Female Characters - Empowering or Endangering Equity?

deacon_jay writes "There's an interesting article from the NY Times (registration required) about what the depiction of female protagonists in video games is doing for female empowerment. Obviously, there are opposing views put forward, such as: 'Women as hypersexualized killers distracts attention from their unequal status' or 'I do not think playing these games encourages women to be victims'. I'm tending to the latter argument, but the article raises some interesting questions." For example, Lara Croft - icon for the power of the female, or created for gamers to goggle at? This is even an academically discussed question.

Comments

Re:Well...

[Graelin]

Although the (sometimes)crappy CGI and that nipple revealing suit would fuel your statement. It is simply not true.

Dammit

[RaboKrabekian]

Enough of this empowering nonsense! No video games for you! Get back in the kitchen and make me dinner!

Re:I'm more worried about the players

[bluemeep]

You mean girls aren't always 85 lbs., have a perfectly symmetrical face and DD breasts barely contained by a string bikini?

Wow... Just... Wow. Do they still pull themselves up stacks of crates or try to jump onto moving platforms in lava flows?

Bah...

[darkov]

Women as hypersexualized killers distracts attention from their unequal status

As long as they've got big tits I don't see the harm in it.

Typical sexist crap.

[jotaeleemeese]

The issues are staring you straight in the eyes and you choose to ignore them.

Society puts far more pressure in women to toe the true line of how a woman should look. Any visit to a magazine shop should convince anybody that women are portrayed mainly as sex objects whose only tasks in life are to keep an eye on their weight and how to find their blue prince.

Men do not have to suffer such humiliation.

Regarding games the problem is one of violence and generalized lack of imagination from the part fo the game makers. It seems like they are addicted to violence in the first place, to make it a possible choice to beat and kill women and be rewarded for it, in spite of the amount of domestic violence everywhere, is frankly crass and irresponsible.

Since its beginnings action games are depended heavely on violence to sell, obviously the talent of most game companies to figure out new ways to entertain people while at the same time promoting positive values (or at least stop promoting negative ones) is sorely lacking.

If porno gaming is your thing, fine, but many females are uncomfortable knowing that strong industries like the gaming one can't come with better ideas but the stereotyping of women as sexual animals.

Re:Typical sexist crap.

[Anonymous Coward]

Society puts far more pressure in women to toe the true line of how a woman should look.

The other poster put it best: women are half of that society, they should take half of the responsibility for that.

Any visit to a magazine shop should convince anybody that women are portrayed mainly as sex objects whose only tasks in life are to keep an eye on their weight and how to find their blue prince.

I don't see that at all. And why, if what you say is true, is this inherently a bias against women in society? Your statement reduces the role of men to a one-dimensional character provided solely for the benefit of women.

Men do not have to suffer such humiliation.

Riiight. Men don't have to worry about their weight. Men don't have to worry about their looks or muscle tone. Men don't have to worry about going bald. Men have no pressure on them whatsoever.

Regarding games the problem is one of violence and generalized lack of imagination from the part fo the game makers.

No. Violence is part of the human psyche, just as problem-solving and curiosity are. All sorts of games exist that focus on different parts of the human psyche. Games are not exclusively violent.

It seems like they are addicted to violence in the first place, to make it a possible choice to beat and kill women and be rewarded for it, in spite of the amount of domestic violence everywhere, is frankly crass and irresponsible.

You are portraying it as though you can only beat up women, or that it is some kind of goal to beat up women. If there are games out there that are like this, I certainly haven't heard of them, and they certainly aren't representative of the majority of violent games.

The post you are replying to made a point that obviously went over your head. Violent games are almost exclusively gender-neutral. In other words, you can beat up men or women, it's entirely up to you, and there is no bias either way.

The GTA example is a good one. People moan about the fact that yo can run around the city killing prostitutes and stealing their money. What people don't realise, unless they have actually played the game, is that you can also run around the city killing people in purple suits, ambulance drivers, people on motorbikes, or anyone else. Or you can just get on in the game without doing that. The criteria you choose to kill people is entirely up to you, and the game is neutral - it doesn't reward you for killing a woman rather than a man.

You also work for men and women in the game - it is often women initiating the violence in GTA as well.

If porno gaming is your thing, fine, but many females are uncomfortable knowing that strong industries like the gaming one can't come with better ideas but the stereotyping of women as sexual animals.

Last time I checked, men worked in the porno industry too.

Re:Typical sexist crap.

[Chelloveck]

Regarding games the problem is one of violence and generalized lack of imagination from the part fo the game makers. It seems like they are addicted to violence in the first place, to make it a possible choice to beat and kill women and be rewarded for it, in spite of the amount of domestic violence everywhere, is frankly crass and irresponsible.

You're right. To be responsible they should only reward you for beating and killing men. White men. White heterosexual men. White heterosexual middle-class men. Because we all know that they're the source of all the problems in this world!

Yeah yeah... Anyone see the latest Lifetime movie?

[AntiGenX]

How about all those movies on the Lifetime Channel where the women kill their husbands? What kind of messages are those sending?

Re:The Male Stereotype

[Anonymous Coward]

Please note that the depiction of the male is as outlandish as the depiction of the female. This depiction is exploitive of the video game character. Since they're not real, it doesn't matter. It's all about fantasy. If a fantasy isn't intersting or intriguing, nobody wants to see it, let alone play with it.

Exactly. It would be like watching a porno flick where the people in it were ugly, lasted a couple of minutes, and then rolled over and fell asleep.

Re:You Can't Have It Both Ways

[mdielmann]

I'm a fat, ugly, pasty guy

Okay, that's it! You're going on my foe list! Now, how many other /.ers will I have to put in there...ah hell, back to my coding cave...