Student Research Project: Are Either Males Or Females More Skilled At Gaming?

[MercurySteam]

I am doing a SRP (student research project) for year 10 science, and the issue i'm testing is wether males or females are more skilled at games. 2 males vs 2 females (varied skill levels) on a variety of different genres of games, because im convinced that the genre playes a large role in who would be better at it. I could only control a limited number of variables. The results are as follows:

Halo 3 (team slayer): Male Wins: 3/3 Female Wins: 0/3
Dead or Alive 4 (tag teams): Rounds won by males: 2/8 Rounds won by females: 6/8
Gears of War 2 (warzone): Male wins 3/5 Female wins 2/5
Ralisport Challenge: Places - 1st: Female 2nd: Male 3rd: Female 4th: Male

I guess my conclusion would have to say "depending on who and what the game is". The reason im posting this on The Escapist is cause i need an internet source. Feel free to express your opinions, or to suggest variables i should've controlled. I won't tolerate any sexism here.

 

[I_hate_portal]

In my experience guys can pick it up a lot faster, if a girl has grown up playing games, with her brother or the likes, then they don't seem to be too bad.

But when I let my Fiancée try COD she couldn't get her head round how to move forwards and not look up at the same time, It may just be lack of practise but there is a part of me that thinks some girls are just incapable of playing game, especially new genration games that require more buttons to be used.

 

[fix-the-spade]

Well, the only reliable measure for natural skill would be people who had never played games before. Otherwise practice, genre preferrence and so on affect your result.

In my experience the hardest part is getting women to play games at all, after that they generally have a skill deficit equivalent to several years practice.

 

[Altorin]

your sample size is way to small to draw any really meaningful data from, but for 10th grade science, maybe it'll do.

The answer is, quite simply, there are more skilled male players then there are skilled female players. But there are a lot more male gamers then girl gamers..

In my experience, if a girl games, she typically games pretty hardcore.. and they get good at the games they play. my Girlfriend is an Ace at playing WoW, and a friend of mine is a crack shot in Call of Duty 4.. My mom rocks the casbah in JRPGs, often completing them 100% several times, and my sister can clear Yoshi's Island 100% clearance in about a day.

If they were to all trade games, they'd probably suck (except my CoD4 friend, she's pretty hardcore), but they're really good at what they do play... If that makes any sense to you.. Men tend to be generalized gamers, decent at several genres.. maybe prefering one genre over the others, but not by much... Girls stick to a genre, or even a game, like glue, and don't let go until long after they've mastered it.

 

[mooncalf]

It depends on the individual.
That is all.

Indeed, the question seems insufficient for a meaningful answer to result.

 

[DoctorNick]

This is hard for me to comment on personally, the only gaming I ever do with girls I know is table-top RPG gaming which doesn't really count. The last time I remember actually playing a video game with a girl was more than a year ago, and she was the daughter of a friend-of-a-friend and was FIVE at the time which, once again, doesn't really help us here.

I might have to get back to you all on this topic later, after I get them to actually play a game with me first.

 

[Fortesque]

Depends on the person and if they would be a Casual Gamer or Hardcore Gamer

 

[Yooz]

Depends on game, how long they've been playing it, etc.

 

[Specter_]

I guess my conclusion would have to say "depending on who and what the game is".

This. It always depends on how used you are to the controlls, what your previous experiences are and so on.

My guess would be that there are more good male gamers than female gamers simply for the reason that there are more male gamers.
But if you take 1 of each, it simply depends on the "devotion" they put into a game or gaming at all.

 

[MercurySteam]

Depends on game, how long they've been playing it, etc.

Yeah that's the basis of how good anyone is at a game. And if you play FPS's often, for example, and sart playing a new one, you'd expect yourself to know how to start off.

 

[gigastrike]

Some scientists would say that females would be better because of certain genetics that help accurate muscle movements. From what I've seen, there doesn't seem to be a significant difference.

I do need to ask, however: were the players in DoA button mashing or not?

 

[Pimppeter2]

It depends on how much experience they have with video games in general

You should have picked pairs of girls and guys who grew up on video games

And had them play a game they haven't played before. Sports games would be good, but a sport with not alot of rules

 

[ae86gamer]

It depends on the individual.
That is all.

^This

 

[super_smash_jesus]

Well, if you are making a men versus women in gaming, what is your actual answer to why one excels over the other? Motor skills more developed, higher neuronal activity to visual input, physics of the bodies? Those are just a couple to think about, but make sure you don;t just say "it depends on who the person an game is" because that isn't really research, as much as it is a poll.

Maybe try out different age groups of males versus females. A control group being a male and a female that have never played video games before squaring off against eachother. If women win at the younger age, could that be the result of women developing faster than men, and responses to visual stimuli increased? Who knows, just make sure you have some actual research, where you try to answer a question as un-biased as possible.

 

[purplegothchick]

I think men's brains are more wired to problem solving and things like gaming, as they have a larger natural capacity for spacial awareness. It depends on how your brain is wired and I think that you develop these skills through playing the games, regardless of gender. I was completely useless at FPSs when I first tried them but now my skills have developed and I'm reasonably good.

Well, if you are making a men versus women in gaming, what is your actual answer to why one excels over the other? Motor skills more developed, higher neuronal activity to visual input, physics of the bodies? Those are just a couple to think about, but make sure you don;t just say "it depends on who the person an game is" because that isn't really research, as much as it is a poll.

Maybe try out different age groups of males versus females. A control group being a male and a female that have never played video games before squaring off against eachother. If women win at the younger age, could that be the result of women developing faster than men, and responses to visual stimuli increased? Who knows, just make sure you have some actual research, where you try to answer a question as un-biased as possible.

This is a good idea, otherwise you risk getting a terrible grade for the research not being valid.