Henry Jenkins and Justine Cassell - "From Quake Grrls to Desperate Housewives: A Decade of Gender and Computer Games"
Summary
This article deals with the seeming lack of females in the realm of computer games in both the creation of games as well as the playing of them. In its analysis of this situation, the article examines various methods that have been tried to encourage female participation in gaming circles, and the outcomes of those efforts.
In relation to the playing of games, we find that the design of the games themselves may be quite gendered. that is, they have been designed in such a way that they will appeal to one particular gender more than the other. This may be on account of the game designers being predominantly male, or because the game was designed with a particular gender in mind. Certainly, the former method has being quite successful on account of the great number of male gamers and designers compared to females.
The latter method, however, can be problematic. This is due to the fact that the games may often employ stereotypical features that will supposedly appeal to a large portion of a particular gender. For example, the producer of the Desperate Housewives game, Mary Schuyler, was quoted as saying that, "the game is loaded with gossip, betrayal, murder and sex -- you know, all the things that women like" (pg. 7).
Along with ideas of why it is that girls don't play computer games as often as guys, the article also deals with the issue of there not beings as many girls being involved in the creation of games. Much of this stems from various assumptions regarding the idea that such a workplace -- and, more generally, anything involving computers -- is a place for males.
Questions
Is there value in aiming games at particular genders and what risks are present in such an avenue? For example, consider the quote by Mary Schuyler regarding the creation of the Desperate Housewives game that "the game is loaded with gossip, betrayal, murder and sex -- you know, all the things that women like".
Would game companies be better off by encouraging more females to enter the game industry? What sort of obstacles lie on this path and how could they be overcome? Consider the quote at the end of the fourth page of the article.
Are computer games valuable to society? What benefits can they bring? What risks do they carry?
A comic for skeptics about the value of games.
ReplyDeleteA comic about female game characters.
I was just thinking about that final question you asked there, are video games valuable to society and what benefits do they bring and what risks. I looked into Jenkins' earlier article written in 1998 'Complete Freedom of Movement: Video games as Gendered Play Spaces'. He argues here that for children who live in complexes all there lives and have never had a back yard, Video Games are their means of escape. He syas, "Video Games constitute virtual play spaces which allow home-bound children to extend their reach, to explore, manipulate and interact with a more diverse range of imaginairy places that constitute the often drab, predictable and overly-familiar spaces of their everyday lives" (Jenkins, 1998). He also argues that "video game play isn't fundamentally different from backyard play" (Jenkins, 1998)and that what video games offer children today takes them away from the confinement of their rooms. Howeevr on the other side of the argument many have been concerened that children who play video games are experiencing more and more social costs rather than benefits, where people are becoming so involved in the world of the games they are becoming socially isolated and addicted to the world the game offers.People are also concerned that through games allowing people to be violent in a virtual sense is a contributing factor to increase of real life violence and this has been a debate for quite some time. There obviously has to be a balance between their involvement with the game and the other areas of their lives. I also think it would depend on what type of 'gamer' you were. Obviously if you are a hard-core gamer you might be more vulnerable to the risks that are brought with video games than someone who plays games for less hours and not with so much invested emotion in the game.
ReplyDeleteOn the same mind flow as Rachel I believe video and computer games allow users to have certain benefits from the gaming experience firstly as mentioned in the tut, Massively multiplayer online role-playing games like 'World of War Craft' are very social systems that allow players to “explore new relationships, new places and themselves” (Cole & Griffiths, 2007). These games encourage positive social interaction and in a way provide a platform for people who have difficulty socialising in the real world to interact with others. I'm not saying we should all only socialise online or all start playing 'World of War Craft' but if this can help people certain come out of their shell it is a positive aspect. And to some extent we already do socialise digitally with interfaces like Facebook and myspace and i think in the future because our lives will be do consumed by technology it is very probable that socialising over the internet will become one of our main ways of keeping in touch (scary thought!). Another positive aspect about games is that they are being incorporated into education to help encourage children to learn. This is interesting because teachers are starting to think of ways to incorporate technologies and trends to create a more interesting and innovative learning sphere. And because most kids enjoy video and computer games this is an additional motivation for them to learn. One example was of a teacher who created (with a company) a video game which was set up as a crime scene, and students had to work together as a team to solve the mystery by using their understanding of genetics from their biology class (Annetta, Leonard et al, 2010). I thought this was really cool and I think if I had been taught in that manner I would probably have paid a lot more attention!! Thoughts?
ReplyDeleteI might be taking a feminist approach when commenting on your blog, but I personally think it is not fair that computer games are gendered and made more for men than for women, or that there are games made specifically for men or specifically for women. This can become problematic as stereotypes form, and why shouldn’t women be allowed to play computer games made for men, they are games, surely anyone can play them? I definitely agree that these stereotypes started way back concerning the workplace and how women should be in the domestic sphere and men should be the breadwinners and dominate the working sphere. But in the contemporary world, these stereotypes should not stick as women have proved themselves to be perfectly worthy of having full-time jobs and not giving all their time to the kitchen. So then why should computer game designers assume that these games are ‘more’ for men, and that they should design games specifically for women, that will be pink, prett,y and girly? Maybe women actually want to challenge their male friends and get involved with the guns and action typical in male oriented computer games. Therefore in saying this, I don’t agree that games should be aimed at particular genders, and I disagree with Mary Schuyler on the fact that the ‘Desperate Housewives’ game that is packed with betrayal, murder, and sex, and is all the things women want. Yes, these may stereotypically be of interest to many women, but who said women couldn’t handle a bit of violence and action in men’s computer games.
ReplyDelete