Cats and dogs. Oil and Water. Nuts and people who don’t like them…these are some of the most contentious and conflicting elements in nature.
But if a recent series (and years of emperical evidence) have shown us anything, it’s that women and “talking about video games” should be added to the list, especially given the recent backlash facing the online series (which is still looking for fundraising) dubbed Tropes vs. Women In Video Games.
The premise of the series is rather simple: illustrate that female depictions in video games are demeaning, sexist, misogynist, and perhaps worst of all, the same.
I love playing video games but I’m regularly disappointed in the limited and limiting ways women are represented. This video project will explore, analyze and deconstruct some of the most common tropes and stereotypes of female characters in games.
But assume women are depicted negatively in video games, as sex objects or what have you, the argument than becomes how harmful is that depiction on our society?
If we say very, than the can of worms has officially been opened up: ostensibly we’d be saying that our view of video game characters translates to the real world. That’s an argument you’d have to defend beyond sexism, but in violence and any other “prevalent factor” that frequently occurs in video games.
I for one would find it more interesting if the video series explores these factors instead of narrowing the focus on sexism. How likely are we to BELIEVE the character and elements of video games are real? It’s a subject that has been covered to death by researchers, psychologists, or anyone else trying to get a job with WEBmd, but if you are going to critically examine the role of female video game characters and their impact on society, you must examine how video games affect society as a whole and then focus in.
Are some video games tasteless with their presentation of female characters? Sure, in some cases of course. Hell Duke Nukem Forever had a field day with this, granted it was tongue in cheek (unfortunately the gameplay wasn’t). The question again is how big of a problem is this? If women were suddenly straight laced and Lara Croft looked like Laura Bush, would our society be better off for it?
These are fantasy games, should they not be allowed the license to let a teenager’s imagination run wild, especially when that imagination is composed of 98% sexual imagery?
Sure a good argument could be made that more complex and diverse female characters could be created, but the fact of the matter is that MEN are by and large not complaining about the female characters, females are. Yes there are plenty of woman who play video games, some reports are that as many as 20% of gamers are girls, but that’s assumedly 80% of the gaming population that has zero complaints with female characters.
Maybe this series will do justice and prove that there is a desire for more diverse female characters from the perspective of men, but it doesn’t look like that is a focus of the series.
The series will highlight the larger recurring patterns and conventions used within the gaming industry rather than just focusing on the worst offenders.
Highlighting is one thing, explaining how impactful they are is another. If you have a problem with the way women are presented in video games, chances are you just don’t like video games in general.
That is of course a very different discussion….
Paul Nyhart – who has written 891 posts on The Jace Hall Show.
Paul Nyhart is the Head Editor and Writer of JaceHallShow.com covering everything from game reviews and previews to the cultural impact of video games.

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