Under fire: Women who dare to play video games

[McHappyPants2012]

www.metro.co.uk/news/913538-under-fire-women-who-dare-to-play-video-games

i am a keen gamer, already preorder BOII :) ( black ops 2) and do play alot of games. I thought this was normal until reading this.

aibu to think that perhaps the remarks like slut, whore and bitch ( sorry MN for swearing) are perhaps used in a generic way and not really to the intervidual player.

i hardly go on the headset ( only speak to people i know) so never really had any of these names directed towards me.

oh they are just generic terms for women? So we're all sluts whores and bitches, its nothing personal?

Well thats just fine then.

Really? Because I have heard horrifying language on COD when DH plays, racist, homophobic, sexist. Just repulsive. Oh, and YABU, generic is worse.

^^ What MrSunshine said

Methinks someone might be looking for a bunfight.

I have heard women call players male bastards, wankers and knobs dick heads. the language used in these games are vile but i don't think it is always are said in a malicious way iygwim

I don't gwym, no. Language matters and generic language actually matters most. Just cos you've heard bad language towards male gamers doesn't mean bad language towards female gamers is OK - and note how much of this language is targeted towards women's perceived sexuality by the way.

i see it in the same way as 'leave the bastard' type comments on MN.

I've heard the N word more than once. I never consider that banter.

I will read anymore replys tomorrow as i am now off out, but will reply once i get back to the computer.

When I bought Battlefield 3, my (online, invisible, but male, as most are) gaming friends all suggested I deviate from my usual female-sounding gaming name because in an FPS, I'd be targeted for being female. According to language I've heard, experienced, and what these guys have told me, it is quite normal for there to be a lot of sexist comments in video games. People feel big and brave when behind a screen, and let loose with whatever lurks in their subconscious.

There are loads of male gamers who don't do this, of course. It's just the loud ones who get heard, like any other area of life.

I actually tend to not play FPS games because of this, unless I've got a closed group of people I know.

MrsTerrys yes, racist comments flow as thick and fast as the sexist ones. Neither are funny, and I don't consider them to be comparable to "Leave the bastard." A one-off "bitch" or whatever comment, yeah alright, if it's an FPS it's an aggressive game and maybe I just killed you. :) But you can feel the contempt behind some of them. You just know when it's meant maliciously.

In truth, males in these environments do communicate differently to females. I've gamed with guys from different ethnic backgrounds, they're quite happy to get stuck in with the name calling if it turns racist, especially if it's joking. I'd never dream of joking about that sort of thing, but to each his own, I guess.

Yabu to change you view of something you are 'keen' on because of the womans 'study'. if you are keen gamer and spend alot of time on there then your experience of it is more important than hers.
There all sorts of insults thrown about on these games. She has picked out the ones that fit her 'gaming world is sexist' agenda.

Thats not how studies work.

Swear back at them? I find that works rather well, tbh...quite a few gamers swear out of frustration. Ironically they buy the game to unwind with, and end up more stressed out because of it!

See this is why I don't play fps online. If I wanted to interact with knobheads id go to the pub.

I played world of warcraft for many years and I only ever found the men online friendly I liked one so much he is now my DP

I never experienced any negative comments about my gender in all my years playing wow (raiding went out of the window shortly after DD was born/cata launch).

I would get an awful lot of 'ZOMG you're a girl!!!' comments and plenty of unwanted attention from teenagers and older supposedly married men, there was general trash talk from kids about girls being bad players but none ever directed at me

I'd say that in wow being a girl ment i was unfairly advantaged and offered free stuff and lots of help. Maybe that was because I was also a healer and everyone needs a well equiped healer.

Haha honeytea I also met my DP on wow (and was also a healer) but I was the one doing the helping, out yourself as a woman guild officer and you become agony aunt to a lot of angsty teens!

was your DP a tank? :) my DP wants to buy the new expansion but times have changed we are having a baby in December and I think our raiding days are over.

I tell all my single friends that wow is a great way to meet really lovely men :)

I'm an avid gamer (Halo, gears, skyrim) and have never experienced any negativity! Myself and DP often have gaming weekends much to the dismay of my female friends. They don't know what they are missing!

I take great pleasure in watching the squirming when other mothers are dissing gamers and I announce 'actually I'm a gamer'

I'm also really popular with the kid's friends coz I can do Zelda dungeons for them

No, he was rdps, tank duties were fulfilled by DPs mate and a now good friend to DP and I . If DD had not been born a month before cata I would have been able to raid (I did get a few realm first kills whilst BF in the December) but it was impossible to even do a simple hc during the day so I couldn't gear up, I was 6/8 BoT but had only done one hc. I'm considering starting again but couldn't raid and most all of my old lot have moved servers/play star wars

male bastard love it, I will be saying that to DH during our next ding-dong......
Me: "male bastard, testosteroned tosser"
DH: generic bore
Ad infinitum

placemarking because the topic of the thread is interesting but I don't understand gaming-lingo.

I tend to find that the worst language is on games that are run on consoles and populated by teenagers.

a generaliozation I know but it is what I have found.