Gen Y Speaks: There’s no place for sexism in gaming
The sirens sounded for the final showdown. My eyes scanned the play area for my opponent, my finger glued to the trigger of my gun. Out of the blue, a head popped out from the side. My heart skipped a beat before I fired away. It was a clear headshot.
The words: “Winner Winner Chicken Dinner” flashed before me in gold followed by a #1/100 to show my ranking. I was the champion of this round of PlayerUnknown Battleground, a popular multiplayer game amongst teenagers.
“Hey, not bad for a girl.”
“Wow, lucky kill.”
“Haha, that guy really messed up.”
Hearing all these comments from my male teammates in the game session, my zeal and pride quickly plunged, replaced by a burning feeling of indignation.
They might have said so in jest, but their words were demeaning to me and my gaming ability. So what if I am a female player? I had won the game fair and square.
In the heat of the moment, I logged out of the game without even bidding my friends goodbye.
How dare they look down on me? Being a female player does not make me any lesser or weaker than any of them. If I had been a guy, would they have said the same about my victory?
According to a yearly Entertainment Software Association report released in 2019, 46 per cent of gamers in the United States are women, and 22 per cent of female baby boomers have been playing for more than 25 years.
Despite the apparent gender parity, gender bias in game design and the community persists. Even in Singapore, my friends always express awe and shock by the fact that I, a female, have been an avid gamer since I was 10.
Thus, it is unsurprising that I, too, have encountered sexist comments countless times, ranging from doubts about my ability, concerns about a female player being a liability to the team to outright hitting on me, asking for my phone number.
It’s funny how I can’t recall any example of sexism outside my gaming circle. Why is sexism so prevalent in the gaming community when we are in a seemingly more equal society, especially with last year’s #metoo movement?
Female characters in video games are often objectified and sexualised. They are often seen in scandalous outfits showing off their large breasts with slim figures, to make the game more attractive and interesting for male gamers.
Other than their beautiful and sexy appearance, there’s really nothing praiseworthy of these characters, especially in massively multiplayer online role-playing games. They are often cast aside as side or supporting characters, or used as rewards and potential capture flags.
Furthermore, if you Google “career in video games, videogame designer or videogame developer” you get an overwhelming majority of images of men at a multi-screen desk setup.
One reason for this is that Stem subjects (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) in educational institutions are still seen as male-dominated realms.
In her 2016 book Women in Game Development: Breaking the Glass Level-Cap, 3D environmental artist Jane Ng illustrated her years of experience were often overlooked by the management compared with the male peers when it comes to salary and job advancements.
She also noticed how “well-meaning professionals could still perpetuate a sexist culture where women were continuously put through trials to prove their worth …”
Due to this widespread sexism, girls who game prefer to hide their gender because of the fact that they will just get discriminated against and degraded by their male counterparts, and that is just upsetting to see. I am no exception.
There is no point in dealing with the unnecessary prejudice, and I could just get on with the game, the beauty of being in an online game where I could hide behind the cloak of the Internet.
Women face roughly three times more harassment than men when playing online, according to researchers at Ohio University.
This phenomenon is worsened by an app called “Twitch”, which is used to stream gaming sessions. In a case of self-sabotage, many female gamers expose themselves on camera, dressed up in exposing outfits, showing off their cleavage and engaging in inappropriate acts to entice male players.
These female gamers do this as a form of living, but the practice does not help legitimate female gamers and streamers.
“A lot of people try to make flirty conversation whenever they find out I’m a female gamer, and ask for my personal details, like Facebook or Skype,” says Hayley W, an avid gamer.
Hence, I hope all gamers, both male or female, to please do away with all these gender stereotypes and stop their rude, degrading comments.
The next time I win a game, please don’t attribute it to “good luck” or the fact that the male counterpart had “messed up.” Such a condescending tone is uncalled for and unwelcome.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Charlize Tan is a junior college student who has been beating guys at computer games since the age of 10.
