In the early days of the last generation the gaming world was rocked by the brand new introduction of "Boob physics". This allowed for a drastic change in female representation in games. Women began appearing as large breasted insanely attractive sex dolls. This representation then begs the question, are video games derogatory? Some might say no its simple fantasy and others might state that it gives an unrealistic view of women.

TBH I'm not sure. Maybe in the sense that all the best characters are men, and women tend to be love interests/whores

i dont think so because almost every girl i go to school with wears skirts up to their stomachs and doesnt button their shirts. those, my friends, are sluts. if i didnt know better, i would think every girl looked like that. the certianly arent dressing like that because they like to look at it..

This is your third topic that has been done to death. And obviously, it really just depends on the game. Pretty much almost every game in existence is not, but games like the GTA series or games like Soul Calibur (see Ivy) can easily be considered derogatory. Shouldn't need others to clarify that for you.

Breast Physics have been around since Fatal Fury 2 (1993).

I'm sorry but I'm new.

Mirrors Edge... strong female protagonist... sells atrociously.
Beyond Good and Evil... strong female protagonist... sells atrociously.
Dreamfall... strong female protagonist... sells atrociously.
Culpa Innata... strong female protagonist... sells... wait, Culpa what?

etc.

chest physics = $

I actually find itreally funny playing games like Soul Calibur and watching characters toss their chest around, knocking enemies to ground (not really but you get my point). Games are also derogatory against men too. Just about every character is some well built, nicely musceled dude with perfectly cut hair for his high cheeks and a bit of stubble. Do all guys look like this? Are all guys supposed to look like this? Do guys find this offensive? i don't mind the eye candy, and I am sure guys don't mind watching Kratos find the hidden women and doing naughty things ^_^

It works both ways.

http://www.endsights.com/?p=464

First we have to examine the question asked: Given how women are portrayed in video games as love interests (I would debate that, but that's neither here nor there), is this derogatory? Well, yes and no. Is it derogatory to portray the ideal? People hold Marylin Munroe up as a sex symbol, is that wrong? No, we just acknowledge her excellence and honor her appropriately. People hold sports stars up as heroes, and use them as motivational tools to excel in certain areas.

On the other hand, does this portrayal of ideals cause women to feel insignificant, and if so is it directly due to the portrayal, or is that just a reaction because of insecurities? If a child is having problems excelling in sport, do his parents hand a picture of a sports star on his wall? No, they encourage him to find other pursuits to which he is more suited. So the real problem isn't "Are video games derogatory to women?", it's "How can we help women (if they need it, of course) deal with their insecurities and move on to other areas?

Just my view.

well they are derogatory to women just as much as they are to men. i mean all guys are muscle bound and gun crazy

and yes this topic has been done to death

The problem is that women are judged almost entirely on their looks. You can't treat both sexes the same.

It strikes me that no one would ever bother asking if video games are derogatory to men because video game men are handsome and muscular. Why is that?

Does that indicate a view that women are more delicate and more insecure than men? Is that correct? Should it be correct? Is it derogatory to believe women are so much more insecure than men?

Also, why is it derogatory to women to portray a woman as being attractive and having large breasts? Are attractive large breasted real life women derogatory to women?

Grimm91:
In the early days of the last generation the gaming world was rocked by the brand new introduction of "Boob physics". This allowed for a drastic change in female representation in games. Women began appearing as large breasted insanely attractive sex dolls. This representation then begs the question, are video games derogatory? Some might say no its simple fantasy and others might state that it gives an unrealistic view of women.

I lost track when I read the words boob physics. I didnt want to sound stupid in my post so I reasearched boob physics to get a better understanding of the topic. I reasearched for hours if you know what I mean.

But in all seriousness, If a fat chick was my love interest It would throw me off. I dont mean to sound sexist but guys like pretty girls and hate ugly girls at first site. since we cant emmotionally attach the only way devs can make us love them is with boob physics. I still dont understand why hammer had to look like fat white naruko from heavenly sword.

Until AI is out of the uncanny valley we will remain with boob physics. And what strait male could possibly object to this?

CmdrGoob:
It strikes me that no one would ever bother asking if video games are derogatory to men because video game men are handsome and muscular. Why is that?

Does that indicate a view that women are more delicate and more insecure than men? Is that correct? Should it be correct? Is it derogatory to believe women are so much more insecure than men?

Also, why is it derogatory to women to portray a woman as being attractive and having large breasts? Are attractive large breasted real life women derogatory to women?

Well the male concept of beauty for himself is almost exactly the same as the concept women have for men. It's hard to create a problem when the concepts are all but legion. It also is important to realize that men in western cultures really are not allowed to complain about this sort of thing at all. (Much in the same way heterosexual men are never in abusive relationships.)

Furthermore the male concept of beauty for women is different enough from what is remotely attainable by a human being that it can cause problems when it comes to female self-esteem. (This is no different than what happens when hyper-thin (and ironically vaguely masculine) supermodels are held up as the goal for women.)

Until AI is out of the uncanny valley we will remain with boob physics. And what strait male could possibly object to this?[/quote]

Well ones with actual women that they love and care for but most other men well I always just thought that they were desperate.

Compare video games to the more common brand of action films, then come back to me with which you think is the most derogatory. I'm not talking physically, cos physical ideals are all part of the escapism - and heck, you think the models on magazine covers look like that before the digital artists were set to work? I'm talking about role, plot relevance and all that jazz. Been done to death before in all those 'girl gamer' threads, but I honestly believe that game developers are beginning to realise that no-one is deeply interested in plastic, unbelievable characters of either gender. That is, slowly realise.

Its a form of media, so yeah, there's gonna be plenty of examples.

Duh.

in my opinion, it does, and as a male i find it offensive that they put girls in a game, only to have them be partially nude or something in the hopes of selling a few more copies too a few 14 year old guys looking to jerk of haha :P. however there are many games that have and continue to potray women less as sex symbols and more as actual characters.

it's like when they make a movie in 3D, if you take away how awesome 3D is, you're left with a subpar movie haha

Grimm91:

Well ones with actual women that they love and care for but most other men well I always just thought that they were desperate.

Im not talking about soul caliber 4 were they choke men to death with their legs(hawt btw)

Im talking about games with story. I usually like to kill off characters when im done with them if the game allows like in fable 2 I murdered all 20 of my wives. Why? because I wasnt emotionally attached because they were in the uncanny valley. If they all behave the same and talk the same then I have a better chance of befriending a rock. the only time I cared for a character was my dog in Fallout 3 and fable 2. They had the only voice of its kind and was lovable.

Also for example the new prince of persia. If Eleka was a 300 pound acne riddled bald 8 foot monster I would run from her. but she is hot so I emotionally attach to her because that is how the male brain works for the most part.

Do you think its derogotory? and what is your gender if you dont mind answering that question?

I say no. Because boobs jiggle. They seriously do. While, yes, it is overused... it's only overdone in extreme cases like Dead or Alive. And other games that have it don't overdo it. Boobs jiggle and they just want to be... "realistic".

Though, why they couldn't use the processing power to make something ELSE better is beyond. I couldn't say what, but really... maybe the graphics could be improved a little bit instead?

Video games show pretty people, both men and women, sex sells, there's nothing else too it. It is derogatory to women, but if they hope that games change for them,they're going to be surprised.

As far as the argument about how in shape they all are you gotta remember that a lot of these games your running around fighting and kicking ass for hours at a time. If you were to do this every day you would be in fantastic shape.

I took a look at some screenshots for X-blades and frankly I don't see why Ayumi can't wear pants by default. What she is wearing just strikes me as unnecessary. This of course wouldn't be so bothersome if there were more Faiths out there to balance things out. The sad thing is X-blades strikes me as somehow slightly less retarded than Damnation.

Shurikens and Lightning:

Grimm91:

Well ones with actual women that they love and care for but most other men well I always just thought that they were desperate.

Im not talking about soul caliber 4 were they choke men to death with their legs(hawt btw)

Im talking about games with story. I usually like to kill off characters when im done with them if the game allows like in fable 2 I murdered all 20 of my wives. Why? because I wasnt emotionally attached because they were in the uncanny valley. If they all behave the same and talk the same then I have a better chance of befriending a rock. the only time I cared for a character was my dog in Fallout 3 and fable 2. They had the only voice of its kind and was lovable.

Also for example the new prince of persia. If Eleka was a 300 pound acne riddled bald 8 foot monster I would run from her. but she is hot so I emotionally attach to her because that is how the male brain works for the most part.

Do you think its derogotory? and what is your gender if you dont mind answering that
question?

I'm male. I just really got annoyed at people whom just sit there and stare at pixled tittys
for hours and drool over digital girls.

I am male, and I think about 80% of all female video game characters are stereotypes based on what nerds think. Come to think of it, 80% of ALL video game characters are like that.

Nothing is inherantly offensive, it is only when we place context and meaning into something that it becomes derogatory or complimenting.

Take a picture of Ivy from Soul Calibur, show it to someone with no explanation or details as to who she is or what she does and ask what they think of her. You'll get a mixture of responses this way.

Take that same picture and show it to someone with the explanation that she is one of the most powerful characters in a fighting game who is strong and assertive, then ask what they think, you'll probably get remarks about her being interesting and empowering.

Finally, same picture, show it to someone but this time tell them that she is a sex-slave who is weak willed and always aims to please her master/mistress, then ask them what they think, you'll probably get diasapproving and offended replies.

If you are looking for something to offend you then you will probably find it, even if no offence was intended.

...

Please inform the O.P. that any media can be derogatory to women.

And tell him that while some games are, the vast majority have nothing to do with the bouncing, jiggling tits that every woman has.

Not unless you want it to be.

/thread

DOAX: sexist. GTAIV: not so much. It's not derogatory, they're just part of a crime syndicate.

Well, I don't mind how the women look in video games, just so long as they have an awesome personality. I wouldn't mind if Alex from HL was a bit more fashion-modelish, then again, HL is more realistic about this in general, female and male, so w/e.