Ash

We used to laugh, chortle and snicker every time the sub-boss jumps out of his speedboat. He faces our players like all villains do, except that his colorful and flamboyant character stand out as an icon, and a comic relief for a game deemed violent for us kids.

"Ayyyyyyy!! Baklaaaaaa!!" we would say, as he scissor jumps with his arms behind his head. His purple vest, neon green leggings and Lycra suit say it all. There was no need for adults to tell us what a kind of video game character he was.

And we would beat him to a pulp - with our digital punches, kicks and even throwing of weapons we pick along the way. We get startled when he laughs with a falsetto voice, and wonder how on earth did he become a gang leader when those of his kind were mocked and looked down in real life.

Eventually, we learned that he was playable, and his great strength helped us get through levels with bosses too difficult to defeat. I would unlock him before the first level clears and ditch my main hero in favor of him. 

Only because he was fun to play with.

In my solitary gameplay, I found joy when he trashed those whip-wielding dominatrices, and blurred my not-so-pristine mind when he is surrounded by beef daddies - err. thugs. I thought how he bossed around his foot soldiers. 

And flirted with boys, when he was still part of the syndicate.

He was obviously conceived to make fun of an awakening consciousness, a caricature of a man who prefers the company of another man instead of a woman. But at the same time, the game creators of Bare Knuckles 3 subconsciously empowered him to be tough. They made him feminine, yet at the same time lead gangsters in street brawls. 

In his time, he might be dismissed as a novelty; a feature not entirely part of the plot but was added as an afterthought, to be accessed and played by those who would identify with him later in life.

Many years later, a smile still creases on my face every time I see his video clip. Only this time, I know, I was one of those who secretly accessed him, to get to know who I ought to become.