Many games these days usually stereotype girls into a category that mainly focuses on the satisfaction of male viewers. In 2004, a female fighting game named Rumble Roses was released. The game featured a over 20 female characters. The women were classified into sexualized versions (complete with matching sexy outfits) of cheerleader, teacher, nurse, and ninja. While initially sounding like costumes from a lingerie catalog, these characters have emotional responses and fruitful backgrounds.
The ladies' strive to fight for their various wants in life such as wanting to sing, win, and wrestle. The accredited female characters challenge women's assumed characteristics by wrestling one another in the dirt. The dominant male view clearly exists as the characters tackle one another and end up in very sexualized, bewildering positions. One may note that similar things happen even when the female character is the protagonist.
photo by: BITTERLY
"The tired gameplay certainly seems a secondary concern to the developers. Sure, there is a mediocre wrestling game in here somewhere, but Rumble Roses‘s main concern is with women, or more specifically, their well-rounded body parts."-Ryan Smith
Believe it or not, at one time there were games that took a stab at empowering the female character and gamer. Take NES's original Metroid for example. Even though Samus Aran is discovered as female at the end of the game, her identity is completely hindered during the actual game play. When Samus is revealed as a woman in the end, one might assume that the point is to prove that women are just as strong as women. To contradict that statement, men might also feel that a female hero is weak leading to their disappointment in the game all in all.
"As you play through the game the character gets more powerful and you start feeling pretty badass with this butch, bounty hunter character at your control. The thing is, when you get to the end of the game you get a peak under the suit… and would you know it, Samus is a girl!"- Jim Lockey, The Representation of Women in Video Games
photo by: baroque_vulcan
As Lockey notes, Samus' character was created in the 80's to notion that video games are not sexist. Many gamers will cite the example of Samus as some kind of proof that games aren’t sexist. Arguably, she is a great example of a dominant and strong female character. The fact that she has been hidden by a stereotypical male suit of armor. Then again, an empowerment factor does go into effect by the very simple face that Samus Aran is disguising her femininity. At that time (1980's), Samus Aran's character was definitely a big jump for the future of female representation in video games.
It is very curious as to why there were not any firm female leads to come far after the 1980's. Lara Croft of the Tomb Raider series was the next jump in 1996. Croft has had many edits to her image over her reign in strong female representation.
Unlike Samus, Croft was a lot more feminine as her identity was not hindered for the entire game play. Arguably, her femininity that caters to the dominant male desires in video games. Lockey notes that various models have also been casted as Croft only to sexualize her character that much more.
photo by: newlaunches
During game play, Croft moans in a sexual manner while stepping and climbing bumps and hurdles. A relative depiction of female characters only takes place if it results in fiscal increases given to the publishers. As the newest installation of the Tomb Raider series emerges, one may find that even though Lara has a new look, she is indeed becoming even more sexualized. Also note that there were even films released starring Angelina Jolie, a very attractive and popular actress, especially among male viewers.
"Though female video game characters appear to be underrepresented overall, as active characters, and as playable characters, they are proportionally more likely than males to be portrayed in a sexualized fashion. These results beg the question: If this is the nature of female video game characters, should their number be increased after all?"- James D. Ivory, Still a Man's Game
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