide open!
The game, set in feudal Japan, features the historical figure Yasuke as its protagonist. Criticism surrounding the game’s portrayal of Yasuke as a samurai and its use of Chinese architecture sparked outrage, SPECIFICALLY among Japanese audiences. Yet, a new angle has emerged, seemingly designed to deflect any criticism back toward Western audiences.
The Times’ Zachary Small quoted a “Japanese consultant and translator,” Kazuma Hashimoto, claiming that much of the outrage surrounding Assassin’s Creed Shadows was fabricated by individuals in the West using poorly translated criticisms from Japanese sources.
Hashimoto claimed "It was people in the West who were upset with seeing Yasuke as a samurai," with the implication that somehow Japanese audiences were unbothered by the historical liberties the game took. The Ubisoft Japan trailer like/dislikes ratio states otherwise (Thanks @ps_shots1993):
However, Hashimoto’s credibility as an impartial consultant has now been called into question. As revealed by his own (now deleted - thx for the screenshot ThatParkPlace) LinkedIn profile, he was an employee of Sweet Baby Inc., a consultancy known for its dirty tactics and involvement in various diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives across the gaming industry.
His tenure with Sweet Baby Inc. lasted from February 2020 to April 2023, casting serious doubts on the objectivity of his involvement here in defending Ubisoft’s depiction of Yasuke.
A Coordinated Attack on Gamers?
The attempt by The New York Times, Ubisoft, and Hashimoto to paint the backlash against Assassin’s Creed Shadows as a product of Western misinformation is riddled with contradictions throughout. We all know it's impossible to trust mainstream media these days but even still... this blew my mind! Small’s article even acknowledges that Ubisoft had issued a formal apology to Japanese gamers in response to their concerns over the game's historical inaccuracies. It's riddled with contradictions trying hard to run damage control.
Moreover, a right-wing Japanese political party had formally requested an investigation into what it deemed "historical inaccuracies" in the game’s portrayal of feudal Japan.
If Japanese audiences were truly "unbothered" by Assassin’s Creed Shadows, as Hashimoto tries to say here, why did Ubisoft feel compelled to apologize, and why did a political party intervene? This inconsistency raises concerns about the motives behind the narrative being pushed.
Hashimoto’s Controversial Past
When I diver deeper into Kazuma Hashimoto, it reveals that his involvement in this narrative might be part of a broader agenda. Not only has he worked for Sweet Baby Inc., but Hashimoto is also an activist, with bylines in Polygon, Siliconera, Them, and various outlets owned by the GAMURS Group.
His history of pushing progressive talking points is well documented, including an article where he criticized Animal Crossing: New Horizons for not adequately addressing Japan’s history of colonial rule (below - thx @Grummz).
Per John Trent of ThatParkPlace, earlier this year, Hashimoto also published a piece in Them titled, “How Gay Can You Be in Dragon’s Dogma 2? An Investigation,” reflecting his consistent focus on injecting DEI issues into gaming discourse (below).
The Sweet Baby Inc. Playbook
It should come as no surprise that Ubisoft and The New York Times would turn to a former Sweet Baby Inc. employee like Hashimoto to defend their game. Sweet Baby Inc. has been at the forefront of reshaping narratives within the gaming industry, often emphasizing social justice and DEI-related themes.
After watching the first 15 minutes of Hashi's Twitch stream, I'm convinced that he's far too clueless to even realize that he is being used as a pawn in this game of 4D chess from Ubisoft and SBI... So I genuinely hesitate to go TOO hard on him here...
but according to some old tweets found by @Scratch_Point_Z, he's not even from Japan...
Will It Work for Assassin’s Creed Shadows?
Ubisoft’s CEO Yves Guillemot has already acknowledged that Assassin’s Creed Shadows is unlikely to become the best-selling game in the franchise. While speaking with Barclays’ Nick Dempsey, Guillemot admitted that they expect the game to be “among the high sellers,” ...but stopped short of predicting any kind of record-breaking success.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows faces an uphill battle. The attempt being made here to downplay the game’s controversies by using EXTREMELY biased consultants and pushing misleading narratives is unlikely to resonate with gamers who expect historical accuracy and respect for the source material.
The game’s ultimate success or failure depends not on narratives spun by consultants but on its quality and the integrity of its portrayal of history—two areas where it appears to be lacking. This is a clear play of desperation... and Ubisoft is about to find out that gamers are not so easily manipulated by the access media’s shady af tactics.
~Smash
You'd think that these Sweet baby Diarrhea freaks would learn to keep their mouths shut because No One wants to hear their lame Garbage that comes out of there Pathetic Pieholes