In this week's lecture, we were paid a visit by game publishers Rebel Play. The question posed for us was:
Do media platforms and genres have specific gender appeal? Why don't more women play console games?
As part of Rebel Play's presentation, we were shown that according to statistics, only 42% of gamers are women, wheras 58% are men. What factors could contribute to these statistics?
Firstly, I think age contributes to the reasons why women don't play console games. Speaking from a female's perspective, when I was around nine years old, I played video games every day. As I grew older, however, following the influences of older females around me, I became more interested in going shopping with my friends, my ballet classes and make up. Perhaps a lack in games to suit these interests were the reason that girls of my age lost interest in playing games? Men, on the other hand, tend to be brought up to enjoy sports and video games, therefore maintaining their interest in playing video games. Also, as generations change, I think that more people, both male and female, will play video games, as a wider range of games are being developed to suit different audiences. Ten years ago, not as many consoles were around; however today, there is a wide range to choose from, such as Playstation, Xbox, Nintendo DS and Nintendo Wii. It has been suggested that the Nintendo DS and Nintendo Wii are aimed at a female audience, as females have been used to advertise these consoles, and also because the design of them is more sleek.
Do media platforms and genres have specific gender appeal? Why don't more women play console games?
As part of Rebel Play's presentation, we were shown that according to statistics, only 42% of gamers are women, wheras 58% are men. What factors could contribute to these statistics?
Firstly, I think age contributes to the reasons why women don't play console games. Speaking from a female's perspective, when I was around nine years old, I played video games every day. As I grew older, however, following the influences of older females around me, I became more interested in going shopping with my friends, my ballet classes and make up. Perhaps a lack in games to suit these interests were the reason that girls of my age lost interest in playing games? Men, on the other hand, tend to be brought up to enjoy sports and video games, therefore maintaining their interest in playing video games. Also, as generations change, I think that more people, both male and female, will play video games, as a wider range of games are being developed to suit different audiences. Ten years ago, not as many consoles were around; however today, there is a wide range to choose from, such as Playstation, Xbox, Nintendo DS and Nintendo Wii. It has been suggested that the Nintendo DS and Nintendo Wii are aimed at a female audience, as females have been used to advertise these consoles, and also because the design of them is more sleek.
Girls Aloud appeared in an advertisement for the Nintendo DS Lite. Here it is shown that the DS is also available in a wide range of colours including red, pink and blue which means that it can be tailored to meet the preferences of a wide audience.
This is a promotional picture for the Nintendo Wii. A girl's hands are used to model the small and sleek Wii remote.
On this PS3 advert, however, a male's body is shown to advertise the console, suggesting that it is aimed at a male audience.
Characters and the way they are portrayed in a game may play a part in influencing who plays the game. I will use Tomb Raider as an example. This game may be seen from some perspectives as glorifying females; it is not often that females are given the role of the heroic figure in games. This may attract girls to the game as it would make them feel powerful. However, an article written by a female gamer suggests that one of the reasons that girls don't play games is because they are put off by the sexualization of the female characters. One girl writes about "Lara Croft Sydrome":
I couldn’t wait to load and play Tomb Raider when it first came out, but when I saw Lara, I just couldn’t take the game seriously. The giant twin pyramids mounted onto her chest look like something she could use to impale her enemies. In many ways her kick-butt presence is a triumph, but the designers’ decision to sexualize her to the point of deformity angered me. I couldn’t get past her proportions, so I put the game away.
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