Portrayal of women in video games

what's wrong with beautiful people?

Interesting thread topic, thanks!

Flesh doesn't bother me necessarily,that's just companies pandering to their major fan-base.

I do get put-off by games where the female characters are reduced to borderline-retarded tittie-props that otherwise exist mainly to make escort quests more pressing with their shrieking, a-la resident evil 4. Female = helpless is not an equation I am comfy or happy with.

I dont care bot men and woman are not portrayed particularly well in games.

I dont know, when I play a game my mind is on winning or progression.
NOT SEX I'm more into puzzle games, not combat.

I usually play games based on what gameplay looks most enjoyable or what plots interest me. Sometimes the portrayal of female characters bothers me, but more often than not, I don't really notice. Both men and women are objectified in games, in a way.

Also, Bayonetta is a really fun game.

Honestly, I don't mind if the characters are sexualized, but I HATE games like Grand Theft Auto, where they make it seem cool to fuck hookers and then rob and kill them. Don't get me wrong, my title in Fallout3 is "Urban Legend" I'm so evil, but the way I got there was simply killing everyone I could. I feel like these games too often fall into the hands of youngsters who simply can't tell that it's NOT actually cool to pretend like yr gonna rape and kill someone. I've heard too many awful things from the mouths of babes to act ignorant about the affect of these games on children.

I don't know that there's a "fair" solution to producing these games without finding them in affect on the youth population, so I won't offer one. But you can bet if I ever find out my nieces or nephews--god forbid my future children--are playing such games, they will be hearing more than my two cents about it.

Honestly, these days I don't get into most video games. If it isn't Halo, Zelda or Elder Scrolls, then it needs to have something truly great to intrigue me to buy it.

For the actual topic of getting or avoiding games that are overly sexualized, it really depends. Duke Nukem and Lollipop Chainsaw are comedy games at their core and are trying to appeal to their fanbases. Push the sexualization aside and I wouldn't get those games 1) Because their gameplay doesn't motivate me and 2) their plots are weak, and I love plot based games - and by such I wouldn't bother with them. The sexualization wouldn't have played any part in my decision.

Most games that have it need it as a means to drive it - it's typically a selling point (like in Lollipop Chainsaws case).

It depends on the context. I have a particular pet peeve for games with customizable characters that don't have nonsexy options for women.

If you want to see a good portrayal of a woman in a videogame, then you have to try the Mass Effect series, there's an article about it here.

I think it depends on the type of game I'm playing. Bayonetta is a female character that is very sexual in her manner and moveset but it's very fun and does not come off as vulgar, while in games like Duke Nukem where the women are merely the butt ends of jokes and prop-like.

First of all: BIOSHOCK! My favorite game+series! Amazing story as well as several strong female characters.

I used to avoid any games which portrayed women in a highly sexual manner, but over time my position changed. Bayonetta is built around the sexuality/sensuality of the main character - she sucks lollipops for healing (and in numerous cutscenes), her clothing comes off when she executes special attacks, that sort of thing. When my then-boyfriend told me to try the demo, I was horrified - so much fanservice! What could this game possibly have to offer me?! The answer: really, really cool gameplay. At the time, I had never played a game that was similar to Bayonetta in any way, and I ended up enjoying it a lot.

A while afterward, I tried the notorious GTA. I'd heard so much - you can run over hookers?! And strippers?! And you're rewarded for killing people?! How was a game like this ever greenlit? I found out as soon as I started playing - it's a joke. The whole game is a joke. While I wouldn't let children play it (it's rated M for a reason, guys), it in no way takes itself seriously, and anyone who does needs to try playing through themself.

Same with Saints Row - yes, you can assist in setting up prostitution rings and the like, but it's a parody of the pop-culture portrayal of "pimps and hoes", not a gritty realistic simulation, and anyone who tried to pull the same stunts in real life would be arrested in a heartbeat. The latest installment in the series takes it a step further by letting you beat people to death with 4-foot long purple dildos and visit a S&M club with dozens of rooms full of giant machines designed for anal fisting.

I understand the argument that it perpetuates stereotypes, but these games clearly express, through their plots and gameplay, that it is a joke. Now that I've played GTA IV I'm shocked there was any outrage at all when it was released. As mentioned in a previous comment, Disney princesses are pretty sexualized themselves, and they sure don't come across as parodies.

I play mostly RPG's, so female characters are a lot more varied. Some with big boobs, some without, some half-naked, some modestly dressed, some kiddish, some mature... I have no particular complaint with a range of women being showed, even if some of them are annoying.

My hubby is the gamer in the house and I don't care if the ladies are scantily clad. He usually puts clothes on them, because the games he plays you can add armor.

Meh is kinda how I feel about it. My hubby has a ton of video games that feature scantily clad, big chested women. But then again a ton of his games also feature ultra ripped, topless men and no one seems to be getting all upset about the unrealistic body image this sets for boys.

I think it goes both ways honestly, fantasy is just that fantasy...for both genders in video games. Why get upset, it's not like anyone expects me to look that way LOL

It depends. Sometimes, you can "filter" it like loud noises, especially if the game is otherwise great (good gameplay, story, etc.)

i hope there aren't people that play these games because it excites them in a sexual way. i find that a little strange.

When I was at the comic shop last night, picking up Walking Dead #96, I realized how the big-tit/panty shot comics are really a turn off for me.

It's like I know the audience they're going for, but recognize that the guys looking for girls like that are just setting themselves up for disappointment.

I play them anyway, but it's still pretty shameful... Don't like how there can't be a woman character who isn't just a sex object.

They are appealing to the audience...the people that are going to be buying these games and what will attract them to purchase those games...alot of guys aren't going to initially purchase a game based on the physique of the women portrayed in the game but it sure as hell will get them to look at the case and examine the quality of the game to see if its of interest to them...all because they saw something that attracted their attention. its all a game in the advertising business and the makers have to play a role in that if they want their games purchased. now what does that say for us girls? should we be offended by the fact that the game creators compromising women's bodies are what make boys buy these games or should we just accept it because that is what they need to do to make a living? thats such an ethical question that it is bound to raise valid arguments on both ends in which both sides would essentially be correct based on the angle that you view at....as for me...i don't care because i buy a video game for quality...and if there is a big breasted girl in it who is practically hanging out? so be it, as long as i am enjoying myself whilst playing the game.

Don't care, but that's not why I play video games. I just tolerate it, especially if the game is good.

I've never really understood why they took it to such extremes but sex sells and they gotta get paid.

"but sex sells and they gotta get paid"

I'm going to do something that going confuse a lot of you. Let take it as a given that sex sells. As an undeniable fact. Let us proceed under the assumption that an increase in sex will result in an increase in sales. Following that assumption I have concluded that without doubt one fact stand out to me given this assumption:

If Sex Sells we should see far less games with only sexualized women and an overall proportional decreased in sexualized naked or otherwise stereotypical sexy women in games.

I’ll say that again:

If sex truly sells we should see at minimum a proportional decrease in the above portrayal of women in video games.

I’m a being completely serious when I say this. Confused. Stop. Think.
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Da da da..dadada
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Give up? Here is a second fact: Women also enjoy sex. If sex sells and women also enjoy sex then, pandering to women should also increase sales. If things where as simple as the cliche goes then the simplest way to optimize profit would be to try to turn on both men and women. If sex sells then two horny people would mean double the profit. Then how is it that we responded to the question of women at best not being turned and at worst turned off by saying "sex sells" The question of “does sex sell is almost” is almost always unintentionally sexist as it assumes only men are interested in sex. As well as ageist (old people have sex) fat-phobic (fat people have sex homophobic (compare the amount of hot "guy on guy" to hot "girl on girl" action).

The truth is the majority of thing in the category we call “sex” doesn’t sell, the majority of things in the category of sex aren’t even seen in most commercial products; sex is a very big thing and what actually sells is a very small portion of that picture.

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To illustrate, everything between the brackets is sex, that little period at the end that’s what sells. What advertising does is far more insidious and problematic, then using sex to sell products. What marketing has done is move that left bracket over to the point that we can no longer see how silly referring to such a small portion of the category of sex as simply “sex” is. The bigger problem isn’t that they use sex to sell what they’ve got; it is that they have successfully managed to redefine sex as what they’ve got to sell.

I choose a game based on the storyline and more often than not, it is a RPG. The women's bodies vary with their clothing, and their personalities can be unpredictable. So long as "awesome cool graphics" is a key factor in selling a game instead of a story, video game makers will still use the 'big chested dumbo women' tactic.

(Insert long rant about the gaming industry and their lust with having the best graphics)

I'm not much of a gamer

It doesn't really bother me at all. To me, videogames are like a fantasy land and everyone looks hot. Women have huge boobs and men have a 6 pack. I'm sure female characters probably have big boobs because they want the game to attract lots of men and young boys and also because most of the people who actually build those models for the game are probably men. It doesn't bother me because that's just the way it is. I do find it slightly rediculous sometimes though.

I've noticed, and I've commented on it many of times, but it wouldn't control if I played it or not.