Lets talk about Girls that play video games

[The Great JT]

I admit it sounds incredibly sexist of me to say so, but it does seem like oftentimes women, especially attractive ones, who play video games are just trying to get attention or sell something. I know that isn't always the case, in fact I wouldn't be surprised if it's a "few bad apples" situation, but think about how often attractive women are used to sell a product aimed primarily at heterosexual men, then apply that principle to a prodcut you have an interest in (in this case video games). I mean, much like the stigma of gamers being overweight, pimply white guys who live in their parents' basement and whose only exposure to light is from the glow of their television screen still blights gamers, the stigma of attractive women and anything video gaming are either non-existant or booth babes still blights female gamers. Again, I fully admit that saying that sounds incredibly sexist of me to the point it sort of borders of mysogynistic.

I still hold out hope that "MzRight221" (a woman who shares my passion for video games, I was just using the gamertag as a joke and an allusion to that) is out there and waiting for me.

 

[Relish in Chaos]

*sigh* *facepalm* *bangs head against wall*

I don?t mean to stereotype, but why the fuck is it that so many men like to make assumptions or just flat-out only think with their goddamn genitals whenever an attractive woman comes onto the scene who just so happens to share an interest with them, whether that be nerdy stuff like comic books or video games, or traditionally masculine hobbies like cars and guns.

Women, who aren?t perceived as the default and are basically a minority (despite actually being one half of the population and one of two genders), obviously don?t have this problem, although I guess most of them/society tends to perceive men who have feminine interests as just gay, therefore THREAT OF GUY BEING YOUR FRIEND JUST TO GET IN YOUR PANTS IS REMOVED. PROCEED MATURE AND NON-AWKWARD CONVERSATION. A tomboy is just seen as a tomboy, not necessarily a lesbian.

If you want to complain about labels, then complain about the fucking ?hardcore gamers? who like to feel superior to the ?casual gamers? (Wii is 4 TEH GURLZ & GAYZ, mah xbox shits over those FAGGOTS!).

Also, tits.

 

[Phasmal]

I admit it sounds incredibly sexist of me to say so, but it does seem like oftentimes women, especially attractive ones, who play video games are just trying to get attention or sell something. I know that isn't always the case, in fact I wouldn't be surprised if it's a "few bad apples" situation, but think about how often attractive women are used to sell a product aimed primarily at heterosexual men, then apply that principle to a prodcut you have an interest in (in this case video games).

That is almost never true.
Dudes are always thinking shit is all about them, what the hell. Women play games cause they like to. Why do YOU play games? Why should it be different for girls?
(Besides, you don't get GOOD attention for being a female gamer, most times, you get told to get in the kitchen).

Blah, this shit just makes me want to scream. It's not like I travelled back in time to meet my 7 year old self and told her to play games because all the dudes will think its so cutelike and of course my whole world revolves around what dudes think.
*goes away to detonate quietly*

 

[Realitycrash]

I actually care, mostly because A: I hate when people try to manipulate me (which some are) and B, I hate when others get easily manipulated (which some guys will be). It has cost me hard-earned loot in MMORPGs, guild-spots and raid-spots.
It's special treatment, it's unfair, and it's honestly sexist. It may or may not be bad for women in general to be still be treated like they are on a pedestal, just because they have boobs, but I really don't care about that. What annoys me is that I know some (not all, but some), that activlely use their "I'm a girl"-tactic to manipulate people, and it fucking bothers me.
Just because you are a sad, lone and pathetic person that manages to get manipulated by a few nice words over a microphone, doesn't mean it's the right thing to do.

Though, if said girl isn't even trying, it's just the guys I hate. The stupid, stupid guys.

That's just weird to me. I've never recieved any special treatment (except the nasty kind) for being female. Ever.
Manipluation is bad (obviously), my point was more- this doesn't happen as much as everyone goes around saying it does. It's at the point that dudes are pre-emptively assholes to anyone who is a girl just to show they wont give them stuff (how does that even go down?! `I'm a girl give me stuff?!` Never seen it happen).

And some times when it does happen- the person going `I'm a girl TEE HEE`, is quite clearly not (honestly sometimes its so painfully obvious). This did happen to me once, in a group in WoW, someone who was chatting constantly and really laying it on thick, when they said `so-and-so because I'M A GIRL`, I said `No sweetie, you aren't.` That shut them up.
The only other time that I had someone go `I'm a girl` was (again in WoW) when they kept dying by jumping off stuff. They said `go easy on me I'm a girl`. I pretty much exploded at them not to use that as an excuse.

Basically, yeah it sucks that people do that, but they don't do it that much. And all of us are suffering for it and that sucks more.

I've met more female gamers that don't, than I have that do. But it has still happened rather frequently, or enough that it bothers me.
As I mentioned before in this thread, my sister had started a female only Battleground PvP-group in a highly skilled and respected guild. What I talked to her about it, and commenting on how sweet it would be to play in said guild even though my lowly rating, she said that there were fewer girls who accepted her offer than one would think. She also said that some had to be rejected outright, but not due to game-related problems (gear, etc).
When I inquired why, she replied; "It's like this: There are two kinds of girls playing this game. One of them can work with others and is pretty much like everyone else. The other is a narcissistic "queen-bee". This latter kind will refuse to work with any group that have more than one girl in it, and will refuse to even join a guild that has more than one girl in it. They want 'their guys' to keep focus on them, and only them. Should there ever be more than one girl in the guild, they will become passive-aggresive alpha bitches until said threat is eliminated. I've been in guilds with said girls, and I've had to reject a few applications because how they have acted in previous raid-groups. Guys might be rude assholes, but I can handle rude assholes. I can't handle these girls, however."

Apparently she had noticed more than a few on our server.

 

[krazykidd]

Thank you for that . This is what i want to see more of . Just like in every other sport with profession female atheletes i wanna se more professional female gamers. Add the fac that this is one of the few things ( sports? Is gaming a sport?) men and women can compete in together .

Why do you want to see specifically female gamers?

I mean I get the fact that the scene is considerable short of femenine talent but really it shouldn't be as much of an issue as it is.
The games themselves are unisex, competitively if you have the talent you should be in a team up in the top echelons.

There are a few pretty solid DotA players kicking around, a friend of mine recently played with one Sayuri [http://www.gosugamers.net/general/members/Sayuri] in a pub.
They're out there but they're just not competing at a top level unless they're in an already organised female scene with investors. I wouldn't be surprised if a sponsor backed them for being female in the slightest, but if they don't bring the results then it won't be a permanent backing and investors don't have habit of wanting to be branded with bad results.

Personally I'm on the fence about if having a female league is good for E-sports as a whole.

Not a female league . There is no reason guys and girls can't play with/agains each other . I would just like to see more women participate in these tournaments . It's almost as if the tournament scene is a boys only club. But it isn't , women are welcom , but rarely show up . There is no doubt that there are women out there that can compete on the same level as most of these guys, but they don't show up to the events , which is a shame . Yes there are a couple who do , but there should be more .

 

[Girl With One Eye]

Oh do we freaking have to?

I am a girl that plays games. So when people ask me on a game if I am a girl, I say yes. Or if a reference is made that makes it clear I am a girl, I confirm it.
This alone has gotten me accusations of `showing off` (which I totally don't understand).
The only special treatment I have gotten from male gamers is harrassment. And yet I'm constantly hearing about how dudes apparently bend over backwards for female gamers.

Why do you CARE so much if a few girls enjoy attention that males give them freely? Nobody's being cheated there.

You don't need to identify as a male gamer because people will automatically assume that's what you are when you say `gamer`, which is why I say I am a `girl gamer`. What is the big deal.

I think I will just copy and paste this when one of these threads pops up again -_-

I think we've been over the "girl gamer" issue too many times already, can't we all just move on?

 

[Woodsey]

I just hate when the majority of girls I interact with on games, are attention whores.

I made a bet with myself, and I won. It makes me kinda sad.

 

[Beliyal]

Your experience with women in gaming seems to be unfortunate, but rest assured, you just stumbled into the vocal minority (as many people already concluded).

This topic about women in gaming is getting really tiresome. It basically comes down to this:

3) You get accused of being an attention whore for everything. Update a facebook status with something gaming related? You?re an attention whore. Have a gamer tag that is in any way feminine? You?re an attention whore. Use a mic? You?re an attention whore. Correct someone who refers to you as he or just don?t lie when asked if you?re male or female? Obviously you?re an attention whore. Apparently to be a ?real girl gamer? you have to stick your head in the sand and pretend to be male.

You're a girl, you talk about a game, you mention your computer or try to participate in a conversation about gaming, and you're immediately an attention whore. Less so in real life than on the internet however. I've participated in gaming related conversations many times with people from college and they usually just talk normally and we discuss games we like. I've never been accused of attention whoring (and I was never surrounded by fifty drooling gamers) upon mentioning that I, gasp!, played a game. Granted, I tend not to be very vocal about it and choose not to participate in a conversation about games often, because of this fear that I will be called out.

I don't have experience with being harassed online for being female, but that may be because I never take female names and feminine characteristics. Also, in an MMO I play, I play with a male character. My guild didn't know I was female for two years. When they found out, they just sad "Okay, cool". I'm fine with that. But in many other environments I just kept quiet and didn't say anything and didn't correct anyone for calling me a "dude". I don't like to point out the fact that I'm female. And that's the thing; you've probably played games with girls and women like me and don't even know it. You know only about those who scream about their gender. Next time you see one, just think of her as an immature child, instead of a representative of our gender. Please.

And this:

<quote=Eumenorrhea>If a guy did a similar video no&#65279; one would give a flying fuck about their gaming setup, whether they built it themselves or what fucking pictures they drew and put on their wall above it. The only reason people watch this and give a shit is because she has breasts and she knows it. And this is why I have no respect for anyone who calls themselves "girl gamers". It's something you label yourself to get ALOT of male attention.
And I have to agree with what this guy.

... is, I must use this word, bullshit. I just did a youtube search [http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=gaming+setup&oq=gaming+setup&gs_l=youtube.3..0l10.88.678.0.893.8.6.0.0.0.0.204.400.0j1j1.2.0...0.0.PD9wASMVsoM] and most of videos about gaming setups are made by men. The one with the most views (more than 750 thousand) is made by a man. The example you posted, with a girl talking about her gaming setup, has 40 thousand views. And that's just the first page. I'm not in the mood of checking every video on each page so.

 

[Mikeyfell]

I'm just going to ignore most of your comment and say that I too don't care for the term "girl gamer" because nobody (Worth paying attention to) would say "I'm a girl movie buff" or "I'm a girl nerd" Or I'm a girl (Insert hobby here)

If you're drawing deliberate attention to your gender you have an agenda of some sort.
The 3 people I play with the most on line are girls and they have never used the term "girl gamer" because they have nothing to prove

 

[MordinSolus]

Couldn't agree with you more, OP. I played Horde on Gears of War 3 once and found myself in group of three other guys and a girls, all with mics. The girl really sucked, and I told her that (as in my exact words were, "You...really suck at this."). The other guys told me to lay off because she was a girl. I then said "I don't care if she has a d*ck or a cl*t, she sucks and you guys know it.

I then found myself playing Horde by myself within the minute. I didn't care that much, though.

 

[lacktheknack]

Uh... the real issue here is that she has a glowing keyboard. Since when did we enter the future... and why did no one tell me? I want my fucking jetpack.

I've had my glowing keyboard for two years now...

OT: I don't care.

I. Don't. Care.

I'm friends with guys that play games, and I'm friends with girls that play games. And guess how much I care.

Why can't we all not care?

 

[LiquidGrape]

Guys really need to lay off and stop giving a damn how women choose to define themselves and their interests.

It's none of their concern whatsoever.

 

[Lyri]

Not a female league . There is no reason guys and girls can't play with/agains each other . I would just like to see more women participate in these tournaments . It's almost as if the tournament scene is a boys only club. But it isn't , women are welcom , but rarely show up . There is no doubt that there are women out there that can compete on the same level as most of these guys, but they don't show up to the events , which is a shame . Yes there are a couple who do , but there should be more .

I misunderstood for the female league part, for that I apologise.

I however don't agree with the rest of what you're saying about them not showing up, it's simply because the large majority of their better players just aren't as talented.
There are a very small handful of exceptions to the rule however whilst they remain talented teams get put together based on individual skill and merit, which comparatively against a lot of the guys the ladies would lose out.

Starcraft 2 a game of individual skill has only one female in the spot light and she was picked up to entertain.
Citing Jessica, a manager of SlayerS.

Please, think for a minute.
It has been less than a month since Eve joined the team. She was not selected through the pro-gamer casting system, but she is someone I selected for the team to help start having female competitors in Starcraft 2, after seeing that she had sufficient potential.
That potential is shown in the fact that she was the champion of the Female League.
You might brush off the Female League as being insignificant because the players are Silvers and Golds
but in reality, it is no mean feat for a female to reach Master level while laddering against males.
It is difficult for the average male player, too.
This is like the first steps being taken by a toddler, so it's inevitable that the starting level is low.
But if she trains and receives training, I believe that she will achieve the match ability to at least give you all entertaining matches to watch.
That is why I selected her.

She was not inducted so that she would achieve incredible feats in individual leagues like the GSL.
She is here to make the game more entertaining and to show that unlike in Starcraft 1, female players can easily do well in Starcraft 2.

She was simply picked up to entertain people and not become a major feature in the GSL, the most prestigious tournament that every SC2 player should want to compete in and win.
It says a lot really, considering you wouldn't pick another male player just to entertain, I don't really agree with that decision but my opinion is just that.

There is potential for everyone to be excellent at the games they play but right now the reason we don't have a lot of female stars in E-Sports is because we don't have a female league and for everything else, they're simply not good enough comparatively against other players.

 

[Charli]

In a truly paradoxical twist, you kind of exacerbate the situation by bring attention to it.

DO NOT GIVE THESE PEOPLE ATTENTION. Okay? Okay.

Girls and Guys gonna game, get over it and play some damn games instead of talking about it.
Yes some guys are stuck in Sub-values of women being a fragile little flower that need protecting.
Yes some girls play into that.
Yes some guys are bitter and more realistic about it.
So are some girls.


There is nothing that can be done about it except to move forward and lead by example!


Captcha: Om nom nom

Stop trying to eat my post Captcha.

 

[CAPTCHA]

Wait there are girls here. Oh shit...

OT: kids are the ones who act like sexists, not adults (at least not any adult worthy of respect). The girls who play it up are just as bad and just as young. I know plenty of girls who play games. My mother, sister and two neices for a start. None of them act like some brat who makes a show of her gaming skills and none of them have ever uttered the label "girl gamer" before.

 

[Erttheking]

Frankly this is a stereotype I have never encountered online. Frankly I like to think that gamer girls and gamer gurls are two different things.

 

[AnarchistFish]

Lets talk about Girls that play video games

Let's not

 

[hazabaza1]

You want to know something fun, guys?
I got put on probation recently. The discussion of the thread was about females and videogames, and I made some rather unsavoury comments. Not to worry though, 14 days later and we're talking about something more interesting. Oh wait, whoops, it's the same fucking stuff.
How long can people last simply repeating the same thing over and over?

Edit:

Dudes are always thinking shit is all about them, what the hell.

Nice sexism.

[sub][sub][sub]Shit, I need to calm down, one more warning and I'm gone forever. Getting into this discussion cannot be good for me.[/sub][/sub][/sub]