Your Race Affects Difficulty in The Fractured But Whole

One of the key things about satire is that it can get away with things other games can't simply because it gives itself the comedic license to. Satirists can make jokes and observations that normal people can't, lest they be called out for being crass, insensitive, or political and even then, the banner of satire isn't going to make you immune from those calls, just better prepared to deal with them.

Sometimes, the realest real in any medium can only come from satire. So it's little surprise that South Park: The Fractured But Whole measures game difficulty in a shameless yet brutally honest way: the game gets harder the darker your skin is. Eric Cartman tells the player:
 

Dont worry, this doesn't affect combat. Just every other aspect of your whole life,

While the full effects of being black aren't known, it will affect how much money you earn, and how NPCs react to you. Likewise, you'll face similar issues if you choose to play a woman, a transgender, or a cisgender character. Each choice you make when making your character will affect how the world sees you: almost as if it were real life or something!

Imagine that.

On one hand, it's great that this game is giving players the chance to play whoever they want, a level of freedom very few games even think about offering. But make no mistake: South Park is no safe space. Prepare to be the butt of jokes and receive a very different experience than you would have if you were a straight white boy.

Brilliant? No doubt. The potential to be insulting? Less doubt. But hey, you can't fault them for their lack of honesty.

You can experience the horrible discrimination you'll no doubt face as a transgender black girl on October 17th.