This post has not been edited by the GamesBeat staff. Opinions by GamesBeat community writers do not necessarily reflect those of the staff.
Editor’s note: One reason why I play so many strategy and role-playing games is because I can’t stand the way many genres portray women. I’m so tired of T&A. Cody is, too, and he delivers a well-developed critique of the game industry — and gamers — about the objectification of women. -Jason
Recently, 1UP Community Manager Tina Sanchez asked through a Twitter post for people to blog about the objectification of women in games. Given the rampant objectification that goes on in the industry every day, it’s not that hard of a topic to latch onto and rant about.
Where do I start? I suppose the best place is the heart of the problem: the immaturity that spawns the desire for objectification. Take a look around the industry and at the various titles being released, and what do you see? Games with tits and ass selling to every hormonal teenaged boy and every man that hasn’t fully grown up yet.
It seems that slapping large breasts on a character or giving her skimpy clothes are the best way to get your games off store shelves and spinning in consoles. In this case, developers are just as guilty as the people who buy their products.
“So what if videogames treat women like objects? So do films! Why aren’t you blogging about them?”
Of course this sort of thing happens in other media. (Megan Fox? Robots? Explosions?) But let’s not use that as an excuse this time. We always use that as an excuse — and that we’re generally making too big a deal out of things that are, after all, “just games.” I’m tired of that, and I’m tired of people blocking complaints when plenty of them need to be heard.
It’s at the point now where any sort of critique of the industry is taken as some Jack Thompson-esque attack, and because of that many people blindly defend the industry like it’s some wounded puppy. But guess what? The industry is not a wounded puppy; it’s a mecha-puppy with fire breath and laser eyes and a jetpack, and it can take care of itself.
All we do by ignoring critical thought and discussion is miss out on a chance to let the industry grow. So, no more excuses. No more brushing it off. No more “they do it, too.” And certainly no more “they’re just games.”
I know what you’re thinking. “OK, so certain videogames objectify women. But plenty of them don’t!” My problem isn’t with those games. My problem is that developers and publishers don’t make enough of them. And even the games that don’t objectify women still have plenty of faults.
Good games are out there, absolutely, but I’m pretty sure that we should push for more of them as often as possible instead of being happy with the status quo.
Look at the industry’s data. Gamers are the majority now, if you believe certain polls; more women game than men on PCs; females are steadily gaining ground and make up nearly half of the industry’s consumer base; and the average gamer is in their mid-30s. So why in the hell does it feel like we’re still relying on and glorifying teenaged boys with cash to burn?
Maybe it really is all about the money. After all, teenagers have far more time and money on their hands than adults with bills to pay and families to feed. But that shouldn’t mean that those teenagers get to make the rules.
As stated above, the industry is supposedly a very diverse place. If I want to read a book or film that appeals to me, it’s easy to do so, and it should work the same for videogames. But there isn’t enough choice in this industry — not by a long shot.
Women aren’t the only victims — men are, too. Plenty of teenaged boys grow up wanting to be some tough, muscular, scarred badass (and even if they don’t, marketing makes them think they do), so that’s the kind of characters we get. It’s as simple as that. Gears of War certainly comes to mind, as it seeps manliness and “cool” factor, even more so than a U.S. Army ad.
Sure, it’s fun to hear one-liners and chainsaw people in half sometimes, but after a while it gets a little tiring. And because so many games appeal to the demographic that can’t get enough of this stuff, the rest of us are left out in the cold.
Marcus Fenix is a gruff supersoldier and had a certain appeal. I get that. I enjoy killing baddies, too, and I certainly don’t mean to demonize a game that I’ve actually enjoyed quite a bit.
But why not let me play as an aged immigrant struggling on the streets? Or as a child wandering his neighborhood with dreams of being a hero? Or a woman who doesn’t crawl through tunnels with a clear view of her ass? All I’m asking for is a little diversity here — a little bit of maturity to balance out the teenaged power fantasies.
I mean real maturity, by the way. I want real maturity out of this industry. Bouncing breasts, copious amounts of the words “fuck” and “shit,” and exploding body parts that drown games in blood and guts is not maturity; it’s a bunch of childishness wrapped up in a “this is just for grownups” facade. Instead of seeing deeper, compelling content about love, death, pain, empathy, and humanity, we’re still playing with goddamn G.I. Joe dolls — we’re not even asking to have it any other way.
How do we find our way out of the hole that we’ve dug ourselves? For one thing, we need more diversity in the development community — more minorities, more women, and more men who don’t feel like putting D-cups on every last one of their dark elves or pumping out My Petz games (because that’s obviously the only thing that little girl’s are interested in). We also need to show developers that we, the consumers, want better content, and we need to let them know that by voting with our wallets and speaking our minds.
Hopefully things will change. If not, the industry is doomed to be the spawning ground for games that objectify women, men, and make us all look silly.