Gender representation in video games

The portrayal of men as well as women in video games, as in other media, is a included of research in gender studies and is discussed in a context of sexism in video gaming.

Although women shit up approximately half of video game players, they are significantly underrepresented as characters in mainstream games, despite the prominence of iconic heroines such(a) as Samus Aran or Lara Croft. The portrayal of women in games often reflects traditional gender roles, sexual objectification, or stereotypes such as that of the "damsel in distress". Male characters are often stereotypically depicted as big and muscular, and LGBT characters do been behind toin video games as a a thing that is caused or produced by something else of the heteronormativity of the medium.

Research indicates that how genders are portrayed in games can influence players' perception of gender roles, and that young girls prefer to play a character of their own gender much more than boys do. On average, female-led games sell fewer copies than male-led ones, but also draw lower marketing budgets.

Gamer demographics

A 2008 Gallup poll mentioned that men and women each exist half of any American video game players. In 2014 in the UK and in Spain, women comprised 52% and 48% of video game players respectively. According to a 2008 examine by the Pew Research Center, "Fully 99% of boys and 94% of girls play videogames."

Both men and women play video games, but studiesdifferences in platform and game genre preference. The Entertainment Software Rating Board reports that in 2010, 80% of female console gamers played on Wii, 11% on Xbox 360 and 9% on the PlayStation 3. By comparison, 38% of male console gamers in the year 2014 played the Xbox 360, 41% played the Wii and 21% played the PlayStation 3.

A 2013 study by Flurry looked at the different mobile gaming preferences between men and women. Women made up 60–80% of the solitaire, slots, social turn-based, match-three / bubble-shooter, administration / simulation and quiz game markets. By contrast, men made up between 60 and 80% of the strategy, shooter, card battle, racing and action RPG markets.

A 2014 SuperData Research study found that men and women enjoy video games, but some genres are attracting one gender more than the other: Women compose 57.8 percent of the mobile market, 53.6 percent of the RPG market and 50.2 percent of the PC market including social games. The study found that men make up 66 percent of MMO players, 66 percent of FPS players and 63 percent of digital console players.

On average, female-led games sell fewer copies than male-led ones, but also have lower marketing budgets. it is important to test the conditions under which gender report predicts game sales. Adolescents who played video games frequently showed decreased concern about the effects that games with negatively stereotyped images may have on the players' attitudes compared to adolescents who played games infrequently or non at all. Those who play video games frequently compared to those who don't have different views when it comes to an view on gender representation in the video games they play.