Video Games and Feminist Frequency (IR)

One of the things that caught my attention early on in this unit was when we looked at one of the tropes. Specifically, it was the damsel in distress trope and how it made video games appear a little gender biased. So I decided to read the IGN article about Tropes VS. Women in Videogames

Link to Site: http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/05/31/tropes-vs-women-in-video-games-why-it-matters

While I don't really think much into it, I do believe something like the Damsel in Distress Trope is a little sexist. However, completely some people might completely disregard videogames due to this trope and I think that's just wrong. Videogames don't always use the damsel in distress trope, and some videogames have women as the main protagonists like the Metroid and Portal Series. However, I can understand why this trope is used a lot in games.

The Damsel In Distress is mainly used in games like Mario or Zelda. However, one of the main reasons as to why this trope hasn't disappeared is that the trope is crucial to the series. Take Mario for example: the game was created back in the eighties and it has become a tradition that he tries to rescue Princess Peach. The same can be said for Zelda and Link. I'm not saying that it makes the trope right, but it is one of the main reasons as to why the trope is still in use today.

Another reason why videogames focus a lot of their time on these kinds of tropes is to appeal to their target audience; males. I'm not saying that women don't play video games, I know a couple that do. But the main videogame consumers are generally young men. Its impossible to create a game that everyone can agree on, so videogame companies go for the biggest demographic.

However, to say that videogames have gotten progressively more gender biased is completely wrong. Videogames aren't gender biased at all, they are just perceived as that by people who look at very specific games. Videogames are meant to simply be something to enjoy and something to ease the stress off of someone. I realize that there may be some gender bias in some games. However, to me they are just a fun way to relax.