It has always seemed weird to me how something so seemingly unisex as gaming is dominated by such a degree by one sex. Sure girls play videogames as well (maybe more than you think), and the number of girl gamers is increasing, but they are still the minority.
The most obvious reason for this is that video games are made by men, and therefore for men. Sit through the credits of any game and you are likely to see a long list of male names, with only the occasional female. And when you look at what games are most popular, Call Of Duty, Killzone or Halo, it might seem that there isn’t really a place for girls in gaming. But is that really true? I know several girls that love playing such games. And while the top of the charts are usually reserved for such titles, there is still plenty of variety for players who are after something other than shooters.
(The demographic of a recent Gamesthirst video)
But as I said earlier, things do seem to be changing. With gaming on Facebook and more recently smart phones, girls without any previous interest in gaming are spending hours playing Farmville or Angry Birds. So while the majority of girls wouldn’t go out and buy a Playstation to spend a night on killzone 3, they would spend hours playing on their I-phones. Some hardcore gamers may look down there noses at these casual games, regarding them as mere gimmicks. But I believe that they are brilliant starting blocks for virgin gamers to get into the world of gaming. Once people have finished these simple yet addictive games, they will start looking for something with a bit more of a challenge and more depth.
Although while this sudden surge in popularity for casual games may be behind the more recent increase in girl gamers, it doesn’t explain why men were already playing. I personally believe that is more to do with our culture rather than the games themselves. “Girls are given babydolls and told to go take care of it. We are raised to nurture and be sensitive, feminine. Boys are given a toy gun and told to go shoot stuff.” (Alyssa McCoy, girl gamer). This culture could be seen to be a bad thing, as it may be stopping huge amounts of girls from getting into gaming from a younger age. But surely if this is the reason that so many more men play video games compared to woman, it is a better reason than, games simply don’t appeal to women. Culture is always changing, and changing fast. The future seems bright for girl gamers.
“I believe that they are a brilliant starting blocks for virgin gamers to get into the world of gaming.”
Great read. My wife plays. She loves the LBP franchise and she wants PlayStation Move Heroes. As for the shooters, she played Resistance 2 once (although I warned her against it) and a Chimera ate her to death. She proceeded to fling the Dual Shock 2 far away and left screaming lol.
“Girl gamers suck. They need to leave gaming alone, and stick to their dolls. There is nothing worse than having a girl on your team bringing the score down. ” (PSN, XBL Douches).
My wife is a girl gamer, and she will whip any guys butt at halo 3, and battlefield.
never really understood this stereotype, i mean my whole family contains 12 girls and they all play games.
actually ill never forget the day where my cuz sarah came over and i was playing MW2, and she said hey your playing MW2 how you like it?
my friends say its not as good as the original.
my jaw just hit the floor, i mean not only did she know what game it was just by looking at my screen, she had spoken about it to her friends.
i dont think its as small as you would think, maybe the majority out there just like to keep it quiet?
never ceases to amaze me how die hard stereotypes are!
you can completley prove them wrong, countless times, but they still will not die off!
if i had a penny for every time i heard someone say your too old to be playing games id be a multimillionaire by now!
Gamers, no room for sexism in the phrase. but like the article says made by boys for boys so what we have is a catch 22, until lady gamers make up a bigger share of the market publishers will aim there games at the customers who make up the biggest market share.
i personally have absolutly no problem with a female on my killzone team. shooters arn’t just about quick reflexes they are about memory, teamwork and logic also, something we all share in abundance. A Gamer is a Gamer regardless of gender, i just think at this point in time publishers dont cater for the majority of women instead they have a if they like it great if not too bad attitude which isn’t present in there mindset toward the male gamer.
“shooters arn’t just about quick reflexes they are about memory, teamwork and logic also.”
Well put, bro, well point indeed.
Just to clarify I am very aware that there are plenty of girl gamers and that girls are just as good boys at games. But I don’t think that anyone could argue that there are as many/more girls playing than boys.