Gender in the internet age is a funny thing. We’re redefining it on an everyday basis, throwing out old rules and penciling in new ones. Regardless where you encounter it, it remains an important fixture in communication and interactions.
Within the gaming environment, it serves as a giant, glaring beastie. Given that most games were tailored to a male audience for the longest time, the advent of the “girl gamer” as been a hot button issue in the recent past. There are websites and blogs a plenty about the mythological creature, jokes and memes and everything else under the sun.
But does it really matter?
In roleplaying scenarios, the greatest joy is being able to portray a character the player isn’t. In gender roles, this could be a male playing a woman, or vice versa. Given the predominance of males in roleplaying games, it’s not uncommon for that female Night Elf to be puppeted by a chap. In fact, the common joke is that “there are no women on the internet”, and that every female player one encounters is just a man in disguise.
The anonymity inherent in the ‘net makes this all too possible. People masquerade as something else, even on an out-of-character level. I’ve experienced it myself; a close friend from back in the day initially introduced himself as a girl. It was only after some time and a buildup of trust that he came forward as a young gay man. So for me, the “Big Reveal” isn’t all that surprising. People will go to any length to put out what they want people to believe.
This brings us back to the “girl gamer” cliché. The spectrum of flavors is numerous, but there’s one in particular that gets my goat like few things. The girl gamer who focuses on the “girl” part. I’m sure you’ve run across them, they’re not hard to miss. They make sure you don’t miss them.
(Use of “girl” is due to laziness more than anything. I’m not going to politically-correct myself. Fuck that noise.)
They are the players that make a great big deal over the fact that they are “real girls”. They understand the mystical power of female genitalia on the (typically) heterosexual male gamer populace. They go to any length to assert their femaleness over their friends, to the point that any goal or accomplishment they achieve is sullied by their gender. It should not be a bragging point, that you’re a female and you did X or Y and ha, look at how cute you are pwning some n00bs.
No.
These are players, especially in roleplaying games, who trade in hard currency their gender, rather than their talent. Their abilities to improv and story-tell is overshadowed by their tits and ass. Their cute, provocative “selfies” get more attention than the background stories of the characters they play. Because, really? They spend too much time telling everyone they know that they are really female (really!), than putting a well-thought out character with an interesting back story.
They abuse their gender to get their way. They use it to escape situations where normal repercussions for inappropriate behavior would see them taken down a few pegs. They assert their femaleness to drive home their side of the story, even if it has the truthfulness of the National Enquirer. They are a female, so therefore they deserve special treatment.
Mind you, guys do it as well, but they’re not conditioned to use their gender to one-up their opponents. However, in female-dominated games (as you may see in non-MMOs, like message boards or journal games), the “token male” is often given preferential treatment. I’m not a misandrist; it’s still annoying as fuck whenever someone makes a big deal about their gender.
It seems more common, though, for female gamers to play the gender card.
Which brings me back to my earlier query – does it actually matter?
We’re fucking roleplayers, people. What should matter are the characters we play and the stories we make. Backgrounds and tiny details to shape a character into more than a two-dimensional run-down of tropes and stereotypes. Having fun and making epic tales to reminisce about later on.
I don’t really give a fuck about the four hundred pictures of you that you’ve plastered all over social media. I don’t want to hear about all the “wild and crazy” things you do outside of RP time. I won’t pander to you if you’re having a bad day because your iPhone has been shit, or whatever other superficial shit might’ve happened. You’re pandering for attention.
If genuine awful shit has happened, I’ll offer sympathy. But if you, as a player, are more important than any character you roleplay, then you’re hollow. Shallow. Why are you even playing? Aren’t the character and the story supposed to be more important?
And especially, don’t fucking hide behind all the idiot males you’ve managed to shanghai when you fuck up. If you’re going to behave poorly, screw people over and cause drama, expect and accept responsibility and the fall-out that will happen. Don’t escape behind your feckless man-army. Cowardice is not an attractive trait in anyone. And if you spend actual time trying to fuck over someone’s game time because you feel slighted due to not getting your way, don’t expect me to do anything but laugh when it blows up in your face.
I believe in player equality. I don’t offer special treatment based on gender. I will behave the same towards female players as I do males. I generally only care about gender so that I use the proper pronoun when referring to said player. I care about the character you play. I want to see an intriguing and evocative concept. I want to feel inspired by your wordplay and details.
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