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Women do the lion's share of mobile gaming, sez study
Cellphones seem to have a way of busting gender stereotypes. First we hear that men are more likely than women to buy a phone as a fashion accessory (Nokia probably wishes they'd caught wind of that before showing the decidedly feminine L'Amour Collection), and now we're being told that some 59% of all mobile gamers represent the fairer sex -- at least that's what research firm Parks Associates has concluded in surveying some 2,000 Internet-connected gamers. "Women are the foundation of the gaming market, and as an industry, we need to cater to their preferences," says Parks Associates' director of research John Barrett. Of course, if this means more games like Spore dropping on our phones, us boys say, "bring it on."
Girls 'n' Games event: this news is so old
While E3's keynotes were kicking off last week, several academics, developers and advocates of women in gaming gathered at UCLA to discuss girls, games and everything relating to the two. However, from Gamasutra's account of the event, nothing new was really discussed. Some of the key points brought up: Girls play games. (Well, duh.) Developers shouldn't try to focus on "girl game design" -- stereotyping game design by gender leads to missteps. Player-generated content is popular amongst girls, as is social gameplay. "Cuteness" in games, like anime and manga culture in Japan, encourages girls to get involved in gameplay. Women gamers and girl gamers are different; women and teenage girls have different demands on their time. Girls and women shouldn't just be gamers, but developers too.
Female at E3: a look back
Being a female attendee at E3 puts one into an interesting niche. The number of women present at the show this year was surprisingly high -- a quick non-scientific headcount showed about 3 in 20 to be female. However, booth babes flashed their wares from a number of stands, gleaming cars and trucks advertised games with no cars in them, and Paris Hilton trundled out to wow the crowds.With all this advertising clearly targeted at guys -- and, by the look of the crowds, working well -- it's easy to believe the "neglected demographic" hype.
Overheard at E3: We're your props
Booth babe # 1: "We're your props. We'll do anything you want."Booth babe # 2: "Should we get on our knees?"Attendee: "No. For God's sake, where's your self respect?"Actually, I didn't hear that last part.
Overheard at E3: You're all nerds! [update 1]
For the "Women at E3" gathering today, a number of female industry professionals gathered to wear special "Girls FTW" shirts in a show of solidarity. Morgan Romine, aka Rhoulette of the Frag Dolls, led the crowd:Rhoulette: Who knows what "FTW" means?[Women cheer loudly]Rhoulette: Thank God! You're all nerds![Update 1: "FTW" means "for teh win". Added at the request of at least one Joystiq staffer. For shame!]
Booth babe protest: Bikinis, not bullets
Seen at E3: as the convention closed for the day, three booth babes wielding signs saying "Bikinis > Bullets" and "I'm rated E for Everyone". We're not sure what the aim of the protest is, as these ladies seemed happy to smile and have their pictures taken.The question that springs to mind is: why not both bikinis and bullets? We met up with the PMS Clan at Microsoft's booth party, women who are just as much at home in bikinis as in full body armour. When you can dual-wield both SMGs and lipstick at once, you shouldn't have to choose.
E3 Day One: Booth babe spotting
At E3, we hoped to see some ladies wearing a little more than in previous years. Despite any enforcement of rules, there were still a lot of assets on display on the show floor -- here's some of the best (and worst) from day one.To our right is a classic uncomfortable, gimmicky costume. She (we assume it's a she) doesn't have to keep smiling, 'cause it's pasted on. Warning: repeatedly raising your arms in the Ms. Pac-Man gesture of welcome may cause injury.
Pre-E3 focus group: Sex, violence, doody still sell
On the flight to Los Angeles, Joystiq blogger Chris Grant and I decided to hold a little impromptu Flight 899 pre-E3 focus group to the pass the time on enroute. After Professor Grant lectured a captive audience on the perils of sexual objectification and the senior citizen cross-appeal of genteel titles such as Brain Age for the DS, I turned to random Gamer X, age 18, for input from the gaming industry's traditional demographic. True to form, Gamer X (pictured above, slackjawed) said he prefers games with "hot girls," "big t-ts" and "killing." His favorite gaming moment of all time is "flying up really high in Battlefield: 1942 and bailing out so that the parachute guy [craps] himself...[sound effect provided]." Gamer X is entering the Marines and a few months and he thinks his FPS expertise will serve him well on the real battlefield, which he assumes is similar to a video game.Moral of the story: Reach out all you want, but the core audience wants what it wants.Update: I should have noted that when I told Gamer X the Nintendo Revolution had be re-named the Nintendo Wii, he gave me a quizzical look and said "You mean like wee-wee?" Obviously, the "focus group" in the title was a jest, but I'm willing to bet this guy represents a wide swath. His stereotypical love of sex, violence and low humor was such a humorous counterweight to Chris' high-minded hopes for the industry, I had to post it.
Text sex: the naughty MUD that wasn't
In this week's Escapist, MUD legend Richard Bartle takes a look at a project that was never released -- an erotic, text-based massively multiplayer game. According to Bartle, sex via text has the advantage of being completely freeform, allowing anything and everything, and holds a greater appeal for women.An interesting design twist means that the act of intercourse itself was implemented "using a modification of the classic MUD combat system". Instead of getting points yourself, however, you gained points based on your partner's prowess. Sadly, the game was not to be -- the company behind it ran out of money -- but comparing it to today's heavily graphically-oriented sex games, we have to wonder whether 3D is the answer to everything sex-wise.
Girl gaming clans as next-gen booth babes
The idea of booth babes who are fanatical gamers isn't a new one, but the booth babe cliché tends to overlook the fact that becoming a babe is one way for gamers to get into E3. With a clampdown on the amount of flesh on show at this year's E3, companies are looking for a few other ways to give their booth -- and its attached babes -- the edge.An interesting marriage of ideas is to employ girl gaming clans as "totty with triggers" -- a booth attraction that appeals on multiple levels. Arguably, that's what Ubisoft's "Frag Dolls" team is all about, but the Dolls won't be alone at E3 this year. g0d (girlz of destruction) will be bringing their VIA-sponsored "home of chrome" to the show floor, and the PMS clan will also be sending members to E3 to work for various sponsors.There is a difference between groups which were set up specifically by one company, or which formed in order to seek sponsorship, and those which came together naturally -- though on the show floor, that's less apparent. Clans like g0d and PMS are becoming famous, and attracting sponsorship now, but they formed for fellowship rather than financial gain. With professional gamers in general getting more exposure these days, it seems that the gender of all-girl gaming teams makes them an immediate hot prospect to replace the stereotypical eye-candy booth babes.
Girl gamer recruitment good reality TV?
Recruiting a new member for a sponsored girl gaming team can't be easy. When Eekers (one of Ubisoft's Frag Dolls) left the line-up last summer, a nationwide search for her replacement rolled into motion, requiring everything from a gaming CV to glamour shots. Months later, when all but the hopefuls have forgotten the empty space to be filled, the shortlisted candidates have been announced and the final selection procedure outlined.All eight of the finalists will be flown to San Francisco to "join the existing Frag Dolls in a weekend of playing games and interviewing", a party that sounds like good fodder for frazzled nerves -- especially when you add in the filming. For this is no ordinary interview -- instead, the whole thing will be covered by Internet TV site GameTrailers, providing a reality TV glimpse into the mysterious world of girl gamers.
Oblivion's gender bias: the official word
If you haven't heard enough about the ladies of Oblivion recently, this tidbit is an interesting look at gender and gaming. While the female characters manage to score bonus points on the "lack of scantily clad armour" scale, it seems that there are some inherent gender-based stat advantages under certain circumstances.Gamers with Jobs have spoken to Bethesda about the perceived gender bias, and it seems that the differences are subtle, designed so that players have more choice when it comes to gameplay. While it may seem a little old-fashioned for male Redguards to have a higher strength, while females have a higher personality, the balance is all in the name of game diversity. For anyone wishing to experience the game free of any gender concerns, there's already a mod which equalises stats irrespective of gender.[Thanks, SickNic]
HDTV Listings for April 2, 2006
What we're watching: Crash, the Academy Award Winner for Best Picture premieres tonight at 8 on Showtime. It's got plenty of competition however, with new episodes of Desperate Housewives, Grey's Anatomy, Sopranos and Cold Case all at the same time. We'll probably be checking out even more Final Four action as the women go at it tonight on ESPN-HD.Of course, you can always check out the second part of Jeremy Piven's Journey of a Lifetime on Discovery. So many choices, so few tuners on the DVR.Our traditional high-def listings continue below.
Games for Women, Games by Women
The "Games for Women, Games by Women" half-day event took place last weekend in San Francisco, and Cool Hunting reports on the outcome. The event focused on the games currently played by women and those which appeal to women.The characteristics of female-friendly games include: easy to learn but hard to excel at; easy to pick up (i.e. can be played interstitially); mentally rewarding. Casual games fit all these criteria, and non-casual games are fulfilling more and more of them (for example, Animal Crossing Wild World and World of Warcraft).This is something of a generalisation--you'll find female gamers playing any game, on any platform--but it's useful to get this message across to game designers. However, similar lists of criteria for "female-friendly" gaming have surfaced after Women in Games events for at least the last year--there seems to be little novelty left in this extremely specific niche.[Via Clickable Culture]
Women: Does Sony's new Bravia do anything for you?
Sony is marketing their newest LCD line, Bravia, as a "the world's first television for men and women." Sure, we all know that there needs to be a more diverse offering in terms of HDTV programming, but is there really a TV that is meant just for men?The new Sony Bravia's are sexy looking, that is for sure. They are sleek with the black bezel and the strip of brushed aluminum at the bottom. But so are a lot of other TVs. Hitachi makes a line of Ultravision LCDs that are extremely similar but has cleaner lines. Panasonic makes a nice looking LCD and so does Sharp. So does this TV really strike a different cord with women? Maybe. The only way to find out if it is just marketing hype or it is really true is to ask the women. Does the look of these Sony TVs look any better to you?
