Sexism in the American Video Game Industry

Dr. Frank Prescott

Electronic Media

Gusiachkin Anastasia

8^th November, 2014

Sad but True: Sexism in the American Video Game Industry

            In the following essay the issue of sexism toward female characters in American video game industry will be discussed and analyzed on the example of several famous games. It is assumed that female protagonist characters in these games are treated differently than male protagonist characters. This assumption will be analyzed according to the following aspects: visual and psychological representation, position in the in-game society, and types of jobs and class-professions available.

            There is no doubt whatsoever that there is gender inequality in the video game industry production as far as the character representation is concerned. It is clear that a half-naked young girl with enormous breasts is not the main element that is needed in order to develop a great game, or an interesting plot; neither has it anything to do with technical issues. For instance, Crysis 3, with the protagonist covered in heavy armor from head to toes, has won PC Gamer Most Valuable Game, Game Informer Best of Show and Electric Playground Best of E3 awards (“Crytek”). A pretty girl is needed as an eye-catching object, since the majority of gamers are, according to statistics, males. It goes without saying that male gamers will be more likely to buy the game which has a physically fit, tall and pretty young girl, rather than a manly-behaved and overweight character as a protagonist. It is clear that games are mainly created for entertainment purposes. The pretty girl is needed in order to make the gaming process more exciting; it is essential for human beings to seek “the beautiful” and “the better” (Bettie). Video game developers use this knowledge as an important part of a marketing process.

In the American video game industry women are represented as victims more often than males. It seems to be quite impossible to recall a game in which a male protagonist would be crying out for help and bragging about the difficulties he had to encounter along the way. In the new episode of Tomb Raider, for instance, Lara is represented as a helpless child, crying and moaning about either the jump she misses or a man she has to kill in self-defense. While the old Tomb Raider showed Miss Croft as a woman in power, fighting off a great number of enemies and raiding ancient tombs, the latest reboot portrayed Lara as a character who needs a protection, a woman who by a horrible accident became a victim of kidnapping and had to fight off a sexual assault. It is important to stress that in reality women are considerably more enduring both physically and mentally, tend to handle stress with more ease compared to men, and have better decision-making skills (Schwartz). However, the projection of women given in video games has a lot less to do with reality.

            The definition of the word “sexism” according to the Macmillan dictionary is “the belief that men and women should be treated in a different way and are suited to different types of jobs and different positions in society” (“Macmillan Dictionary and Thesaurus: Free English Dictionary Online”). Taking Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPG) as an example, female characters are more likely to be healers, wizards or witch-doctors. They basically represent the supporting force. In Mass Effect, the women characters the Asaris possess strong biotic powers, which are not useless on their own, but more effective while assisted by heavy melee force which means supported by heavily armored and equipped with military grade caliber guns characters. It is hard to recall a game in which the female character would have that so-called heavy melee force. Considering the previously mentioned concept of a so-called supporting force or a secondary force, the most popular major roles of female characters, is as “secondary playable characters”. For instance, Ada Wong from Resident Evil: Biohazard becomes available as a playable character only after the game is completed with a male protagonist. There are a great number of examples of the same kind; Mass Effect and The Last of Us are typical.

            In Diablo 3 it is possible for the player to have three followers – the scoundrel, the Templar and the enchantress. Male characters are equipped either with a set of a heavy armor or a typical assassin-like outfit. In their dialogues both male characters sound very confident and fearless; they furiously rush into the heat of the battle, while the enchantress always stays behind, assisting the gamer with healing spells and turning the enemies against their own kind by using her charms. Contrary to male characters, the armor the enchantress is wearing is shiny and colorful; it is nearly impossible to call it armor at all, as it hardly covers her body parts. In her dialogues the enchantress seems to be confused about the majority of different issues, starting with the conflict between heaven and hell, to the understanding of her own nature. Similarly to the Asaris in Mass Effect, the enchantress has a great affinity for biotic powers. This can be referred to as sexism, since “it reinforces the idea that females are more in tune with the illogical, supernatural realm of mysticism and magic” (Mass Effect: A Simultaneously Sexist/feminist Text). They seem to lack logic and sometimes reason. On the other hand, male characters in Diablo 3 are those who represent reason and logic.

            The American video game industry is without any doubt sexist towards women. It might not be the first one on the market, since Japan’s boundaries of sexism have very small limits, but is definitely noticeable. Even though some games make efforts to reduce sexism to a minimum, it still seems to be impossible not to either sexualize a female character to the extreme or make her weak.

           

Works Cited

Beattie, Trent. “True Beauty Satisfies the Human Heart.” National Catholic Register. N.p.,           n.d. Web. 03 Dec. 2014.

Crysis 2. 2011 Crytek GmbH. Electronic Arts.

“Crytek.” Crysis 3 Scoops Top E3 Awards and Remains in the Running for More! N.p., n.d.          Web.    03 Dec. 2014.

Diablo 3: Collector’s Edition. 2012 Blizzard Entertainment. Blizzard. V 2.0.3.22427. English

“Macmillan Dictionary and Thesaurus: Free English Dictionary Online.” Macmillan           Dictionary and Thesaurus: Free English Dictionary Online. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Dec.      2014.

Mass Effect 3. 2012 EA International. Electronic Arts. 06 March 2012. V 1.02. English “Mass Effect: A Simultaneously Sexist/feminist Text; Gamer Babylon”. Gamer Babylon.     N.p., 27 Apr. 2011. Web. 08 Nov. 2014.

Schwartz, Ariel. "Women Have Better Decision-Making Abilities Than Men, Make Better            Corporate Leaders." Co.Exist. Ed. Morgan Clendaniel. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Dec. 2014.

Tomb Raider. 2013 Crystal Dynamics. Crystal Dynamics & Eidos. English