Olas said:
If the goal was merely to spite certain people /v/ could have done so in a whole manner of ways that weren't constructive and didn't cost them any money. The creation of Vivian and the supporting of a charity to promote female involvement in game development was clearly done to counter accusations of misogyny.
You can say they wouldn't have done it if they didn't have pressure to do so, but neither would most people, including many people who identify as feminists, otherwise this thing would have been funded in no time. And the way I see it, people who want to avoid a certain label, are usually not very fond of the label, and by extension what it represents. If they were truly misogynistic, it doesn't seem like something they would do. It's kind of like a KKK member donating money to the NAACP to try and prove they aren't racist.
Why does this seem at all unusual to you? It's called "damage control" or "public relations". The idea is to change one's image through one's actions. It would be like if Hitler financed a Holocaust museum. Or if Israel agreed to a cease fire with Hamas.
Rarely does any force in the world have infinite power. The actions of agents of power take into consideration OTHER forces of power that affect THEIR OWN power. Effective public relations is designed to create more gain from a situation than the cost expended. So when Oprah gives away a car "for free" on her show, the idea is that the publicity she gains from the giveaway is worth more to her than the cost of the car. Likewise, the creation of a "pro-feminist" project by historically anti-feminist gamer forces is designed to create more benefit for their image than the cost of the project itself.
If Hitler had lived through WWII, public relations advice would have told him to apologize, say it was all a "mistake", finance a Holocaust museum, and redefine his image.
People who care more for power than standing up for what they "believe in" will do ANYTHING for additional power, regardless of how much it seems to detract from what they "believe in". In truth, all these people really care about is power itself.
Despite this ridiculous situation, the good news is that for the first time in gaming history, feminism has become a powerful enough force to trigger a public relations response. Hitler certainly wasn't willing to finance a Holocaust museum DURING the Holocaust and if Hamas had just rolled over and died during the Israeli assault the ceasefire would not have happened.
Hopefully this action signals a new day for feminism in gaming.