Video games are a controversial topic because of people´s perspective and may cause discrepancies on how they impact gamers day-to-day, and the influence they have on their live styles. However, video games dramatically alter the lives of gamers in many different ways, such as increasing their levels of concentration, development of inductive reasoning and hypothesis testing and the tendency to execute in impetuous course.…
Is it true that video games are bad? Anti-social, aggressive behavior, and even health risks? Not all the time, as Dave Barry would say. Many video games such as, sports, adventure and strategy games, can all improve mental skills. It may also improve a better process of thinking, problem solving, and cognitive skills and also reduce stress. They provide a unique, interactive and complex activity, at low cost and zero…
Video games were always seen as a male dominated hobby intended for children only; and that mentality still exists today. However, as the market grows and video game consoles become more accessible (price, availability, etc.) more and more women are taking up the opportunity to go on adventures through one of the most engaging mediums on the market today.…
As an article entitled “Women Are Prizes in Video Games—And That Should Bother You” by Damon Beres points out, women are often placed in the games just for the male consumers enjoyment. A common theme has come up within the games that after saving the woman or winning the game, their character gets rewarded with sex, a kiss, or the view of one of the female characters dressed in very little clothing. As Beres states, “It all reinforces the idea that men are supposed to -- even entitled to -- claim women after overcoming some challenge” (Beres). This seems to present one of the most dangerous issues with the video game industry’s lack of accurate depiction of women. It creates an idea that women’s bodies are objects and that they owe men their bodies if the men have been successful in defeating the “bad guys”. Again, women are not represented as strong or intelligent, they are rarely available as characters who can actually help win the game, instead they are there only to please or reward the success of the male…
Video gaming is the largest entertainment industry, with an estimated 1.2 billion people engaged worldwide. Whilst women represent 46% of gamers and female game creators are increasing, games are still predominately made by and for men. As a result, misogynistic and sexist representations of women are created in the interest of male fantasy that is reflected in both game context and game play. Throughout many video games a patriarchal culture of sexism is maintained, reinforced and normalised through the context, stereotypical character representations, online bullying and harassment. This culture of sexism is, however being challenged by gamers and game developers in a way that is liberating and empowering to women in the gaming sphere.…
Video games have been rising in popularity and today has become a very profitable industry, beginning with the 1980s, from arcade classics like Asteroids, pinball, and Pac-Man to the postmodern console and computer gaming. (Sherman 243) With the rise of video games came the perpetuation of a gender disparity as a result of the emerged gaming culture and from the video games themselves. (Sherman 245) This gender disparity is evident from looking at the female gamers, who often experience sexism from male gamers and apparent in the production of video game characters and how female characters can be subjected to over-sexualization and objectification by the developers. Video games have often been considered something “men/boys do” and it is…
Dill, Karen, and Kathryn Thill. "Video Game Characters and the Socialization of Gender Roles: Young People 's Perceptions Mirror Sexist Media Depictions." Sex Roles (2007): 851-64. Print.…
Video games seem to be an essential part around my friends’ circle. Unfortunately, I have never been one of them, but since my brother is a huge fan of video games, I can say I grew up around a video games’ world. As I remember, my brother played video games in every minute and second. I believe you must wonder why I could insist not to play. The truth is I was too afraid to be addicted to those games. I knew I was like my brother. I have seen all the consequences being addicted to video games bring. So I never played the same games several times and this is how I controlled myself. Hence it is much easier for me to observe how people interact with video games and it can also satisfy my curiosity about why people are so addictive. Therefore, I asked two of my girlfriends and my brother to help me to conduct this research. I ask them to play Halo 4, which is a new game they have never played.…
As described in Weiten, Dunn & Hammer, the Characteristics of traditional masculine and feminine body language differ in many areas. Many people may look at the behavior of aggression as a traditional body language as masculine for a male. Man people may look at the traditional body language of a female as being nurturing and loving for the feminine role. It’s very obvious that men and women differ in physical appearance as well as body parts but there are still many differences (Janet Shibley Hyde, 2004). Many Americans in society today have characteristics that partake in life roles of females and males today life males are more active, aggressive, and independent, but women are more creative, emotional, and needs approval.(Best & Thomas, 2004; Williams & Best, 1990).…
In the short reflection, “Guys vs. Men,” Dave Barry examines the differences between guys and men in a humorous passage that confronts many societal stereotypes about gender roles. Barry explains the difference between a “man” and a “guy,” although he admits that even he is not sure of what it really means to be a “guy.” Guys, he says, are not concerned with details or re-arranging furniture; they like to play with complex and elaborate things to occupy themselves. Guys are also relentlessly competitive creatures, and they strive to be the best at whatever they do. It does not matter if the contest in question is completely pointless and irrelevant; guys still have to outdo one another. Many of the greatest inventions and technological advancements in history have come from the essential nature of men and their desire to perform as well as possible. In addition to outdoing each other in physical competitions, guys also must outdo each other when it comes to other manly things, such as trucks or computers. Even though the truck or computer a guy currently owns may be more than adequate for his needs, he will unavoidably upgrade to a bigger and better model within a few years. Women often do not understand why men act the way they do, and the same is true regarding the man’s view of women. The passage’s purpose is to send out the idea that there is a difference in being a “man” and a “guy.” Barry wants people to understand the nature of guys even though it is impossible to understand. The audience is most likely people who enjoy humor. I’m sure Barry doesn’t care whether men, guys, women, or ladies read this. If the female sex reads “Guys vs. Men,” then I’m sure Dave Barry’s intention for the female reader is to clarify a few things on why guys do the things they do. The passage is very clear and somewhat descriptive. It explains and brings in stories outside the main topic. It uses some metaphorical…
Research: Observing children using gaming consoles can be quite entertaining due to their deeply embedded interest and love for video games. Young boys in particular seem to partake in the interactive environment that gaming allows them to join. Whether it’s Nintendo, Xbox, or Playstation, males of all ages always seem so captivated by the virtual world portrayed on their television set. When one focuses on a specific aspect of a scene while ignoring other aspects, such as focusing on the video game you are playing in the same room as many people are speaking, a concept of selective attention is introduced (Wikipedia, 2006).…
If there is a women in a video game she is in danger, or she is just there to fill up space. She is usually presented as weaker, less capable, and undesirable. According to the conclusions drawn by Berrin Beasley & Tracy Collins Standley women appeared in games less than characters of “indeterminate gender”. Which means there were more animals and aliens in video games than women for the top two consoles (Beasley and Standley). Women make up half of the world’s population, yet no one considered that it should be pretty often that they appear in the game world. The easy fix for this is to create more women in video games. Yet, game designers avoid putting women in games and when they are in a game they are made as second rate. In reference to video games Beasley and Standley’s studies showed that, “Male participants reported less confidence in female physical capabilities, in comparison to male physical capabilities…” (Behm-Morawitz and Mastro). Males believed that females were not as capable as themselves because a video game did not present these two genders equally. If games have an effect on the way people view others, and we only represent women in a negative way in video games, what could the possible outcome…
Video games and computer games (from here on both categories will be simply referred to as video games for simplicity) have entered the domain of pop culture fairly recently. Although the first video game was developed in 1958 by William Higginbotham, their popularity didn’t occur until the seventies with the appearance of Pac-man and Frogger in the arcades (Computer and Video Games). If the younger generation of video game consumers would take a look at what was out there when the video game boom begun they wouldn’t be able to understand what was so attractive (and addictive?) about Pac-man and Frogger? The truth is, video games from over three decades ago share the same basic principles with the games we have out there right now. Let’s face it, we like video games because they provide us with interactive entertainment. In other words, we’re genuinely entertained by colorful objects that move on the TV/computer screen when we press certain buttons. I suggest that it is the overwhelming gratification that we experience from actually having absolute and unconditional control over something in our lives. Another suggestion that I have is that video games share the same elements or even directly imitate traditional games such as tag, ping-pong, chess, hopscotch etc.; video games allow us to engage in these games easily, without any stigma or significant effort on our parts. Video games are fun, inexpensive, can become a social activity allowing friends to play along, and sometimes they’re even mentally stimulating if not challenging. They’ve been a real hit every since they came out and today the video game industry has grown significantly. However, let’s examine the circle of people that are involved in production and design of video games.…
Now that our concrete world is restricting much of both genders simply by default, the need to explore, vent natural aggression and solve conflicts is being supplemented within virtual realms. But we’ve changed societally. Discrimination seems to have languished substantially; women are competing with men in careers and pursuits that were once dominated by men, and I agree with the author in that that’s the way it should be. Video games producers should do their best to create gender-neutral environments without creating pink and blue “border…
Although playing video games is especially popular among young men, a substantial number of retirees (12% of all gamers) and women (50%) play video games as well.…