This graphic image taken from a video game is not uncommon. The low-cut clothing on the woman and the large overbearing man behind holding a knife to her depict a sad, but far too common representation of women within video game culture. As discussed in class, women are often presented as objects to which the players may do whatever they wish. This often results in violence and abusive sexual acts geared at what the game creators believe their consumers might enjoy.
There are many negative representations of women in the video game industry and it is necessary for steps to be taken in order to improve the quantity and quality of women represented in the games. The damsel in distress is a common role for female characters in video games. In this case the woman is taken hostage or is being attacked by the “bad guys” and the hero (often the character being played by the gamer) sets out to save the woman. This representation of women is harmful. It portrays women as incompetent and unable to fend for them in an effort to create a sense of male dominance.
In addition, as talked about in class, games such as Grand Theft Auto, depict women in bikinis or very little clothing wandering the streets available to be run over and killed by players at anytime. This contributes to a culture of violence and abuse against women. While most people are not likely to run over women with their cars after playing the game, these ideas of violence towards women can make it seem more normal and acceptable to act in an abusive manner towards them. The violence against women and the lack of representation they have as actual heroes or characters with competence is not the only issue with the industry.
As an article entitled “Women Are Prizes in Video Games—And That Should Bother You” by Damon Beres points out, women are often placed in the games just for the male consumers enjoyment. A common theme has come up within the games that after saving the woman or winning the game, their character gets rewarded with sex, a kiss, or the view of one of the female characters dressed in very little clothing. As Beres states, “It all reinforces the idea that men are supposed to — even entitled to — claim women after overcoming some challenge” (Beres).
This seems to present one of the most dangerous issues with the video game industry’s lack of accurate depiction of women. It creates an idea that women’s bodies are objects and that they owe men their bodies if the men have been successful in defeating the “bad guys”. Again, women are not represented as strong or intelligent, they are rarely available as characters who can actually help win the game, instead they are there only to please or reward the success of the male characters. Women are underrepresented in positive roles within the video game industry.
The hyper-sexualization and violence geared toward the female characters in the games is harmful and action should be taken in order to put a more positive view on the women characters. This could be beneficial because women who wish to play the video games would likely feel more comfortable being able to play as a female character that is not just going to get attacked. In addition, creating female characters that are not in the games solely to reward the men with their bodies would help society in general by taking away a piece of culture that encourages physical and sexual violence against women and treats them like objects.
Within the Huffington Post article mention earlier (“Women Are Prizes in Video Games—And That Should Bother You), there is a video that shows and explains the various ways women are negatively portrayed in video games over many decades. It is very interesting to see the changes and, in a concerning way, the lack of changes made over the years in how women are presented as objects within the video game industry. It is an effective video for those interested in seeing proof of the issues described. The link to the Huffington Post article that contains the video is just below.
