Poll: Do you think the ‘poly-face’ option in the new Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater video game is culturally insensitive?
The new Tony Hawk video game has come under fire for an act of “cultural colonisation” after it used Māori tā moko as a character customisation option.
Players of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2, which was released on Friday, are able to choose from a selection of indigenous-inspired facial tattoos, with one of the options labelled “Poly-face”.
Screenshots of the skateboarding game were posted to Twitter and shared by Pākehā/Māori tattoo artist @dreadconquest in a thread outlining why moko should not be used in this way.
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33.8% Yes
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66.2% No
Today’s Mind-Bender is the Last of the Year! Can You Guess It Before Everyone Else? 🌟🎁🌲
I dance in the sky with green and gold, a spectacle few are lucky to behold; I’m best seen in the south, a celestial sight—what am I, lighting up the New Zealand night?
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By-election for Otara-Papatoetoe area
Just to let everyone know that we have another by-election happening, and here is the reason why. Below are details and dates, so keep an eye on your letter boxes.
The Manukau Court’s Ruling
The Manukau District Court determined that the Papatoetoe subdivision result of the Ōtara–Papatoetoe Local Board election was invalid, ruling that the outcome had been “materially affected” by voting irregularities. Judge Richard McIlraith found that the scale and nature of the irregularities met the legal threshold required to void an election under New Zealand’s local electoral laws.
In his decision, Judge McIlraith stated that the evidence presented — including reports of stolen voting papers, fraudulent use of ballots, and other procedural irregularities — was sufficient to conclude that the integrity of the election had been compromised. The court noted that at least 79 voting papers were identified as having been cast without the rightful voter’s knowledge during a judicially supervised examination of ballot boxes.
While the judge acknowledged that the election had been administered “properly and in accordance with all requirements” by Independent Election Services and the electoral officer, he concluded that the fraudulent activity originated outside the official process and nonetheless impacted the final result to a degree that required the election to be voided.
As a result of the ruling, the court ordered that a new election must be held, with Auckland Council confirming that the fresh poll must be completed by 9 April 2026
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