My Shepard is female (I am not) and I think that she is a deeper character for it. Admittedly, it does have a lot to do with the fact that Jennifer Hale portrays an actual character and the guy who voices ManShep is a zombie, but seeing my Shepard saving the galaxy is inherently more interesting because she is a woman - whether we like it or not, the universe is a masculine-oriented place; her sexuality gives her a real diplomatic advantage, among enemies and friends alike, and it is unusual to see a woman in a position of power like that. Asari don't count since the species is monogendered, but not until ME3 did we see a female Krogan (and it was a HUGE plot point) and we STILL have yet to see a female Turian. If my memory serves me the same is true of the Volus, Elcor and Batarians, and probably the Drell and Hanar as well. Statistically speaking, in Mass Effect, the women stayed home, and Shepard went out and kicked ass, and she acts like a total BAMF, and even though it doesn't REALLY matter that she has a vagina it gives her story that much more impact.
TL;DR it's like Sigourney Weaver in Alien(s). Her role COULD be played by, say, Hicks, but that would be boring; the body horror wouldn't mean as much and we would be bored out of our minds.
And ManShep looks like a giant armored side of beef with a fuzzy potato for a head. FemShep is much easier on the eyes than he is. I like looking at my own avatar, sure, I designed her to be visually attractive, but why not? Should I have made her look like Trollface, just so nobody can accuse me of sexism? It's not like she has ass-strutting superpowers (that's what Miranda and Liara are for). Who cares? It's not sexist to enjoy looking at women more than men. Now, refusing to play Shepard because she should be in the kitchen? THAT would be sexist (And Mess Sgt. Gardner would be out of a job).
TL;DR it's like Sigourney Weaver in Alien(s). Her role COULD be played by, say, Hicks, but that would be boring; the body horror wouldn't mean as much and we would be bored out of our minds.
And ManShep looks like a giant armored side of beef with a fuzzy potato for a head. FemShep is much easier on the eyes than he is. I like looking at my own avatar, sure, I designed her to be visually attractive, but why not? Should I have made her look like Trollface, just so nobody can accuse me of sexism? It's not like she has ass-strutting superpowers (that's what Miranda and Liara are for). Who cares? It's not sexist to enjoy looking at women more than men. Now, refusing to play Shepard because she should be in the kitchen? THAT would be sexist (And Mess Sgt. Gardner would be out of a job).