Female Gamer Talks Girl Gaming

Snowcone writes "As gaming becomes more mainstream, it's inevitable that many girls will join the ranks of the die-hard gamer. Gaming is typically reserved for those with that extra chromosome, which poses the question; in a world dominated by the male sex, why do women choose to put themselves in the position of the minority? As a female gamer, Dots @ Snackbar Games discusses reasons why it's ok for girls to enjoy gaming just as much as the guys do." This is another perspective on a much-discussed subject.

Comments

Gaming is typically reserved...

[Anonymous Coward]

...for those with that extra chromosome.

Anyone up for a game of Super Downs Syndrome Racer?

Choice?

[Robmonster]

I dont think its a case of female gamers choosing to be in a minority. they choose to enjoy gaming, and hence that automatically puts thbem in the minority. I wonder how many female gamers take on a male moniker when playing online to avoid all the "A/S/L"-ing that always going on when someone called "Susie" joins a server.

Girls DO Play Games?!

[LordYUK]

Of course girls play games. I always see female toons on EQ!

No, seriously... my girlfriend was addicted to Civ 3, now its NWN... we just got Mario Golf yesterday (god that game is FUN, and I HATE golf!!) and she was really into the N64 version so I expect lots of courses to be unlocked when I get home...

I tell you what, I've gotten 3 computers in 3 years, along with near constant upgrades on the basis of "but you'll get a better video card/more memory/whatever if I do" =)

Re:Girls DO Play Games?!

[Drantin]

Mario Golf

Mario Tennis

Or they just have a thing for short italian plumbers...

Style of play

[Robmonster]

Ladies play games differently to men, so maybe there are not enough games that cater to this difference.

I remember watching a program years ago which studied the sytes of gamplay of men and women. It wasn't exactly an extensive test but there was a difference.

For example, one of the games they used was one of the Super Mario games (can't remember which...) The men would run through the level making sure they killed all the enemies on route while women would run through the level avoiding any enemies they could if it meant an easier route through.

I know thats pretty basic but my misses certainly doesnt enjoy the mindless shoot-em up games.

what choice?

[paradesign]

why do women choose to put themselves in the position of the minority?

what does that have to do with anything? They just want to play too, because guess whay, games are fun. Thats like saying, 'why do black CEOs choose to put themselves in the position of the minority?' They dont choose that. Its not like they turned down the opportunity to be the majority, there was no choice made.

i think a better question might have been 'Why are women interested in games when they comprise a minority share of the gaming demographic?'

editorial correction

[psxndc]

Guys don't have an "extra" chromosome. We just have a different chromosome than girls on chromosome pair 23. An extra chromosome would result in something like mental retardation (trisomy 21 where the there is a third, non-disjoined chrosome in pair 21 is what causes Down's Syndrome). you may begin the "but guys _are_ retards" jokes...... now.

psxndc

Female gamers - where are you?

[Nightlily]

I've been gaming for about 4 years now. I didn't get into gaming until I was in college. Honestly, my parents didn't encourage gaming that much. I don't think they discussed the possiblity of buying me a game console when I was a kid.

Am I into different games than male gamers? Maybe, maybe not. I'd like to think my gender has very little to do with the type of games I prefer.

I have to admit that I do use male sounding names on gaming servers. I really hate joining a game and being distracted by some 13 year old's sexist comments. But on the same token if I'm kicking some 13 year old's ass and he's making stupid comments, I will inform him that a woman is kicking his sorry ass.

I am a little disappointed that one of the articles talked about gaming as a way to help women date. I also happen to be an IT professional, and the thought of dating or marrying an IT professional did not factor into my decision to pursue a career in computing. I'd like to think that the fact I love math, puzzles and logic had some influence in my decision. So I'd like to think I game because gaming is a great form of entertainment.

Re:Female gamers - where are you?

[PainKilleR-CE]

I've been gaming for about 4 years now. I didn't get into gaming until I was in college. Honestly, my parents didn't encourage gaming that much. I don't think they discussed the possiblity of buying me a game console when I was a kid.

I'm a male gamer, so it doesn't really apply much to me, but I thought I'd add some things for comparison. I've been a gamer almost as long as I can remember (because I remember my parents getting the Atari 2600, which is the first thing I remember playing games on). My mom played Centipede, Pac-Man, and a handful of other games, and occasionally took us with her to arcades (once she found arcades that weren't essentially bars with games). My parents also took full advantage of the console crash by buying a lot of carts for that 2600 when everyone was selling them for next to nothing. That being said, I know my dad played the games as well, but I don't really remember him spending a lot of time doing it (unlike my mom). My parents never really discussed me getting a console as a kid, they just bought the 2600 and told me to stop playing to go outside, or eat, or whatever. Similarly, they eventually bought an NES (though by this time my parents were divorced, it was my dad and the woman that would eventually become my step-mom). Both systems were kept in the family room for a while, though eventually we had more televisions in the house and the NES moved to a spare room (especially since I played the thing a lot). The first console that was really bought for me was a Turbo Grafx-16, which I had asked for as a Christmas present (actually, I asked for either the TG-16 or a Genesis, and my dad bought the TG-16 after looking up information on which was technically the better system). It wasn't a discussion thing, and my sister and step-sister played games as well, just not as much as I did (in fact, no one in the house played as much as I did).

Am I into different games than male gamers? Maybe, maybe not. I'd like to think my gender has very little to do with the type of games I prefer.

I have to admit that I do use male sounding names on gaming servers. I really hate joining a game and being distracted by some 13 year old's sexist comments. But on the same token if I'm kicking some 13 year old's ass and he's making stupid comments, I will inform him that a woman is kicking his sorry ass.

That's completely understandable. Many of the female gamers I've played TFC with chose non-gender-specific names, or names that many of the 13-year-olds wouldn't always pick up on as being female. Then again, I have played with a handful that are very up-front about it. There seems to be little difference between the character of the women that do either, and in fact many that normally play under feminine names will choose non-specific names when they don't want to suffer even the chance of the crap some people choose to spew forth at female gamers.

I am a little disappointed that one of the articles talked about gaming as a way to help women date. I also happen to be an IT professional, and the thought of dating or marrying an IT professional did not factor into my decision to pursue a career in computing. I'd like to think that the fact I love math, puzzles and logic had some influence in my decision. So I'd like to think I game because gaming is a great form of entertainment.

I really don't know where that angle came from in the article, and felt it was possibly the weakest angle such an article could choose. I feel that it makes female gamers seem manipulative rather than just seeing them as any other gamer. When playing a game, there shouldn't be any difference in the way you treat the other players. The fact that my girlfriend plays games only matters because I keep trying to find ways to get her interested in more games that I play, so that we can spend time together instead of letting the games become a sore point when she wants to spend time doing something together.

Re:Female gamers - where are you?

[syle]

Well, I can't read the article -- it's already slashdotted -- but it sounds like your complaints are similar to any mature gamers', regardless of sex.

Obnoxious 13 year olds annoy everyone. Most people don't buy games to get a date -- they hide their games to, in fact. The thought of marrying an IT professional is also not why I got a job in comp sci.

Really, the whole thing seems a little silly to me. My girlfriend plays Xenosaga and Virtua Fighter 4, neither of which are exactly pandering to women. If you make a quality game, people of both sexes will want to play it. I think the biggest thing stopping more women from considering playing games right now is the social stigma attached.

Re:Female gamers - where are you?

[Saige]

I got started in gaming early. My parents bought an Atari VCS (yes, it wasn't called the 2600 then) back just about when they came out, and I remember them playing Space Invaders on it a lot. Of course, as it was a family thing, I got into playing games also, and just never stopped. When we got our first computer, everyone would work together on the Scott Adams text adventure games. (yes, we eventually beat all of the first twelve of them) My sister is a gamer also, though not as much as I am. She did get herself a Genesis and took it with her to college, and I know she still plays games occasionally.

What do I play? Whatever I find fun. Civilization, Sim City, The Sims, Quake, Super Monkey Ball, Animal Crossing, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, RPGs, old arcade games on emulators, whatever. I agree with you that I believe my gender doesn't affect the types of games I play.

I have only played a few games online, and I haven't really worried about whether or not I 'sound' female to others. In Diablo II, I pick character names that I feel fit the character, which instantly makes me the minority around people naming their characters like "XX_KillRBarB_XX". So I never really got bugged there, as by the time anyone found out I was female, I had already been playing with them for a while and determined the person was decent enough to party with that they didn't seem to care all that much.

When I was playing Quake, on the other hand, I named myself 'Gib-Girl' to make it clear to all the guys exactly who was kicking their ass - it's funny to watch the sexist-type gamers freak out when a woman proceeds to drop him with a railgun 6 times in a row while trying to steal the flag. I rarely got crap from the people there because when I was big into Quake 2 CTF, most of the munchkins were onto Quake 3, so it was more serious players on the servers, and mostly the same people, so we got to know each other - and I got plenty of respect for being good.

Games for the reason of dating? That's pathetic, I agree. If you're a gamer, and a person you're interested in is also a gamer, sure it will help, but only if you're truly interested in games, and not doing it just to get someone else. After all, when you stop being interested, either you'll have other things in common, which would have been good enough to get along dating anyways, or you won't, at which point the relationship falls apart because it is based on pretense.

My partner is not a gamer. She grew up in small-town Indiana, on a farm. She never played a game until Solitare on the computer while in college. Since being with me, she's learned to like a few games. From Bookworm and Bejeweled on the PC, to Animal Crossing and Monkey Ball (mainly Monkey Target), to playing Dr. Mario until she was REALLY good (able to start on lvl 20 with fast speed). But it's only the occasional game. I think my gaming has rubbed off on her as much as it's going to.

Re:dating game

[WWWAvenger]

Teenagers!? Uh-oh. I guess I better stop going to LAN parties to pick up chicks.

Small correction.

[Takeel]

Extra chromosome != male. Extra chromosome = wuh-oh.

Perhaps she meant to say "different chromosome?"

Girls and games

[Winterblink]

I think a lot more girls would actually enjoy playing games if they actually gave some of them a chance. A lot of girls balk at the game industry for being too male-centric, with all the violent first-person shooters, the D&D-style MMORPGs and the big-titted female stars of games like Tomb Raider. All are valid points -- D&D is kind of dorky, first person shooters are violent (gasp) and Lara Croft's hoo-hoos are quite becoming. This one girlfriend I had scoffed most games for a lot of those same reasons, but she still found games to play and enjoy. She thought Final Fantasy 7 was the lamest thing in the world (and hey, admittedly for some people it IS), until she actually saw it being played by me and picked up the controller to start her own game. Next thing I knew the PS1 controller was being fought over more than the TV remote.

Anyway, I just think a lot of girls out there who won't touch a lot of games because of external appearances and how they perceive the game to be are really missing out on games that have great gameplay, which is really what it's all about.

Re:Reason for play

[DrWho520]

After reading that article, I have to conclude they have entirely different reasons for playing as well. Every example she made had something to do with a woman improving some kind of relationship, whether it be with friends, coworkers, boyfriends or the friends of boyfriends. That is not why you play video games. You play video games for fun, not so a guy will go out with you or you can get more responsibility at work.

But I think real "gamer chicks" know that. If I meet a girl who plays video games, it had better be because she likes it, not just so she can get in my pants. Girls are sneaky like that.

Maybe they are good reasons to get started, but if you never have fun doing it, you will not stay a gamer.

Re:Reason for play

[$rtbl_this]

If I meet a girl who plays video games, it had better be because she likes it, not just so she can get in my pants.

Yeah, you tell 'em! I hate it when girls try to get into my pants! How dare they think of me as a sex object!

My view

[hether]

My parents didn't let me get a system, so at about my senior year in HS I bought my own. I quickly figured out what kinds of games I liked. It turned out to be games with pretty defined goals. I often don't enjoy figuring things out in games - I want to know how the game is supposed to work and what I am supposed to do next. The only way I got through a few games was with my boyfriend, now husband, walking me through them at places. I can't say this is typical of all girls, but I know at least a few more like me. That's why you'll us playing games like Tetris. The goal there is pretty defined. No guessing that you collect certain items in a correct order, at a certain time on the clock, to get a door to open. I don't like fiddling around with things like that and if I can't figure it out, I'll quit.

Another thing that really affects which games I enjoy is that many of the 3-D games give me motion sickness. Some are done well enough that it is not a problem, but many are not. That cuts out a lot of the shooter style games, as well as driving games.

A tip to the guys out there trying to get their girlfriends to play (this should be obvious but it's not always) - don't convince us to play a game that you love and have played religiously, and then kick our butts. Continual losing when you don't even know what button does what yet does not make someone enjoy a game.

I don't think gaming really provides many dating opportunities on its own. In our case though, the fact that I enjoy games too helps our relationship. If your S/O is a non-gamer, they many really wonder whether that $300 you spent on the new console is worth it and/or envy the time you spend on the computer figuring out the latest RPG because that means you're not spending the time with them.

seems simple to me

[Naikrovek]

girls like girl things and boys like boy things. overall this is where things are, where they're going to stay, and where they should be.

girls like gay men because most gay men think along the same lines as most women.

men like girl gamers because most girl gamers think along the same lines as men.

i for one don't care that there aren't many women in gaming - let them do what they want, i'll do what i want. my girlfriend (and my friends who are women) don't try to get me to learn hairstyling or try to teach me the intricate details of fingernail painting, or try to get me to watch sex in the city all the time. i, conversely, don't try to get them to help me work on my car or play any of the games i play.

why some men want to have a woman that thinks like them is beyond me - i love that my girlfriend spends a lot of money on silly porcelain dolls and frilly house decorations. i don't understand it, but i don't go around trying to recruit women that think like me, or try to convince her that my way (the mans way) is better. She also never tries to get me to watch any program on lifetime, or anything like that. we each love that the other is filling the role that their chromasomes have given them, and enjoying it.

I for one like the variety that comes with the presence of a woman. i don't want to date someone that knows a lot about computers, and i don't want to date someone that plays a lot of games. I want to date someone that does girly things - things that I don't do. And thankfully my girlfriend wants a man who does manly things and wants nothing to do with girly things.

most men like women who are women, and most women like men who are men.

what's wrong with that? let women do their thing, they let me play games and i have no desire to add a woman into my gaming. if she wants in on her own accord, perfect! if she doesn't, perfect!

my point is that there are few women in gaming for the same reason that there are few men working in beauty salons. most woman that work in a beauty salon want more men in there, and most male gamers want more women to game with, but the reason why its not happening is clear: most men don't *want* do do hair, and most women don't *want* to play games.

What?!

[Anonymous Coward]

First they take my rib, now they want my games?! FORGET IT!

Help me out, here . . .

[Mordant]

What's a 'girl'? ;)

Coincidence?

[aetherspoon]

When I read this, I was IMed by a female friend of mine wondering when I'll be back to my Uni dorm so she can play more Diablo II. This was immediately after another female friend of mine sent me an email detailing how much fun she had playing Super Smash Brothers Melee as Kirby. ... I'm telling you, female gamers exist. They are all over the place - it is just that most males tend to look at places other than a computer/TV screen when it comes to females. Then again, it might just be that they never ask.