Are sexualised women in games insulting to male audiences too?

[Musiclly enhanced]

this is why i never owned demolition girl or any of hte dead or alive gaems

 

[EOD Tech]

No, it's not insulting because all women are sexualized, all around us, all the time. Ladies, get all offended if you want, but when we see you dancing across the bar and come talk to you, it's not because we think you might be a Rhodes scholar, it's because you've got a bangin body and are wearing the right stuff to display it. Deep down you know this. If that knowledge really offended you, you'd never wear makeup, get braces, cut your hair, shave or wash, and you'd be wearing a burlap sack.

Fast forward an hour and we've discovered you're an idiot. Well, some of us are okay with that. We don't need you to be a genius as long as you look good. I personally would probably end up murdering a flat-out stupid girlfriend, no matter how hot she is, but a lot of guys I know don't care. It goes the other way too: I've got plenty of female friends who keep dating losers, alcoholics and scumbags because they've got that "bad boy" look. Some gamers are like that as well.

 

[The Artificially Prolonged]

As a man to like boobs and half naked ladies but seriously there is a time and place for that, so yes it is very patronising to males when developers use sex to sale games, mainly because I don't play games for pixalated boobs, I play games for entertainment.

 

[Chemical Alia]

No, it's not insulting because all women are sexualized, all around us, all the time. Ladies, get all offended if you want, but when we see you dancing across the bar and come talk to you, it's not because we think you might be a Rhodes scholar, it's because you've got a bangin body and are wearing the right stuff to display it. Deep down you know this. If that knowledge really offended you, you'd never wear makeup, get braces, cut your hair, shave or wash, and you'd be wearing a burlap sack.

Fast forward an hour and we've discovered you're an idiot. Well, some of us are okay with that. We don't need you to be a genius as long as you look good. I personally would probably end up murdering a flat-out stupid girlfriend, no matter how hot she is, but a lot of guys I know don't care. It goes the other way too: I've got plenty of female friends who keep dating losers, alcoholics and scumbags because they've got that "bad boy" look. Some gamers are like that as well.

You kinda had me until the fourth sentence, then your point rolled downhill and crashed into a tree.

 

[WorldCritic]

Since developers seem to assume that all men like giant boobs and asses, it is kind of insulting. I don't play games for the oversexualized girls, but every now and then I want to sit down and play Dead or Alive 4 and it seems l a kind of ridiculous.

 

[Zechnophobe]

Sex sells, it is that simple. But simple is often condescending, and its too often that a shitty game is released with a big titted girl on the front. More specifically the bit titted girl on the front is meant to offset the crap quality of a game. And even if theyre not the main protagonist theyre rediculously top heavy and a over the top image of a woman.

BMX XXX
X-Blades
DoA Bikini-ness-ness
Ninja Gaiden - Six axis jiggle.

I imagine the marketing guy standing behind me saying,
"Phrrrrrrroaaarrrrr!! Look at them titties!! You like those, phrrrroaaarrrrr, buy those titties, phrrrrroooaaarrr,"

"- but the game's been getting terrible reviews"

"phrrrroaaaarrrrrrr sir! phrroooooaaaarrrrr!"

I struggle to think of a "normal girl" in a game, I think Red Dead is the closest. Life is normal and a normal girl is best because its relatable - or at least plausable.

I feel that many game makers use titties sell games cos they think were drooling idiots - as an easy bandage for the lack of gameplay. Does anyone feel the same?

I think it is more insulting that people complain so much about these things, and yet it is still traceable as one of the biggest reasons people buy games when they come out. Put a pretty girl on the cover, people buy it. But an ugly GUY on the cover without a pretty girl, people don't. Big. Bang. Boom.

 

[itsausernamewhatofit]

I don't mind providing the game is half way decent. Metal Gear Solids 1, 2, 3, peace walker, and others in the series are all great games so I don't mind that they added some stuff like this in, because the game is still great either way; they don't need gimmicks to make the game enjoyable. Other games (yes X-Blades I'm looking at you) think that they can get by with just the eye candy and nothing else and thats where I start to lose interest. I don't take offense that they are trying to sell a game on sex alone, I just notice that fact and steer clear of playing it. I figure you can put whatever you want in your game, I'm not going to tell you other wise, but if it's all eye candy and no substance, then I'm not going to play it and I'm sure there will be plenty of others who won't either.

 

[Lyx]

Well, obviously women whom i find..... attractive..... are something i like in a game. BUT (!!!):

- Hollow inside barbie dolls aren't that "attractive" to me
- If the game cannot stand on its own without such stuff, it stays below-average to me, no matter the girls
- I want to choose! I have no problem with attractiveness being an option, but i don't want to be bombarded with it as if someone is screaming at me "LOOKIE! BOOBS! OH MAN, LOOK AT THAT! LOOK! LOOK!" - thats just annoying and invasive, and i may actually be more inclined to KILL off this annoyance.

So, non-shallow attractiveness as something that is part of the game? Fine. Marketing style attentionwhoring barbiedoll fuckbabes? Get off my harddrive, NOW!

 

[HellspawnCandy]

Yeah, I'd rather companies be sneaky sneaky and put the sexual stuff in the game without announcing it or just not bother if it's irrelevant. I didn't do Ashley to see a 3 second clip, I did it for the achievement I swear!

 

[OtherSideofSky]

X-Blades

The insulting thing about that was that anyone expected to be payed money for such a shitty game. Actually, the obviously pandering character design was pretty insulting too.

I don't hate games having sexy women in them (I really liked Bayonetta, both the game and the character), but when it's taking to the ludicrous, pandering degree that seems to have become the norm it just tells me that I probably don't want to play the game in question. Since you mentioned Ninja Gaiden, that's a series that I liked playing but haven't been able to play in front of other people since it moved to current generation consoles because of the way it portrays female characters. As a result, I've spent a lot less money on it than I might have otherwise.

 

[Drake_Dercon]

Among the most serious problems of the games industry.
Yes, I consider it an insult to myself that people think this is okay. Either start objectifying the dudes too or start getting yourselves an ounce of decency. I prefer the latter option. The former just degrades EVERYONE'S merit.

 

[higgs20]

I've not played any of those game, can't say I find it too much of a prevalent issue anymore.

before her latest redesign, Lara Croft was just a pair of tits and a 1-dimensional personality.

fixed it for you.

 

[Mr. Eff_v1legacy]

They don't offend me.

Because I am not the same as every man the world. Just because some men love to see cleavage in a game (which MUST mean they are unintelligent) that doesn't mean the same applies t me.

On a similar note, just because someone may see cleavage (which MUST mean they see her as nothing but a sex object) it MUST mean they see all women that way.

People need to lighten up.

 

[SIXVI06-M]

I get somewhat annoyed when I see games that are just trying to be porn in the guise of a game.

Otherwise, other depictions I've seen have been quite tasteful and even suggestive in a good way... I quite like the character design in Borderlands... Lilith is quite possibly one of the few instances where I can say an animated character is hhhhhaaaawt...

 

[FoolKiller]

crap quality of a game... Ninja Gaiden?

Okay, I know that a lot of games flaunt the boobs and such, but that doesn't mean that the games they are in are not good. Ninja Gaiden was an amazing game and just because they like their boobs jiggly on the dev team didn't make the game bad.

 

[The3rdEye]

It's not so much that it insults me, but rather it acts as a disincentive for me to actually play the game much less buy it. It's like highschool (and a bit of college) all over again, with X% of the male populace going "Holy shit, tits!" and then going off for some "alone time".

It just comes with the territory, you either grin and bear it while rolling your eyes or you report them as a sex offender then laugh your ass off when the FBI escorts them out of class amidst their sobbing protests. Either way it doesn't encourage me to associate with them, although I do tip my hat to those who can actually manage to portray a female character as a potentially strong, independent and intelligent being... you know, a person.

Furthermore, even if someone creates a game that is actually of notable merit, but hypersexualizes one of the characters enough to put it on my "No Fly" list I won't necessarily be missing out on anything because they're probably not the only innovative/enjoyable fare in town.

 

[Cid Silverwing]

I take extreme offense to any kind of over-sexualisation. It shifts the game away from what it is supposed to be, i.e. calculated fun, not glorified game pornography.

 

[Blemontea]

Not to say i enjoy looking at scantily clad women... BUT i do feel like when sex is the driver of the game and aimed toward men then i will also feel insulted. Though Bayonneta is an exception probably because its so over the top sex doesn't feel like the driver.

 

[GrizzlerBorno]

I struggle to think of a "normal girl" in a game, I think Red Dead is the closest. Life is normal and a normal girl is best because its relatable - or at least plausable.

See here's the thing. If a game has "normal girls" you're not SUPPOSED to be able to remember them. People always bring out the "oh you can't name five normal Female characters in games" card. It's stupid! If they're normal, If they look normal, talk normal, act normal. Then they don't stand out! And that's absolutely FINE! That's how it's supposed to BE!

Like right now I'm playing Fallout: New Vegas and it has a metric TON of average relatable and likable female characters. Sunny, Cass, Judy (or whatever, the mother-hen of goodsprings), Ghost, Ada Straus.etc.

I remember them now cause I'm actively interacting with them, but once i stop playing.....i WON'T remember them. Why? Not because they're bad or uninteresting. But because they are NORMAL and aren't "designed" to be memorable. It's the same way as how i won't remember who Doc Mitchell, or Manny vargas, or Cliff is.

Who I WILL remember is Boone or Fawkes(FO3). But if i got a female companion i liked enough to have her tag along, and if she had a deep enough personality, then SURE I'd remember her. Why wouldn't I?

Fawkes was a woman. Kinda, though no one thought she was sexy. Kinda... *cough*

I don't remember that. But then again, i didn't talk to him... i mean her... actually i'm gonna go with it.... too much.

But is that the only thing you picked up from that rant though :/