Video games are a very big hobby for many people all over the world. In fact, it is so popular that people have made a career out of playing them. From live streaming on websites like Twitch or posting game play videos on YouTube, gaming has acquired a very big following ever since its existence. However, like all forms of media, gaming too has faced its fair share of criticism when dealing with controversial topics. These topics can range from racism, attack on religion, and even sexism. Today, I will delve into just the kind of sexism video games have been involved in and the effect it has had on the community as a whole.
Generally, when people play video games, they do so not only to have fun but, to also in a way, escape the problems of the real world and live in a fantasy that they can enjoy. However, when this separation of reality is threatened by real world problems, the immersion is gone and gamer’s are taken out of that fantastical experience. This can lead to anger, hostility, and even violence towards the perpetrator. One instance of this is when people point out how video games negatively portray women in them. There have been much backlash towards game developers and gamer’s as a whole for their involvement in portraying women through negative stereotypes such as the “damsel in distress” or the “girl who is weak compared to her male counterpart” or the “sexually exploited female dressed in skimpy outfits with breast and butt hanging out for all to see.”
In fact, one such game that displays a constant sexist complaint is the Mario franchise. In almost every game, the lead female Peach is captured and must be rescued constantly by the hero Mario. This has happened so much, it has prompted its own memes and gifs.
This constant treatment of female characters in video games has caused many an outrage. One such person of this outrage is Anita Sarkeesian. She is a widely know feminist video game critic who generally speaks out against the misogyny displayed in the community. Due to her constant ongoing battle with female mistreatment in video games, many gamer’s have felt as if she is hurting the industry with her remarks. Having something they love be the center of this kind of publicity brings the real world problems so many wanted to keep away from the gaming community. Some feel she is full of herself and does not speak for all women on this subject matter. Others just simply don’t agree with her opinion about female mistreatment in video games.
However, this constant battle between gamer’s and Sarkeesian is a display of just how sexism can take a more violent turn for everyone involved. In the article, ‘Gamergate: A Scandal Erupts in the Video-game Community’, by The New Yorker, there have been reports of death threats being aimed at Sarkeesian if she did not stop her sexism crusade. Threats such as, “I have at my disposal a semi-automatic rifle, multiple pistols, and a collection of pipe bombs…. Anita Sarkeesian is everything wrong with the feminist woman, and she is going to die screaming like the craven little whore that she is if you let her come to USU” have been issued as a grim warning. Personally, I do not agree with a lot of what Sarkeesian says about video games being sexist but, when someone gets so angry that they have to make threats to take another’s life, that is going too far regardless of how they feel.
In the end, we can see that sexism has caused quite a lot of hostility and frustration in the gaming community. Therefore, it is understandable why gamer’s would not want someone like Sarkeesian to champion a crusade against video games. For all its well-meaning, it can also bring forth ugly battles that taint the fantasy and escapism the video game world brought for them. However, you can’t completely give up on pointing out these kinds of issues and leave them be as well. What needs to happen is for the gaming community, its developers, and feminist/critics to open a respectful dialogue where they each hear the other out. Only then can this negative effect of constant arguing back and forth, caused by sexism or any other issue in gaming be resolved in any sort of meaningful way.
Sources:
Parkin, S. (2014, October 17). Gamergate: A Scandal Erupts in the Video-Game Community. Retrieved June 23, 2017, from http://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/gamergate-scandal-erupts-video-game-community
YouTube. (2017, June 23). Retrieved June 23, 2017, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hsZgkTZZiCk
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I enjoyed reading your blog post. I understand the reference you’re trying to make between sexism and video games and how feminism should bring out some sort of equality between the two sexes. I would like to see you make some sort of reference to women that bases their sexism on something other than the way they are dressed. It’s obvious to me what you’re trying to get across by showing the picture of the women dressed “skimpy” in the Dead or Alive game. But, it would be nice if you included an example that fell outside of the realms of dress code, since you are exclaiming that women are often portrayed as the damsel in distress and weak in comparison to their male counterpart
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Hi, I enjoyed reading your essay. I wrote something a little similar, and its nice to see someone else take up the same issue as you. Well written.
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