Gender Inclusive Game Design Expanding The Market Pdf

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· 35 ratings · 3 reviews

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Jun 06, 2013 Hesper rated it did not like it

This book is dated. Dated. And ways it dates itself say a lot about the state of the industry today. Some things have changed, but there are myths that persist: women are inherently technophobic, uninterested, and only able to play the simplest and most casual of games.

Sherri Graner Ray's solutions to the very real problem of sexism in the game industry, however, are simplistic at best, and even have a whiff of apology about them. She has some good points, particularly on the topic of hypersexualization of female characters, although they are drowned out by a tide of puerile assumptions about gender and play preferences.

Evidently, I'm a total outlier in my fondness for shooters because I'm not a bro, thus I am not evolutionarily predisposed to crave tossing projectiles at a moving object.

Then there's the so-called pyramid of power paradigm, according to which women feel inherently uncomfortable playing male characters because men are culturally privileged, causing women to instantly forget how to think when thrust into a culturally dominant position. So yeah, Game Industry, don't frighten women out of their little minds; offer female avatars to keep them from running away in terror. The analogy she uses to illustrate this genius concept is that of a casteless beggar being offered the use of an indoor bathroom and becoming paralyzed by fear as he is suddenly expected to act outside his caste. Because, presumably, that leads to forgetting how to pee. And women, presumably, forget how to operate a controller or mouse when offered a male avatar.

Uh, what? Was this really published in 2003? I suppose I shouldn't be surprised, given the games that were available then. Let's see: Lara Croft and her cone boobs were still the only notable female protagonists, eclipsing the superior Jade of Beyond Good and Evil; GTA 3(ish?) was running strong, and that's a real beacon of gender inclusiveness; Shadows of Amn was three years old, and while the Baldur's Gate series was well-written, it didn't exactly win any prizes for gender parity (anyone who knows Anomen, that blight of a character, knows what I mean). Yes, this book is definitely dated.

Anyway. The real problem with the prescriptive action offered by Ray is that it is based on an essentialist view of gender, where there are constant, inherent and absolute qualities to the way men and women play, thereby eliminating the possibility for any kind of realistic discussion about what truly makes a game worth playing.

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Jul 14, 2014 Ken rated it really liked it

What a breath of fresh air! In an era of emotional, anecdotal narratives where I cringe to read the comments and tweets sure to follow, along comes Sheri Graner Ray with a research-based look at the differences in how men and women interact with technology and games. She offers suggestions not for changing or taking away the games men play, but how to expand the market. This book, written by a developer for developers, offers practical advice for expanding the market and improving the bottom lin What a breath of fresh air! In an era of emotional, anecdotal narratives where I cringe to read the comments and tweets sure to follow, along comes Sheri Graner Ray with a research-based look at the differences in how men and women interact with technology and games. She offers suggestions not for changing or taking away the games men play, but how to expand the market. This book, written by a developer for developers, offers practical advice for expanding the market and improving the bottom line—nothing more.

The only downside to this book: it was released in 2003, well before the prominence of mobile, social, and casual gaming. If there is a second edition (and I'm told there will be), I'll be first in line to see how the scene has changed.

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Oct 24, 2014 Katie rated it it was ok

A bit shallow compared to many of the other texts on this genre, but a few interesting citations of studies that I'd pursue further. A bit shallow compared to many of the other texts on this genre, but a few interesting citations of studies that I'd pursue further. ...more