Girls of Dragon Age: Origins – Why This Shit Matters
So you might have see the “Women Girls of Dragon Age: Origins” feature on the Maxim website.
Le sigh.
Now to be fair to Bioware, it’s worth pointing out that this is a feature in a men’s magazine, and it’s something that Maxim seems to do regularly. Sarah Michelle Gellar and Alyson Hannigan have both posed in their underwear for FHM, it’s not Joss Whedon’s fault.
But stuff like this does reflect on the games industry. Gaming is not, by any measure, a female-friendly environment. There’s a reason that only sixteen percent of World of Warcraft players, for example, are women. When the games industry is teaming up with men’s magazines to market specifically to young men, instead of to – y’know – a broad audience of people who play CRPGs, it reinforces the perception that women aren’t welcome in gaming.
And let’s face it guys, they aren’t.
Oh we love our “strong female characters”. Women with huge boobs and big axes who make disturbingly sexualised grunting noises when they get hit in a fight. Or women with huge boobs and low cut “robes” who make disturbingly sexualised hip motions while they cast spells. Or women with huge boobs in skin-tight leather, who strike disturbingly sexualised poses while sneaking over the rooftops. But we most certainly don’t want actual girls getting involved in the game.
Case in point.
I am going to kill you, but I have no strong feelings about it whatsoever.
This is the first of the “Girls of Dragon Age: Origins”. Now to give her her due, she’s not actually that awful by the standards of girls in video games. Her armour actually covers her midriff, and she’s got a figure which looks like it might actually belong to a real person (although possibly not a person who actually fights with weapons). On the other hand, look at her face. For a start, she’s wading into battle, blood up to her eyebrows, wearing fucking immaculate lipstick. And what’s with the look on her face? There she is, hacking a man to death with a bloody great sword, gore and intestines spattering all over her curiously unarmoured legs and she looks – what? Bemused? Slightly flirtatious? Her hair isn’t even out of place. I mean come on, she must be feeling something. But she’s just hacking away with this barbie-doll look about her. It’s seriously disturbing.
Then of course there’s this little lady:
I'm sorry, was I supposed to get dressed for this?
I mean seriously, for pity’s sake. Her breasts are covered by string. String! Also, both of these girls have fantastically skinny arms. My freaking forsaken warrior has more flesh on her than these two.
Whether or not Bioware actively courted the support of Maxim for their game, whether or not they wrote the copy about how having hot girls in a video game is the next best thing to having sex with girls in real life (amirite guys!) they’ve still uncompromisingly marketed these two characters at straight men. Yes, nobody is deliberately setting out to exclude women, but we kinda don’t have to. That’s sort of the point. And seriously, do we expect female gamers to be grateful that we can’t be bothered to deliberately push them out of the hobby, and just do it by plastering our games with half-naked wank fantasies instead?
I am sure that there is a non-zero chance that some women out there might like and identify with these characters – hell I’m sure some women identify with Jaina Proudmoore – but that’s strictly a side-effect. Like I say, we can’t be bothered to actually try to offend women. Neither of these girls have been designed to say anything or be anything except “hot babes”. Yes, they’ve probably got plotlines, they probably present the player with all sorts of interesting “moral choices” (Dragon Age is big on “moral choices”), but the way they look has been designed exclusively to cater to people who want to look at tits and lipstick. It’s in no way unusual by industry standards, but it’s still fucking pathetic.
Quoting Garibaldi from “River of Dreams”:
“Fine. I’m as offended as you.”
:: proceeds to oggle ::
It’s funny, though – I’m probably the world’s only fan of the Jaina that was shown in the trailer for 3.1. The big nose was the first authentic bit of humanity I’d seen in the entire game. I fell in love with that Jaina. Too bad that’s all we’ll ever see of her.
“Real wimmin. We’ve heard of them.”
The best part: There’s a third female character in DA:O. You don’t see her in any of the trailers. In everything I’ve seen so far, she’s actually dressed.
But she’s OLD. (By that I mean she has gray hair. Her face is lineless and her body is the same as the other girls’ so she actually ends up looking in her late 20’s.) Never fear ladies! Once you’re old and decrepit (but still beautiful and fit; don’t get crazy) you pass from ’sex object’ to ‘mother figure’ and you get to have a personality. We won’t sleep with you, but you can still heal our groups!
Wow, that’s the youngest looking old woman I’ve ever seen.
And yes, of course she’s the healer. Quel surprise.
Mind you, to be fair to them, the obligatory prostitute is actually a bloke…
I’m torn.
On the one hand noone would raise an eyebrow if Angelina Jolie Where to pose in a sexy outfit in an interview for her latest movies (changeling or whatever it was called) – and that was a chick-flick if i ever avoided seeing one. So im sort of happy that “yaa computer games are getting the recognision that movies and music is getting”, -also, well… ehm, this is hardly the worst example of women being portrayed as sexual objects in a game, and im almost certain that you can play as a women in Dragons age (and a fat ugly disney-witch, sort of women too, if thats what you like).
Also, you don’t ever hear men complain that in games like Conan (or wow), all we are ever portrayed as are huge muscular sword-weilding arms-as-big-as-tree-trunks type of people… even if you roll a priest in a sissy robe. I think games are a place where you can get to pretend you are just *that* cool/hot/trimmed. (but lets not go into why im always rolling a dwarf by this logic… please). And I would imagine that this goes for women as well as men (I know that Mrs dw-redux spend a lot of time setting her toon up to look juuuust right and pretty).
On the other hand, im kinnda pissed. First off because my work has blocked access to the article but mostly: Why aren’t Bioware having the male characters portrayed in playgirl as well? Because trust me, this is something that Bioware has produced to (and probably payed maxim for) this specific publication.
Also can I just add: Ginger looks freakisly scary. That image is not something I would ever drool over. She looks like a homicidal maniac bent on killing all she meets. If this is what men think are hot, ill pass.
Well… it’s just reflecting how things are in the normal world. How women are presented and expected to look. But yeah, sometimes I get sort of tired of it. That they’re just incapable of creating something else. Gaming industry is nurturing some kind of image of being on the frontline, aiming for the future, creating and exploring new world beyond our daily life and fantasies. While in fact they’re just as stuck in conventions and stereotypes as anything else.
But after all it’s just reflecting the community. Recently I discovered that Spooncraft, the same blogger who was recently guest of honor at Twisted Nether blogcast, in fact published soft pornographic pictures of women at his blog wihtout any reason at all, it had nothing to do with games whatsoever. He just wanted traffic to his site I guess. I lost my respect for him there. And I also think I lost an illusion about the blogging community standing for something more intelligent. It doesn’t. It’s everywhere. In the commercial games as well as on the blogs.
I’m sort of glad you’re still bothering to care. I think I’m moving into a more cynical state of mind, accpeting that the games mostly are intended for hormone boling teenage boys.
I’m sort of glad you’re still bothering to care. I think I’m moving into a more cynical state of mind
Yeah, I remember your post about the whole Noblegarden debacle (I got into quite a long argument with Syrana, who seemed to view the whole thing as evidence that the Bad Evil Feminists were making you feel bad for not being offended).
One of the more ironic advantages of being a man in this situation is that it’s actually much easier to care about this sort of thing. I can complain about this without the risk of anybody saying “you’re just jealous because you don’t look like that” or telling me I’m “just being hysterical” or should “pick my battles”.
It’s faintly depressing isn’t it.
That Noblegarden post left a big impression on me too. I had been playing wow for only a few months when Noblegarden rolled around earlier this year, and I got really freaked out by the constant bunny ears my poor orc kept sprouting. She felt really put upon…
@Chastity
1 – I never called feminists bad or evil.
2 – Not cool to bash another blogger in your comments and put words in their mouth.
=/
I dunno why this is a problem. Me is a girlnugget. I like hot babes!
… I just don’t like babes without power. For girlnugget, babe without power (Hello Evony ‘Queens!) is no longer babe. Just.. icky!
>.> Otherwise I actually like kitting out my girlytoons in chainmail bikinis when I can. But perversely, I only really like it when the game also features the option to walk around all covered up if I want to. (Yay Guild Wars, how I love thee.)
In fact I’m a bit annoyed at Jade Dynasty atm regarding clothes, because I can only change clothes once every 15 levels if I don’t use their cash shop, and I don’t care too much for the clothing models for my main. At her current level range (60-74) she has a little BARREL (yes, a barrel!) strapped to the back of her dress, at her waist. Like… like she’s some weird kind of St Bernard in a miniskirt lol. That annoys me far more than string across boobies (which doesn’t generally tend to annoy me. See: Power.)
I don’t think anybody objects to hot babes. As you say, it’s when “hot babe in a bikini” is the only option.
The problem with the “hot and powerful” combination is that while for you it’s the power that’s important, for the guys designing the games it’s the hotness.
^_^ Unfortunately, being a selfish and narcissistic nugget, I only care up to ‘my part of the equation is being satisfied’. *cackle*
I’m gonna dice this a bit finer though. For me, the power is an intrinsic part of the hotness. Take away the power, there *is* no more hotness. Not for nuggets anyway. I suspect we’re talking about two different, or parallel thingamabobs.
What I DO wish there was more of though, was more pretty pretty boys in games.
I wish as much attention was paid to the male toons as the female ones. Eastern games, at least, seem to be MUCH better at this. They actually make male models (lolpun?) I don’t mind looking at.
Oh absolutely, but I think it’s important to realise that your perspective is one which the game designers *genuinely do not give a crap about*.
You quite frequently see hot women in RPGs with no real power (particularly if you extend your definition of “power” beyond “superpowers” and into things like “agency”) but you very seldom see women who are powerful but *not* hot. I can only really think of one example, in fact, which is Kreia from KotOR 2.
Haha! Actually this is why I’ve decided to check out more Asian publishers when it comes to graphical games.
I’ve never seen a *western* publisher model graphics of a man I thought was attractive.
…Asian ones? Heck yeaaaaaaah.
It is not necessarily directed at young men, it might as well be directed at young people in general.
I mean, look at the glossy magazines in your average paper stands. You cannot by a glance tell which are aimed at men or women since they all have cover girls with pouting mouths and big hair and exposed skin.
You won’t get any normal-looking woman on the cover of a magazine unless they specifically aim for women 30+.
See gaze, comma, male.
It’s true that women’s magazines and men’s magazines both have pictures of hot women on the cover, but they present very different messages to their intended audience.
Women on the covers of men’s magazines are there to say “hey guys, you could totally have sex with this person if you wanted.” Women on the cover of women’s magazines are there to say “hey girls, you should totally look like this.”
Not completly true.
Its a fact (a fact I tell ya) that men and women can agree on what is pretty and what is not – about women. When it comes to the appearance of men, however, it is a lot more individual.
Therefor its a much easier to have pretty women (and not in the sense of “you could look like this”, but in the “this is HOT/appealing to the eye”) on the magazine cover.
in short: pretty women are on all the covers because we all find them very hot (or at least can agree that they look pretty).
More dicing! And slicing! Perhaps it also depends on the mindset. There’s the presumption that hawt girlies in games are ‘women, you should look like this’!
But maybe it also depends on how reality/the image is parsed. Cause for games (unlike magazines), the avatar is *yours*.
It’s not (to nuggetness anyway): nugget! You should look like this!
It’s… nugget! Within the confines of the agreed upon reality in this particular game environment…
you DO look like this!
>.> <.<
Contrariwise nugget strikes! Gwar!
I get what you’re saying, Nugget, but I think that it’s kinda of part of the same thing? Men are presented with images to look at, women are presented with images to look like.
Either way, it’s interesting to note that it’s something that men very much *don’t* get. I can genuinely put my hand on my heart and say that I have *never* wanted to look like a male video game character.
Doh critted by comment system – meant to make the comment about attractive male representations via graphics in Asian games here instead of over thaar where it is.
Hm, not sure what to think. I definitely think that you’re right – advertising is one-sided. And, wait, did I understand correctly that these are just ‘pets’ of a sort? And if so… can I get a male ‘pet’ for my female character? >.> Not that, you know, I’m looking for that sort of thing – really! I’m just wondering if it’s balanced is all. And – if you *can* get a boy toy, why isn’t it advertised too? I think you’re right Chas, because us ‘girls’ aren’t welcome in gaming.
How true is it that no matter what PuG you land in or random conversation you have – especially if you’re a tank – it is assumed that you are a male. Female toon or not. Funnier still is how once you claim to be female ‘irl’ how quickly some males in game latch on to that and stumble behind you like a lost puppy drooling. (or in the case of Snotty follow Tam around in the same manner) – I digress. As a female player I *want* my character to be pretty and powerful at the same time. I suppose that’s why I like druids – they are pretty in caster form, but more appropriately proportioned for the role they are playing when they shapeshift – ya know, beefy (excuse the tauren pun) in tank form, or graceful and all RAWR in kitteh form… and idk about tree form *shrug* Maybe it’s shallow of me, but I know that even as a female player, I’d roll a night elf or draenai before a I roll a dwarf. <3
I think they’re technically fully voiced NPCs, but yeah, they’re your romantic interest. Girls seem to get an assassin dude with a truly *outrageous* accent.
With regards what different gender characters ‘get’ as romance options in that game its actually:
Male – latin male, ginger, stringtop
Female – latin male, ginger, weightlifting hulk.
So they are giving diverse options that include homosexual options, as well as ’straight’ options.
If I had to classify the women, I would say they have gone for ‘plain jane’, ‘mother’ and ’sex object’ as broad steriotypes, which given just 3 choices is I believe a reasonable spread.
Its also for example the first game that I can remember that has a mentally handicapped character as a fairly major character you interact with, and its not done for cheap laughs either.
I think each has a background and story that is reasonable, and while I do like this blog (can’t play WoW right now due to poor quality connection in the country I currently work in) I still read this blog as I find it funny and entertaining, I would suggest you actually play the game, or at least talk to those who have before judging it further.
Oh if it matters at all regarding my comments, I am male.
I fail to see why one needs to play a game in order to judge the *way it is advertised*. By that logic you could never complain about an advertisement unless you actually bought the product.
I’m also not sure how “plain jane” describes any of the female NPCs in Dragon Age. Paticularly since most of them are *very specifically* modeled on … well … professional models.
Ok, I admit part of my rant is misaimed, I had forgotten the original post was about the advertisement of the game, not how they are actually portrayed in the game itself.
New argument then, I think the advertisement is geared towards the readership of the specific magazine in question, with emphasis and spin to suit. I would argue should the readership of “femainist weekly” be large enough to target with advertisement then the game is deep enough to produce a suitable advertisement / article that would suit that readship.
That doesn’t get round the viscous circle of women not gaming (in general) as games are not targeted at them, and games not being targeted at them because they don’t game. This I think can only be overcome by evolution rather than revolution
You touch on this on the 3rd paragraph, but then that out of the way proceed to rip into them
I am thoroughly freaked out by blankness of Chick 1’s expression. Chick 2 is probably raising her hand to curse the heavens for inflicting the world with whoever designed her outfit so is perhaps not quite as terrifying…
I’ve always wondered at some of those drawings on the wow loading pages too – there’s that one in particular with not only a female belf with the tiniest of tiny waists and a dress that’s being held up with double sided tape but a sexy gnome! Obviously they’re not a patch on Chick 1 and Chick 2 here (and I think there’s a pretty solid looking female orc adding a little more variety), but it’s that same Pretty-Girl-Macho-Man thing to some degree
I misread that as “a female belf with the tiniest of tiny waists and a dress that’s being held up with double sided tape AND a sexy gnome!”
I was thinking, that dress should be more widely available….
hahaha so after smiting an enemy you force them to wander round with you holding up your trousers or preventing your sissy robe from flying up in the breeze?
Oh it’s *absolutely* the same thing. I’m in no way holding up Dragon Age as a uniquely bad example (the belf with the tiny waist and the enormous boobs is a particularly egregious WoW example). It is, in fact, endemic in the industry.
XD
TBH, the first thing I thought when I saw the first image was:
Oooh, modern day Judith and Holofernes.
…I know I know, there’s no head being remooooofed!
…but I always did picture Judith to have that sort of mannequin nonexpression while she hacks off the head. O.o
…this isn’t a very flattering reflection of what’s in my head is it. XD
Naturally I agree with everyone you’ve said Chas but I’ve just had a quick glance at some of the concept art for the chaps and I’m starting to feel maybe the problem isn’t solely connected the women:
In particular, I draw your attention to the rentboy depicted here: http://dragonage.bioware.com/characters/zevran
If you look at the concept art, he’s sporting what appears to be a corset. An underbust corset, from the shy peak of a nipple.
There’s definitely a deep and serious problem here, but I’m not sure it’s the implicit sexism of the game industry.
(Well, actually, yes it still is but does this guy get some sort of award for Most Ill-Dresed Male?)
Also, what the hell is up with his voice acting?
Sadly this issue is just a reflection of modern society, specially if the target is young people. Commercials, magazines, films… all the young people appearing in them are handsome/beautiful/fit/well-built/sexy… stereotypes all around.
In the case of WoW I’ve always wanted different body builds, since no matter what’s your class, your character will look the same and changing hair/skin/face is not enough. Yes you can make them with aged face, but they will still have that fit and firm body, so they look quite weird (specially if you’re human). I want my warlock to have a fragile and crooked look, his body consumed by the powerful demonic energies he wields. I want my priest to be round like Father Tuk. I want a beer belly for my warrior!
Honestly, it’s everywhere. Used to be SI was the one with the non-sports sex issue.
Sex is good.
But does it have to invade my sports?
ESPN hadn’t done it until their last issue. Their photography is amazing, their poses generally tasteful, but I still can’t help but think their editor was thinking “more skin = $$$$$$” which put me off.
Sexy avatars are going to be chosen and enjoyed by men and women (and girls and boys) alike. Heck, I like the fact that my Draenei ladies are lovely. Still, it’s as you say, the problem is the implied message that we must be like them to be validated and/or that’s the ‘right way’ to be, and the fact that EVERYTHING is sexualized.
I like sex.
Sex is good.
But does it have to be everywhere?
Sex sells….And since it’s guys buying the games, and pretty much making the games. Well the victor goes the spoils. Is it right, No. But Might Makes Right.
I think i can fit one more cliche somewhere…..Que Sera Sera…there ya go.
Well, there’s a chicken-egg thing there – guys buy the games, so the marketing is all about women as sex objects, which tells women they’re not the target audience, so they don’t buy the games, so the marketing…
I’ve been a Bioware fan since the days of Baldur’s Gate 1, and I’m really looking forward to Dragon Age, but this does piss me off like most of their mainstream marketing for that game does. It’s being harped as “mature” and “dark”. Well, contrary to popular opinion, sex and gore are neither “mature” nor “dark”. If anything I’d call an overload of such features “pubescent” more than anything. And the screeching Manson music in some trailers, the ridiculous amounts of gore, and the way Morrigan (the dark-haired one) who is the so-called face of the game is dressed and paraded about like a whore …
… yeah. “Mature”.
It’s been speculated that the marketing campaign is an attempt to reach a more “mainstream” audience since CRPGs are somewhat of a fringe thing. The argument is: “Well, the old CRPG and Bioware fans will (likely) buy Dragon Age anyway, so why not try luring in men who don’t normally go for this sort of game but like hot bitches and bloodshed?” But the marketing has annoyed a good deal of the old fans, I think, and the new target audience may be put off despite the copious gore and naked tits when they see Dragon Age is a tactical squad-based game with pause and play, not a twitchy clickfest for bunnyhoppers.
And yeah, ugh. Scrawny female characters are always near the top of my annoyance list, I like my melee types (as PCs and NPCs) and I want them to LOOK the part. I generally don’t give a crap about “pretty”, I want “competent” and “fitting her story and role”. (Likewise, men who look like they’ve been fed nothing but steroids since conception are equally stupid. Hello, Wow!)
Yeah, the “mature” “dark” ads were also really annoying (seriously, what the *fuck* was the deal with the Marilyn Manson).
Sadly I don’t think it’s an attempt to appeal to the “mainstream”. The sad fact is that most gamers really do believe that “tits and blood” is the same thing as “maturity”.
And of course, there’s an extent to which a genuinely “mature” game would be really dull:
“It was a time of great darkness and terrible wonder, a time when heroes stood up and resolved their disputes peacefully without resorting to unnecessary violence”.
Duh, well, by now the game is out and it is clear that some of these are lesbians (woman at the top – btw one of the males is also gay) and that the males also all look like they’re models.
Sexism? No. Sexual appeal? Yes.
(PS, the males show more skin if you take their clothes off – their boobs are also completely exposed. The horror 11!!1)
Several points
1) Contrary to what Joss Whedon might want you to believe, lesbianism is not implicitly empowering. Lesbian options in CRPGs aren’t there to appeal to gay women, they’re there to appeal to straight men.
2) The men don’t look like they’re models. Not at all. Yes neither of them are fat or ugly, but the warriors in the group actually look like they could lift a sword. Unless you count Zhevran, who looks like a *fetish* model and is quite explicitly teh ghey.
3) It’s not a question of whether there are hot women in the game, it’s a question of why the game was advertised in Maxim with a spread specifically devoted to looking at the hot babes, but curiously there was no parallel article in any women’s magazine. And before you say “that’s the fault of the magazine” yes, yes it is. It’s all part of the same problem.
Oh and (4) “sex appeal” when it consists *exclusively* of images of hot women in order to appeal to heterosexual men is *by definition* sexist. At least if you’re talking about a product which is supposedly marketed at men and women equally.