Do you think that the reason females aren't main characters in violent games is because...

[ineedscissors]

Maybe the reason why there are many more male characters being brutalized in visual media is because over the last hundred or so years we've been repeatedly exposed and desensitized to men being killed in many different ways. Perhaps this has caused the public to be more comfortable with viewing (on a screen, not IRL) men dying. Female characters however, have for the most part been given a much better deal than their male counterparts, as depicting the death of a female character in any sort of gruesome way would have been unheard of in mass media, until the last two decades at most.

Producers see this, and put male characters in the role of the slaughteree so that viewers will be more comfortable viewing, and therefore buying, their product. Most of the exceptions to this (i.e. the Saw series) use gruesome female deaths in a desire to add to shock value, and this practice is generally effective, which supports the idea that the public is more comfortable with the depiction of male deaths than female deaths when gore is involved.

Maybe in time the public will be made comfortable with gory female deaths through desensitization, and if then we should see more female characters in violent games.


Also,

I'd rather play the Metroid Prime series over ANY of the drivel churned out today

Female lead---Check
Pretty violent---Check
Insane feeling of baddassery----Check
Awesome series---Check

Anyone makes a reference to this and OPs FPS comment, I will kick you square in the bollocks
Metroid Prime is NOT an FPS

Metroid Prime is a game presented through the eyes of the main character (First Person), and this main character holds a gun in front of them for the entirety of the game and shoots things with it (Shooter). How is this not a FPS? If your definition of an FPS only includes games like Call of Duty and Halo, then you should examine that definition. Excluding Metroid Prime from the FPS genre only supports the idea that FPS's are insubstantial, as Metroid Prime is a stellar example of what FPS's should be like.
What's your reason for excluding it? It had better be a good one because Metroid Prime is a contender for my favourite FPS ever.

 

[pulse2]

Maybe the reason why there are many more male characters being brutalized in visual media is because over the last hundred or so years we've been repeatedly exposed and desensitized to men being killed in many different ways. Perhaps this has caused the public to be more comfortable with viewing (on a screen, not IRL) men dying. Female characters however, have for the most part been given a much better deal than their male counterparts, as depicting the death of a female character in any sort of gruesome way would have been unheard of in mass media, until the last two decades at most.

Producers see this, and put male characters in the role of the slaughteree so that viewers will be more comfortable viewing, and therefore buying, their product. Most of the exceptions to this (i.e. the Saw series) use gruesome female deaths in a desire to add to shock value, and this practice is generally effective, which supports the idea that the public is more comfortable with the depiction of male deaths than female deaths when gore is involved.

Maybe in time the public will be made comfortable with gory female deaths through desensitization, and if then we should see more female characters in violent games.


Also,

I'd rather play the Metroid Prime series over ANY of the drivel churned out today

Female lead---Check
Pretty violent---Check
Insane feeling of baddassery----Check
Awesome series---Check

Anyone makes a reference to this and OPs FPS comment, I will kick you square in the bollocks
Metroid Prime is NOT an FPS

Metroid Prime is a game presented through the eyes of the main character (First Person), and this main character holds a gun in front of them for the entirety of the game and shoots things with it (Shooter). How is this not a FPS? If your definition of an FPS only includes games like Call of Duty and Halo, then you should examine that definition. Excluding Metroid Prime from the FPS genre only supports the idea that FPS's are insubstantial, as Metroid Prime is a stellar example of what FPS's should be like.
What's your reason for excluding it? It had better be a good one because Metroid Prime is a contender for my favourite FPS ever.

Doesn't even need to be death, it could just be getting roughed up a bit.

I give Mortal Kombat credit for killing characters in the same way no matter whether they were female or male, it would be rather annoying if females couldn't be injured int he same way, I'd rather them just remove females completely if that was the case.

I think some devs are simply afraid of having depictions of females being roughed up a bit, doesn't even need to be horrible deaths, just broken bones or blood stains etc. But we rarely even see that, let alone actual female deaths in games.

 

[aei_haruko]

It's a subtle form of sexism, probably descended from the belief that men should go fight in wars while women stay in the kitchen.

Everything is some sort of "-ism" these days. . .

Not everything an -ism, but treating members of one gender differently in media because of their gender is sexist.

eh, I think shes kinda right heck, I acknowladge that men and women are different, but equal. can we agree on that?

 

[Dragunai]

I am far more likely to enjoy a game where I play a grizzled Sergeant fighting in War: X (replace X with relevant war) and get immersed because like all gamers, I want to replace the guy I am controlling with myself in a day dream as you play the game.

I know in the real world, if I was dumped into a combat situation I would wimp out and flee, I'm not like the many, many morons online who play 1 round on Battlefield then think they can single handedly sort out the Russians, so I play these games to switch myself into the boots of an actual heroic tough guy with genuine courage so I can fantasize that I am, in fact one of the above.

If you put me behind the steering wheel of a female character, the fuck am I meant to do to immerse myself? If I start fantasizing about being in a females boots, which will be like 5 sizes too small to start with, I am going to lose my buzz.

Heroism, as much as the world hates to admit it... well women anyway, is seen as a mans thing on the battlefield and in combat situations.

Halo: Reach for example!
Jorge sacrifices his life without a second thought to save the greater good while Kat gets shot in the back of the head by a sniper. Also worth mentioning that Kat was your stereotyped "I r woman soldier, here me *****," character which annoyed me.

Be nice if just once they put a chick in a military war game who actually went along the lines of, "Hey I'm Jessica. I have my Marksmanship badge and sideline training new recruits in C.Q.C but if you need me I will be there to help you!" in a passive, pleasant manner and maybe, just maybe a smile!

But for now I will stick with the Angry, surly, I wish I was a man so I'll be really aggressive and spiteful for its own sake female warrior types.

 

[theultimateend]

Perfect dark .
Dino crisis
Parasite eve
Mirrors edge
Final fantasy x-2
final fantasy xiii
Final fantasy 6 ( debatable)
Xenosaga (debatable)
Kingdom hearts (joke )
Metroid
Velvet assassin
Portal ( i think)

I really like most of your examples. Perhaps they save women for the better games?

I figure it is because men kill you, women KILL you.

I remember watching fights in school. Men would fight till someone was too weak to get up, the women would fight till one of them stopped breathing.

 

[krazykidd]

Perfect dark .
Dino crisis
Parasite eve
Mirrors edge
Final fantasy x-2
final fantasy xiii
Final fantasy 6 ( debatable)
Xenosaga (debatable)
Kingdom hearts (joke )
Metroid
Velvet assassin
Portal ( i think)

I really like most of your examples. Perhaps they save women for the better games?

I figure it is because men kill you, women KILL you.

I remember watching fights in school. Men would fight till someone was too weak to get up, the women would fight till one of them stopped breathing.

You know what they say : hell hath no fury as a woman scorned.

 

[Saltyk]

Perfect dark .
Dino crisis
Parasite eve
Mirrors edge
Final fantasy x-2
final fantasy xiii
Final fantasy 6 ( debatable)
Xenosaga (debatable)
Kingdom hearts (joke )
Metroid
Velvet assassin
Portal ( i think)

And im sure there are many more

Oh you mean war games with manly men with muscles bigger than their heads . Yeah although there are women that go to war , it's a tiny percentage . So having a female main character in CoD is boarderline unrealistic , plus i don't want to relive metroid other M ever again.

Is that a Noa avatar? Sorry, it's off topic, but you rarely see anyone that even seems aware that game even existed. And it's such a same.

Probably could have included Legend of Legaia in that list. Noa may not have been smart (she was raised by a wolf in a cave), but she was definitely a strong and brave female character. Maybe not the lead, but she was pretty close to it as Vahn was silent.

Yup it is. The game really isn't well known, which is why i chose this avatar , (plus noa is awsome) , kinda like an easter egg for anyone that actually knows/ played the game. The reason i didn't add LoL ( legend of legaia ) to the list , is because she isn't actually the main character, although she has ties to the main vilain ( debatably more than vahn ) . Also you make a very good point about vahn being silent , i never actually thought about that, she really does take the spotlight in that game.Which now makes me wonder why vahn is silent , other than the 'yes & no ' answers. You sir have given me a reason to play this game again

Yay! I'm special. I got the Easter Egg. Still waiting for them to release it on PSN as a PSOne Classic.

Yeah, Noa was awesome in that game. Was it me, or did she kill more enemies than Vahn and Gala could dream of? And I swear she did more damage. Maybe it was her speed and large combos.

Wait. Did Vahn have any tie to the villains? Or Gala for that matter (other than Songi)? I thought Noa was the only one with any ties to the villains. And I never did get why so many games had silent protagonists. It makes it hard to feel that they have any reason to be involved in the battle.

I just reminded myself of something funny.​

 

[squeekenator]

I think realism has a fair bit to do with it. Yes, female main characters are rare in violent video games. That's because women are very rarely involved in battles. Like it or not, men are much more capable combatants, and they are much more likely to be soldiers. Having an equal number of male and female protagonists simply wouldn't make sense. Of course, if you're playing a game that ignores realism, like JRPGs, then it's perfectly fine and in fact rather common to have ten year old girls punching out elder evils that have preyed on the living since the dawn of time. A gritty, realistic FPS? Not so much,

 

[Something Amyss]

Because if women are hurt people will say it's sexist. cough*Fox News*cough

But as Fox News has already demonstrated, their claims need no basis in fact. See also: Sexbox.

 

[Bostur]

I'm not so much saying that female characters can't be the lead characters, there are plenty of games where they are, but only if it means they are the ones shooting, not being shot at and if they are shot at, the deaths aren't as brutal as say Dead Space.

Maybe people would feel uncomfortable playing a multiplayer FPS as a female and knowing you have to snipe her in the head, rewarded with a spray of blood. Now, as a male, its not really a second thought, but are lead to believe that that sort of violence shouldn't involve women.

I personally don't mind really, just thought it was an interesting topic to bring up, I'd rather have a game whereby my main female character is there for a reason with a good and realistic plot and emotions then have a scanty clad, heartless beast of a woman shooting and brutally killing things.

I think 'targets' in video games needs to be bland and shallow. We get hordes of identical marines, nazis or evil clones to gun down. We don't want to be able to sympathize with those. For some reason the generic bland character is male, a female character would make us more inclined to see it as an actual person. The reason for this is probably a mix of symbolic tradition and a majority of male game designers and players.

I think it is interesting to note that when the targets are zombies or other types of humans made into monsters, there seems to be many more female targets. Zombies are dehumanized enough that we can cope with female ones.

 

[alfawx]

Why can't there be a female protagonist in Dead Space?

To be fair, you play as a woman in the Dead Space IPhone game and Lexine is a major, albeit non-playable, character in Dead Space: Extraction. But on a non-fanboy note, I couldn't agree more with your reasoning. I think it may also be due to the classic damsel in distress dynamic, besides the idea that females shouldn't be hurt, as they're "more vulnerable". If there's a female protagonist, what gender can be the one that's stereotypically weaker and in need of help? (That was a rhetorical question and I do not believe in classic gender dynamics, I have nothing against women or women's right. I'm trying to represent the idea of a female protagonist fitting into a classic mold, please don't get angry. Thank you.)

 

[Gethsemani_v1legacy]

The classical feminist answer would be: Because women are not considered real people. A more nuanced answer would be: It is the same reason that we don't see many female lead protagonists in cinema. Society as a whole thinks of men as active, initiative taking, proactive and generally as being able to go out and handle the sitaution. Women on the other hand are nurturing, caring and tends to hang back and take care of their social group.

But apart from traditional female roles not being suited for action leads, there's also the problem that many male writers admit to having problem writing "good women". Whatever that means they simply feel they can't write a woman without being sexist or because they think women are radically different to men I am not sure.

In the end, what it breaks down to is that women in general are overlooked and that neither men nor women seem to care much.

 

[zerobudgetgamer]

<spoiler=Snip>

Parasite eve
Mirrors edge
Final fantasy x-2
final fantasy xiii
Final fantasy 6 ( debatable)
Xenosaga (debatable)
Kingdom hearts (joke )

Edit: Thought of some more , Tomb raider , X-blades...Resident evil , Wet

OK, terribly sorry, but aren't most of the female characters in the games listed either wearing something revealing, skin-tight, or both? And even if they wear something more "conservative" aren't they typically just turned into sex symbols within a month of release anyway? And didn't most of those games either sell poorly or vanish into obscurity?

Wait what? how many of these games have you played exactly ? I'll atmit that X-blades and Wet have women that wear revealing clothes.I also noticed you removed some of the games that i listed because it hurts your point, also Kingdom hearts was a joke because i never pass up a chance to hate on KH. Now the only one that may have fallen into obscurity is parasite eve and debatebly Xenosaga unless your a JRPG fan .

Which leaves , Tomb raider, , mirrors edge , FF6 , FF10-2 , FF13 and resident evil. Now dismissing perverted fan art (stares at tomb raider ,) none of these women are sex symboles in their respective games, they are all Strong independant woman , that fight for what they want , taking names and kicking ass.
Laura croft
Faith
Terra
Yuna
Lightning
Clair

Are all Forces to reckon with, and aren't afraid to get ther hands dirty.

Also, the point of me listing those games , was to show that they are games with female main characters.They have been in the past since the begining of the video game developement ( theres even a Ms. Pacman for christs sake ).

Also . Aren't most male characters in video games have all brawn and no brain ? The Alpha male everyone ( supposedly) wants to be? Hell theres a shit load of games with Big armed Muscle head protagonists that fall into obscurity. So , what's your point?

Anyways this diverts WAY off course of what the thread was originally about.

Yeah, okay, maybe I should've removed KH, too, and maybe mentioning sex symbols like the crap on DeviantArt is Canon was the wrong way to put it, but my point wasn't that all of your choices had negative stereotypical tit-fodder. Rather, it was the fact that, regardless of the quality of the game, the women depicted were typically given clothing and personas to match some inherent (possibly sexual) desire in/with the men who make/play said game. I mean, look at Xenosaga. The "main" character, Shion, may not have been wearing anything too revealing (until the third game) but she was your typical "Smart with glasses" girl that Japan seems to fetishize, and her ditzyness didn't help matters. Lara, despite her strengths, has been branded a sex symbol practically since her inception, and although I don't have the numbers in front of me, haven't the bulk of her games after they tried to remove the sex symbol aspect just been...not as good, or just not sold really well? And as for Yuna...in FFX-2??? You're REALLY trying to debate a character who goes from priestess garb to a pair of short-shorts and an open-front shirt?? Who in the first five minutes of gameplay you get to watch giggling and dancing about in a frilly blue dress??? And whose only other character from the original goes through the entire game in a bikini??? NEED I GO ON?!

Now, yes, sure, there are a fair number of strong female leads out there, more than I gave credit for. But each one has had at least one moment, one outfit, one set of dialogue that was purely made for the fanboys, and it occurs FAR more often than having the male lead slip up and do something to please fangirls. It's the sad part of the world of gaming we're presently in, where even perfectly legitimate female leads have to be forced to rub their tits on the screen because the publishers/developers think we want it that way.

And as for the fact that there are just as many, if not more, alpha-male-type games that fail...well, the ratios are different. For every three or four alpha-male retard games that fail, there's at least one that succeeds, which, AFAIK, is probably a better ratio than the ratio that even intelligent, non-pandering female leads have. That's all I can say. Numbers mean everything in this current industry. If you can prove that something "has" worked before, no one cares if you can prove that something "might" work. And it's even worse if you can't provide sufficient data to support your case. Like I said, regardless of the quality of the females you list, if you can't show that the games sell well, and you can't show beyond the shadow of a doubt that those sales solely rest on the female lead's personality and journey, and NOT her heart-shaped ass and/or bouncing breast physics that people were transfixed to for half the game, then it's INCREDIBLY HARD to make more characters like her.

 

[NickKuroshi0]

It is pointless to specify gender if it serves no purpose, there are more male protaganists in violent video games cause most of the time it really is not that important and the male gender is more generic and easier to characterize.

 

[Nomanslander]

Yes, and here's the proof:

 

[Torrasque]

Because society is still pretty sexist.

It also depends on the style of game. More guys play FPS games than girls, and I have yet to meet a single girl that plays GTA.
That being said, there are a hell of a lot of girls that play games like WoW, Rift, Dragon Age, Mass Effect, and everything else.
I know more girls that like Zelda games, than guys!

 

[Azure9]

I seen plenty of female protagonists in games , problem is that most of them are just sex symbols. I may be a guy but whenever someone is trying to sell me a product by having a sexy lady on it , I feel like my intelligence is being insulted.

I think one of my favorite games where a girl wasn't a sex symbol was mirror's edge and silent hill 3 was also good.

 

[TheGreatAndPowerfulZOG]

It's not just the gamers that are a majority male, developers are too. It's not that surprising games tend to center on male power fantasies and rescue the princess type scenarios. Maybe if women would start designing games we would have a more balanced industry.

 

[NerfedFalcon]

That's society. More males game=more games with male protagonists. I would like to see more games with female protagonists, but publishers want guarunteed income.

The Japanese philosophy, though, I think is that there's enough people who'll buy a game with a female protagonist, just so they can imagine/draw you-know-what of her. That's why I can think of a few Japanese games with female main characters (such as some Final Fantasies, Metroid and of course Touhou Project) but no Western games at all (at least, those without gender customisation.)