/gempesaw/writing

I despise it when people take a small sampling of truly sexist games (which I will readily admit exist, and some are legitimately good games despite the fact), but the same people choose to ignore the huge number of games with amazing, strong female characters.

It's not enough that games with strong female characters exist, or even that there's an (arguably) huge number of them. As I understand it, it's the pervasive sexism in the entire industry, manifested in things like: the actual game characters themselves, like when Microsoft didn't release a single game with a female lead at E3 this year; the attitudes executives of industry-leading game studios, like when they publicly (and incorrectly) opine that games with female protags don't sell; the bullshit the few female devs have to put up with, as seen when the #1ReasonWhy hashtag exploded, etc.

I'm tired of hearing uneducated hits at my favorite hobby. True gamers, not the common Halo or Call of Duty "dudebros" that make up the public front of gamers, are one of the least sexist groups one could possibly meet. Many of us, from very young ages, have been exposed to great female role models and characters.

The "true gamers" label is disingenuous and doesn't excuse anyone on either side of it of their behavior. Anyone who plays games is a gamer, and it's just as ridiculous to say that all Halo/CoD players are sexist as it is to say that "true gamers" are "one of the least sexist groups."

I'm going to mostly skip the entire ME section - the trilogy is probably one of the best franchises in terms of female representation, but it's still fraught with problems, like feministpoints mentions. I'm not quite sure what the list of female characters is supposed to do for the argument.

Alyx Vance from Half-Life 2, Half-Life 2: Episode 1 and Half-Life 2: Episode 2 is widely considered to be the greatest companion in any game, ever. Alyx is not sexualized in the story and is always portrayed as a great friend to the protagonist, Gordon Freeman. Faith from Mirror's Edge could have easily been taken advantage of with her loose clothing, but the developers chose not to, to respect her gender and character.

Using Alyx Vance as an example seems to be a double edged sword - sure, her character is a great companion, but who wants to grow up to be a great companion? People don't want to be Midna, or Robin, or Watson: they want to be Link, Batman, and Sherlock. Faith is, as far as I can tell without having played the game, a great example, but again, the existence of some or even many good games with strong female protags and supporting characters has isn't enough to counter the rest of the industry's rampant sexism.

Almost every game with character customisation allow males and females to be made by the player. I, as a male gamer, often choose to play female over males in these places, and so do many of my friends. Females are often more convincing as leaders and heroes in gaming, and the voice actors often give better performances and carry more charisma. Plus, it is always nice for at least one form of media to escape from normal sexist tropes surrounding the female gender.

Cool! These are nice anecdotes and opinions, but I don't think they have much bearing on the state of gaming.

Yes, there are many sexist and/or misogynistic games - Call of Duty, Gears of War, and Halo come to mind - but they are poor representations of the medium as a whole. Gaming is actually very progressive in the image of strong, independent, competent female characters, whether in side roles or as heroines. This wonderful fledgling medium is getting a far worse reputation than it deserves.

Yes, agreed! Some games have been very progressive with amazing heroines, and that is awesome. Gaming is an amazing and exciting medium with so much untapped potential, but to claim it's not sexist just doesn't hold up.

All that being said, there's nothing wrong with liking and loving these games and the industry in spite their sexism - it's okay for us to like problematic things. It doesn't make us a bad people, as long as we are cognizant of the shortcomings of the game and the industry. The ME series is one of my all time favorites, but it's far from perfect in many ways and that's okay! It's paving the way for better games in the future, and that's what is really exciting.