Video games: Women in video games
Videogames: Women in videogames
Our final in-depth media topic is Videogames.
Our Videogames CSPs are Tomb Raider Anniversary, Metroid Prime 2: Echoes and The Sims FreePlay.
These are in-depth CSPs and need to be studied with reference to all four elements of the Theoretical Framework (Language, Representation, Industries, Audience) and all relevant contexts.
This will be tested in Media Two exam – a 25 mark essay question.
Work through the following blog tasks to complete this introduction to women in videogames.
Medium article: Is Female Representation in Video Games Finally Changing?
Read this Medium feature on whether female representation in videogames is finally changing. Answer the following questions:
1) How have women traditionally been represented in videogames?
"It’s no secret that women are typically either objectified or “damsels in distress” in many major video games, like the iconic Lara Craft to Princess Peach in the Mario franchise." this shows that women in video games are not represented in a positive light but instead as objects at the players command.
2) What percentage of the video game audience is female?
but based on the survey “Distribution of Computer and Video Gamers in the United States from 2006 to 2017 by Gender”, 42% of the video game demographic is female.
3) What recent games have signalled a change in the industry and what qualities do the female protagonists offer?
Recent popular games like Tomb Raider, Horizon: Zero Dawn, Uncharted: The Lost Legacy, The Last of Us, Dragon Age: Inquisition, and The Walking Dead series have female protagonists, co-protagonists or otherwise important characters.the female characters are also shown to be role models for real women as they are strong, independent, intelligent, willful and compassionate.
4) Do you agree with the idea that audiences reject media products if they feel they are misrepresented within them?
i agree with this statement to some extent as audience like to see themselves and people like them portrayed in a positive light so when they are misrepresented they may feel as though they dont want to be part of that specific gaming community however some parts of the audience may feel as though video games are nothing serious and may enjoy playing a good game even if they're being misrepresented in it.
5) What does the writer suggest has changed regarding recent versions of Lara Croft and who does she credit for this development?
Most people have heard of Tomb Raider’s Lara Croft but may not be caught up on her evolution from “sex symbol to icon”. Consider for a moment Lora Strum’s article, “Study Tracks 31 Year History of Female Sexualization in Video Games” in which she talks about how women in video games are mainly defined by their bodies. In her PBS NewsHour article she writes that “hypersexualizing women in gaming has contributed to diminishing the participation of women in the industry. Though 47 percent of gamers are female…those women aren’t playing games with hypersexualized representations of themselves,”.
Tropes vs Women in Video Games – further analysis
Visit Anita Sarkeesian’s ‘Tropes vs Women in Video Games Series 2’ YouTube playlist and watch ONE other video in the series (your choice - and feel free to choose a video from season 1 if you prefer). Write a 100 word summary of the video you watch:
Title of video:The Lady Sidekick - Tropes vs. Women in Video Games
100 word summary:
This episode examines how female sidekicks and companions in games are often designed to function as glorified gatekeepers, helpless burdens, and ego boosters, a pattern that works to reinforce oppressive notions about women as the ones in need of protection and men as the ones in control, who take action and do the protecting.
Anita Sarkeesian Gamespot interview
Finally, read this Gamespot interview with Anita Sarkeesian of Feminist Frequency and answer the following questions:
1) What reaction did Anita Sarkeesian receive when she published her videos on women in videogames? You can find more information on this on Sarkeesian’s Kickstarter fundraising page.
Anita says, "While I always expect some level of harassment when discussing gender issues online, this time it's a more extreme and sustained torrent of sexism, hate, and threats. All the horrible backlash has just made me even more determined and committed to creating this video series. I'm also happy that all the backers and supporters of the project have been and continue to be a source of encouragement and inspiration.
2) How does Sarkeesian summarise feminism?
One popular quote that sums up how I feel about this is "Feminism is the radical notion that women are human beings."
3) Why do stories matter?
My short answer is to quote the poet Muriel Rukeyser, who wrote, "The Universe is made of stories, not of atoms."
4) How does Sarkeesian view Samus Aran and Lara Croft (the two protagonists from our upcoming CSPs)?
She thinks that Lara Croft is as a case of a female Hero that is still objectified for a straight-male.
5) How has the videogame landscape changed with regards to the representation of women?
Female characters have advanced as there are a wider range of female characters and heroes as women slowly become less objectified and better represented in video games.
6) Why are Mirror’s Edge and Portal held up as examples of more progressive representations of women?
the women in these video games are not objectified and sexualised
7) What are the qualities that Sarkeesian lists for developers to work on creating more positive female characters?
They have to take some risks and go outside the established conventions. female protagonists shouldn't have to be attached to their sex appeal.
8) What is the impact of the videogames industry being male-dominated?
It plays a important role in the types of games, narratives and characters we see get produced as theres not many women to make corrections of women being misrepresented or objectified.
9) What did Sarkeesian hope to achieve through her ‘Tropes vs Women in Video Games’ series?
Promote media literacy , clearly present issues surrounding women's stereotypes.
10) What media debates did Sarkeesian hope to spark with her video series?
She wants to see some change in the industry about the sexualisation of women.
Our Videogames CSPs are Tomb Raider Anniversary, Metroid Prime 2: Echoes and The Sims FreePlay.
These are in-depth CSPs and need to be studied with reference to all four elements of the Theoretical Framework (Language, Representation, Industries, Audience) and all relevant contexts.
This will be tested in Media Two exam – a 25 mark essay question.
Videogames: an introduction
The videogames industry is a huge media market – bigger than video and music combined. It is worth £3.86bn – more than double its value in 2007. Remarkably, these figures do not include mobile and free games such as Fortnite (which has over 200 million players worldwide).
With FIFA19, Red Dead Redemption 2 and Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 each selling more than 1m copies, it is important to consider the influence games can have on audiences and society.
Women in videogames
The representation of women in videogames has long been considered sexist. Female characters are rarely playable and usually reinforce traditional gender stereotypes. Games that did feature female characters presented them as damsels in distress or sex objects.
Lara Croft of the Tomb Raider series is one of the most iconic characters in videogame history. But while she is a strong, independent playable character, her appearance and costume turned her into a digital sex object.
Tropes vs Women in Video Games
Vlogger and gaming expert Anita Sarkeesian has produced two series of YouTube videos documenting the representation of women in videogames.
Vlogging as Feminist Frequency, the series are an important example of digital feminism (and a superb resource for Media students). However, as a result, she has been a target for online abuse and threats – most notably as part of the #gamergate controversy.
Women and videogames: blog tasks
Work through the following blog tasks to complete this introduction to women in videogames.
Medium article: Is Female Representation in Video Games Finally Changing?
Read this Medium feature on whether female representation in videogames is finally changing. Answer the following questions:
1) How have women traditionally been represented in videogames?
2) What percentage of the video game audience is female?
but based on the survey “Distribution of Computer and Video Gamers in the United States from 2006 to 2017 by Gender”, 42% of the video game demographic is female.
3) What recent games have signalled a change in the industry and what qualities do the female protagonists offer?
Recent popular games like Tomb Raider, Horizon: Zero Dawn, Uncharted: The Lost Legacy, The Last of Us, Dragon Age: Inquisition, and The Walking Dead series have female protagonists, co-protagonists or otherwise important characters.the female characters are also shown to be role models for real women as they are strong, independent, intelligent, willful and compassionate.
4) Do you agree with the idea that audiences reject media products if they feel they are misrepresented within them?
i agree with this statement to some extent as audience like to see themselves and people like them portrayed in a positive light so when they are misrepresented they may feel as though they dont want to be part of that specific gaming community however some parts of the audience may feel as though video games are nothing serious and may enjoy playing a good game even if they're being misrepresented in it.
5) What does the writer suggest has changed regarding recent versions of Lara Croft and who does she credit for this development?
Most people have heard of Tomb Raider’s Lara Croft but may not be caught up on her evolution from “sex symbol to icon”. Consider for a moment Lora Strum’s article, “Study Tracks 31 Year History of Female Sexualization in Video Games” in which she talks about how women in video games are mainly defined by their bodies. In her PBS NewsHour article she writes that “hypersexualizing women in gaming has contributed to diminishing the participation of women in the industry. Though 47 percent of gamers are female…those women aren’t playing games with hypersexualized representations of themselves,”.
Tropes vs Women in Video Games – further analysis
Visit Anita Sarkeesian’s ‘Tropes vs Women in Video Games Series 2’ YouTube playlist and watch ONE other video in the series (your choice - and feel free to choose a video from season 1 if you prefer). Write a 100 word summary of the video you watch:
Title of video:The Lady Sidekick - Tropes vs. Women in Video Games
100 word summary:
This episode examines how female sidekicks and companions in games are often designed to function as glorified gatekeepers, helpless burdens, and ego boosters, a pattern that works to reinforce oppressive notions about women as the ones in need of protection and men as the ones in control, who take action and do the protecting.
Anita Sarkeesian Gamespot interview
Finally, read this Gamespot interview with Anita Sarkeesian of Feminist Frequency and answer the following questions:
1) What reaction did Anita Sarkeesian receive when she published her videos on women in videogames? You can find more information on this on Sarkeesian’s Kickstarter fundraising page.
Anita says, "While I always expect some level of harassment when discussing gender issues online, this time it's a more extreme and sustained torrent of sexism, hate, and threats. All the horrible backlash has just made me even more determined and committed to creating this video series. I'm also happy that all the backers and supporters of the project have been and continue to be a source of encouragement and inspiration.
One popular quote that sums up how I feel about this is "Feminism is the radical notion that women are human beings."
My short answer is to quote the poet Muriel Rukeyser, who wrote, "The Universe is made of stories, not of atoms."
She thinks that Lara Croft is as a case of a female Hero that is still objectified for a straight-male.
5) How has the videogame landscape changed with regards to the representation of women?
Female characters have advanced as there are a wider range of female characters and heroes as women slowly become less objectified and better represented in video games.
6) Why are Mirror’s Edge and Portal held up as examples of more progressive representations of women?
the women in these video games are not objectified and sexualised
7) What are the qualities that Sarkeesian lists for developers to work on creating more positive female characters?
They have to take some risks and go outside the established conventions. female protagonists shouldn't have to be attached to their sex appeal.
8) What is the impact of the videogames industry being male-dominated?
It plays a important role in the types of games, narratives and characters we see get produced as theres not many women to make corrections of women being misrepresented or objectified.
9) What did Sarkeesian hope to achieve through her ‘Tropes vs Women in Video Games’ series?
Promote media literacy , clearly present issues surrounding women's stereotypes.
10) What media debates did Sarkeesian hope to spark with her video series?
She wants to see some change in the industry about the sexualisation of women.
Deadline: You should be able to complete most of this in lesson time but finish for homework - due Monday.
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