Girl Gamer's Opinion

[Bulletinmybrain]

...Have you been online lately Blayze? All gamers complain about stupid things and are overly sensitive? WHY DO YOU THINK WE'RE POSTING ON THIS FREAKIN' FORUM? The industry would be nothing without whiny fan-boys and girls and you can't tell me you've never left a lobby or multiplayer match because someone was being a jerk or you just couldn't stand to play with them anymore. And to address the over arching topic, Girl gamers are nothing new, hey, my girlfriend kicks my butt at guitar hero and I'm totally cool with that. Yes, female characters do look like models in games, but so do the males. You think anyone would've played Halo if MC looked like he could've benefitted from a few hours on a tred-mill? Were it that Link did not have the physique of a warrior, do you think anyone would have tolerated him wearing his PJ's into battle. Characters are crafted ideally because they are meant to be projected onto by the gamer. I don't go into a game thinking about the principles that this character model stands for, I pick up the controller and ask myself "Who do I want to be today?"

I would like to point out that you leave a lobby to cut your losses, Frustration stems from the amount of losses you gain. The losses you gain DO NOT however stem from the frustration in the game.

 

[Bulletinmybrain]

the guys at Megagames, for instance [http://www.megagames.com/hardcoregamer.html]

OK...
OK.
So I'm not a real gamer because I go to sleep and have friends? That's the most ridiculous thing I've heard in my life. To be fair, I don't really know what kind of gamer I am. I mean I have strong opinions on games but I'm not obsessive by any stretch. Who completes 100 games a year? Hmm. I'm starting to think they put that up to have a bit of a dig at their members really. Who knows? It's still ridiculous.

I do. Hell mine borders on the hundreds.(Flash games for the win.)

 

[xitel]

First off, tl;dr.

The reason for the objectification of women in games is that most developers are men, and most of the people that buy games without caring how good they are are men. By this, I mean to say that if a woman looked at a game with a hot guy on the box, they'll be more likely to consider how good the game is before they buy it. It's another point where marketing may be underhanded, but it works.

However, look at recent games like Heavenly Sword, Final Fantasy XII, and the upcoming FF XIII. All of these star women in the main role, and not necessarily scantily-clad dullards either. Then consider games like Mass Effect and Oblivion, games where the character's gender is determined by the player's choices. The demographics of gamers are changing as gaming becomes more mainstream, and the content of games are slowly coming to match that fact.

For the last time: women don't stereotypically think about sex and physicality like men stereotypically think about sex and physicality.

I didn't say they did, I said they didn't. Sorry if I wasn't clear. Chemically speaking, men are more likely to act based on hormones and physical attractions than women. I was trying to say that a woman gamer is MORE likely to buy a game based on how good it is rather than the box art. And there is the fact that some women are as attracted to physical attributes as the average man is, they are just fewer in number.

 

[xitel]

Maybe they should then accept that for a fact and stop complaining about how women are depicted in video games.
The fact that they stereotypically think about sex and physicality differently than men doesn't mean that the way men do is wrong.
I mean. Regardless of how women see it, men and women are still BOTH depicted equally stereotypically in games. So see? No unfairness.
If it's a problem to women and not men, maybe it's up to women to do like men and not get angered about all that.

I think the fact we hear more about women being depicted unfairly in games is that when men are depicted unfairly, they are more often than not balanced out by the other male characters in games. Plus, not many guys are going to complain about a game featuring an unfair depiction of men, firstly because most don't care, and secondly because they don't want to seem "gay" in front of their friends.

 

[TaborMallory]

Think about it this way.
When was the last time you've seen a game with a realistic male but NOT a realistic female?

One of the reasons that the male side of gaming isn't complaining about this sort of thing is that the typical male JUST DOESN'T CARE.

Statistic-wise, almost all games are aimed toward a male audience. Look at soul caliber. The dudes look like they've been weight training since the age of three. A perfect male in the eyes of a male audience. The women are clad in very revealing suits. Once again, pleasing a male audience.
Now, since most games are typically composed of male programmers trying to please a male audience (har har, gay joke), you will generally see just that. Stuff that pleases males.

Now look at Half Life. Do you see any unrealistic characters? No? The main protagonist is a crowbar wielding nerd in an orange suit!
I don't really know what I'm trying to point out there. Lets just say it's to say that not all game characters are exadurated.

I don't know how the fuck to spell exadurated. I hate my language.
Is there any other languages that hold spelling contests?

 

[TsunamiWombat]

Exaggerated.

You forgot Alyx Vance, poster child for "look, not all female videogame characters are big breasted airheads or big breasted angry chicks!"

 

[Joeshie]

Why should anyone accept developers and publishers pandering to the pathetic and juvenile tastes of lonely 12-36 year old males?

For someone who is so against stereotypes, you sure had no problem stereotyping 12-36 year old males there.

 

[hypothetical fact]

Sterotype or not I find these stylised money grabbing characters shall we say, easier on the eyes than the alternative.

I respect any action female gamers perform to achieve equality but we have to look after our own interests first.

 

[Ultrajoe]

You forgot Alyx Vance

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/9.70852?page=4#718080

and many times before, this thread has made the same 4 points over and over so often i could predict what comes next.