Vasto on 30 January 2016
How Microsoft enlisted a Native American tribe to design a Killer Instinct character.
Microsoft contacted Josiah “Black Eagle” Pinkum, an ethnographer and member of the Nez Perce tribe of Native Americans. They invited him in to visit developer Double Helix and review the old character. He spent a day with the team, which explained to him that they wanted to “take risks” and create an “extreme character” based on real cultural values. They talked about how would a Nez Perce celebrate on defeating an enemy. He advised them to create someone who was “culturally heroic.” The character at the top of this story was the result.
