Female game developers make everything ugly

[@SydneyWatson]

Just to confirm: I'm not personally making any comments about BG3. I'm referencing an article someone else wrote about it. I don't know enough about the characters to have a meaningful opinion on their appearances or to judge them for being weird aliens haha. I always get to the end of editing these videos and I'm like, "well, there is still more to say, but I think this will be enough torment for one video." 😂

[@laars0001]

Thank you for that Sydney. Regenerating those lost IQ points for the next video is wise 😁

[@ScrappyXFL]

ROFLMAO aspirated in less than 4 min 👍 If I'm in 3rd person, I want to watch my fine ass chicka all the time. If you're a chick watch your fine ass character. Or whatever. Nobody cares about your game in reality.

[@charliestevenson3500]

Sydney, you will never complete a video to absolute perfection. Aim for competent and correct and concise. Thanks for your hard work.

[@oldnutta7611]

In Zero Dawn it was painfully obvious Aloy liked women.

[@erenjaeger1738]

The only good female character I could think of is the walking dead clementine and AC odyssey Kassandra.

[@pandoraarts7748]

As a woman, I say I don't want to spend my relaxation time playing or looking at ugly characters, Male or Female. Especially in games where I can create my own character and they still look like dogshit.

[@mo_musashi_284]

I recommend Valkyrie Elysium .

[@pandoraarts7748]

@@mo_musashi_284 played. It’s a 6/10 for me.

[@jase276]

Based VE enjoyer @@mo_musashi_284

[@TheEtherea]

And this is why I mostly play Asian games lately. They always have proper beauty standards. Starfield returned me to a western game dev world that I have all forgotten about.

[@StolasXB]

Oblivion be like

[@skynet0912]

If you see someone in a game and go: "They don't look like me! I can't relate to them...", you have WAY bigger and more basic issues than you think you do!

[@onceonly1111]

A hilarious comment I saw recently was along the lines of: "I don't like seeing Asian people in western fantasy games because it breaks my immersion". This was about previews of Dragon's Dogma 2, which has anthro lion people.

[@shriramvenu]

@@onceonly1111 its not the same. Ultimately it all depends on the in-game world and lore. For example it wouldnt make sense to have in skyrim asian or black people as the natives, unless there was some specific lore reason why that were such. So if a western fantasy game doesnt have the lore or world building that fits with having people of a certain race, then they shouldn't be inclued just for "diversity" or "inclusion".

[@evolution031680]

Yeah, I have no desire to play as myself in a video game. I want to escape my daily life. And I’ll never have a physique like Geralt’s, but I’m not going to have an identity crisis over it.

[@yous2244]

​@@onceonly1111that's actually an extremely valid point? What do you mean? So if they made an ancient Japan fantasy hame wouldn't seeing westerners also break your immersion

[@Faiiltrain]

@@yous2244 Maybe the next Dynasty Warriors will have Craig the feckless as a playable character if you have a camera so it can super impose your jowls on a flabby white frame. Sounds awesome... xD

[@Icureditwithmybrain]

Imagine if guys demanded all romance novel writers stop making their male characters attractive and instead required all male characters to be ugly, broke, 5 foot tall, overweight, cowardly, dumb and awkward.

[@DMHR100]

They would become sitcoms

[@cachorro25]

Really, it doesn't matter at all as long they have a huge cock

[@minitntman1236]

Tag: Ugly bastard. Yep, checks out.

[@Samuel-is2wx]

@@minitntman1236 dude 🤣🤣🤣

[@muteguy341]

I feel like you are attacking me directly. 😢

[@Dart_ilder]

"if I wear heels - I am the patriarchy" I love this amazing beanpole

[@Shiirow]

being mildly attractive is an "impossible beauty standard". let that sink in.

[@AwakenedAvocado]

Mostly all women are ugly just face facts

[@vergillives9890]

Pixels viewed as competition for keeping interest

[@laiorwyn]

Said by the same sjw's that think obese is healthy.

[@YouTubeDweller8008]

Think about it. They want to be represented. They're telling us that ugly characters represent who they are. It is what it is.

[@Amphitera]

it is, for the people who say this^^ they'd even be jealous of scarecrows.

[@bassanimation]

"Impossible beauty standards" They do know that hot people exist in reality, right? Like...lots of them.

[@thatoneperson401]

The problem is that they don't see these hot people in the mirror. They never outgrew the self-insert fanfic phase

[@seancouger007]

@@thatoneperson401 that's a personal issue...not the world's

[@Joemama55122]

Cos most of then aren't feminists

[@thatoneperson401]

@@seancouger007 it should be a personal issue. Unfortunately they make it a world issue by making things like those ted talks, new character models, and Velma

[@DeadpoolX9]

reminds me of that mangaka who got dragged through the mud for drawing a short stacked character which apparently was "unrealistic" while the mangaka herself was a short stacked woman.

[@louiselebow6643]

As a 58 year old woman I game daily and when I play a character I want to play an attractive female and I want to look at attractive males and females. I prefer to create my character and have never created an unattractive one.

[@TerenceChiII]

based

[@Z1LT01D]

😮 how dare you

[@guypierson5754]

If it's a multiplayer game where movement speed is upgradeable like, for example ARK, I like to make huge fat people and max movement speed because that's funny to me. But that's just me.

[@himelotus159]

I'm 40 yrs old and when my husband and I create characters in games we also want to play a sexy female character. Most of the time I like to play the hunky guy character because.... I'm shallow.😂

[@snaxximan5737]

same as making very small characters with maxed out strength@@guypierson5754

[@ConfessionsofaRider]

At least we have Mario and Luigi to represent the average man lol

[@thegamewin100]

😂😂

[@flowrepins6663]

Well except average men are not parkour masters

[@MrSlinkerman]

Those guys are the epitome of unrealistic standards. I can't grow a mustache that fine.

[@WillFredward7167]

😂

[@EvangelineRoutley]

You cannot be anymore dumb. Mario and Luigi are far above the average man💯

[@sir_will_iam]

99.9% of male gamers don't look anything like Kratos; including those of us that go to the gym on a regular basis. Yet, you won't find a single one of us complaining about it. If anything, we wanna look like him. That's even the reason why some of us go to gym.

[@melkiecapella2998]

I think it's because women don't objectify men, I mean Im sure we do sometimes but it feels like men are constantly looking at women as objects. But what do I no? I'm just a chick

[@raeldri5867]

That's your problem you are trying to apply male logic to the female mentality, the majority don't like to see a chick hotter than them but sadly those who don't like it don't consume videogames sooo companies trying to please people that are not their customers are loosing more

[@DeathsjesterKMNP]

100% untrue. Keep believing your own lies though if it makes you happy.@@melkiecapella2998

[@handroids1981]

@@melkiecapella2998 We do not objectify you. That was exposed as another feminist lie in the 80s.

[@voyagersmarch8776]

​@@melkiecapella2998Since you're desperate to look at ugly women, just look at your friends and especially the mirror

[@benderrodriguez5425]

There is no societal shift in beauty standards, there is a forced push to try to change it.

[@frankmundo4300]

The world leaders are satanist they are inverting everything

[@bjornsmith9431]

It simple the LGBTQ people are offended by Beautiful women, their not offended by Handsome men.

[@TzarBomb]

Which is absurd! I like skinny/athletic girls with big boobs and feminine faces and no amount of social engineering will change this fact.

[@bjornsmith9431]

@username172 the majority who are pushing these female body shaming are in the Alphabets Group and so called progressive modern feminist who hate real women bodies talking about female hate, the worse hate is from another female jealousy of a real women beauty it a real fact. The LGBTQ group in the hollywood industry have it out for the female image example the recent April O Neil Ninja Turtles, Fable the dude from some game, Teele He Man are examples of this deconstruction of the real strong women body to a male standard and over weight unhealthy lifesytle, they are against setting positive example female characters in games, animations and movies in the western entertainment industry, because it make real little girls be positive in their lives and themselves with a strong upbringing .

[@benderrodriguez5425]

@@TzarBomb it doesn't matter because current generations are simply colleteral damage. Social engineering is focussed on the future rather then the present. The fact it is relentlessly pushed despite all the backlash is evident of that.

[@darkaxel1991]

Someone who demands validation from complete strangers is not at peace with themselves and will constantly be at war with others as a result.

[@user-dd5eh5lu3o]

Someone who demands that all pixels on a screen make them cum is not at peace with themselves and will constantly be at war with others as a result.

[@grabble7605]

Everyone demands validation from strangers.

[@icecoolguita]

@@grabble7605 it's what we naturally want of course but there is a way to have peace even when others look down on you.

[@karlthorsten9118]

​@@icecoolguitaEvdryone does want or demand validation, but that is not the problem, it is HOW they go about to get it. And the hateful ones exclusively pick the methods that allows them to play the woke cards. Victim, racist, and so on.

[@scarseven7855]

​​@@grabble7605nah we dont

[@M1garandmaster]

Amen. We don't play games for realistic body depictions, male or female.

[@WallNutBreaker524]

Facts. 😂👌

[@tutuwang7219]

we play anime

[@juancarlosrivera5689]

Who's we??

[@truthseeker7815]

Do you play games for the character's body? Weird

[@perreban]

​@@truthseeker7815 If I'm looking at the same character for over 20 hrs it better be good looking

[@MNNski]

I don't see what's wrong with wanting your fiction to not resemble reality. Honestly, if I'm going to be looking at characters for several hours, I want them to be pleasant to look at.

[@stephenw2992]

Feminists and other Marxists dont want you to enjoy anything. You need to be as miserable as they are looking in the mirror

[@vergillives9890]

Especially the character your playing as and be interacting 100% of the time

[@TheStraightestWhitest]

Furthermore, these uggos do not represent reality. The reality is that average non-American women are pretty damn beautiful. Like people think a 5/10 is an insult, but it really isn't. A 5/10 woman is a good looking woman. And 5/10 is dead average.

[@vergillives9890]

@@TheStraightestWhitest its the people who put themselves a 10 but have massive hissy fits about pixels on screen being a unrealistic beauty standards as competition they must punish

[@ollievirus6695]

Gaming community spent so much time asking for realism in the game, and now they're ripping what they sowed. I got tired of being told between 2008 and 2013 how realism in video games made them better, now look at that, it seems that it wasn't so good after all...

[@ingrida1121]

As game artist and upcoming game developer, I agree. Representation should not get in a way of creativity.

[@Victorneko]

As a fellow artist and game dev I agree with your statement however representation became a weapon called "Cancel culture" and that has ruined a lot of people. What's ironic for me at least is "we don't want impossible beauty standards in a game", when the game is meant to be fun and a escape of reality, ergo fantasy, also known as not reality, so real standards should not apply unless the developer wants it to be.

[@ingrida1121]

@@Victorneko it's funny because If I am to create I humanoid creature character, that would also be impossible beauty standard? Makes no sense. These people need to find a hobby or something and stop being so miserable. Nice meeting another fellow game artist 🥳

[@davidlecroy1106]

all i got from this is that all this people who wants "realistic body" are insecure af when exposed to good looking characthers in fiction

[@儀水鏡の妖怪霊]

Funnily enough, if you pay attention to the second Ted Talk, the one with the short-haired girl, she does state that they use these characters to "humanise themselves". I kind of feel this is somewhat of a self-report, that this person needs media for self-validation. It is hard to tell how many of the developers are similar to that.

[@mushra50]

There's this one Romeo and Juliet remake getting ready to come out but they made Juliet ugly as fuk she looks like a scary man

[@lyonkennedy4892]

I’ll never forgive them for what they did to MJ in Spider-Man 2

[@saw31489]

The issue with this always boils down to insecurities and jealousy. 1) They self insert themselves 2) They create sprites that are intentionally uglier than themselves 3) They speak out against anything that is prettier than themselves as toxic

[@undiscoveredjourneys6788]

Bingo. Shows just how insecure, narcissistic and solipsistic they are.

[@cutelildrow]

These people have never played otome games, where a female main character is romanced by super attractive and rich and talented male love interests. Most otome are heterosexual and I legit have seen complaints from people that the men look *too fit.* Otherwise there’s bitching that there’s no gay option. So even if it’s focused on a female audience Western gamers really ruin everything.

[@avenqer]

The atrocity that is April O'Neil in the latest TMNT is a PRIME example. That "I'm not Starfire" comic comes to mind as well.

[@guyfawkes1360]

It always happens when they think they're 10s, and irl they are quasi-solid 2s (pun intended)...

[@Dray17954]

@@avenqeryou’ve seen that garbage too?😤

[@dlastkatipunero2185]

You can convince fools, your family and friends to "change" the foundations of reality but never complain when a stranger still thinks you're ugly and weird. 80% of them can't even live up to their standards

[@stevencooper4422]

For girls, the bare minimum is needed nowadays. Just don't be fat.

[@hadeseye2297]

100% of them can't even live up to their standards!

[@hadeseye2297]

@@stevencooper4422 I have a need to be with a fat one. Never was. I wonder how it would be. At least once God dammit!

[@dddux]

@@stevencooper4422 I would add pleasant personality to that as absolutely bare minimum. Pleasant personality these days means someone you can talk to without being called names. 😆 Yeh absolute bare minimum.

[@dapperwolf6034]

The honest truth is women have been spoiled rotten in the western world. In most Asian countries women at least look physically attractive because the culture still has Traditional Values at making women more marriageable.

[@mr.gorgenchuck6501]

Bitter, resentful people hate aspiration. It would mean they could try harder but it’s easier to drag others down into the muck with them.

[@deleted01]

Feminist game devs resent positive role models like incels resent chads

[@The-Yellow-Man]

This comment is so loaded with fact, and it extends further than just aesthetics. Morals too. I genuinely believe this is the attitude behind the deconstruction of idealistic characters and “heroes”. Heroes have standards to live by. Heroes have to work and struggle in order to be role models whether they intend for it or not. Much easier to just say “It’s not fair to expect so much from people! You should accept yourself the way you are, even if you are a profoundly flawed, bitter, hateful person.

[@reanschwarzer2187]

@@deleted01not a bad comparison

[@ade9597]

Bitter, ugly, and fat women who can't get the attention the pretty ones get started this shit and are leading this ugly(as they are outside and inside) trend.

[@caim3465]

Humans are evil by nature, too much evidence of this

[@Wutever917]

"Video game women are over-sexualized!" Meanwhile, half of the male characters in games, especially fighting games, being attractive, ripped, shirtless guys.

[@ceecee8507]

now thats a lie a lot of vid game male characters have shirts on (might be sleeveless tho)

[@Valentina.Montano]

Most are horrible monsters while girls are still very sexy

[@alix6xgorg839]

​@@ceecee8507 Yeah! And steroids too!

[@Evija3000]

I have no issue with women being fit and attractive in games, but why do they have to be almost naked so often, like fighting in literal bikinis and high heels. It's like either one extreme or the other. Although, maybe I don't mind the variety :D Everyone can find what they like.

[@ceecee8507]

Exactly this ​@@Evija3000

[@RadishAcceptable]

The fact that a lot of folks deflect the fact that male characters also have unrealistic, hyper sexualized bodies and designs, and chalk it up to "iT's A mAlE pOwEr FaNtAsY" completely miss the fact that it's a power fantasy in both cases. My ex absolutely adored Lara croft. She cosplayed as her and everything. Playing as Lara, a very attractive, powerful, independent woman was definitely a "power fantasy" for her, just like playing as Batman, a super attractive billionaire who kicks ass is a "power fantasy" for me. The only difference is that there isn't a sub-group of men who get jealous over Batman and how he's depicted like there is for Lara. My guess as to why is that maybe men don't care as much about being less attractive than some of the people around them, but it's just a guess.

[@eerielamp]

What?? A separation of reality and fantasy?? An understanding that you can't perfectlt emulate your favorite characters 100% in every aspect of their character?! As if you and your favorite characters are different people/beings?! Who'd have thought?!!

[@MelAncholynus]

A fat guy can get laid if he has other redeeming traits. A fat guy that cries in public because he doesn't look like Batman though... not so sure. Probably because doing the best with what you got generally is a more male thing to do than to cry and settle for being a victim.

[@WRXXXual]

Gynocentrism is the reason why people have a hyper-focus on the depiction of females, and the propensity to hand-wave off the male counterpoint.

[@pinobluevogel6458]

The difference between having a personality of admiring or aspiring to be like someone instead of being jealous or hateful of someone that has positive attributes lies mostly in lack of confidence. There is a huge confidence epidemic and it is getting worse with every generation. Males, because of their (on average) slightly more robust mental framework, suffer slightly less from this than females, but they are slowly starting to catch up for sure in younger generations. Either way, this is incredibly worrying and not because of the effect on videogames, even though this is highly annoying and very unneccesary. But it is having incredibly detrimental effects on mental health, social interaction, creating succesful relationships and overall quality of life in general. Being jealous or hateful instead of aspirational, means you will not improve on yourself, which is an important way to build confidence, Slowly adding layers and layers of achievements will eventually result in a solid foundation that can heal even the worst of broken spirits, but without apsiration or admiration (or great rolemodels to begin with) there is no way start this process.

[@randomsmile9064]

@@pinobluevogel6458 I have almost no confidence or self esteem due to life-- im slowly gaining it now.. but maybe thats why I love playing games.. lara croft is my favorite female in a game.. and as for guys.. i like playing any guy that is physically capable and confident.. its 100% an escape from reality for me.. I feel so much more confident playing games where the character is strong and confident. if i had to play as a character that was weak and had no confidence. well I wouldn't even touch the game. I think in a way the last bit of your comment sums it up in a weird messed up way ... I kinda aspire to be the character in the games.. They become role models for me .. I've been socially isolated for 10+ years with no role models or social interaction.. which has destroyed all my confidence and self esteem.. ontop of having disabilities.. so for me having strong and confident characters helps build my motivation and desire to be more confident and stronger.. I often want to be like the characters in games.

[@DataDownLynk]

A lot of women will have an issue how a woman is portrayed in a videogame, then turn around and watch a romance where the guy is depicted as this flawless prince charming. Double standards eh?

[@lamikal2515]

Double standard is the only one fee-males have.

[@weslindsey5909]

Its ok for them to fawn over a fake ken because men dont give a fuck. But the moment we enjoy some unrealistic bobs on a vigi game whamen get jealous and cry to men to fix it. They are used to crying and getting there way, men are told no more so we get over stuff or fix our own problems. No one else really does it for us.

[@punishedwhispers1218]

Or in the same video games they're playing

[@afrog2666]

Not even that is allowed anymore, it needs to be a gender fluid FAT person

[@KazumaPrime]

Yeah, how many women out there want their boyfriends or husbands to be like the typical Disney princes or boyfriends? My ex said I should be like how Kristoff treats Anna in Frozen 2. While also having a thing for Chris Hemsworth in the Thor movies. Oh yeah, because those characters are completely true to life. If you don't want men to see women as objects, women should not turn around and do the same. Because all you're going to do is make men double down ten times harder. Actually no, because most honest men don't do that, we know the difference between what's real and fantasy, and what actually WILL happen as opposed to trying to live in a dream. Because trying to live in a dream can and will ruin other people's lives.

[@jadyynstarlight9851]

As a gamer, I want to see beauty. These are FANTASY worlds. I make my character as beautiful as possible. If I am going to play the character for many hours, I want to feel good. If others want to play ugly characters, go for it. Why should I have to play a game their way?

[@harmonyqueue]

I agree. Why would I want the main characters in my games to look like my coworkers? I see those people enough. More than enough.

[@josteinhenrique2779]

"Representation matters" No, it doesn't matters. It's already time somebody says it: representation DOESN'T matter. Quality matters! Relatability matters! A character is supposed to represent only ONE individual (himself/herself), not a whole demography! Stop thinking EVERYTHING must be about you.

[@WallNutBreaker524]

KEEP SPEAKING FACTS MY BRO! 😂

[@the_absurd_hero]

The activists, despite what they would have you believe, are incapable of normal empathy, which is why they won’t accept a character’s character (kindness/cruelty, dedication/laxity, bravery/cowardice, etc.) as unique to that character. They project each of those character traits onto entire demographics because they only ever consider how appearance contributes to “class struggle.” Stranger yet, the activists demand representation and empathy and compassion from others, all the while making more and more outrageous demands. I legitimately don’t know how a person gets to be like that.

[@sonicandtoadettefan6523]

Fr tho

[@ruslanmamedaliyev3912]

​@@the_absurd_heroit is mostly about them Not abot demographics or others They hide behind the besutiful words and do or demand things solely from their personal needs, wantings and issues They have nothing to do with real empathy and equality They are the most toxic, sexist, racist and selfish people you can find

[@herbtube30]

As a dude who has gamed for about 25 years I've never once had a cry that the character I was playing in a game was more muscular and attractive than me, same when watching male heroes in movies. I'm sure this true for most males, so why should a few dictate for the rest of us?

[@reapersasmr5483]

Same i am old been playing games since the start , and could give 2 craps

[@somerandom138]

I dont think a single guy gets mad at muscular dudes in movies.

[@caddermeran]

Because they're louder

[@reapersasmr5483]

@@caddermeran that is accurate!!!

[@jimcanterak7349]

Men are not inherently insecure like most women.

[@juviachan9963]

I'm a strait female gamer. Whenever it is possible I choose the female character. Of course my female viera looks stunning, with nice colorful hair, pink eyes and a skimpy outfit from last year moonfaire festival. I played as Kassandra on AC Odyssey, because she looks (at least in my eyes) beautiful, sexy, is smart and strong. Whereas in Valhalla, I choose the male Eivor, because there is no sex appeal in the female version and the dialog version she feels so abbrasive. When I play a video game, I want to dive deep into a fantasy world, why not playing a smart and good looking female character, preferably also with a sexy outfit? Heck, in most games, I'm not even a human char.

[@iridescentsea3730]

That's precisely what makes the "representation" argument so ludicrous. I'm a female gamer, too, and I have zero problem playing male characters, young, old, aliens, zombies, monsters, robots, anthropomorphic animals, "God" in God simulation games, etc etc. If the game is immersive, then the player "becomes" their avatar. Yet these uggos IRL assert (as if it is self-evident fact) that a person can only identify with an avatar that is their exact match. It's demonstrably false. Do these people perhaps have some mental limitation that prevents them from self-inserting into another person's situation??? Whatever it is, I sure don't want them speaking on my behalf!

[@Biffab223]

@@iridescentsea3730female gamer here too - the new generation of gamers seem to lack any imagination and feel the need/right to be represented in everything including games and films. I just think they enjoy finding offence and having a ‘cause’.

[@sarasunshinemt4444]

I literally deleted my female warlock in Destiny cuz I didn't like how the robes made her ass look huge. Remade the character into a hot awoken male lol And this would be AFTER I completed the main storyline of the first game (so like a decade ago). Hell if I can make a female character beautiful and sexy, I'm gonna do it. Why would I want my character to be hideous to look at, especially if I'm going to be watching them for over 40+ hours of gaming?

[@Geralt400]

Every women gamer in my friend circle and with whom I have spoken to (which may still be a limited perspective) feel exactly as you do and I personally believe that most women feel the same as men do when it comes to the fantasy. Movies too, we want beautiful people and escapism more than selfishly seeing ourselves in the medium.

[@Biffab223]

@@sarasunshinemt4444 I make my male avatars nice looking too, my Cyberpunk male V is a delight lol. I'm just glad I can play as a female and I want a badass female with a decent storyline and game mechanics. This is one of the reasons I loved the Tomb Raider franchise. To me, these activists are basically saying we can only be powerful OR attractive when represented by media. I hate that gaming has been made this toxic by the new generation.

[@julzbee4210]

I'm a gamer and a woman...what you say about fantasy at the end of the video is exactly how I feel. Gaming is escapism ! A fantasy! And if someone says that in their fantasy world they don't see good looking people they're lying! I want to play a good looking character! Male AND female!

[@currywurst2434]

Jep.

[@saphyriah]

Exactly, I am a female gamer as well and I totally agree with this. Gaming is let's pretend, so yes let's pretend we are all beautiful badass characters, be it male or female.

[@kit76149]

Exactly. I'm also a female gamer and I like playing as a pretty character that I can't be like in reality. That's the point. It's an ideal version of myself. Escapism. I think this discussion also leaves out the fact that lesbians and bisexual women who play games exist lol.

[@friendlyfire7509]

Underrated comment

[@SunBunz]

EXACTY!!! All my female gamer friends think the same! We liked pretty Barbie dolls for the same reason. We didn’t see it as “oppressive” or “offensive.” It’s just make-believe.

[@the_absurd_hero]

Hot take: Video games are a visual medium. And you can build and populate entire worlds down to the last detail-the creative potential is literally limitless. We want characters to look good, even impossibly good, because 1) we like visuals that are pleasant and stimulating to the imagination (not necessarily _that_ way, geez), and because 2) in a medium where you can create anything, why would we accept an unimaginative reflection of mundane reality? It’s the death of creativity, and they’re killing the creativity in each of us with their boring, ugly games/characters.

[@BasslimeRex]

I like how in a lot of the clips containing sexualized women, there are also men who shockingly don't have beer bellies, double chins, or skinny arms... Almost every man in video games has a six pack, muscly arms bigger than my thighs, and chad jawlines. Don't hear many complaints about those men being sexualized or representing an impossible male image.

[@boobah5643]

Well, you do, but it's most often because we started the discussion talking about the women and then someone throws in something about gender equality without thinking about it.

[@Nimbus3690]

​@boobah5643 it's a totally reasonable thing to bring up. Why is the sexualization complaint conveniently only applicable to women? Seems narcissistic. It reveals a lack of empathy.

[@SonOfABitch777]

It's because when men see those characters, they usually feel inspired rather than insecure.

[@alexconnor9884]

A jacked dude doing crazy shit in a video games makes more sense and looks cooler than an average looking guy.

[@maruareys9329]

​@@boobah5643bro, wtf you just said, you basically said that those arent complains but a comeback to what they are doing to the female characters

[@brndnwilks]

"Hey, lets desexualize the female characters, that's progress! Also, Onlyfans is empowering." Pick a lane, people.

[@anyfriendofkevinbaconisafr177]

"People"? Don't you mean "women" what ever that means?

[@doctorc.1442]

You nailed it perfectly. 100%, really.

[@Hisu0]

Note that in both "let's desexualize female characters" and "onlyfans is empowering", there's a distinct lack of "because" (nah, 'because I want it that way' doesn't count), and that can reconcile the two no problem. It's quite simple: "that goes against the interests of [the majority of] straight men".

[@doctorc.1442]

@@Hisu0 actually "because I want that" sums up perfectly the real reason why they do that. It's not about a "because" it's about me being me wanting what I want, in a nutshell. I want to be the most beautiful one, the most adored one, I want everyone to serve under my heels - mostly males, but other beautiful women as well. Both men and beautiful women are rivals since they hold some power that I can't have (because I'm ugly, angry, and lazy), so they must be crushed, cancelled or controlled. It's just thirst for power, personal power, it all comes down to that.

[@clousefe7013]

Women jealous is the most cringe things, they would jealous with literally fictional character. Now.. Try imagine this kind women come to power they would make other ugly just for them prettier. Oh.. I forgot they already did it by making fatso and man women.

[@BB-te8tc]

The argument doesn't even make sense to me because women gamers who were gaming (and cosplaying) back in the days when gaming wasn't nearly as mainstream as it is today had no issues with female characters being attractive or even provocative. Many of those women gamers, like myself and many of us other male gamers, wrre what most people would consider unattractive but we never felt threatened.

[@hazyhalfmoon]

11:20

[@Seority]

I'll say it once, I'll say it again, "If I get offended about the appearance of fantasy women, I'm the delusional one."

[@TheAde2]

I just want artists to be free to explore thier work without fear of offending people who get offended by everything.

[@Cruelty1633]

who pays and owns thse artist slavs? blackrock

[@Nerdycowgirl11]

I completely agree! As a female gamer i use it for escapism, i want to be a super hot badass woman, and i want to see super hot badass guys and girls in my games! Games are not supposed to reflect real life! They are taking me to a fantasy world where everyone is super attractive and that’s what i want! If i want to see “normal” bodies I’d go to Walmart!

[@dkBybee]

Preach! How many of these ugly people actually drive game sales?

[@kenasssss]

🤣

[@Blackdeathgaming-yv1kk]

Agreed, even as a straight dude if I play a game where the Male protagonist is good looking it makes me feel more badass while playing.

[@d3l_nev]

Agreed

[@tomb4xt3r]

got it in a nutshell, "fantasy" or "rpg" isn't meant to be seeing yourself to make you feel validated. That just demonstrates huge lack of focus and imagination. The beauty of a good character creator to me is being able to make someone as beautiful or f**ked up as you can imagine!

[@AzureTwilight]

As a female I like playing pretty characters in a game and wearing pretty things. I can spend hours in a character creator making the perfect character and spend even more hours dressing that character up and taking pictures and such before I even play the game. It's an addiction I tell you and these developers are taking it away from me!

[@SageTigerStar]

I'm a guy who does basically the same thing as you, but I tend to still play male characters. If they have customization, I want to be able to make them as cool or badass as I want, and since it's fantasy, I typically go for the bigger dudes since I myself am not that large, but think it would be awesome if I could be. The way these people are taking the games though, they want you to start your game lookin like some +200lb girl with a blue fade haircut all pushed off to one side, and the peak gameplay would be handing out fliers and complaining on your in-game social media about taking down the patriarchy while working in an off-brand Starbucks. I don't even play a lot of games where you're forced to play as a woman, but it pisses me off that they're manipulating things like this, whether for girls or guys. Fantasy is about that, *fantasy*, why try so damn hard to bring realism and current world bullshit into it? Games are meant to be an escape from that crap.

[@natryan8547]

I'm a guy and totally agree. I'll download a game just to see what the character customization is like and then spend hours customizing.

[@uberpinkwarrior]

Agreed. It takes hours to do irl what I can do in minutes in a game when it comes to dressing up, and I love that. I fundamentally do not understand these women who are complaining about how they hate playing even remotely attractive women. Like, it's a fantasy, I want to play a girl prettier than I am, that looks good in outfits I wouldn't, so I can enjoy dressing up in ways I irl would not feel comfortable doing. Hell, I only play Monster Hunter for fashion, and fashion is most of why I play MMO's. LET ME REALIZE MY FANTASIES IN FANTASY'S! 😡

[@lightworker2956]

Yeah, I think it's mostly bitter old unattractive single women who demand that women in video games be ugly, because they hope that this way male standards are lowered.

[@saiyachan]

Same for me! I’ve been playing games for a long time and it was always the most fun part. Even modding games and making them even prettier or upgrading the textures. But the games these days take a lot away for me as well!

[@jacobwolf3900]

"Why do they ruin all the things I like?" Summary of pop culture in the 2020's

[@hersirhakarl2109]

...of all of the 2000's really

[@JAIMEGARCIA-gw9re]

It was refreshing to see Larian Studios make Baldur's Gate 3. They didn't care about all this nonsense about making females ugly for the modern audience. They made really hot and ugly characters. No fucks given. I loved them for that.

[@apnwu369]

The elites want to eliminate gender and sex altogether. They want humanity to be just a lab created slave race

[@TheDreamtimezzz]

Society has not made a major shift. It is what is being “pushed”. Most people do not believe any of it

[@strixfiremind]

​@JAIMEGARCIA-gw9re Same can be said of Starfield. Just focused on their world-building and the creation of fun.

[@vtreezy6407]

The only thing I ever asked for was armor that made sense, and suddenly I'm fending off thirsty green lizardwomen. Regarding setting unrealistic body expectations, with that I can only agree. I will never look like my tauren hunter. Darn.

[@frosty9392]

flirty armor does make sense -- the best/only chance a girl has at beating an equally trained man is by distracting his lizard brain with tiddies

[@randomcole619]

I’m a woman and I don’t want characters that ‘represent’ me. It’s a game. It’s imagination. A realistic Orc? Fairy? The whole point is it’s escaping your reality and immersing yourself as someone else.

[@juuchanIRL]

people who want to be "represented" in fiction have low IQ. fiction is supposed to develop your imagination and tell impressive and memorable tales, not inflate a specific person's ego

[@charleshetrick3152]

Exactly, men love halo and the character is a featureless mech suit.

[@2013jal]

Yep escapism is why we play these games. If i wanted to see normal women, you know what, I can do that in the local supermarket.

[@MadLadMartyMcFly85]

😂 its insanity And doesnt help whatever group thats kikn up a stink ,im gna assume its the alphabet soup mob.....again Arrrgh A creation thats prettier than me,that i made...damn pastry-archy

[@guskinmaypho174]

This is why I play games where I design my own character. Nobody is gonna dictate to me how unatractive my character has to be to not hurt their feelings

[@jackarack5528]

Unless you have only bad options in the character creator.

[@zaynvarenshutain]

Just like in Mass Effect Andromeda. No chance to create a good looking woman thanks to Anita Sarkeesian or what her last name was lmao.

[@auturgicflosculator2183]

I'm a little sad that I can't create grossly obese Fat Bastard themed characters, but there's usually plenty of opportunity to make something incongruous enough to tickle my fancy.

[@Amesang]

_SoulCalibur VI_ FTW! Heck, you can even dress up the main cast with the same variety. (Such as when I dressed up Amy and Talim as Raven and Starfire. 😋)

[@guskinmaypho174]

@@auturgicflosculator2183 in dragons dogma 1 you could make fat character but the developers misunderstood how fat and muscles worked

[@sarahhaynes2540]

Being a female gamer, I just want to be able to create my character 😂 and when I can't, I want to look pretty and badass, not normal

[@althyrios7954]

Yeah ! I don't understand why there's so hate about oversexualising character. Yes sometime it's dumb xD But look at the male character this is the same and noone's complaining. Gordon Freeman is a fucking scientist and he's badass and handsome.

[@brokeninfinitysonic1]

If we got the option to play as Zelda in totk I would feel more immersed into the game. Not saying I don’t. If you play as a cute character you see yourself and pretend to play as them that’s more fun I’ll enjoy! 😆

[@zenzull]

As a male gamer I have weird attraction to make 80% of my characters - beautiful females. Also I have same strong need to use game balance exploits to make any character OP. And here is fun: yet another princess-looking girl who kicking shit out of anything in her way. Damn, I'm more feminist than that entitled bitches who are trying to ruin games cause they want everyone to be as ugly as they are.

[@erinyeza]

Exactly !! Been playing my whole life. Own every Tombraider. Never ever felt intimidated by the character.. wtfff. She was my hero. I'm 53 now and also grew up loving elektra and miho and a gazillion other female characters. Sure they looked great... but dah, that's who I love

[@nvelsen1975]

Basically this. If I wanted to play as a regular, somewhat-overweight guy with glasses, who can spend hours leveling up his strength and yet still struggle to pull even a regular weight person out of water and on board the boat, I'd just step outside the house. 😆

[@lenaoxton8827]

I just came here to say every character in Baldurs Gate is hot af without mods and I love them all.

[@Wolpher]

If you think Lae'zel is hot you might have mental issues. She is a good character but, HOT? Dude what are you smoking, Crack? The only hot characters in Baldur's Gate 3 are Shadowheart, Astarion and Gale (Karlach is just average looking). Everyone is else is average looking to downright ugly (eg Z'rell). Let's keep it a stack.

[@salvadormendoza8535]

A wise gamer told me almost 20 years ago "you are going to watch your character for a very very lot of time, be sure to make something that you want to keep looking at". up to this day i still live by his advice

[@varnix1006]

I pretty much follow this advice to heart, that's why I'm always stuck for 2 hours everytime there's a character creation tool in game.

[@orbbb24]

That's been the reason my character is always a woman when it's an option. I'd rather look at a woman than a man for 60 hours.

[@Kelsonian_Institute]

Every game I play is first-person or you wear armor...

[@lanttu10]

Yeah I've looked at a few different mmo characters of mine more than I have looked at myself during my whole life. I don't take any pictures of myself so the only time I really see myself is when I go to the bathroom.

[@reduXstereo]

You know you're a simple man when you choose to look at a woman for hours than a man.

[@PsycoDwarf9]

1: Sexy sells. Always has. Probably Always will. 2: Most people like looking at beautiful people.

[@user-dd5eh5lu3o]

these are not people, though. they're images of people. And if you have ever been to an art gallery or studied any kind of history, you'd know beauty has changed throughout time.

[@MrBearyMcBearface]

​@@user-dd5eh5lu3oyet grotesque was never considered beautiful

[@MamaMOB]

Until and unless we lose our instinct to reproduce sex will always sell. It's an instinct. It's kind of like we'll always want food and air.

[@dathip]

@@user-dd5eh5lu3o True, but UNHEALTHY and out of shape/obese/overweight and ugly women are NOT the beauty standard.

[@aligmal5031]

yep that's why japanese manga/amime/games are dominating western ones

[@thatHARVguy]

15:50 "No one in those games is particularly attractive." In _Zero Dawn_ Aloy wasn't supermodel hot. She was above average in an average attractive society. Yet someone was threatened by above average and wanted her to be ugly. That is next level insecure.

[@Monty2289]

Thats the problem with Hollywood/VG in general. The face models for MK1 for example are conventionally attractive but example like Tanya look objectively worse and its not a case of uncanny valley. Shadowheart's face model is good looking but they make her weedily and mouse-ish. Almost like a broodish hobo.

[@DenverStarkey]

@@Monty2289 actually shadowheart still comes off as rather cute in game if you ask me. the mods for shadowheart just seem to me like "alt face mod" , not really prettier mod. now La'zaerl or however her name is spelled .. she is Fffffffffff uuuuuu *****k ugly, no matter how you slice it. she looks like shrek had sex with a bull dog that then had sex with a chijuaua which was then crossed genetically with a sun rotted cumcumber and she was the testube offspring that poped out after all those mixes.

[@Elriuhilu]

How is Aloy ugly in Forbidden West? She is by far the prettiest character in the game and is generally beautiful exactly like the actress they scanned. I think Aloy should be more muscular, actually, considering she climbs mountains constantly and is an expert archer. As for her face, she looks incredibly realistic for a person with fair skin who spends a lot of time outdoors in the sun. She's a little ruddy and has some freckles, but her skin is clear and youthful, plus the artists even gave her realistic peach fuzz around her jaw muscles like real women have.

[@HeyJes]

@@Elriuhilu exactly these people are just stupid tbh

[@slayergt3104]

Most women ARE insecure I think.

[@generaljoe3447]

It's interesting how this applies mostly to female fighter characters, at least from what I've seen, when fighting pretty much requires you to be in top physical condition. I remember that one Blizzard panel from yonks ago where a woman asked why Sarah Kerrigan looked the way she did, moderately shapely but most importantly athletic and pretty visually capable of handling herself, instead of something more normal like the woman asking the question. I would never expect a guy character who fights to look like me or act like me. I'm 5'1", not packed with muscle, pretty avoidant when it comes to confrontation, kinda rotund. It doesn't make sense for a fighter to be built or act like that. It's the same for female characters.

[@Vorpal_Wit]

I was a video-game artist for over 25 years. I can tell you on several occasions over the last decade or so, I have been specifically told to "tone down the hotness" and "chunk her up a bit", and the like. Side Note: I've worked along side female game-developers almost that entire 25+ years. I can think of only two employers I had that had no female devs.

[@handroids1981]

Interesting. What were the diferences between the rest of your employers and the "only two"?

[@roadrash2005]

@@handroids1981once a female was present in the office all the males changed their behavior to be more feminist aligned

[@handroids1981]

@@roadrash2005 Wow! One bad apple (Dev.) spoils the barrel (Game.). I wonder how many Radical Fembots were involved in Horizon zero dawn, LOL.

[@roadrash2005]

@@handroids1981 well based on the data they had less feminists working on that game compared to forbidden west.

[@Vorpal_Wit]

Small team size. It was much more likely to have female co-workers on larger teams and at larger studios. More to that point, even the larger of the two with no females was early in my career, when there were just far fewer females overall in the industry to even encounter.@@handroids1981

[@Skid0]

Depicting Lara Croft as a "victim" or a "damzel in distress" just shows how little these people have played games, or how much they actually don't care...

[@iwanttocomplain]

Who do you mean by “these people” the devs or the players?

[@nvelsen1975]

@@niewazneniewazne1890 That's also how you can tell what type of people criticise that: The ones who never do anything in reality. They should hear the sounds people make when they fall off tall things, suffer impacts, take injuries etc. It aint sexy or ironclad, can tell you that much. 😆 Earlier games didn't have that only because there were constraints on what you can program, resulting in ironclad protagonists who barely react to adverse effects. As computers and games got better, protagonists get criticised for being bland and unemotional for shrugging off everything that happens, and you got attempts to model such impacts as early as call of duty 1 having you get knocked silly by an explosion and not hearing much for a few seconds.

[@MorbidEel]

@@nvelsen1975 You don't even need to be doing anything. Just watch some sports or a machinist breaking taps and end mills.

[@manboy4720]

@@MorbidEel sadomachinism.

[@manboy4720]

she fucking fights A T-REX WITH AKIMBO PISTOLS! get yourself a woman who can go toe-to-toe with a dinosoe. that's not a word.

[@Higesgirl]

I'm a girl and I actually like playing video games. I also like appealing character designs (both for guys and girls). Let people enjoy their cute/sexy characters. Please. 😮‍💨

[@NukeTheOG]

Play games from the east like Japan and Korea, the way they model characters is undoubtedly majestic

[@grabble7605]

Nobody's not letting people enjoy those, though...

[@NukeTheOG]

@@grabble7605 Let me introduce you to game journalists and X

[@melkiecapella2998]

Does it matter how "appealing" the character is? Don't you just like the game for the game?

[@Ieatpaste23]

​@@melkiecapella2998 1st they would have to make a good game, and they don't know how to do that.

[@DestanyZer0]

I like how being averaged sized and beautiful is a unrealistic expectation for female body types. But the guys that are handsome with crazy jawlines 6 pack abs and muscles that look like they have been taking steroids and going to the gym for 30 years. Is somehow realistic for men. Just take care of yourself and your health and you can achieve that female body type. But the majority of typical male body types in video games is very much unachievable for most men in general

[@johnsmithfrombackeast7376]

Imagine that. The women that have these issues about attractive women are themselves not attractive...

[@YouTubeDweller8008]

I know, it writes itself. It's pathetic.

[@umiluv]

It’s totally insecure women. It’s always insecure women…

[@petethehawk5186]

Women love to keep other women in misery lol.

[@user-dd5eh5lu3o]

That's like saying males who don't want to see peens and scrotes in mainstream film are just tiny dicked and jealous. That's why we don't see much full frontal make nudity, because most men must have tiny peens and are all jealous.

[@AwakenedAvocado]

All i care about is massive boobs and skimpy lingerie. Look at the original tomb raider, raiding caves in a bikini and massive boobs. Inspirational this is what they need to do, a winning formula

[@rinwesley3092]

I'm a female gamer. I play a lot of games and I'm not ashamed to say that I don't want to play as an ugly character. I always use beauty mods for my Skyrim game and now for Balder's Gate. I can't even play that game without character mods.

[@michaelpettersson4919]

A LOT of those mods are actually made by women, especially outfits. And this is also true for Skyrim's endless stream of female followers, sometimes voiced byt the developers themselves.

[@leroyrodgers6089]

Balders Gate actually has attractive character models though. The men and women look very pretty. I was very pleased.

[@GabrielleTollerson]

I'm also a female gamer,not even that pretty,but I still don't want to play as an ugly character either. Love using skyrim mods!

[@LastExile1989]

​@@michaelpettersson4919Proof?

[@sp4tenkeks289]

As a man without a sixpack I now must ask the entire world to completely change all their standards of beauty and attractiveness so that sixpacks can be removed from video games entirely because they are a completely unrealistic standard. This is because I am way too lazy in order to put in the work to get one myself so the whole world has to change their perception in order for it to fit my fragile ego because I cannot bear to look upon a person that is more beautiful than I am. Thank you for reading the script for my upcoming Ted Talk

[@giannis_tar]

Except y'all are conveniently pretending its about fit bodies, when the entire contention is primarily about FACES. First of all, you can't work hard to get a better face. And second of all, men in video games don't face anywhere near as much criticism for not having a handsome face as women do. Where were you all when Max Pane came out? What about Niko Bellic from GTA4?

[@death5talker45]

Spot On!!

[@darkphoenix00001]

@@giannis_tar you missed the entire point about men and women having different beauty standards... this is pretty rudimentary so idk if you're actually confused or are just being disingenuous. people generally don't want a sixpack and brock lesnar arms on women to consider them attractive, while that is exactly what is found attractive in men. also your examples are terrible, both those male characters would be considered attractive, even going by just their faces.

[@origamipein18]

Ha.

[@newmobils8294]

​​@@giannis_tar Will I'm neutral to the topic but your argument here is bad too because the characters you are mentioning are ugly because of the technical limitations in their ages & the devs skill with graphics also you ignored that gaming industry largest and primary audience are males & before saying "but statistics says" I recommend you to research your info again because "female gamers" that the statistics show you the great majority of them are women play mobile puzzle games not pc/console games and when we exclude this portion of the percentage of female gamers the percentage will fall down massively it's a trick statistics manipulators use to push a certain narrative & conclusion by hiding the context or not mentioning the reasons that will change the conclusion of the results Anyway, the industry marketing to its primary audience isn't a crime like how romance movies market to their primary audience also you need to remember the difference between male beauty standards & female beauty standards. Don't get me wrong I still see how the industries heavily sexualise women for the man & the bad effects it does on society (because I'm a Muslim man from a conservative society and I don't see women showing their skin is going to give them freedom they want) but I do not think that uglifying their bodies which is also for the man (because you did it fearing from men) will solve the problem if it does not create other problems in the first place and marketing isn't an excuse to downplay one of the sexes in society but what can I say? No will take my solution because they think it is repressive...

[@thatsmesothere]

Again, i agree with pretty much everything you said. I just asked a non gamer girl what she thought and she said "if i am gonna play a game, im going to pick the goodlooking girl, why would i want to be an ugly girl in a fantasy" and that made sense to me.

[@Capta1nD1abetes]

As a female potato in real life, I like to make my RPG characters look unrealistically attractive because in real life I'm not allowed to wear a swimsuit in public with a machete strapped to a non-existent scabbard. Also, in most RPGS: Baldur's Gate, Dragon Age, Skyrim, Mass Effect, etc; all the NPCs talk about the female (or male) protagonists as if they're the most attractive person to walk the face of the earth. As such, let me mod my PCs hair because I refuse to have seven different shades of bald-head and only bob cuts. Let me be Rupunzel in battle, dammit!

[@DuctTapePwnz]

you had me at "potato", because the idea of playing GAMES is escapism. I'm 5'6" 133 lbs lean male, and i had a great time playing as everyone from Kratos, to Geralt, to Lara, to Kassandra in AC: Odyssey. I want to watch a badass muscular dude or a fit, graceful gal jump and cartwheel and slash and slam their opponents to an oblivion. I'm content with how i look in real life, and so i'm secure enough NOT to push some agenda of "realistic representation" unto people who want to escape into fantasy. I think all these cries for realism come from insecurities. Thank you for being you in real life and enjoying fantasy when you want to!

[@enricod.7198]

Also they talk like all men in videogames are like real ones and not 2 meters tall muscular gods lamo. In all the games you mentioned males are attractive, but that's not an issue because those women only date attractive men? I really don't get it and I hate the direction this is taking. People play games to have something better than the shit world we live in, if I want to play as an ugly character I just have to turn off the pc and play as myself lmao.

[@sew_gal7340]

But thats the thing, really pretty women irl dont want to play really pretty and sexy female characters in video games because we already get gawked at everywhere we go. Games give us the ability to play the ugly girl for a change, I have zero desire to look hawt and sexy in my games, playing the avge lookin gal gives me a change of pace where i am invisible to men. I really like and appreciate that.

[@Jennie_B_Gaming]

@@sew_gal7340 You could also just play a dude character. I've done that numerous times. And even "really pretty" women in real life can make themselves "uglier". I've learned how to dress down in ways where dudes can ignore me. It really flips the switch when I do actually dress up.

[@sew_gal7340]

@@Jennie_B_Gaming I can play a dude, and i have...but it doesnt feel the same as playing a version of yourself that feels more confident (the uglier version). It's difficult to explain, I just know i really appreciate the devs for being more inclusive of all kinds of women...i wont complain if they make all the women into super models but please for the love of god just make some decent looking clothes...not every female wants to walk around in -15 degrees with just a bandage over her boob =P

[@zyndustry]

The model vs McDonald’s cashier meme exists for a reason. The masses haven’t changed their beauty standards, just terminally online weirdos.

[@JesuisParte]

had to google it. think I am getting old..

[@jimbob8726]

Video gaming and geek culture should've had actual gatekeeping, then the toxic plebs wouldn't have a voice, now companies cater to them!

[@portofthoughts4477]

​​@@jimbob8726How long until you put together the fact these games aren't made by "us" anymore like they were when we were all kids (I'm talking 90's to 2010's, when games were made by gamers), now games are made by giant conglomerates and it's not about launching a ready product to tell a story with it's about maximizing profits and pushing an agenda. There's no gate keeping anymore because gaming became mainstream in the 2010's.

[@zeriel9148]

@@portofthoughts4477 Sure, but it's rather telling that what is "mainstream" is openly offensive and repulsive to most people. Another tidbit in that vein is the whole "300,000 people were hired by corporations, but only 4% of them consisted of the majority demographic of society". That's the sort of "mainstream" trend of a society circling the drain and about to disintegrate.

[@jaybee4288]

The masses did change their beauty standards where women are concerned. Twenty years or so it was all about tall blondes. Now everyone likes cute short brunettes.

[@rowan7929]

Insecure people want everyone else to feel like them. Even my wife likes more attractive people. Men and women and she isn't even a gamer. When I showed her Abby, she said this looks like a man. I even asked a female personal trainer and she said Abby is the least feminine looking person and that she never in her line of work for over 10 years, met a woman who wanted to look like this.

[@JoakimOtamaa]

Yeah, just give me Samus Aran and Shantae while I wait Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night sequel. These are the strong women we love. My ex loved them too, she wanted to play as a sexy woman, not a whining bitch with blue hair.

[@themilkmaiden]

As a woman who enjoys playing computer games, grew up in the 90s with highly overly sexualized female charters in-game, and also works in the game industry, I think its good to have the option to customize your character how you see fit. Whether you wish to play as an absolute giga chad/babe, or an absolute munter, its good when games give us the option to fully customize the character how we see fit. Variety is the spice of life :D

[@cendresaphoenix1974]

This isn't that though is it? This is female actors being brought into a game then some trans Dev going time to leather face my face onto that.

[@YoutubeHandlesSuckBalls]

I agree, the solution is better character customisation. Then everyone can play whatever character they want.

[@Noisemarine]

My wife being a somewhat busty lady also finds it strange that the only female characters whether they be in games or live action are only permitted to have big breasts if they are morbidly obese.

[@uberwarlocker]

Buh buh where are her OrGaNs

[@ARStudios2000]

Must be all the fat deposits

[@crumblingphilosophy9323]

There are plenty of game characters that are busty but still skinny

[@franz3810]

​@@crumblingphilosophy9323majority of them are

[@JodyBruchon]

*Society hasn't changed what it considers beautiful. People have settled for less because people are settling for **_being_** less.*

[@maxusgaming4871]

What's more outrageous is that the woman whom they took the face model for Tanya looks way prettier than her game counterpart, and the game face model has considerable amount of masculine features

[@thatHARVguy]

The hair and adornments don't help either. Unless one likes the Predator look.

[@jolyne1541]

She doesn't look that bad in the game but the hair doesn't advantage her...

[@ceinwenchandler4716]

Must suck to be the model then. I'd be pretty insulted if someone took my face, bastardized it, and then told the whole world that was what I looked like.

[@jeremiah6462]

The developer made her look ugly because the developer is full of ugly looking women.

[@re_negado]

Same for Forspoken's Frey and The Last of Us Part II's Abby. And Horizon's Aloy.

[@SaberEBW]

How can they say there are only 3 tropes for female characters, but then brings up Tomb Raider. A vastly intelligent archeologist, who is trained to survive.

[@doritoreiss8089]

I don’t understand how developers think making all the female characters look like homely Ls is making them realistic to the general public. I think they’re just trying to recreate themselves as characters. Also, women don’t need makeup to be attractive. Some of us have been blessed.

[@alleygh0st]

they're part of the larger social engineering effort. knowingly or unknowingly

[@n3rdst0rm]

My feincee is one of the ones who doesnt need make up and let me just say jealousy is ugly af inside and out.

[@CazRaX]

Yes, MANY of these women are self inserts of the creators or artists. It has always happened but usually it was for small projects or self distributed things but recently it has become the normal thing to do.

[@deadnorth8648]

Blessed... or you take care of yourself

[@sebaschan-uwu]

No woman on earth needs makeup to be attractive because makeup isn't what makes a woman attractive. Makeup makes women less attractive to men and the men who say otherwise are lying.

[@jaksilver3656]

Characters in a videogame are made for $$ and thus ARE a commodity, no matter their appearance. I play the games to ESCAPE reality, not to be represented, be humanized, or inspired, or see MORE of reality

[@user-dd5eh5lu3o]

Do you think the advent of males remaining in a childlike state in playing games well into adulthood has something to do with the psychological inability to handle and cope with life and reality these days? Life has become harder, and people can buy less with their money because of the rich and minimum wage has not gone up with productivity or inflation, so males can't have actual lives anymore with fulfilling roles in work and family, and can't afford a home, car and family on their own. There's nothing to strive for or be proud of, so they sit and play games and get dopamine hits that way.

[@ragingnoob3603]

@@user-dd5eh5lu3o it's just a hobby most males enjoy, video games were around before things hit the fan, the stigma of video games are for children and males who play them are nothing more then grown children is just a stupid one. you can say that about any form of entertainment, as long as your taking care of your responsibilities and you come home after long day of work, who cares if I want to play video games with your remaining free time.

[@SirTayluh]

@@user-dd5eh5lu3o One could hit the same opinion on the inability to handle reality without a crutch to the elder generations who did the same thing with tobacco, alcoholism, rampant sex and watching sports, along with most any hobby that doesn't pertain to work or raising kids. This isn't a new concept, almost every human does something to cope with reality. At least it doesn't create cancer or unplanned kids. The only cancer is the one always wanting to eat away at my wallet.

[@An.Unsought.Thought]

@@user-dd5eh5lu3o Men and women have ALWAYS had hobbies. Those hobbies may change overtime, but they always existed. There is absolutely nothing wrong with video games; no more than watching TV or going fishing/hunting or whatever else. Dopamine is good.. your brain literally needs it. You aren't going to get it from working and then coming home and staring at a wall until its time for bed and doing the same thing over again. Also why can't a man be proud of his video game accomplishments? Who are you to say a man HAS to strive for something in real life? Almost nobody throughout history has strived to do anything. They took care of their basic needs and they had their hobbies. A lot died in wars. I think you overestimate how many humans had aspirations to begin with. Most didn't and most won't.

[@ufokemo]

Spot on

[@kevbu4]

Too many people can't seem to understand that video games and media are not supposed to be a reflection of reality. The entire point of these things is that they are not a reflection of reality.

[@fancyfallacy]

Hmm that’s not really true. It differs from game to game. Some opt to be realistic, some don’t. I welcome a variety of faces in realistic games and wouldn’t mind playing a unique looking character.

[@StevenLong]

Well, they can be. They should be free to do whatever. But it's weird to think about, if you were watching a movie or playing a game where the main character had an annoying voice, gross hair, bad complexion - would you want to stick with it? It seems to make sense to have the character either be 'average' or 'exceptional' makes sense, but it's hard to think of many reasons to go all the way to ugly Maybe a Friday the 13th game where you get to be a random camper kid, that might happen to be ugly or overweight would make sense?

[@xybersurfer]

@@fancyfallacy whether they opt to be realistic or which parts of the game they opt to be realistic, is not something that you can decide as a gamer

[@SMandz]

well said! videogames and movies mostly are fantastical and it should be standard to have beautiful characters which makes the player "wow my/that character is really beautiful, it's been 12 hours and i haven't stopped looking at them". if there's an argument that these character as a person are only good good looking but evil on the inside and people ignore that, maybe it's the creator's fault for not writing them better? did that thought ever occur to you?

[@kevbu4]

While it is true that the aesthetics used in the game (Character appearance, costume design etc.) are completely within the control of the developers, whether the game is purchased or not is completely within the control of the gamers. Unless a character being unattractive is part of the story or plot, I feel confident in saying that most gamers during the hours they spend playing the game, would prefer the assets in the game are at least easy to look at if nothing else. In addition to this, Mods exist. Edit: And if I wanted reality, I would just go outside.

[@noobgamersland6969]

meanwhile me looking at male gears of war characters : yeah well...I need to eat I guess....

[@anahermenegildo251]

Am I the only one who would play these games and watch fantasy movies BECAUSE the characters were magical, gorgeous and different from everyday people?

[@spencerallen323]

No

[@Elric19772]

nope

[@gavcarl]

I think I would have enjoyed Conan the Barbarian much more if he was a fat overweight slob with blue hair /s

[@juuchanIRL]

i watched some anime because i liked the character designs. so, no.

[@neitherrealms3862]

Nope, but at the same time, I see gorgeous everyday people far more than I see in any form of media

[@Femmeaesthetic]

feminists: female characters with beauty standards in video games are degrading: *cardi B in WAP* also feminists: that's empowering

[@notthething9531]

Feminists hate men, their standards are somewhat consistent when taking into account the misandrist way they frame things. If it’s lesbian women finding women attractive that’s admirable, if it’s a woman exploiting their sexuality for financial gain that’s admirable because they have gained something other than attention from men (who are inherently evil), but the man who finds a woman attractive are “objectifying” them with the “male gaze”. Terms deliberately designed to conflate male sexuality with violent crime.

[@davidschmidt6013]

Excellent point, Mary, and succinctly stated.

[@ethanielclyne5810]

Because feminists aren't one thing or set of belief, it's a large spectrum

[@BumpyLumpy1]

🤣@username172

[@JoJo-vg8dz]

Feminists = angry les biens.

[@el_oh_ell]

The best way to understand the strange behavior of any industry is to assume it’s been taken over by a cabal of its enemies

[@ericward8459]

Excellent use of the word "cabal". You don't hear that one often.

[@Devil-Made]

Ha! So true. Good point.

[@sterlingw3611]

7:00 am i the only one that thinks this lady sounds like she is from the lollypop guild?

[@koppsr]

Funnily enough, almost all "champions" for the uglification of women in games, are already not someone, any guy or girl would throw a dice for. Sounds more like self projecting themselves into games to me. Like the butt ugly female comic artists, who draw themselves into the latest Marvel Comics, and call it "empowerment"...

[@PCGamer77]

O'Sullivan's Law: Any institution that is not explicitly conservative is either becoming left-wing or is left-wing already.

[@day2148]

Considering Aloy's looks are based on a Dutch Actress, I think whether or not she's actractive is a matter of taste. Personally, I just like the fact they made a female actionRPG protagonist look like she can actually take a few hits and has the sinewy build expected of martial arts practicioners. Because seriously, most of those "sexy female protagonists" look like they couldn't climb up a cliff if their life depended on it (which is often the case with Aloy). Sunburnt Aloy is just a nice touch, very in-setting =)

[@SnoGryphon]

I'm a female gamer, not a feminist. I enjoy playing characters that are prettier than I will ever be. As you pretty much said, video games, like comic books, are representations of ideal humans - SUPER humans, not usually normal ones. And anyway, why does "normal" have to be ugly and sexless?

[@TheShooterlol]

hmmm

[@sebaschan-uwu]

I honestly think most men don't ever even think about how the characters of the games they play are more attractive than them. Like Geralt could probably steal my wife but that thought never crosses my mind. Like seriously who's getting jealous over a few pixels?

[@user-yv4mm6bx3c]

Men really don't have a problem seeing chiseled greek gods in games, because for us, it's motivation to aspire to be that man.

[@elementalcobalt1]

As a male gamer and not a feminist, I also enjoy playing female characters that are prettier than me. If I can't play as a sexy dominitrix in leather, why am I even playing video games?

[@ASavageEye]

Lets remember here , its not female gamers that are the problem, because 99% of female gamers I play with ALWAYS make their characters as hot as inhumanly possible. The problem, as Syndey pointed out, is with the female developers who got into game development with the pure intention of changing how female characters look. THEY are causing this problem and it will only end when companies start hiring mostly male developers again. I dont like sexism but this is one area where I think we may actually need some 🤷‍♂

[@canebro1]

It is interesting how "every shape and size" seems to only mean ugly.

[@Skaldzerker]

It's also interesting that "beautiful in every shape and size" only applies to women. Fat and ugly men are still shamed mercilessly.

[@brandonmiller9155]

What’s crazy is there are people who criticize the “impossible body standards” of anime and video game characters, with tight waists and huge boobs, when many women are naturally that way. One of my good friends has like GGG cups or some shit, but if you go to hug her she has a slim waist and is nowhere near fat, which is what so many people think she’d be given her breast size. She IS an anime character body type IRL. What’s also crazy, like has already been said, women are the only ones complaining about this shit. Guys don’t care if the dude is fat like them or a 6’ 8” tall ultra ripped dude with a 19 inch cock, they’ll see him and say “literally me” idk why, but we all know this

[@VueiyVisarelli]

And if someone's pretty, their either have to constantly apologize for being so, or they're just straight-up evil.

[@Zoloft77]

​@@SkaldzerkerBody positivity is all a grift. Even Lizzo was caught body shaming other big women. I guess she wants to be the only fat boss bitch getting that fat check. No competition.

[@kreater120]

​@username172omggg good that you mentioned the "fatphobic" part. Screw that word and it's meaning. Those people who are fat are very close to being unhealthy and when they wanna change that, being healthier, THEY GET SHAMED BY THOSE WHO ARENT FAT AT ALL AND SHOULDNT DO IT LIKE WHAT???

[@Mishishere]

Every girl I’ve dated in my life has either dabbled in video games or been hardcore into it to the point of having a rig work 5k. I’ve never once heard them complain about any of this. The bleating is always form people who don’t play games and want to shift the establishment. It’s kinda pathetic.

[@frikabg]

this is how women operate... they infiltrate male spaces and start whining and complaining. As a result everything is ruined and men move on onto something else because its not worth putting up with this BS when you are not married to the soul sucking harpy.

[@BrickDaniels-qu7bz]

In short...

[@DarthMessias]

Twist: You only dated two girls...xD

[@MercifulDeity]

Sure. If they ever existed.

[@Vash.Baldeus]

As much as I agree, for example changing Aloy (Horizon Zero Dawn / Forbidden West) they made her way fatter and uglier, doesn't even resemble herself from the previous game at all.

[@selforganisation]

I haven't played any new games releases in years, ant certainly none that you mentioned, besides TR1. But you've said one thing that resonated with me well: games are a form or entertainment and escapism. They aren't anatomy or sociology class. It's perfectly okay for a character to look what a player might aspire to look like, and same thing about character, and other traits.

[@annaliadesigns]

As a female gamer, I want to play as a character that's attractive bc part of the game is looking cool in an unrealistic way. And there are sooo many male characters who look impossibily muscular but no one complains bc its just an exaggerated version of real people (just like the tiny waisted women in games). Do I think some female characters need a little more armor coverage to match their male counterparts? Yeah, but that doesn't mean they have to look ugly too

[@vloopyart]

I agree there's nothing wrong with characters being sexy. You know what's funny they make the females ugly BUT still put makeup on them lol. Make it make sense.

[@zufallrap]

The problem is, that men's bodies in videogames actually reflect the physical feats they are capable of. If a woman does those same feats, but has a 5" stickfigure catwalk model figure with bit tits, that makes no sense. To do the shit that Lara Croft does, she needs more muscle than we ever see Lara Croft has. The reason why we get 5" stickfigure catwalk model female with big tits characters is because male players consistently find themselves unable to jerk off to anything but 5" stickfigure catwalk model characters with big tits.

[@АлександрЕльников-к9у]

if i see muscular main hero in game, i don't complain about this. I want to be, like this character and i go to the gym.

[@Cha_Koibito]

Amen XD

[@sebastiendubois7935]

This reminds me of when I got Hogwarts Legacy for my gf. She usually makes female characters in games but ALL of the female presets were so ugly and masculine looking she ended up picking a male one instead. She figured that if she can't play as a cute girl then might as well have a handsome guy to look at. And boy were all the male presets handsome.

[@tiraedo-omozuwa3689]

I didn't know that there was anyone out there who had the same problem I had with Hogwarts legacy. I primarily play female characters if the game allows for character creation like the souls games because as a guy I'm used to playing males characters since there are plenty of them so I always create a female avatar but I'm Hogwarts legacy I couldn't see any satisfying creation which made me believe the Devs did it on purpose.

[@citizenvulpes4562]

See I find that so funny nowadays. Women characters were the fun characters because they looked better than men. Now it's almost flipped in this woke era.

[@tiraedo-omozuwa3689]

@@citizenvulpes4562 so true, even I knew that we live in the dark ages when I had no choice but to pick a male avatar because that is very uncharacteristic of me to do so and what these so called female developers don't understand is that at the heart of it all, gamers are not focused on looking at how pretty their character is, rather they are still focused on the gameplay for example, who in their right mind would be trying to look at how pretty their female character is when malenia from Elden ring is sending your soul to the shadow realm. These people just don't understand how gaming works.

[@koppsr]

Maybe someone will release a patch to fix that. Like for Mass Effect Andromeda. 🙏🤞🤞🤞

[@danielbowden5301]

That is sort of why I sometimes choose female characters in games. "If my character can't have a beard like a mran, I might as well be a womin!", I would much prefer the unachievable awesome beard standards of dwarves with beards spanning their whole bodies. In Oblivion I was practically forced to choose between being a cat man, a lizard man, or a woman. "This beard slider isn't a beard! HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO FEEL 'SEEN' WITH GREEN FIVE-O'CLOCK SHADOW, TODD!?" One of the refreshing and revolutionary things about Skyrim was the ability to play as a well-bearded elf. :D

[@shaifs5072]

Every time I’m playing a game, running across the field in full body armor with my 6-foot 2H big ass sword, fighting dragons and bathing in their fire breath I am so thankful for how REALISTIC it is.

[@darthsalutis5378]

Or that fact that most of male characters are over 6ft, Jacked and shirtless in the snow or winter

[@sweebos]

😄

[@ZukMyZik]

@@darthsalutis5378we shouldn’t sexualize men in video games either it’s not realistic.

[@termagant425]

@@ZukMyZik Sexualization should be removed completely, not only video games! However...then all the independant, strong feminists wont be able to complain anymore that they get rejected by attractive males....

[@visionunblurred]

I'm a female gamer and I don't agree with the "majority of female gamers". I prefer to be a beautiful sexy tough woman. Something unexpected. Games are not reality so why not be something fantasy?

[@pawang_game_id]

Because they don't even care about the game itself. This woke shit mf only riding the game as their propaganda vehicle. If it's not effective, they will move to other platform. Disgusting.  

[@Mazra42]

Our timeline took a turn for the worse when someone managed to convince the masses that jealousy is stunning and brave. Because let's be real, unattractive women complaining about attractive women is jealousy of the most ancient kind.

[@DeePee80]

Yeah but now we have the internet, so they can find each other, organize, and bitch louder.

[@KhârnTheAngry]

@@robertsteiner4696 That's just wrong and awful to do tho. Unless you're a sociopath, dont do what that dude says.

[@diegomarxweiller1814]

Jeez man don't kick a dead dog like that

[@demspookz8732]

A beauty standard isn’t “impossible” if someone actually fits it. Most attractive video game characters nowadays are digitally modeled after real people

[@SegaSlashTV]

Exactly, Julia Volt is Jill Valentine in real life, i would love to see her in person and Angelina Jolie did a good representation of Lara Croft, i was like holy shit she is hot and so many other characters like Senua from Hellblade, if you see the real life Senua you will be inlove, she is beautiful and theres a lot more.

[@FUCKYOUTUBEANDITSIDIOTICHANDLE]

That hellblade girl is so pretty!

[@hitmonkey4726]

That's right. Look at Aloy's and Abby last of us actual face model, they are really beautiful and feminine. The game purposely made them wider jaw and manlike. Same for the recent Fable trailer. I didn't look her myself but most comments said that the actual face model is really pretty.

[@sauldownbadman876]

It's impossible for alot of people, that's like saying just because one person can do somthing that everyone should be capable of doing it, unfortunately that's not possible for most people

[@FUCKYOUTUBEANDITSIDIOTICHANDLE]

You have weird understanding of beauty. Good thing too, someone needs to take those uglies of the market @@hitmonkey4726

[@zephyrspride]

Im a female gamer (80s) and it honestly never bothered me with how women looked or I wasn't represented. I recently finished playing Ghost of Tsushima and next to Jin, Yuna is one of my favorite female characters and i related to her so much, and she didnt have to be black for that relatability. Everything she did in the game was amazing (soundtrack was amazing too). Me and a few friends watched a lets play of Mortal Kombat 1 remake and we didnt like how Natara looked or the voice for that matter because Megan Fox sounded like she didnt care and it showed in her performance. I tend to avoid games now, where they made it their mission to purposely make a character ugly because that's more realistic than having people live in a fantasy. I know I'm not the only one that feels that, and GoT and the Witcher 3 were the only recent games ive played and finished. I only care about good game play, memorable characters, and great story.

[@theblahhhman2614]

May I suggest cyberpunk 2077 :D

[@timrim9405]

Because it's about escapism and fun... It's as stupid as complaining about flashy and responsive fighting styles in gaming... Games are just a games by definition and for mentally healthy person it's obvious... If these people would really care about some influence and standards they would focus their complains on Instagram, Tinder etc. But in reality it's all about power - these people are like worst prostitutes who suddenly want to "set the boundaries of decency" and will scream that sex dolls are only for perverts xD

[@zephyrspride]

@@theblahhhman2614 I heard they fixed a lot of the gameplay with version 2, so maybe. Funny enough I'm replaying Ghost of Tsushima again and trying to do everything on there. I'm also back to playing some old school games like Wild Arms and I went nuts when I saw I could download Wild Arms 2, so I've been in nostalgia mode for a while now.

[@cailancook9720]

@@zephyrspride I was in the exact boat as you, extremely sceptical after watching the Sh*t-show unfold on launch, but I've been honestly blown away by the level of polish I've played through since. It's great & well worth your time now they've overhauled everything w/ 2.0 & Phantom Liberty.

[@josesarango3408]

that's because you are a real gamer, not a woke gamer. Also you may agree that you were always welcome to gaming, doesn't matter your gender as long as you are in, you know, to play, just like everybody else. Woke activists introduced that fake narrative

[@barneymiller4088]

I played a Tauren in World of Warcraft. Does this mean I identify as a Bull?

[@danzz2787]

"I'm 5'11 if I wear high heels in a room full of average men, I am the patriarchy" that seriously made me laugh lol

[@W1ldSm1le]

Just another piece of evidence in my "women think height correlates with competency and strength" theory

[@zhornlegacy7936]

More proof Sydney's more quotable than people give her credit for. That line's golden

[@philipventer5456]

When the joke is High Grade we have what ever it is W1ldSm1le tried to pull off.

[@laurendearnley9595]

I frown in my 6'3" female-ness.

[@growingoaks]

Didnt know she was so tall. I need me a tall mommy like her in my life

[@vikinglife6316]

We don't play games because we want reality. We play them to experience fantasy and fiction. These people need to go bankrupt.

[@SleepyDroid]

yeah but now we get screaming girls into our ears talking about their problems, it sucks.

[@wolfhawk1999]

If you look at Saints Row, they definitely are going bankrupt for this shit

[@SuperLumianaire]

More like they need to stop...... breathing.

[@slthjawa5062gggghhjjjjjkkkk]

​@@SuperLumianairesomeone had to say it

[@celian.6577]

To be fair, one doesn't exclude the other. I think Kratos isn't exactly the most attractive dude on the planet, yet it doesn't prevent me from enjoying God of War to the point that I need to make mods of him replacing him with a guy looking like Timothée Chalamet or something. Most men would be outraged and criticize female gamers heavily if they came up with a mod changing Kratos into a cute softboy and claiming they like it better that way, lmao. They would also say "He's a Spartan warrior and a godslayer, he's supposed to look huge, scary and covered in sweat and blood! Women ruin everything..." and I would fully agree with them. So I also agree with female players wanting the female characters to actually look like warriors, and thinking it's a bit silly for men to want warriors to look like instagram models.

[@NateO123]

Ever notice men are never complaining about unrealistic portrayals of attractiveness in games and media? I don't feel dehumanized when I'm playing Gears of War and every man is a hulking colossus of muscles. Body positivity and representation is fully a women's gripe.

[@rookooful]

i am overweight but you dont see me in target complaining the manikins dont look like me. Not arguing but agreeing

[@TheAdypoker]

@@grabble7605 Are you being serious right now? Do you want to know something that they changed in the MCU that everyone loved? Nick Fury is black in the MCU and the original is white... It has nothing to do with a character being black unless they are portrayed poorly...

[@Ieatpaste23]

​@grabble7605 did you just say colored people? 😬

[@ToadstedCroaks]

IF anything, you see men complaining when it becomes too realistic that it overflows back into uncanny valley. IE: People losing their minds over Diablo 4 druids being insanely obese compared to earlier versions from 20 years ago. It was a really weird design decision in World of Warcraft... to make an entire culture / race of fat humans that made no sense. And then copy / paste that exact same people into your next game ... or no good reason.

[@maxttk97]

​@@grabble7605what? You are making no sense.

[@stefananderton1506]

👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 very well said indeed. It's all fantasy, escapism, and we definitely need that in these times, hypersexual or not.

[@MikeTXBC]

I think some people are also missing the point: the characters we play in games aren't normal or average. They don't represent us. These characters are larger-than-life heroes (or anti-heroes) and that's why they're fun to play!

[@blacky8987]

finally a human with brain, DUDE why you need representation in video game about some mf killing bad guys? people this days are so weak and clowns lol i like kratos and goku but im not like them i dont want to see myself on them

[@Mypenisissmallbut]

If you think about it, most video game characters spend their time running everywhere and jumping and climbing random shit, that alone means they have to be fit and athletic otherwise that’s unrealistic af. I mean fr, try to climb up a wall thats a few feet taller than you so you gotta jump and pull yourself up, Even if you are somewhat fit it’s HARD. Ive been doing it since I was a kid and still not close to climbing a wall in less than a second like most video game characters. Someone was chasing me I’d need a good 25ft lead on them before I’d feel comfortable climbing a wall to escape.

[@t1z3l40]

@@blacky8987that’s what Im saying, i fk with Chief or Kratos because they are cool af and not because they are like me(duh, no one is like them) and if they would be like me they would be boring af

[@cloudynguyen6527]

Even most down to earth guy like Gordon Freeman in Half-Life series is insanely protected by plot armor. That's the only suspension of disbelief if you actively question it. Other than that, he serves well as a self-inserted character for players to experience.

[@mrlunar62]

But some characters make sense when they r ugly like the girl from horizon forbidden west. She is built like a body builder. That’s coz she does a shit ton of heavy lifting. And women do get “good looks” in mortal kombat. Idk where tf she pulled that shit out her ass. She ain’t a gamer

[@squirrelchaser2651]

Here’s the thing. I am a “normal” woman; in other words, sometimes I look good and have been told “beautiful,” and sometimes I don’t look great. BUT, I want to escape into that “perfect” woman in looks, but with a strength I’ll never have (and yeah I lift…) For heavens sake, let me have my fantasies. If I want reality, I’ll just exist in my real life. There are times I want to be immersed in something we all know is not real. Stop taking away my fun and fantasy. And I’m an older person - I’ve been gaming longer than many of you have been on the planet. The world is already full of “ugly” and I would appreciate a place to escape.

[@udirt]

it seems some people just forgot how this whole thing works. maybe it's really the idiotic simple fact of not reading enough and playing on a smartphone. or a poop in the water but yes. escapism or rather just fantasy!!! my mmorpg characters were pretty fairys, grubby little fighters, huge mountain-tall soliders. in rpg a black woman and a cut-throat guy and on the games with good editors i've also gone and tried make a version of myself who's turned into a aging mobster. even with a damn beard and scars. but the idea is to be on an adventure, either accompanying a character that we accompany or to feel really like it's us there - but one should be able to decide that on the spot and something might just be off with people that can't make these choices. or was I meant to think I need to become Duke'Nukem in the 90s? because that totally didn't work out.

[@gurgamous]

completely reasonable and understandable. Also, well said, muh lady

[@drpepper998]

I think it's ironic the women you showed in the TED talks were not attractive and the one that talked about voices had a "unique" voice. To get rid of this issue completely, just have a character creator or allow mods and everybody can play the "style" of character they want.

[@TomServo1969]

I agree. Then they publish articles berating gamers for modding the "single player game they paid money for" and adding sexier female bodies, faces and clothing. Because, "Hey, stop that! That's not what we wanted you to do! We wanted you to like what we like!"

[@starscreamthecruel8026]

They weren't ugly either. They were ordinary.

[@CommanderRedEXE]

​@@starscreamthecruel8026 Nah. They were definitely at most a 5. The second one was maybe a 4 lol.

[@kirkyorg7654]

if you mean by "unique" that she sounded like a chipmunk your correct

[@drakenskag]

​@@kirkyorg7654maybe she just fits into the horror genre of women that she was talking about. She don't like her genre assignment 😂

[@vagrant1943]

So Alloy can run and jump like an olympic athlete but she somehow got fatter? Okay. 😆

[@vergillives9890]

If they weren't so offended and sabotaging because they feel like they are in competition with them and need to punish ingame girls in a fantasy setting

[@furyberserk]

And then they went to attacking drawings. Anime and games is like ice cream and cake. Both good alone and together. Shame they saw that too.

[@YouTubeDweller8008]

Well, that's communism for you. You can't make ugly people beautiful. So... make beautiful people uglier. Equality.

[@grabble7605]

...Yes? Complete your sentence, you illiterate git.

[@terri639]

I'm a woman gamer (Smite is my favorite, but Overwatch and more) and I WANT to see hot, beautiful women. It's sort of like I enjoy seeing a movie with attractive men and women. I'm totally straight too btw...but I just like looking at attractive people. At no point am I comparing myself to the characters. I think that's the heart of the problem here. To many people comparing themselves in an unhealthy way to people in media (TV, movies, video games). They aren't mentally healthy enough to understand why that's dumb. We need to be teaching people NOT to see themselves in media. It sets unrealistic standards. Just like people looking towards Instagram models and feeling bad because they don't look like them. Heck, the models don't really look like that either people!! Stop comparing yourself!! This is what happens when we teach a generation of people to be so absorbed in media and to see "representation" to see themselves in characters. You get people that lose their shit if they can't stack up to fake video game characters. Ugh, I'm so annoyed with these people.

[@klove5974]

THIS!!! Why are these people comparing themselves to a VIDEO GAME CHARACTER?!

[@Jetsparx373]

These people are so mentally screwed they have to put other people down for liking attractive things or they're so self-conscious they're afraid of their own shadows.

[@zzreaper4499]

It’s all feminist and woke ppl that have insecurities that scream louder than a nuke that wanna downgrade everything so they can make themselves feel better about themselves so they can ignore all ways of self improvement or life enjoyment😂 so for short they’re very miserable and they want all media and all people to be miserable with them

[@wolfhawk1999]

Objective beauty is objectively beautiful. It's no surprise people like pretty things. Men, women, art... people like looking at nice things

[@kevinlawler3252]

@terri639 Yeah.. cultural guidelines have told you what to care about.. intelligent people don’t care.. however the sheep and Marxists/ communists do listen and serve the establishment.. helpful idiots.

[@ElyseStandard]

I'm a woman and I mod my characters to be prettier, even in something as bland as Sims. The characters aren't meant to represent me, they're just a game character. I want them to look pretty, whether they "look like me" or not. Representation doesn't matter to me, strong, well written, good characters matter. I can learn from them and grow as a person, not "feel comfortable in myself because they're just like me". They're meant to be their own character, not mirror you to make you feel alright about yourself. I've found commonalities in the story arcs of male characters even.

[@otimo144]

100% agree with this. I just want a fantasy if i want to see a generic Mexican that "represents me" I'll just look in the mirror. These people are just egotistical that they need to be the center of attention.

[@atrozzorta9602]

What a great comment and exactly how I feel about all of this too. If people need a character to be exactly like them to be able to connect and empathize then that is a person that lacks compassion.

[@samsamsam446]

Exactly!! I don’t need to be represented. I just want to have fun.

[@Vaquix000]

Exactly. I don't understand the "Represent me" idea. I don't want a male character to look exactly like me because I'm not self-obsessed

[@Jams848484]

Same. Funnily enough, I'm not looking for a game featuring a middle aged man with a dad bod and rapidly receding hairline. I'm looking to escape that reality for a few hours, not have it reflected back to me on a screen.

[@StarkVengeance]

Man, I'm really happy for you, Doodle!! And I love the doodles ❤ I don't know about names, maybe Margaret? As in Thatcher, she's British and there's good nicknames for it like Marge and Peggy. Keep bringing the sunshine and being a force for good! Can't wait to see what's next for you 🎉

[@Julienna]

Ok. I am 41 woman and I am playing Tomb Raider for 2 decades noticing how Lara changed from sexy, funny, brave and fit to unbearably whiney, asexual, anxious, anorexic looking childhood-trauma character. Like I get it, her childhood was full of tragedies, but she acts like a spoiled brat, boohooing throughout the whole game. OMG, when playing TR, I become the character, so I want to feel sexy, adventurous, brave, funny... you get it.

[@linusgustafsson2629]

The only thing they get is that if men have fun and enjoy a game, it is bad for women. Oh and also if women aren't considering the game perfect, it is also bad for women. Essentially games should cater to the ideals of women, so that women don't have to complain about ideals of men.

[@dinogreaver8270]

Remember when Lara was still a badass like when Angelina Jolie still played her

[@vanadot]

For me, the whiney new Lara added some storytelling about terror and danger, it's a breathtaking concept at least for the first new TR. But I do like her far better when she defeated a T-rex and says nothing, and let the player's mind talk for her instead.

[@shortyg1018]

Lara wasn't only sexy in the old games but she was charismatic as fuck, feminists ignored that part though and only focused on her looks which screams insecurity.

[@C0astDelta]

With my limited experience, Shadow of the Tomb Raider was epic as hell. I don't see the spoiled brat-boohoo nature you're referencing. If anything she's badass as hell in the new games whilst also having a grounded character. In the end she's somebody who has no military or formal combat training, at least in my knowledge. I think the modern games generally have a really good take on New Lara.

[@ohapplesauce]

Every time I’m able to customize my own character, I try to make them look as gorgeous as possible. I’m not the prettiest woman in the world, so having an attractive character that I perceive as “me” makes me feel nice.

[@wyldelf2685]

You have a beautiful soul 👍 flex your creative skill making your character as pretty as you want ,enjoy gaming fantasy and make the most of it 😸👍 myself I'm just a dude in central Florida a self avowed retro-gamer ELF on YT , that promotes freedoms of Cosplay , ,🎃😸👍👍

[@evoke2976]

​@@wyldelf2685bet u smell

[@TheEtherea]

I mean, people should and usually do (and did since forever) look up to beautiful things in their life, it's perfectly normal to begin with. Beauty is important to the soul. Most of the time people who try to sexualize every topic of discussion about beauty are people who have issues and try to reflect their ugly (internally) self on others.

[@kenim]

I really hate all of this modern romantization of the grotesque. I can agree that there is substance to be explored there, but to swap it with beauty is absurd.

[@jannadark8100]

I can relate! if game allows I'll make sure my character looks the way I want. when they started to ship only ugliness it feels bad. why I would want to play the game where my character looks uglier then myself in RL? I don't want to connect to that ugliness (in case it is contagious, lol)

[@augenmaugen]

If we like seeing pretty flowers, trees, architecture, etc., it’s okay to like seeing pretty people in a non-sexual way. I’m a regular straight guy but I like seeing above average men modeling the clothes I buy and in movies, not because I’m checking them out, but it’s just pleasant. My wife HATES that when buying clothes online now, she can’t figure out if something is going to look good or not because it’s hard to tell the accurate shape of something on the body positivity models. I’m for acceptance of self and moving forward regardless of appearance. I’m also for ridding society of over sexualization, because contrary to what the world thinks (especially Gen Z, though they’d deny it, because they seem to think their whole existence and identity is based on sexuality, which is plain ignorant and short sighted); sex/sexuality isn’t life and obsession with it has ruined countless lives. But pleasant looks don’t have to mean sexualization.

[@matsv201]

"If we like seeing pretty flowers, trees, architecture, etc." As a building engineer, i have to oppose that. That is different from being a visually stimulating architecture and one that is beautiful. The first one is like a child would draw it, with just lots and lots of stuff on it, but not very reasonable or realistic. Now a lot of games have there building based of real buildings and then its generally fine. And will high fantasy, its not really a issue with a castle that is unreasonable high. But in game where the buildings are just created of hands, they are usually terrible. This is specially so a problem with near future settings.

[@Devil-Made]

I agree with you here. I don’t quite understand what the other guy is getting at, but I get you. I think there’s an aspect of beauty no one ever talks about: it’s universality. Some things (whether they’re seen in nature, art, or architecture) just go beyond the trends of the day and succeed because of how universally beautiful they are. With everything being sexualized now, we don’t often hear anyone refer to the objective beauty around us. Objective beauty has been thrown out with the bath water, it seems.

[@Bizagro]

Will beauty standards always exist? Would some people have a natural advantage, others distanced advantages, and some the potential to do anything to gain an advantage? Secondly, is the notion that standards are impossible to achieve, quite silly, when there is a prevailing narrative that women are kung fu masters able to beat up any man? Is that somehow less connected to achievable standards?

[@julia_gib3300]

There’s is something helpful about the various model sizes. I’m 5’8 and a size 10/12. It’s helpful to see how clothes will look on a taller bigger model, as opposed to on the 5’5 size 2/4 model. I don’t think that’s offensive. I’m not obese, just a different body type than is typically represented in women’s fashion.

[@josesarango3408]

It's also OK to like people in a sexual way as long as not being creepy towards that person

[@UpForDebate05]

People need to make the distinction between "sexuality" and "sexualization" in video games : Sexuality in a video game character refers to the representation of physical traits or behaviors that acknowledge or express sexual characteristics, such as body language, gestures, and attire that align with the character's identity. This can be an integral part of their identity and can enhance their realism, allowing for a richer exploration of their persona within the game. Sexualization, in contrast, involves emphasizing a character's physical appearance in a way that reduces them to their sexual attributes. This can include overly revealing clothing, exaggerated body proportions, or camera angles that focus on sexual features, often at the expense of their character development. The intent is usually to appeal to the audience's sexual desires rather than to portray a well-rounded character. Making a beautiful and attractive character is totally fine as long as there's no forced objectification coming from the sexualization of the character by the developpers.

[@iainjmclaren]

One of my favourite analogies of the last few years is Schrödinger's Feminism (woman in a box who is simultaneously a victim and empowered/when you open the box to observe her she jumps to the state that most suits her at that moment). This dichotomy is becoming more and more present and extreme in current times with the oppressive patriarchy, desexualisation and body positivity narratives described in this video on one hand and the sexual empowerment narrative with examples such as beach, hotel balcony, gym shoots and dance videos on Instagram/ Tiktok, the explosion of Onlyfans and hypersexualised female Twitch streamers on the other. I don't see how this complete lack of coherence helps anybody.

[@MrRodwatson]

Great post 👍

[@memnarch129]

Well id argue its less a Schrodingers situation in that its two seperate camps of Feminism. One which is "Women can do anything they want and dont/shouldnt need to be sexualized or only valued for their appearance" and the other which is "My looks can get me anything I want and Im going to use that to its fullest extent". One detests the focus on appearance, and actively seeks to destroy any appeal to that, while the other dives completely into appearance and damned everything else. They both do the "Im a girl boss and a independent woman that dont need no man" thing. But one is more valid in that then the other. The Body Positivity side actually does the I dont need a man side pretty well, while the others entire existence can only be sustained by men willing to hand over money. Again bottom line is they dont "shift" between the two, one is usually firmly in one of the two camps.

[@MrRodwatson]

@@memnarch129 "how do you write women so well?" - I think of a man.....and I take away reason and accountability. From the movie As Good As It Gets.

[@Mr_Robotts]

​@@MrRodwatsonthat quote has been on my mind a lot lately. It was said as a joke, to make him seem like a jerk, but apparently the modern feminists took that as a mantra to aspire to

[@notlelola]

I don't think it's a dichotomy. It is actually coherent. Those women want to be in control of their lives and want to be seen as people and not objects. People are sexual and want to be perceived as sexy at times but on their own accord. Objects are not in control and can be taken advantage of sexually. This is basically all about consent. Women who do Onlyfans consent to being sexualised.

[@_evildoer]

The Aloy thing is super annoying because they showed her as older in the holograms from the past in the first game. And she was thin, and looked attractive, just older. And whats even more ridiculous is that her "clone mother" was a scientist who wasnt running around all day fighting machines. So Aloy should be way MORE fit than her.

[@doctorgrubious7725]

@@chingvang9320most PlayStation games are 💀

[@GameOn0827]

She has that leather vest outfit that is more revealing than any outfit from the first game I believe, which shows off some abs. I feel like her face thins out throughout the game too, idk. Doesn't seem like not all the developers got the memo.

[@Ludwig1970]

@@doctorgrubious7725I’d love to know what games you play then.

[@gavinattalahadiyan325]

Genshin Impact did better justice on what Aloy looked like in their crossover than their own developers.

[@doctorgrubious7725]

@@Ludwig1970 whatever the hell I feel like, mainly it’s been sims 3 and Spore, but also Doom Eternal and Doom 64 rank highly for me 💀💀💀

[@BenderFondue]

What is very interesting is the fact that Japanese videogame deves don't give a duck about making their characters more realistic. And the sales show that it works, since they do get the numbers unlike the western ones.

[@edwardweaver6869]

No shit. I’m playing Tales of Berseria and the female character design is literally “Modest Paladin Girl.” “BELTS AND TITS MAKE CLOTHING RIGHT?!” And “If I use books as a skirt I can wear JUST panties right?” Japan is cultured as fuck,

[@isaiahtorrezao7461]

​@@x0vg5hs1source?

[@JimmyChangaification]

Resident Evil, guy. The new designs look both realistic and super hot. The new Jill is possibly the hottest video game character of all time and she still looks realistic.

[@edwardweaver6869]

@@JimmyChangaification Ada is still a damn bombshell.

[@JimmyChangaification]

@@edwardweaver6869 Word.