Jezebel 
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New York, 8:58 AM
Thu Nov 12
67 posts in the last 24 hours
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09/25/09
09/25/09
When I was young I determined that platformers, puzzle games, fighting games, and RPGs were fun. I pretty much stick to those types of games now as an adult. I may try a shooter if the premise seems especially interesting, but by and large they don't interest me. I tend to think that the woman in her 30s who plays Bejeweled all day is highly unlikely to ever branch out into a different type of game from what she has already determined she likes. It's just far, far too big a leap to go from playing a colorful pick-up-and-play puzzler to a gritty space marine epic. Even with male gamers, there's plenty who have a particular genre or two they won't touch as a matter of course, so it really shouldn't come as much of a surprise to them that the lady who likes Nintendogs and Cake Mania is probably never going to move on to Street Fighter.
That said, I really doubt the "hardcore" game market is going to dry up anytime soon even if the casual market expands. Yet to hear some of these dudes go on, you'd think casual games are going to "kill" the video game industry. They need to just deal with the fact that they exist and get over it - their gritty space marine epics will still be around, too.
09/25/09
09/25/09
That aspect, along with the casual nature of the games, the friendly environment, and the lack of trying to pigeonhole "girly" things, but make them available as an option, meant that it tested well and is played by quite a few girls and women.
A lot of the problem with any industry like this (and I'd put my own, plus film and other entertainment mediums in this) that can be very male dominated is that they're often just hostile to women. I've heard nightmare stories about women who played anonymously in guilds in various games that, when their gender was discovered, ended up harassed sexually/verbally, until they left. And women players often have to prove themselves in a way male players don't, because it's not based on their gender. They might have to prove themselves as a player...but not as a man. For women, they have to prove themselves as a girl-gamer.
09/25/09
Really?
I feel like I live a sheltered existence.
I know 1 woman that owns a game console and its only because she was given it free at work.
Who are all these women?
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:)
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I tend to stay away from games where the main character I'm playing is female. True story, I'm about half way through Metroid once and my ex dropped the bomb that I was playing a female character. I played a little longer then put it down. Eventually I sold it. Sure, when it came to Portal I sucked it up, but the game was just worth it. I really have no idea why I'm like this.
I am trying to get over this. When I'm playing Fallout 3 I do play as a female character. I'm ashamed to admit I have the Black Widow Perk, though.
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09/25/09
NinjaTheory got it right with Heavenly Sword though, I have to say that it's quite liberating for me to show my 5 year old girl a female protagonist that's not either 'girlie-girl' or a weak idiot.
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Hey! Don't forget the creepy little girls in gaming!
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