Gender Representation in Video Games

Microtransactions are the purchasing of in-game items in video games, often using real money. Through microtransactions, game players can obtain a type of cosmetic called "skins" that change the physical appearance of playable characters. Considering the default "skin" in many games is that of a white male, there are various psychosocial and economic costs that may be extended to players of color when attempting to select skins for their avatars. To examine how players of different racial and ethnic backgrounds interact with "skins," and the additional costs associated with them, we conducted a survey asking participants about their spending patterns with "skins" and reasons for choosing certain "skins" over others. The most common response from participants when asked why they select their skins was "because I like the way the skin looks." As this statement is broad, we delve into other results from our survey and previous studies by other scholars to analyze what this response may be able to tell us about players who selected this as their answer.

Video games have been part of the cultural landscape for over forty years. They are mirrors of our society—particularly, of our society’s attitude towards women and sexuality. The “gamespace” is a gendered, masculine space wherein women have been traditionally reduced to sexist tropes or excluded altogether by way of the virtual camera and oversexed, objectified female characters. The often-hostile masculinity of the gamespace bleeds into the real world, influencing gamer culture and the treatment of real women. In this paper the representation of gender in games is examined through a feminist lens, with the intention of making clear the existence of sexism and misogyny in the industry, as well as encouraging progressive reform of the treatment of gender and sexuality within the gaming industry and surrounding culture.

This essay examines the effect of gender stereotypes on American undergraduate players of Japanese fighting games such as Soul Calibur, Tekken and Virtua Fighter. Player reactions to representations of gender are examined to discover whether stereotypes have any effect on processes of player-character identification and immersion in the game.  Gender stereotypes did have some negative effects on both identification and immersion, with players expressing objections to the hyper-sexualized and unrealistic bodies of characters. Where female players were concerned with the representation of women in patriarchal society, male players were more concerned with body image. However, when asked to identify game elements that enhanced or detracted from identification, the mechanics of the fighting game as a genre were seen as much more important than the appearance of characters.

In  this  article,  the  digital  gaps  generated  by  gender hierarchies that affect the way in which women  develop,  disseminate  and  appropriate  technologies  are  investigated.  For  this,  some  relationships  between  gender  and  technology  were shown to bring the universe of games clo-ser. Then comes a redemption of the concept of  games  as  a  “boys  thing”,  to  show  how  this  technology  gradually  distanced  itself  from  the  world of girls. Today, the reverse path is being taken by a new generation of women who crea-te  initiatives  for  the  appropriation  of  games  in  Brazil and around the world.

This article offers an interpretation of Naughty Dog’s shooter game The Last of Us: Part II (2020). Taking Judith Butler’s critique of war discourses and Mieke Bal's theory of focalization as points of departure, I show how the game recalibrates gender norms, undermines conventions of the shooter genre, and invites critical scrutiny of violence and escalation. I show how the game unveils the destructive dynamics of violence and introduces queer and trans characters as a natural part of the game world, thereby issuing an inclusive and progressive political message.

The main body of text is in Norwegian.

This paper analyzes representations of women in two popular otome game titles by Otomate : Code: Realize—The Guardian of Rebirth, and Princess Arthur. These two games feature alternative timelines and find ways to insert women in these traditionally male-centric narratives in history and literature. Code: Realize—the Guardian of Rebirth is set in an alternative universe, this time of Victorian England with steampunk elements. In this game, the player takes on the role of Cardia, a girl with no memories, and a mysterious gem on her chest that causes her to melt everything she touches. As she goes in search of her father and her own identity, she teams up with famous literary characters, such as Arsene Lupin, Victor Frankenstein, Impey Barbicane, Van Helsing and Saint Germain, all of which the player can romance. In addition to Cardia, the game also features reimagined versions of Queen Victoria and the tragic queen Guinevere. In comparison to Code: Realize, Princess Arthur is a reimagining of the Arthurian legend, this time with a female protagonist named Alu, taking the place of the titular Arthurian king. In the game, Alu can romance the knights of the round table, including Lancelot, Gawain, Tristan, Galahad, Mordred, and the wizard Merlin. By analyzing the games’ narrative, choices and the ways in which these have been designed for transmedia consumption, I examine how these games attempt to create male characters for the consumption of women, and reposition women as central figures and often single them out for their seemingly inherent ability to love and care for others, providing an anti-thesis for male characters who are often desensitized because their circumstances have led them towards war and violence. While rooted in essentialist gender ideals, they nonetheless provide critical reflections on how female leadership is imagined in games designed for a predominantly female audience.