Just my 2 cents: Videogames and Sexism part 1

60 Responses

  1. vampirial says:

    First! Whoo! 😛

  2. Thanatoast says:

    It’s like no one learned anything from Revenge of the Nerds

  3. Anonymous says:

    I don’t like where this is going…

    • hinata says:

      Who does.

    • arthanis says:

      Although it seems people are too eager to judge without reading the remainder of the article, could you ellaborate?

      • Goat says:

        The current article is already comparing being persecuted for a choice to LGBT issues/racism/sexism, which is incredibly *** up. Your edit reallllly doesn’t do anything to mitigate that. You’re seriously stating in the comments below that being *** and being a geek are both things you genetically do.

        Have you seen how mainstream games have gotten? The Skyrim launch was massive and there was a literal tailgating party at my local gamestop. Call of Duty is massive. Matthew Perry gave a copy of Fallout 3 to Ellen DeGeneres on air on her show and was hired by Obsidian to voice Benny over it.

        Why are people perceiving you as a geek, specifically? What is it you’re doing that leads to people persecuting you?

        • arthanis says:

          First of all, as stated in the article, I myself wasn’t persecuted. Secondly, videogames may be relatively mainstream nowadays, but as you can read on the ESPN-related links, there is still much hate against geeks in general.
          Not once I stated that being geek is genetic, nor do I think this is relevant for the discussion. Just because it is not genetic, does it mean that it’s a choice? Also, even if geeks had a choice, it wouldn’t be fair to them to change their tastes to fit society standards, as I believe that *** or any other group also shouldn’t.
          Lastly, as I stated on edit, I’m not comparing the groups directly, I’m just pointint out the double standards in press. If anything, I’m criticizing sports press and mainsteam media, not the groups. Please don’t try to turn my article in hate speech.

          On a side note, I really think you should read the follow-up 😉

          • ZeroSbr says:

            Not genetic? Yes, yes it is a choice. Bringing in a controversial topic using a failed analogy doesn’t look good on you, dude.

            The reason there’s sexism in video games is because it was invented by males for males, and was only really played (and still are) by males. We don’t need feminazis like Anita Sarkeesian ruining our industry with her political correctness. You want to make a game yourself that has a female lead? Awesome, do it yourself. Don’t hijack other people’s games/franchises and try to turn them into something they’re not and screw them up as a result.

      • Anonymous says:

        It’s just that this is a bit of a hot topic, and I personally feel it doesn’t have a place in a blog dedicated to modding video game consoles. One thing I like about this place is that it’s kinda detached from all of that drama that usually circulates around these issues; I don’t really know how to best explain it, but it was sort of like a safe space where I could read up on the latest hacking news without having to wade through the same old -isms you see everywhere. I don’t mean to personally deride you for having an interest in it, but I just don’t believe it belongs here.

        I’m interested in what you have to say!

  4. wololo says:

    Arthanis, I’ve mentioned it to you in private, and maybe I should have told you earlier (but as I said, I want bloggers to own their thoughts, and not edit every single line that they write), it’s a bit dishonest of my end to just comment here right after I published your article….

    But I feel that being a geek is a choice of hobby, while being black or homsexual is not (in general) a choice. As such I think the comparison of these communities in the last section of the article is not really appropriate, these are not things that can be compared that easily.

    I also feel that you project some thoughts on sports fans being prejudices, while having pretty strong prejudices on the topic yourself. This lowers the strength of your points IMO.

    Just my 2 cents, other than that, can’t wait to read the next parts 🙂

    • Raul says:

      What has happend to ‘we are a news site, we usually don’t publish opinions’ 😉

      • mindglitch says:

        ‘usually’ being the operative word in that sentence..

      • Anon says:

        I had to double check that I haven’t landed on Tumblr by accident.

        Is there really, really nothing closer to consoles/handhelds to discuss here that this had to be published, and with even more of the same to come?

        • akian_aray says:

          It’s not 20 minutes worth of incoherent screams about killing all white cis scum, photos of decapitated male bodies and whining about being opressed. It’s pretty easy to distinguish this place from tumblr.

      • drd7of14 says:

        Guys, they only post an opinion piece maybe once a month, it’s not a big deal. In this case, it’s multiple Parts, so maybe a bit sooner, but why do you care? It doesn’t effect the output of news, at all.

        • drd7of14 says:

          I also might add that this topic he chose to talk about, agree with the details or not, is super relevant right now in the “real-world” news. People should be aware of it, and talking about it. Part 2 seems like it will go into more detail with that particular element of sexism.

    • arthanis says:

      Hey, no problem. Here are my counter-arguments:
      – I disagree as being geek as being a choice. At least for me, it is impossible to choose what I like and don’t like.I couldn’t stop liking videogames even if I wanted, I just do. And even if it were a choice, by that argument if a person were, let’s say, african-american and could choose stop being that by choice to better fit in society standards, would it be valid (or fair)? I’m sure you don’t think that, as I don’t think someone should stop being a geek for the same reasons. I also chose these kind of groups to better illustrate the double standard.

      – It was not my intention to sound prejudiced against sports people or sports in general. I myself am a huge MMA fan. Thats why I made clear that my arguments are “in a intellectual and individual” point of view, and not in general. Also I tried to elaborate about how much of prejudice against e-sports are based on lack of knowledge and usual higher complexity, as I think that besides that, sports and e-sports are essentially the same thing.

    • The Z says:

      Since when is being *** not a choice? Dont start with the “you are born ***” bullcr@p, because thats not true.

      Surely you like what you like, but due to influence and environment you pretty much “decided” to have a normal sexuality or being interested in the same sex.

    • x-eye says:

      are you sure being a geek is a choice wololo? because it never felt that way to me.

  5. yhvdfh says:

    Wait… where exactly in this article is he talking about sexism at all?

  6. The Z says:

    Lol at you seriously using “african american” in a “serious matter”.

    What happened to the good old “black”?

    • Mobrobro says:

      White people decided that calling black people black was offensive, and they taught a bunch of African studies majors to think the same way, so they tried calling them African American, but that confused newscasters when they were talking about blacks who weren’t from the US.

      African American can also be used to describe white immigrants from Africa, which boggles minds.

      So now the hip thing to call them is People of Color, which is great, because it’s almost calling them Colored People again. Soon we’ll shorten People of Color to just Colored, at which point we’ll have come full circle.

      We’ll get back to black when the African studies majors realize that all people have colors – they should figure that out by 2025.

      • trololo says:

        I’m not American, thus “african AMERICAN” is offensive to me. Well it’s not as I’m not an offendatron, it’s just ridiculous and meaningless. And what about the blacks that are not from Africa? Really, this terms reeks of American ignorance.

        People of Color is racist no matter how you turn it, and it does not mean “black”, it just lumps very different people together.

        • arthanis says:

          Sorry, but as I’m not a native speaker, I couldn’t think on another more harmless term. Feel free to make a suggestion =]

      • arthanis says:

        This. Also, as I am not a native speaker, I took extra care to make it not sound like some racial slur or something. I Hope I didn’t.

      • Yves says:

        It’s like how it used to be considered racist to think people of different “races” should be thought of as different or treated differently, and now it’s considered racist if you don’t think races are different and should be treated differently.

  7. Daewa says:

    Oh come on! Why is there such an article here? :'(
    I’ve already had my share in Game Design class at my school. T_T
    I don’t like where this is going either. Please don’t go Anita Sarkeesian style, write something decent, I beg you.

    • arthanis says:

      I’m not trying to take any sides, just trying to point some arguments that I feel are often left out from this kind of discussion. I hope you read the follow up.

  8. hinata says:

    I can already see where this is going when you use biased sources such as PBS, Kotaku and Gamespot.

    Keep this tumblr garbage off of Wololo.net.

    • arthanis says:

      The sources are not biased, since I used them just to show some information, not opinions from them. Also, where do you think this is going?

  9. sbs says:

    well said! 😀

  10. Marcos says:

    I really agree that this is a serious problem, in the same way you do Wololo. But as part of another culture (too), I can say that some “geeks”/”nerds” attack other people without a motive as well.
    Just a example: having a “different” nickname on PSN or XboxLive, it’s a motive for them to mock you, chase you in online competitive games, and send you threatening messages. I received some, and this make me hate some players with same gaming caracteristics, like FPS players, sports game players, etc. I think all the cultures have 2 sides of a coin, and this coin is always shown for the bad attitude of a few group of that culture.
    The world need to change.

    • arthanis says:

      It sure does. I really hope you read the follow up, as I approach this.

    • wololo says:

      For reference I did not write the article, not sure if this is what you implied when you said “same way as you do wololo”

  11. Egalitarian says:

    Goodluck with the critics as well as the future leaks 🙁
    Enjoy the ride and see you on https://archive.is/IjPcg
    Au revoir SJWololo.

    • Techni says:

      I think you misinterpreted the article if you think wololo is going social justice ***. He’s on our side

      • wololo says:

        Yeah, I’m not sure I understand what this is about.
        For what it’s worth, I did not write the article, and I personally proactively stay away from any piece of news related to gamergate. I have a general idea of what’s going on, but I do not understand the reference to “leaks” here.

  12. Leires says:

    First off, while i agree with free choice and all, and your right to publish what you please yadda yadda, this sort of topic shouldn’t be here. This is (was?) mostly a hacking and hardware related site, there’s been a few articles that weren’t, but they were mostly about video games so that’s fine.

    Topics like these are garbage. I’m sorry, but just because everyone else makes these dumb ‘VIDYA GAIM GURLS HAVE DEFINED GURLY PARTZ’ doesn’t mean you have to; There’s plenty of other terrible websites where you can get your fill of the tired BS that is video game sexism, please don’t ruin this one with it.

    Video game sexism is a bunch of ***. Women have these parts, people. The fact that a NON-EXISTANT and or NOT REAL character has overly defined curves and parts shouldn’t matter. Look at hollywood. They promote insane unrealistic bodies all the time. Look at friggin Barbie for christ sake. This has been going on for years, keep your terrible garbage out of our video games.

    The fact is, video games are a form of art. Been said a thousand times, but it bears repeating. The magic of art is that the artist has full creative control in making what he sees in his mind a reality. When you effing impose stupid *** like ‘oh her chest is too big’ or whatever other garbage the damn tumblrs *** and moan about, you’re destroying the creativity. You’re forcing them to limit their minds and what they have for an image because OH MAN GOTTA MAKE SURE I DON’T ANGER DEM TUMBLRS.

    You see constantly OH MAN THIS *video game character* IS HYPERSEXUALIZED, yet when you glance at games like Bulletstorm or Devil May Cry, nope. That’s fine, he’s not a woman.

    The bottom line, if you wanna look past all that and still try and defend things, is that sexualism sells. When someone posts about *game* being too sexual, they’re on the same damn end as the *game* that made it because they’re using sexuality to make money. ‘Are video games too sexual?’ ‘women in video games’, it’s the same *** under a different name, people are making money off you based off sexual *** (via ads and clicks in this case).

    Please, don’t write articles like this, and for those of you who think there’s something wrong with a woman having defined sexual characteristics, you need to look around you and realize that it extends far beyond video games. Video games have come under fire since conception, they don’t need more retards adding fuel to that fire. Go b1tch to hollywood, or better yet, grow a pair and understand what the word ‘creativity’ means. (Protip: It doesn’t mean cater to people who have pack mentalities based off things they only believe is ‘morally unjust’ because it gets them attention.)

    • arthanis says:

      I REALLY think you should read part 2 😉

      • Leires says:

        Sorry, came off pretty abrasive, i just really disagree and heartily dislike the current state of society. Makes me a bit uppity sometimes, most of this wasn’t directed at you so much as everything like this in general.

    • Truthiness says:

      You think anyone “b1tching” about sexism in media should “grow a pair”…

      May I thank you for demonstrating, in a single comment, precisely the sexist attitude & behavior you’re claiming is not a problem?

  13. Arc Futahito says:

    Am I blind or wololo just doesn’t know what sexism is? It’s just better to make two separate articles because I just don’t see any correlation between subjects (except that geeks are being bullied and that somehow translates into women being bullied as well because… no idea).

    • arthanis says:

      It wasn’t wololo who wrote that, it was me, Arthanis. Also, I will get to the point in the next part. I hope you read it =]

    • CPUzX says:

      Yes, you are blind. Its not even Wololo who wrote the article.

    • wololo says:

      +1 on the possibility of you being blind, I did not write this article. Also this is only part 1. Part 2 dives into the actual subject.

  14. Javier says:

    Nice, well written and with source.

    Where is part 2

  15. Techni says:

    I was never given a choice of being a nerd or not. And I just want to say I’ve faced more discrimination in the past year for being a ganer thanks to Anita Scamseesian and her allies, than I have my entire life for being a member of the LGBT club.

  16. shadow says:

    First of all, kudos for having the courage to publish an article on this particular subject on a site of this nature. Judging by the disappointed reactions from those lamenting they could no longer take refuge from a cultural shift while they’re *on this site*, I think you couldn’t have made a more appropriate choice to explore the subject right now, right here. Thank you for doing this.

    The notion of “nerds as an oppressed group” seems strange to me, personally. I’ve never attributed the negative “nerdy weirdo” stereotypes in pop culture to being nerdy per se — those characters are not mocked because they play video games, or chess, or whatever. Rather, they are mocked because they have no social skills. They are mocked because they are unattractive.

    Their nerdiness is the white lie people tell themselves and other people when a reason for their hatred is requested. But that’s never the real reason. Calling someone a “nerd” sounds less hurtful than “weirdo”, doesn’t it?

    • arthanis says:

      Thanks for the support. That’s a great point, although I don’t completely agree. But next I will approach this attractiveness factor more deeply. I hope you read it =]

    • Anonymous says:

      wrt your first paragraph, shoving this stuff in other people’s faces and forcing them to think the same way is the main reason I want this political stuff gone. It doesn’t work, and does nothing but stir up controversy wherever it’s brought. For the love of all that is good in the world, don’t let this spread to Wololo.

      • arthanis says:

        Sorry, but I’m not trying to force anything on anyone. Just showing some points I feel gets often overlooked.

  1. July 30, 2015

    […] Just my 2 cents: Videogames and Sexism part 1 – Wololo.net […]

  2. July 31, 2015

    […] This is the second part of this article, if you ended up here I would recommend reading part 1 (http://wololo.net/2015/07/30/just-my-cents-videogames-and-sexism-part-1). […]