Are young girly boys, muscular soldiers and buxom women really that offensive?

[Trivun]

They are not really offensive to me. They just show that there is a lack of vision and creative integrity in the industry.

I agree with you to a point, but as it happens the use of stock characters and stereotypes is a tradition stretching back as far as literature and most other traditional forms of entertainment. As an example of this, look at most Gothic fiction. There are so many sterotypes and stock characters within that genre that the only real creativity there was on certain plot details, and even then most Gothic literature is regarded now as being classic and some of the greatest works of writing ever created. Examples of course are the characters found in The Picture of Dorian Gray, Frankenstein, Dracula, The Woman In Black, The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, and so on. They all use stock characters in a similar way to the video game developers, and indeed writers, film-makers, and so on, of the modern day. Even Shakespeare did it, his characters were usually based on characters of older stories where he got his own ideas for his plays from, but his characters were also influenced by the characters used in other plays and stories of the era. Hence The idea of vision, creativity and integrity in the gaming industry is extremely open to interpretation, as indeed it is in all of the entertainment industries. Just a point that I felt needed to be made within this thread. But yes, there's no problem as far as I'm concerned with these types of characters, I merely wish the characters could possibly be made more realistic in general.

 

[Yossarian90]

It's just like Marketing Execs go, hey look kids TITS
or hey look House wives big men, killing small foreign people
or look im yet another sensitive Square Enix character

 

[Guitarmasterx7]

I don't see anything wrong with it. Honestly, anyone who is put in a situation where they have to fight hordes of bad guys on a day to day basis would either develop giant muscles just from doing that alone or get killed. As for hot girls, they don't really sell a game for me. it's an added bonus if they're there? sure. Is it demeaning? maybe, but I would be lying if I said I would be comfortable playing as or having a fat or ugly female ally.

 

[Jetbaby]

I'm not offended, per se. But as others have so aptly said, I'm annoyed at the unimaginative pandering to the audience's gonads, rather than trying to stimulate the audience with a gripping story/innovative gameplay or the like.

 

[TheSentinel]

That's why I like GTA IV. People are just that. Normal people.

 

[Deef]

Depends if the game is trying to be serious, if it isn't I just lol and love the stereotypes.
If it is I think it ruins the atmosphere.

 

[Deef]

Hell, a small-chested leading female and an average built typical male would be welcome additions to any game in my opinion.

And that's gotta be something because I honestly love large breasts, but in games I'm just sick of seeing them.

Large breasts get on my nerves, because they serve no actual purpose in games besides "HEY LOOK! TITS!".

Muscular men have actually kind of annoyed me in games too, It's not so much that I don't appreciate muscles, no no, I'd like some myself one day, it's just that sometimes they're a bit overdone...
for example, Street Fighter IV or Resident Evil V.

And then the girly boys, which, it sounds a little generlistic/rascist but, If it comes from Japan, what else can we really expect?

and yes, it gets on my nerves as well...

I have to agree with you about Resident Evil V, but I think it was intentional and funny in SFIV.

 

[Kiutu]

I just prefer the character to make sense. A reason why they are doing better than everyone else. Like, if a character has never shot a gun in his life until now, he should not be some amazing shooter for no apparent reason.

 

[littlerob]

As always, there's two sides to this. Lets take huge, muscular, gears-esque soldiers. On one side, they're tired stereotypes of marines being testosterone fuelled rednecks. On the other hand, I'd be willing to bet people would complain like hell if the COGs were built like the average Joe. Gears works because of the musclebound marines, not despite them.

Ditto for the sexy women. People complain that it's not an accurate representation of women, but yet I'd bet people would also complain if women in warfare were represented realistically (ie, in full plate-and-mail, full face helm, stocky and muscled, and covered in scars). Perhaps they wouldn't have as much rational basis for their compalints, but complain they would.

Steroetypes are stereotypes for a reason. Soldiers were musclebound. It came with the job. You spend hours and hours every day swinging a 4lb weight while covered in steel, chain and padding, and you're going to develop some muscles. Admittedly, the other two (girly boys - I'm looking at you, JRPGs - and scantily clad women) are less realistic and more fanservice, but hey, it's an imperfect world. Girly boys are there for the cute factor, women are there for the sex factor. Can't be helped. They're (as far as the marketing world is concerned) sure-fire ways to sell a product - cuteness for the female audience, sex-appeal and testosterone for the male audience, sexist as that may be.

The Japanese market, especially, seems to have built itself into a corner as far as characters go. They tend to be either feminine, sensitive teenagers, or massive 'MY NAME IS HUGE' warriors with appropriately oversized weapons. Exaggeration leaves very little room for a sensible middle ground.

And that, I think, is where most of the dislike comes from. Games are, almost by their nature, exaggerated. Exaggerated settings, events, characters; it all helps the developers to streamline the story so we can get down to the gaming. And while this may not be the best view in everyone's eyes, it is in those of the people who matter.

Stereotypical characters shouldn't be offensive, really. They aren't deliberate. They're shortcuts. We see a huge guy in some kind af armour and instantly we can recognise him as a soldier. We see some feminine-looking teenage boy moping around complaining and we instantly know he's the protagonist. Yeah, it's lay, but it shouldn't be offensive.

Well. That turned out longer than I expected.

 

[LitigationJackson]

I just prefer the character to make sense. A reason why they are doing better than everyone else. Like, if a character has never shot a gun in his life until now, he should not be some amazing shooter for no apparent reason.

not neccesarily,

i was

 

[Sylens]

thing is, noone wants to play a game to be a normal person.
they want to be able to play and feel:
a) overly manly and strong, filled with roids;
b)an underdressed female fighting the oppresive male patriach in society;
c) either of these just for the lols.
its not necessarily offensive to anyone unless you over think it. developers make these stereotypical characters to sell games, even if it is gettin cliche'd.

i'd love to play your average joe fighting an alien horde or left 4 dead style zombie invasion, but how are you gunna put into a plot line his kids getting F's at school?

 

[high_castle]

I think they can be offensive but aren't necessarily utilized out of malice. More than anything, I think it showcases a lack of creativity. Yes, gaming is a form of escapism. We don't want the hero to be a weakling...but there are multiple forms of strength, people. Look at the Doctor from Doctor Who. He can be a bookish WASP or even an elderly gentleman, but he's still badass because of his brains and technology. I think you could get away with a slightly wimpier looking protagonist if he has other strengths. And not every woman has to be a double-D cup size. Here's a note for all men who haven't actually seen a woman up close: when they're that large, usually the woman is a little on the heavier side, too. And when she isn't, it means they're fake. As a woman, I avoid a lot of games with scantily clad female protagonists mostly because I find it somewhat objectifying. The men are muscular to a degree of absurdity, yes, but they aren't always objectified or overly sexualized. Female protagonists are another story and I don't need to watch it four 40+ hours. It'd be one thing if the woman was given a decent back story or characterization, but alas that seems to be the last thing on the dev team's mind.

Alright, starting to ramble now. I guess what I'm trying to say is I would like to see some variation in character models, but I've resigned myself to the fact I'm in the minority demographic and thus not about to be catered to anytime soon. I don't necessarily find them offensive (improbable and symptomatic of a larger male viewpoint), but they are trite and overworked.

 

[Lord_Jaroh]

I like my characters to be more realistic in action and looks. I'm tending to hate more and more Eastern style characters as they seem to put no effort into creating any believeable characters anymore.

Sex sells, so I can understand characters like Ivy in Soul Cal IV, even though I don't happen to like it that much, as it is concentrating more on the looks of the game and how it appeals to those boys who still get their jollies from bouncing animations rather than the game itself.

Ultra-masculine characters I actually don't mind as they really aren't that prevalent anymore, and if you can craft a well-rounded character out of it, it makes it that much more believable for action games of the type.

Otherwise, I like my Nathan Drakes as main characters. The average Joe dealing with extra-ordinary situations. It makes for far better storytelling.

 

[Gitsnik]

why are there never normal looking or "ugly" characters. they are either sexy or horrifcally vomit inducingly deformed.

Side note: This is exactly how I see the real world. I don't see why others couldn't be doing the same thing.

I'm rarely bothered by the physical attributes of my character or any NPC in a game. I notice fine lines or proper muscles, but only in so far as I'm taking note of the graphics engine and the game mechanics (I like a game that I can graze someone for minimal damage and it looks like I grazed them). Then again I don't tend to have a cry when a game doesn't work out the way I want so maybe that's just me - I take it at face value, not for what it is compared to other games (as a rule).

 

[SilentHunter7]

Call me shallow, but if I'm going to be playing a character for about 10 hours of game, I'd appreciate it if they were easy on the eyes.

And I play games to be Alvin von Trogdor, Red Knight of the 6th Shadow Realm, not Cletus Fuckhat, the weird kid who sits in the corner. If I wanted 'Normal', I'd go to work, and look in the mirror at someone else, because I wouldn't get 'Normal' by looking in the Mirror. I'd get 'Godlike' .

Of course, when you get females with Quadruple D breasts, and curves that would make barbie jealous, that's when my suspension of disbelief, and the quality of the game as a whole, suffers.

 

[Worgen]

not offensive but over used

 

[Sewblon]

Blatant cliches like that really detract from the game, hating a game for using those cliches is justified.

 

[MBFCPresident]

I think it's really immature and it caters towards the 'horny thirteen year old' demographic a fair bit. Really I think games as an industry need to grow up with these sorts of things, because when blowhard politicians want to try to make a point that games are an immature medium they can point at something like this:

...and call it a day, thus it gives games a really bad reputation and only helps to convey the belief that all men think of as women is merely sex objects. Or as one guy phrased it:
"A woman is now only the body componant attactched to the breasts."

Now as for the men... being a tall, muscular braod shouldered man myself big men don't bother me and I think that if we are going to so openly sexualise women in games I think it would be very unfair not to showcase attractive men too.

That said if we just got rid of both... it would be very welcome by me.

I know your trying to make a point but all I can think of is SCHWING!