ABSTRACT
Internet users have prominently adopted the construction of different self-presentations in the computer mediated environment with the sole purpose of staying in line with the norms (Higgins et al., 1987). This paper focuses on how gender swapping functions as a defensive mechanism against sexism, homophobia and harassment in Massively multiplayer online games (MMOs). It explores the shift of identity in MMOs through female objectification, the co-relation of heterogeneity and specificity of gender representation and sexuality. It also examines why male gamers swap despite the fact that games are perceived as a male dominant platform and provides an analysis on toxic masculinity.
KEYWORDS: MMOs, Gender performativity, Gender swapping, Male dominance platform, Heteronormativity, Trolling, Hypersexualisation
Introduction
In the saturated culture of language and logistics of gaming, gendered ideologies have infiltrated and perpetuated over the contours of the gaming community. The line between virtual and real world is becoming blurrier and more complex to the extent, the player is so engrossed in the virtual realm that the latter perceives it as a reality instead of a medium of fantasy and escapism. These further spurs the unconscious melding of two different identities through gender swapping in the game. Huh and Williams (2010) described in-game gender swapping as a contrast between the gender embodied by the player and that of main character. Bruckman (1999) suggested that the intangibility and malleability of Massively Multiplayer Online (MMOs) video games has rendered gender and identity as questionable while Jenkins (2006) connotes that gender and identity are merely multi-layered social constructs. MMOs have pushed gamers to the peripheral with the prevalence of a spurious hierarchy converging with anarchy. This seemingly stressful venture has forced them to seek gender swapping. Gender swapping is arguably a defense mechanism in MMOs against sexism, homophobia and harassment. Pertaining to the this, it is without an iota of doubt that gamers have adopted gender swapping to 1) eschew unwanted attention and sexual advances, 2) experiment with their desired gender and sexuality and 3) avoid trolls and harassment. The first part of paper adheres to the sexual objectification of women in relation with Frederickson’s theory of objectification and Hall’s notion of identity. The second part explores the normative views inculcated in the society, complying to in-games marriage and the relationship between Goffman and Butler ’s notion of identity performativity. The last part illustrates the ever-present phenomenon of trollism, harassment and identity exploitation.
Hypersexualisation in the gaming space
Despite the emancipation of women in the gaming community, MMOs are still perceived as a male domineering variant. The pervasiveness of masculinity has pushed both male and female players to embody cross gender play so as to envision a sense of equality and power in the games. According to Butler’s study on the performance of gender which suggests that people maintained their identity based on stereotypes, it is justified to claim that the non-normative nature of gender swapping with the very normative behavior of female objectification enhance a certain conundrum of subjectivity which lies in the gameplay itself, hence it cannot be subverted; one can either conform and play the game or not play at all. A study conducted by Hussain and Griffiths (2008) on the Everquest forums drew insight on the particular choice of gamers – 70% of female players have sought gender swapping to impede any notorious innuendo. The prevalence for this behavior results from the hostility raised during multiplayer interactions as the male subject contends to the idea that the female counterpart is transgressing his territory which alternately triggers him to opulently objectify the female gamers through unrequited attention, vulgar language and sexual harassment. While the male gamers seek objectification as a defense to the supposedly intrusion of women, the latter tend to gender swap to counteract any personal attacks. Fox and Tang (2013) reported that 10% of online gamers are victims of sexism. The virulent situation is further exacerbated by the portrayal of the female characters in MMOs. As an illustration to this, League of legends and Tree of savior overtly depicts the vehemence of hyper sexualisationof its female characters through the portrayal of inhumanely curvaceous body line; disturbingly narrow waist, painfully swivel-spine, abnormally large breasts and entrenched skimpy clothes as armor. Though the female avatar is as strong and tough as the male character, hypersexualisation downplays her power and strength. This aspect of encroachment and hypersexualisation stem from the fabric norms of the society where the woman is symptomatic to submission, othering and desirability (Derrida.1997) . This dichotomy between gamers have promiscuously compelled the female gamers to alter their identity in the male-centric platforms to foster a sense of belonging and security. Griffithset al. (2016) highlight that gender swapping among female gamers has ironically envisaged an inexorable momentum of hypermasculinity within their online performance. Jones and Pitman (1982) described this type of self-performance as an attempt to garner attention and expand one’s credentials through flattery. In the same wavelength, the presentation of the female players in the male mediatic space aligned with Goffman’s theory of the presentation of the self in accordance to the notion of the society, where the society here is the virtual gaming community. A comprehensive view of this exchange of identity can be further built on Fredrickson and Roberts (1998)’ s theory of objectification, which discuss about how socializing with others entail women to think of themselves as an object. Nevertheless, this concept reflects and refracts Bucholtz and Hall (2005)’s definition of identity – “a discursive construct that emerges in interaction.” The pertinent question remains “is gender identity falling under the contention of a commodity or is it a threat to our own security?”
Heteronormativity in in-game marriage
Cross-gender play has been an instrumental tool in constructing a synergy of freedom in MMOs where players have the autonomy to experiment with their desired gendered and sexualized identities, thus this synergy of freedom is indicative to the fact that gender swapping acts as a defensive barrier against sexual prejudices. Consequently, this aspect of gender-performativity completely harmonizes with the virtual world, making it more idealistic and materialistic than the reality. The foregoing segment demystifies gender swapping in the online game, Audition which is a Chinese massive multiplayer online game, incorporating a marriage system, commonly referred as in-game marriage. The concept of in-games marriage is a commodified product of cyber-marriage and has later been inculcated in game-scenarios where players articulate and mimic the narration of a marital life. In Audition , the aim of the virtual marriage with other players is to endow the couple with commitment, loyalty and responsibilities which are the basic foundation of a relationship. However, being a replica of the contemporary Chinese post socialist society, the gameplay of Audition sticks with the normative metric of heterosexuality, alienating homosexuality (Jackson,2003). In the same vein, Huh and Williams (2010) claim that to eschew this paradigm of normativity, homosexual players are likely to gender swap as they feel more comfortable in the skin of the opposite genders which in turn allow them to get marry to “their desired gender”. Besides, the impersonation of either male or female to seek intimacy in in-game marriage may unravel homosexual sentiments (Wu et al, 2007). In compliance to this, in-game marriage is intrinsically linked to the Goffman’s metaphor of stage performance in certain aspect of homosexuality. The front stage is the society where players abide by the behavioral and institutionalized norms- conducive for homosexuals to hide their sexual orientation to preclude harassment and conflict whereas Audition represents part of the backstage where gender swapping has permitted them to get acquainted to their true self. In addition to this, in-game marriage engenders the players to rehearse their front stage performance through virtual marriage by learning and experiencing emotional and social intimacy which are part and parcel of the offline society. Owing to the stage performance, Butler (1993) drew on the idea that gender is symptomatic to parody – “some gender performances are more parodic than the others.” It is without an iota of doubt that this concept of parody is a product of Goffman’s notion of performativity. In contrast to this, gender swapping and the connection formed with the avatar choice can be perceived as strategic techniques used by the LGBT gamers to eschew this paradigm of normativity in Audition without regressing their identity and sexuality. However, there exists a fine line between the cross-gender play in regards to homosexuality and its purpose. For instance, straight females create secondary male avatars to marry their friends who are also heterosexual female using the female avatar. This depicts that the gender swap is just a layer that will provide the female gamers with couple related benefits and does not always manifest a defensive nature (Freeman, 2015). The oxymoron inheres that cross-gender play is not incumbent to the reconstruction of the online identity, rather it empowers novelty and fun.
Trolling
The conspicuousness of toxic masculinity in the gaming community has been an antecedent for not only female but also male figures to become prone for gender swapping. The adherence to the swap has been stimulated by trolling. Condis (2015) defined trolling as a coping mechanism of masculine brand of textual identity performance which is embedded in the gaming culture. This discursive performance of masculinity instills a perception of power and privilege. Trolls usually indulge in insidious behaviors with an obnoxious self-presentation either to defame those who posed as a threat to their culture or for entertainment purposes (Wang,1998). Male players including newbies often seek cross-gender play in fear of displaying insufficient masculinity through distinct language or accurate enunciation of heterosexism, thus they developed certain immunity against trolls with gender swapping. Waddell et al. (2013) connoted that by making sexual overtures and interacting with male players in the skin of an attractive female avatar, the main objective is to maintain a competitive advantage over the gamers. A notable example of gender swapping for competitive advantage remains in the MMORPGs, Bless Online where the male players indulging in cross-gender play subsequently target monetary gains and weapons from other players. In spite of their female avatar, these players are still susceptible to trollers. When a male player falls into prey of trollers, they spontaneously lose their mask of masculinity. These forms of trolling become the blueprints of the society’s architecture; they shape contextual performances that permeate within the cultural norms and thus the very same norms, behaviors and attitudes are imported into the fabric of the gameplay and thus become pioneer of our self-presentation. Hence, this masquerade of trollism in the gaming community is a conflation of bogus assumptions about gendered codes seeping into identity. Nonetheless, the act of gender swapping is contingent to trolling being a manoeuvre of identity deception and an intentional fallacy to misled the trolls so as to protect themselves (Addis,2010). Another exemplary example is trollers equally solicit gender swapping to bait others. An exemplary example is demonstrated in The Legend of Zelda in which the protagonist (Link) rescues the princess (Zelda). The troll intentionally devised a plan in which he used the name ‘Zelda’ and the protagonist to exhibit confusion among player. According to Cummings (2015), the enactments of trolls which have been socially constructed out of boredom, revenge or entertainment are described as performative since they are outcomes of corporeality and discursive means; the prevalence adoptions of vices like deception, bullying, inequality and sexism. However, Butler (1993) argued that the appetence to troll other gamers is the consequence of an internal substance which mirrors on the external surface of oneself through our performance but it does not blame the principles of identity as its cause. With regards to the oxymorous argument, performance of the troll is not assessed as a deliberate act, but as a repetitive and allusion practice.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the gameplay and the gaming communities will always endorse the hypersexualisation of female gamers and avatars. Female players have adopted a silent participation through gender swapping, considering it as a coping defensive mechanism – conducive to the pervasiveness of sexism which undeniably promotes the rape culture and reinforces the stereotypes about femininity and masculinity. Despite the adaptation of heteronormative view in Audition, gamers were able to experience opposite gender roles and become acquainted with their ‘real’ identity. Lastly, trollism connotes an interesting relationship of how the aspect of protecting oneself through gender swap intersects with the masquerade and identity. The limitation of the paper was that the research for the heteronormative part was purely based on China post-socialist society. Another contention is that very little research has been conducted on trollism and gender swapping. Further research can explore strategies to subvert sexism on the gaming platforms and a medium to identify and punish the misogynists. The emergence of trollism can also be further examined.
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I think these ideas are very critical to understand the current climate in which females find themselves playing MMO’s. Although I think that there is an issue with the hyper sexualisation of in game characters you have described, I also think that there is an issue with that assumption that woman do not want to play these roles.
I can definitely see both sides to this argument especially as I myself play a lot of games online and offline, sometimes I actually enjoy sometimes playing as a hyper sexualised character in which sometimes is ridiculous or just sexy. I think it’s fun to be able to play as a diverse range or woman from unrealistic and crazy to normal and realistic as all of these when done right can be empowering to play. There is definitely an issue in some circumstances where women are presented poorly don’t get me wrong, and only in the past few years are female leads in games starting to become more normative. There’s definitely a lot of elements at play which make this complex.
Rape culture and inequality definitely hold a grave impact for MMO’s, a common thing woman hear is, “she dressed that way” or she “acted that way, she deserved it” which is a mentality that has very much been adopted into the attitudes of MMO’s, as if somehow a girl wanted to play a game as a certain character she warrants harassment. I definitely think in same cases the lack of diversity in which player can choose their characters and alter them can affect this. But more definitively I think it’s these ideas of rape culture embedded into society which negatively impacts woman who want to play games and therefore have to find ways around it. Which is terrible woman should just be able to enjoy games no matter who they choose to play. I also think we should consider that woman should be portrayed more diversely in games and sometimes wacky after all it’s a medium of art, change and creativity and everyone should have characters they want to play as. But also we need to stop using the hyper sexualisation of female characters in games as scapegoats for a justification in which lets men off with the fact that the character is sexy therefore warrants harassment.
Considering we know gender inequality will not change tomorrow and considering something as alternative to help woman who do feel oppressed playing MMO’s with more options, do you think that if there was more character customisation in games e.g. male and female characters could both be hyper sexualised or not sexualised at all to the player choice this would help female gamers feel more in control and comfortable with the characters they can choose to play?
I really enjoyed reading your conference paper, it made me think a lot more about these issues. Sparking probably more anger in me about the state in which woman find themselves when trying to enjoy hobbies.
Hi CSawbridge,
Thank you for your concrete feedbacks. I really appreciate it.
In my opinion, the exposure to sexually objectified female characters is expected to negatively influence players’ social perception of the self and women in the society. It also has an impact on social perceptions about gendered self-concept.
The in-game male characters are often associated as heroic figures with incredible strength and power. The female character as well is embodied with the strength, intellect, speed but we tend to see that her sexuality is her defining feature, relegating her status to that of an object to be gazed upon. In other words, her role as an action player is tied to her sexuality.
Coming to your question, I completely agree that more character customisation which does not engendered any stereotypes or hyper sexualisation on the respective genders will provide a safer and more controlled gaming environment. In a sense, game developers can come up with more innovative game design aspects such as fantasy, challenge, character design or clear goals and tasks. Character customisation undeniably has an effect on the motivation and willingness of the players to continue with the game. If there is a more effective character customisation rather than just sexualising them, female games will certainly feel certain control and autonomy over the activity and they are more likely to play again. On the other hand, customisation do amplify the psychological effects through increased identification with one’s character, thus, it may also increase the enjoyment in playing in the virtual world.
Hi SPeeroo,
Thank you for your reply to my comment, I agree that the exposure to sexually objectified females feeds into the contexts of real life negatively as it provides contexts in which males see woman/female characters as objects which translates into real life negatively. I think that the link between social perceptions of woman is negatively impacts by this. I think it’s sad that female characters can only be viewed through their sexuality, like I said in my previous comment I do think that there is something cool as playing as a character that is sexy, but I also think that the negativity in that hinders the reactions and socialisation a player can experience when playing these characters.
In a utopian society we would be able to just play as a character no matter how they looked and not be treated differently, but until things change in the treatment of woman in general that is an impossible reality.
Thank you for your reply to my question, I think character customisation would definitely help too, but I also think that it really sucks that we have to create so many allowances in society for people that are abusing their power and privilege to make other people feel unsafe or insecure in their favourite places in this case games.
I still have so many feelings on this issue, It’s definitely not all males (obviously) but the percentage that do harass woman on games, I don’t believe it’s solely based on the characters woman play, I think it’s more the way in which they view the female gender as a whole.
I guess it’s like I said I think that hyper sexualisation is in part an issue, there are definitely positive aspects linked to identity and freedom in games to play as any character as well as negative the way in which those characters are portrayed. But more often than not I feel that it is used as a scapegoat for the bigger issue at hand which is straight up gender inequality and hate which fuels this gross toxicity in the gaming community against female gamers.
Do you think that it is used somewhat as a scapegoat for toxic behaviour?
I think your paper is really excellent and super relevant, it’s made me think and talks lots with my friends about these contexts and how critical they are to thinking about for the future of gaming and female gamers.
Thanks, Casey!
Definitely, the portrayal of the characters do seem as a scapegoat for the toxic behavior. It is somehow a small detail of the bigger picture. I do think that the main reason for this toxicity is the patriarchal norms that echo misogyny and sexism. Games have always marketed themselves as “something for dudes”. Similarly, in the real world, we have few female game developers. Since the status quo in games is gradually changing, some of male gamers often perceived it as threat and as a coping defence, they start devaluing the female players. The gaming industry has long remained silent on these abuse or attacks.
To a certain extent, I do think that some gamers view the amplification of the voices of marginalized group in the gaming sphere as a suppression to their own voice, thus leading to sexism or racism. What are you views on that?
I definitely agree, I especially saw this in the ridiculousness of Battlefield V in that the cover as female character/ inclusion of female characters with bigger roles. Battlefield before that very much pandered to a male audience and I think the sense of ownership in that saw that the inclusion of females turned into a frenzy of hate and complaints for something that seems so ridiculous.
As more woman game, more men loose their power as the main and only consumers of games. Which is excellent, game are not just for men nor woman, they are for everyone and therefore should be enjoyable to everyone.
I think that its time that woman or marginalised groups had in part a say of what they want in video games. Because really that’s when we start seeing real and interesting stories translated into games.
I think its easy to see how these groups that have longed driven the gaming community are sensing a lose of power and feeling insecure, and they shouldn’t. They should see a shift in the industry an embrace it as it is what will make the industry push into the future.
Very interesting ideas.
This is really interesting to read and I can totally agree with you as I am a girl gamer. I get massively judged when I game and am sometimes tempted to gender swap as well.
The fact some skins in MMOs are practically sexual does not help either. Hopefully, in the future, we can game peacefully and be treated better.
Hi Shameema,
I enjoyed reading your conference paper as you’ve provided some interesting points on gender swapping as a tool to cope with sexism, homophobia and harassment. The hypersexualisation of female gamers and characters as well as trollism in the gaming platform have definitely forced gamers to tend to gender swapping. What are your thoughts on the change in the behavioral patterns of the players when they gender swap?
I’ve really enjoyed reading your conference paper. It is really interesting and it has made me ponder on these issues. After reading that I realize that I’ve been a passive gamer. While playing i’ve never took these issues into consideration.
This paper was well discussed and analyzed as the issues on gaming platforms are not often discussed. Through this paper, I’ve learned some issues happened in the gaming world as I’m not very interested in those things. What do you think of gender swapping in those gaming platforms especially female creating a male persona?
Hi MSeechurn,
Thank you for taking time to read my paper.
I firmly believe that gender swapping acts as a defensive mechanism which allows gamers to play more comfortably. The main reason for female players to gender swap is to protect themselves from unwanted attention or harassment from other players. Some gamers even avoid talking to other members with their own voices and preferred to text to maintain the illusion. Since women don’t speak up about in-game sexism, male gamers tend to take advantage of the situation. This is yet another factor which has pushed female players to seek gender swap in the male dominant society. By gender swapping, the players feel free from any unpleasant comments and their gaming experience become more enjoyable. I do believe that nowadays, there’s more support for female gamers; more female gamers are coming forward, but there’s still that fear of harassment and prejudices.
This is a very interesting conference paper. Firstly, I’d like to say that as a girl gamer who is intensely into MMORPGs, when it comes to MMOs, males really do chose to play as a female only for the sake of the armors and skins made available for the female characters, as they are designed better compared to the male ones. Secondly, a girl, in an MMO would rarely, likely to go for a gender swapping for the males body type, which goes back to what I stated above, the armors and skins, and girls are mostly tempted to play as their own gender. In MMO, a girl would go for a male character only for the trolling aspect of the game or as part of the role playing. Considering only the MMOs, now then it comes other game type, like Overwatch for example, which is an FPS, First person shooting, game, both genders would normally play a character whose abilities matches their skills, also they cannot much edit the armors, because 1) they dont have it and 2) only skins from the game is available. Back to MMOs, I do agree much with you that the armors and Skins made for some characters on MMOs, especially when it comes to the female body, are much sexualized, and it is true that some people uses their online identity to gain something from other players, and it becomes a habit from these people. One should be careful much when gaming online. Though I would like to say that from an observation from 2 MMOs that I play, One being Guild Wars 2 and the other being Revelation Online. GW2 is from the west, and though is sexualized, it is less compared to RO, which is more sexualized, being from the east. GW2 also has more “realistic” features for its characters, compared to what RO has for its characters, giving them, more of that doll like appearance, though it can be modified, the default face features, are very doll like. Based on a research I made before for an essay on the sexualization of the female body in games, there was an article that I read which stated that MMOs and any other type of games, sexualized the female body as a way to attract more male players, which I think is in a way dumb, because someone who enjoys gaming, will not go play something just for the characters. Personally, for me before I play something, I take into consideration, the gameplay, the storyline and the graphics of the game.
Hi Shameema,
I enjoyed reading your paper. You have highlighted interesting points on the MMO’s concept. It is indeed true how despite women’s emancipation in the gaming industry in today’s society, the MMO’s is still viewed as being a male dominant game. You have also described other facts on how to deal with issues such as homophobia, harassment and sexism. Being a passive gamer in the past, I never thought that these issues existed really.
You can check my paper out. It is related to online dating and the fake identity that is projected by online daters. https://networkconference.netstudies.org/2019Curtin/2019/05/06/fake-identity-through-online-dating-applications/
Kind regards,
KRamdenee
Hi SPeeroo ,
I find your paper quite interesting what actually did my attention was your catchy title ‘Gender Swapping as a Defensive Mechanism in MMOs’.I completely agree with your arguments but what i would like to know is how did you come up with this title in specific? Is it from an observation or from a personal experience ?
Hi Devanee,
Thank for you for taking time to read my paper. I really appreciate your constructive feedbacks.
I came up with this title after doing ample research on gender swapping and analyzing the gameplay of MMOs. I’ve realized that many players tend to use gender swapping to avoid certain problems that exist in the gaming sphere and also to protect themselves against toxic players.
Hi SPeeroo,
Thank you for actually replying to my feedbacks!!
well you just mention your research on gender swapping don’t you think that this might have a repercussion on the identity of the individual in question ??
Regards
Devanee
Hi SPeeroo,
This was a really compelling paper! You have thoroughly examined the use of gender swapping in MMOs and have provided some great insights into why players utilise this affordance! I found your analysis of Audition really interesting, I have not heard of the game before and it was more than thought-provoking. In particular, I thought it to be quite surprising that these types of games are still reflective of the context in which they are built, and how users still maintain and aim to live up to the social standards established within that context rather than defying expectations or norms. Online game spaces, I believe, are often thought of to be completely separate to the offline world where users can express their true self, but it appears that within Audition, users are still enforcing social values, norms and standards.
I rarely play MMOs, and therefore I do not know much about them, but in regards to the hypersexualisation of female characters, I wonder whether there are mods or any bottom-up efforts that are trying to challenge this issue? Is it generally expected and accepted to have this objectification of women reflected in MMOs? Or are developers and players attempting to represent female characters in a more modern light? Are you aware of any examples that do this?
Looking forward to your reply,
Thank you,
Devyn 🙂
If you’d like to read a paper located within the stream Communities and Web 2.0, please feel free to read mine at https://networkconference.netstudies.org/2019Curtin/2019/05/05/active-now-how-web-2-0-allows-for-the-formation-of-online-communities-capable-of-initiating-change-through-activism/
Hi Devyn,
Thank for you for taking time to read my paper. I really appreciate your constructive feedbacks.
I do think that online gaming landscape has gradually merged with the offline world in terms of augmented reality (AR) – an innovative technology that adds virtual element to the offline physical world. In the future, we may see AR as an add-on to existing MMOs and this will bring MMOs and other online games towards a new dimension. If the AR trend does top the list, we will be slaying or striking enemies from the coffee shop table.
Coming to your question, to some extent, game conversion mods may do the trick to decrease hypersexualisation of in-game characters as they have the ability to add and modify the character appearance or capabilities, opponent bots, play levels among others. However, there are some of the Nexus mods which literally changed every woman in the game into sexualised beings with skimpy clothes and inhumane features.
I believe that the objectification of women in MMOs has become such a common occurrence to the extent that it is generally accepted and expected. And I found this very disturbing as this acceptance results from the normative view of female objectification in the society. Another factor that I think contributed to this vile acceptance is the mindset of game developers and gamers – those in-game characters are not real anyway. The noted objectification does not literally portray the games as sexist but it does show us the harmful depiction of the women and how it needs to change. And yes, hypersexualisation of female in-game characters corresponds to a higher sale. Furthermore, the idea of objectification is reinforced with female characters playing the damsel in distress – a very popular stereotype still accepted in the modern society. A basic example is Princess Peach in Super Mario and Zelda. The women are portrayed as weak, helpless, need to be saved by men and are considered as desirable prize at the end of the quest. And sometimes, when the female characters are fully capable and powerful as much as the hero, they’re still objectified by their clothes, camera angles or poses. This somehow speaks volume about women’s social roles. I do think that this problem of objectification originates from the absence of women in the gaming industry – women only account to 11% of game designers and 3% of programmers. As a result, they are often left out or play secondary roles. And if they attempt to speak up or create diverse gameplays, their jobs are at threat. Some years back, when a male game designer tweeted “Why are there so few lady game creators?”, the tweet sparked a hashtag #1ReasonWhy which brought several women in the game industry to voice out about the disparity and inequal treatment.
Hi Speeroo,
I really enjoyed reading your paper and it’s always interesting to read about how gender is represented in video games, especially in its characters. I must say I have rarely thought about this kind of hyper-sexualisation of female characters that occurs in games, but more recently I have been thinking about not only the unnecessary sexualisation of characters in games, but also sometimes the lack of female characters in general in some games, which is troubling. How do you think gaming companies should change this in the future? Do you think there is perhaps a lack of female representation in some gaming companies themselves that may lead to this unbalanced representation in the games themselves?
Reading your paper has raised many issues I have not thought about and opened my mind to the idea of gender swapping, as I had not read about it before. It is understandable that this occurs, and I myself have been involved in gaming communities where women have felt uncomfortable playing as female characters because they are so over-sexualised. It seems ridiculous at this point that this would occur.
There seems to be a wide variety of male characters with all sorts of different portrayals but unfortunately it doesn’t hold the same for female characters especially in MMORPGs, how do you think this needs to change? Do you think it deters from womens’ experience of gameplay when these characters are presented in this way?
Thanks for the great read, Louis
Hi Louis,
Thank for you for taking time to read my paper. I really appreciate your constructive feedbacks.
Gaming companies will have to incorporate more character customisation in their game design. And to attain a diversity in the customisation, the game industries have to employ diverse people – traditionally under-represented people especially women so as they may create content for players that are somehow ‘their reflections’, to which I totally agree that the lack of female representation in the gaming companies has entailed a mediocre representation of female in-game characters. Thus, the solution to change this issue is to eradicate the imbalanced depiction of minorities in the gaming industry. Also, I would like to point out that the experiences of women already working in the industry is synonymous to systemic sexism and harassment which in turn restrained them to participate fully. And, I do think that it is high time for the gaming industry to address these misogynistic attitudes (the culture of sexism and hostility).
The under-representation and self-objection of women do have an impact on the experience of the female players as the character customisation itself plays a big role in motivating the players to play, to have control and autonomy over the activity. Recent games like Mirror’s Edge or Tom Raider reboot have given the female characters a more realistic and natural appeal. However, since many games encourage sexism and hostility towards women, the latter prefer to gender-swap to enjoy their gaming experience.
Hi SPeeroo,
An interesting read, with a specific topic I have not really read about before. I think the idea of gender-swapping by female players in order to defend themselves or avoid forms of harassment is very true, and you cover these elements well.
However I do have a question, you state in your conclusion that “gameplay and the gaming communities will always endorse the hypersexualisation of female gamers and avatars” and admit that female gamers are participating within this by gender-swapping, but I would like to ask why you think this hyper sexualisation of women within gaming is something that will be always endorsed?
Surely there are movements beyond this as the ever-growing female participation in gaming becomes more and more involved, therefore their voice against this can only get louder.
I look forward to your reply,
Sophie
Hi Sophie,
Thank you for taking time to read my paper. I really appreciate your constructive feedbacks.
Definitely, the participation of women in the gaming sphere is increasing but the disturbing thing is that their voices often get stifled by the still male-dominant society. I do believe that the hypersexualisation in the gaming sphere will continue to prevail as the media has clearly made it a social and acceptable norm. Moreover, the gaming industry has commodified the female figure; as a matter of fact, the sales of “sexualized games” have sky-rocketed and the industry will undeniably tend to profit-making. However, I think that the inclusion of more and more women in the gaming industry may do the trick to decrease the objectification.
Hi SPeeroo,
I thoroughly enjoyed your paper and find that this is such a relevant topic and don’t often get the chance to read about issues such as this, so thank you so much for writing about this issue. It is such a scary thought that even issues like this transcend through platforms such as gaming. You write about how male gamers objectify women as a defense mechanism to the latter’s supposed intrusion which I found quite interesting. Just a question I want to throw out there, as a female and very casual player of MMORPG, I fortunately have not been mistreated on any online gaming platforms yet, so I’m not quite sure to what degree these women are being put through. Do you think that, apart from the gender-swapping, this harassment may influence females to outright just quit the game at all? And if so, would this have any implications on why and how gaming communities are so heavily male dominated?
Another interesting point that you wrote about was the alienation of homosexuality in the Chinese game. I found it quite interesting, although it is sad, but at least allows for the user to feel more comfortable and thus marry their ‘desired gender’.
Thanks for such a critical and thought provoking paper!
Thanks,
Patricia
Hi SPeeroo,
Firstly, I must express my appreciation at how well written your paper is, you have explored a really complicated issue but yet conveyed it in such a strategic and practical form. Your paper and argument is such a valid subject in this day and age where it is incredibly challenging to understand that gender inequality is still an issue, much like the days when black and white print existed. I believe however, that this issues isn’t the games itself, but rather, a wider societal issue that is transferred. That means, if we can solve gender inequality in society (which is a massive task in hand), then gender inequality within games will definitely be reduced or even, completely diminished. Reading your paper made me remember to the times I used to play GTA and there will be common (and very obvious) occurrence of gender swapping, at times like you said, commodified in terms of their outfits but more importantly the derogatory connotations associated with the female gender in all aspects of the game.
I like how you highlighted the irony that we perceive games as a reality, when it really is just a fantasy and an escapism, the “third place” like my paper and many others in this stream have identified. This is interesting to note because players act like they’re in a fantasy where they can gender swap, an escapism where their actions have no real consequences and they do all of this, because they have the confidence to perceive as if they are acting in the real world (reality). I also found it interesting with your example of Audition, on how reinforcing norms such as marriage is between a man and a woman, is heterosexuality and alienating homosexuality. Do you mind sharing the reading you got this from (Jackson, 2003)? I was really interested and tried googling it but had no luck finding it. Lastly, I also thought you did really well in correlating Goffman’s stage performance into this topic, that in Audition, at the front players abide by not revealing their homosexuality but at the back they gender swap.
If I do have to provide one suggestion to this paper, I would like to see it bring to the table the idea of mics in game, like how does gender swapping work when there is party chats and it becomes obvious that a girl’s voice is speaking and her avatar is a male?
I do have a a couple of questions too if you don’t mind!
– You discussed about females wanting to gender swap, do you think (vice-versa) males that gender swap do it to gain some sort of attention, more of like a humour for self-satisfaction? As they wouldn’t feel anything if there was attack on the female gender that they choose.
– Audition must be released before 2003 (based on the reading’s year), a time where homosexuality issue isn’t as major as it is today where nations such as Taiwan have legalised same-sex marriage (the first Asian state). Do you think games that alienate homosexuality and reinforces gender inequality are still prevalent today in our latest titles/releases?
Good work once again!
Chris.
Hi SPeeroo,
I completely enjoyed reading this paper. I am not very familiar with online gaming or how it works but the topics you developed on were thought-provoking. I used to think that being online allowed players to be more open and authentic and you helped me change this perception. What inspired you to write this paper and how did you come up with this title?
-Pooja.