To Gearbox: Never ask for that kind of fanart from fans, THEY WILL MAKE YOU WISH YOU NEVER WERE BORN.
Gearbox Wants Female Duke Nukem Game
- Thread starter Tom Goldman
- Start date
I bow before ninja master.Harbinger_ said:
So many people just look for a reason to complain, and for some reasson it's onlyu women that people are sexist about *rolls eyes*.
I actually think like the minority here that we already sort of have a female Duke in the form of Laura Croft...but just because I say that don't think I wouldn't love for GearBox to jump on the idea of a true female equivalent of Duke and make it into there next game
Because it's sexist to portray women as anything but strict and serious...SirBryghtside said:I guess so, and people pointed out that she was oversexualised.cainx10a said:Ain't Bayonetta the female Duke Nukem?
*looks at picture of Duke*
Um... why is it that no one's complained about Duke being oversexualised?
In video games. Movies and books are aye-o-kay though.
I trust we all remember this infamous image.
Anyway, Lara Croft probably is the distaff counterpart to Duke Nukem, especially in the first game. Someone flirts with her, she flirts back but is cooler, and smarter about it; ergo a comfortably sexual being. She dresses in a way that best accentuates her physical features, is very fit etc etc.
Lara Croft could still however, take your run of the mill bloke and snap him across her knee. Canon seems to be that she's a crack shot with her pistols, can drive almost anything with a motor and has about as much attachment to others as James Bond; with even less official sanction.
Hmm,
A game starring the Duke, Lara, Bayonetta and Dante........excuse me a second.
I'm pretty sure I saw Duke as a girl on DeviantArt once. I stopped visiting the site after that.
OT:
She-Duke-no, let's not call her that. Let's call her Duchess.
Duchess Nukem would wear extravagant, revealing clothing, and would pretty much be Duke Nukem in size DDs. Or, she could be the exact opposite of Duke: Fearful of confrontation, incompetent with weaponry, and book smart.
Sorry if I sound sexist, but I'm just thinking about how someone who was the opposite of Duke would be.
OT:
She-Duke-no, let's not call her that. Let's call her Duchess.
Duchess Nukem would wear extravagant, revealing clothing, and would pretty much be Duke Nukem in size DDs. Or, she could be the exact opposite of Duke: Fearful of confrontation, incompetent with weaponry, and book smart.
Sorry if I sound sexist, but I'm just thinking about how someone who was the opposite of Duke would be.
Eh....actually when one says "female Duke Nukem" - I kinda think first of Panty from Panty and Stocking with Garterbelt.
...
Its true though - she is, essentially, the deconstruction of the 'feminine main character' archetype as much as Dook is the deconstruction of the 'masculine main character' archetype. Both take these very traditional qualities, Dook's physique, charisma, confidence, Panty's beauty, grace and relative innocence or naivety - and distort the everlasting FUCK out of them in a way that turns both characters into these brilliant, self-parody-ing grotesques of both human ideals and humanity itself.
I might be looking a wee bit too much into this though...
Basically - Panty is the only female character that I have seen in any medium who can wave her metaphorical dick around to that extent of hilarious egotism.
...
Its true though - she is, essentially, the deconstruction of the 'feminine main character' archetype as much as Dook is the deconstruction of the 'masculine main character' archetype. Both take these very traditional qualities, Dook's physique, charisma, confidence, Panty's beauty, grace and relative innocence or naivety - and distort the everlasting FUCK out of them in a way that turns both characters into these brilliant, self-parody-ing grotesques of both human ideals and humanity itself.
I might be looking a wee bit too much into this though...
Basically - Panty is the only female character that I have seen in any medium who can wave her metaphorical dick around to that extent of hilarious egotism.
Pitchford doth protest too much, methinks, but his suggestion is actually quite useful for examining how Duke Nukem Forever appears to be becoming a genuinely sexist game. Excuse me if this sounds like trolling, but the Duke Nukem I remember playing a decade ago was not exactly an enlightened male, but the game was fun all the same. The Duke's being sexist was part of his charm - it made him a flawed hero, even if the game also validated some sexist attitudes among his players.Tom Goldman said:
I don't believe that acknowledging the flaws of a classic game conflicts with my positive memories. Let's just be honest with ourselves.
Two things which have changed about computer games since DN3D. For one, we expect much more material from any game we play to fill the much expanded canvas. Secondly, we have many more games to compare any new game against. So I believe we forgave Duke for a lot when he appeared in '96 because the new space of 3d shooters he was entering was so empty, and because there was much less within any game to respond to. We filled in a lot more of his game, and if we were inclined to forgive the Duke it was a lot easier to justify him. Even still we knew what characters this Duke was meant to remind us us of.
Pitchford has suggested that feminist critics could be mollified by offering a lady Duke, but from the suggestions that have been offered this would be a "separate but not equal" compromise. Daisy Duke? Lara Croft? Bayonetta?? Please. How do you forget so quickly that the idea is to create a gun-toting heroine to appeal to women? The point of "male gaze" is to make yourself aware of how and when a character's design is created to appeal to us guys.
But the fundamental problem is with that suggestion that feminists would be satisfied with their own misandrist adventurer. While that could be made into a compelling character, she would not satisfy the feminist complaint. That is, I don't believe that feminists want to place women over men, but to eliminate gender as a constraint in what people can become. Since we expect the Duke to see women in his universe as sexy bodies to ogle, I don't believe that turning the tables would really be satisfactory.
I can understand that Pitchford may feel he has a tough sell to pitch this character to a new generation of players, but maybe he should let the Duke speak for himself on gender relations. That may be less inflammatory. Maybe.
Panty? Innocent? What the hell have YOU been smoking? She's a raving whore! I'd say STOCKING is the more innocent of the two, and even SHE'S not exactly all that innocent.KafkaOffTheBeach said:
Now as far as Panty being the female equivalent of Duke Nukem... yeah I can agree with that.
She's totally innocent in the naive sense - she has no idea about what could be construed as morally wrong etc. purely acting on base instinct, unconstrained by the trappings of our society.Sean Strife said:
The whole "FUCK EVERYTHING THAT MOVES" aspect is a delightful distortion of that.
Also, you do realise that Stocking is a devil, and that every single one of her many incredibly sick, twisted sado-masochistic fantasies happen off camera?
Whatever floats your boat and sinks your ship.
I'm more interested on them releasing this game! They're pushing it's release date back even further... argh.
Worst part about waiting for something is knowing that you're waiting for it.
I'm more interested on them releasing this game! They're pushing it's release date back even further... argh.
Worst part about waiting for something is knowing that you're waiting for it.
If one such game would come out, I'd release it on the N64 or the Dreamcast. Then you wouldn't have to worry about young kids getting their hands on it.
"Sega makes consoles WHAT!" is what I would imagine a young man might say. It would be a step backwards yes but damn wouldn't it be HILARIOUS
"Sega makes consoles WHAT!" is what I would imagine a young man might say. It would be a step backwards yes but damn wouldn't it be HILARIOUS
I think this would actually create a very interesting double standard to arise. One which, I think is not talked about at all. Or not much anyway.Tom Goldman said:Gearbox Wants Female Duke Nukem Game
A female version of Duke Nukem would be engrossed in herself and her interests too, whatever those might be.
Daisy Nukem, if you will, would likely be completely different than her male counterpart. While the stereotypical male wants to get right into the action and kick some ass, the stereotypical female might have a stable of beefcakes do her fighting for her, until they all get wiped out and she has to step in to take care of business. She'd probably also find a way to be president of the world or something. Any other ideas?
Source: CVG [http://www.computerandvideogames.com/290029/interviews/duke-nukem-forever-feminism-fellatio-and-the-funnies/]
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Were there to exist this "stereotypical female character" in a game, I have a feeling that this character (Daisy Nukem, let's say) would immediately come under fire from feminists/women's rights groups saying that it is an offensive stereotype of women everywhere because not all women act like this/believe this/would take this action etc. Now let's take a step back.
Why, then, are not more male groups offended by this game's interpretation of the stereotypical masculine man? This is a double standard and an interesting one. This game, I think at least, is not offensive towards women because it is a character sketch (allbeit a very charicatured one). Should it be considered offensive towards men who don't fit this hyper form of masculinity? Would a game featuring a "stereotyped" female character cause a ruckus? Should this game cause questions to be asked concerning what we value in men in society? Is this all reading way too far in to be relevant?
I don't really know the answer to these questions, but I think the only way that games will ever achieve even a modicum of relevance and respect in this society is if they can be used to ask these difficult questions - if they can use their characters, environments, etc. to foster discussion rather than falling back on the old, tired excuse of "it's just a game." While this statement might be true, it only serves to undercut any legitimacy a game can make in society.
