I doubt there's a female gamer out there who never, to some degree, felt that she wasn't the target audience for a game she played. And let's face it- very few games do consider female gamers who they're making video games for.
When this feeling is ever voiced, the general consensus is, "Yeah, but that's not going to change any time soon. If you let this bother you, you're only wasting your own time."
Really, though, this isn't reserved for women, nor is it only a matter with Video Games. There's another recent example, in which for me, the reverse is true.
Take the movie, Eat Pray Love. I must admit that while I am a bit young, this movie applies to women like me. I love this movie, and had a great time watching it.
But look at almost any critic that doesn't fall into this film's target audience, and they're likely ragging on it nonstop.
There are endless examples of a clash between someone and a thing that's not aimed at them. Many apply to your own lives. It leaves me wondering, though, just how to draw the line between "Good for its audience" "Good for its genre," and just plain, "Good" and "Bad." How heavily do such factors draw upon the opinions you voice when criticizing things?
Personally, I try to simply not talk about something I don't care for; like I don't hate-rant about Final Fantasy 7, despite the fact that whenever anyone gives it a compliment, I want to punch a hole in the wall. I know I'm not the target audience. If I must, I will address the facts I know about it, perhaps a little bit of opinion, but leave it be. With something I do like, such as many chick-flicks, I try to keep in mind that not everyone appreciates a theater full of girls singing Abba at the top of their lungs, and not proclaim it as one of the best movies EVAR!!1 just because of my personal feelings towards it.
And while I do avoid stepping on toes, I can't help but feel that my opinion lacks a certain potency because of it...
[small]Keep in mind that while examples are welcome, and even key to a good argument, for the love of GOD, don't just bring up something, then trash it, or praise it to pieces. A rant on how you feel about Halo, or say, Eat Pray Love, isn't really on-topic, and chances are,[/small] everyone has heard what you're going to rant about, likely multiple times. [small]Re-read the OP if you don't get what I'm trying to discuss. If you don't get it, simply don't post. This topic is a bit more sensitive than normal, and I'd appreciate some extra effort put in to prevent it from being derailed. Thank you.[/small]
When this feeling is ever voiced, the general consensus is, "Yeah, but that's not going to change any time soon. If you let this bother you, you're only wasting your own time."
Really, though, this isn't reserved for women, nor is it only a matter with Video Games. There's another recent example, in which for me, the reverse is true.
Take the movie, Eat Pray Love. I must admit that while I am a bit young, this movie applies to women like me. I love this movie, and had a great time watching it.
But look at almost any critic that doesn't fall into this film's target audience, and they're likely ragging on it nonstop.
There are endless examples of a clash between someone and a thing that's not aimed at them. Many apply to your own lives. It leaves me wondering, though, just how to draw the line between "Good for its audience" "Good for its genre," and just plain, "Good" and "Bad." How heavily do such factors draw upon the opinions you voice when criticizing things?
Personally, I try to simply not talk about something I don't care for; like I don't hate-rant about Final Fantasy 7, despite the fact that whenever anyone gives it a compliment, I want to punch a hole in the wall. I know I'm not the target audience. If I must, I will address the facts I know about it, perhaps a little bit of opinion, but leave it be. With something I do like, such as many chick-flicks, I try to keep in mind that not everyone appreciates a theater full of girls singing Abba at the top of their lungs, and not proclaim it as one of the best movies EVAR!!1 just because of my personal feelings towards it.
And while I do avoid stepping on toes, I can't help but feel that my opinion lacks a certain potency because of it...
[small]Keep in mind that while examples are welcome, and even key to a good argument, for the love of GOD, don't just bring up something, then trash it, or praise it to pieces. A rant on how you feel about Halo, or say, Eat Pray Love, isn't really on-topic, and chances are,[/small] everyone has heard what you're going to rant about, likely multiple times. [small]Re-read the OP if you don't get what I'm trying to discuss. If you don't get it, simply don't post. This topic is a bit more sensitive than normal, and I'd appreciate some extra effort put in to prevent it from being derailed. Thank you.[/small]
