2002-09-11T20:43:00.000-07:00

“Girls And Video Games” is a much longer topic to discuss than “Girls IN Video Games,” Because the latter only covers about 3 games. It’s not common to come across any female characters in games. We’ve discussed Samus Aran and Lara Croft, which are very major characters in critically acclaimed and commercially successful games. But that’s only two that I can think of. I could maybe think of some more if I really tried and brainstormed a bit, but I shouldn’t have to. Any body could rattle off 100 male characters off of the top of their head before they stopped to take a breath and spat off 100 more. Sure there are some women in games, but I don’t remember their names. Whenever there is a female, it’s usually one that is there to compliment a male. It’s very common in games, especially side-scrollers, to make a male character that has the features of being strong but slightly slow, and a female that is quicker, but considerably weaker. For example, Sega’s “Streets of Rage,” or any sequel to “Final Fight.” And in the original “Final Fight,” all 3 characters were men. Is this trend because girls don’t play video games and the industry doesn’t need to cater to them? Certainly not. There is a very significant portion of females who play video games and still keep them profitable and competitive. Maybe girls don’t play games because none are available to them. It’s my personal experience that I have noticed many girls tend to gravitate towards games in certain genres, especially racing games. When I ask a girl why that is, they usually tell me because it’s easier, but also because they’re not interested in shooting prostitutes in GTA 3, although I know plenty that do enjoy it. As a male, I wouldn’t be offended to see games geared towards women. And when I say that, I don’t intend for them to be stereotypical and be about having sleepovers and pillow fights. I mean perhaps a start would be to have female characters in strong roles, and offer a greater variety. Oh, it took me this long to think of it, but the sorceress in Diablo II is by far the most powerful character out of the seven you can be. I only took me 300 words to come up with one.