investiGaming is a publication of the Serious Game Design group in the Department of Telecommunication, Information Studies, and Media at Michigan State University, 2007-2009
This gateway is partially supported by grant 0631771 from the National Science Foundation.
The opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not represent Michigan State University or the National Science Foundation.
Gaming CultureinvestiGaming › Tags › Gaming Culture
Selected highlights from the Gaming Culture tag (scroll down to see the full list of entries with this tag, including links to the entries)
Gaming Competitions
• There appeared to be increased segregation of pro-players by sex, and more single sex teams (Taylor, 2008).
• There were higher prize winnings for male teams (Taylor, 2008).
• Women’s competitions appeared to have a secondary status (Taylor, 2008).
• There was a “glamorization” of women game players in the marketing and promotion of some female-only teams (Taylor, 2008).
Getting Girls into the Gaming Culture
• Japanese gaming culture has produced highly successful games that cross gender boundaries (Ito, 2008).
• Japanese games such as Pac Man, Donkey Kong, Dig Dug and Parappa the Rapper provided alternatives to shooting, fighting, and racing as idioms for game play (Ito, 2008).
• Japanese games have produced girl-friendly cute characters derived from Japanese animation (Ito, 2008).
• The example of the character Pikachu in Pokemon demonstrates a cute and relatively non-violent play idiom appealing to both boys and girls (Ito, 2008).
• Girls are strongly present in Japanese gaming culture now (Ito, 2008).
• The participation of girls is thus all the more important and educational games need to take into account girls’ perspectives and preferences (de Castell, 2006).
The Importance of Getting Girls into Gaming
• Boys’ early and sustained experience with gaming gave them an advantage in building competence and confidence with computers (de Castell, 2006).
• Computer-based media is increasingly important for learning and work, and games are being enlisted for educational purposes (de Castell, 2006).
• Educational deployment of game-based learning threatens to compound and intensify girls’ disadvantage (de Castell, 2006).
Reasons for Gender Gaps in Gaming
• There appears to be a persistent gender gap with regard to gaming. It is due to gaps in interest and in learning of technology (Ito, 2008).
• Gaming is “culturally coded” male (Ito, 2008).
• Gaming provides an accessible entry point into geek identities and practices that are tied to technical expertise and media literacy, but this entry point is more accessible to those with high-end gaming resources and more appealing to males (Ito, 2008).
• Research on “what girls like best” in gaming has stalled in thinking, drawing from the early work of Cassells and Jenkins (Jenson, 2007).
• A gamut of gender stereotypes have become canonical in the field, re-instated by Sheri Graner-Ray (Jenson, 2007).
• Games studies research on “what girls like best” needs to be re-thought drawing on broader approaches to gender and socio-cultural studies, or else the research will further legitimate inequalities and stereotypes (Jenson, 2007).
• Game Designers notions of the potential user resulted in sex-stereotyped software (Huff, 1987).
Video Game Characters
• Video game characters potentially shape players’ perceptions of gender roles through indirect messages (Miller, 2007).
• Players learn societal expectations of appearance, behavior, and roles for men and women (Miller, 2007).
• In a content analysis of 49 articles in video game magazine articles, male characters were more likely to be heroes and main characters, use more weapons, have more abilities, and be more muscular and powerful (Miller, 2007).
• Females were more often supplemental characters, more attractive, sexy, and innocent, and wear more revealing clothing (Miller, 2007).
Sexual Identity within Video Games
• Because there is no physical body in video games, players had to establish their sexual identity through messaging and talk, displaying mental or social attributes (Alix, 2006).
• Males were challenged in that they did not have to be macho to win (Alix, 2006).
• Females were challenged in finding ways to express femininity in a game that features all-male characters engaged in endless violent conflict (Alix, 2006).
Alix, Avery (2006)
Synopsis:
A case study of the game Counter-Strike looking at player interactions, especially conversations and messages that convey sexual identity and establish relationships between the sexes.
Keywords:
case study, gender identity, internet use, CounterStrike, gaming culture, masculinity, femininity
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
Explores the issue of gender and gendered game preferences, in relation to the cultural framing of the gaming audience.
Keywords:
book, chapter, gaming culture, gaming social context, what women want, classroom
Full Text: No | Abstract: Yes
Synopsis:
Reports on findings from a three-year, Canadian federally funded research project entitled “Education, Gender and Gaming” that examined why far more boys than girls play video games.
Keywords:
case study, conference, Canada, gender stereotypes, gaming culture, educational games, learning outcome
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
Forty-three educators with programming experience were assigned to design educational software – some were told to design for boys, others for girls, and still others for “students.” Research looked at whether and how designer expectations about the target player impacted what they designed.
Keywords:
journal, psychology, gender stereotypes, educational games, learning, gaming culture, game design
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
A description of Japanese gaming culture and trends.
Keywords:
book, chapter, Japan, gaming culture, gender inclusive, player type, Pokemon, npcs, media literacy
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
A discussion of different genres of gaming practices and the discourses that create boundaries between different forms of game play in terms of learning and development.
Keywords:
academia, chapter, children high school, gaming social context, gaming culture, gender identity, co play, empowerment, friendship
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
Commentary on research about “what girls like best” and needed shifts in thinking.
Keywords:
conference, gaming culture, gender stereotypes, what women want, game design
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
An article that asks why computers are more attractive to boys than to girls and offers a cultural framework for explaining the apparent sex differences.
Keywords:
journal, children, gaming culture, computer skills, gaming social context
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
A content analysis of 49 articles in video game magazines, coding 115 characters, to study gender roles.
Keywords:
journal, avatars, sexuality, gaming culture, fandom, gender stereotypes
Full Text: No | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
In-depth interviews and ethnographic game-play observations were used to investigate the current accessibility and allure of gaming platforms for females.
Keywords:
journal, academia, gaming culture, feminism, gender stereotypes
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
This paper explores micro-interactions at an elementary school girls’ gaming club when five girls’ gaming is interrupted by boys.
Keywords:
conference, gaming culture, gaming social context, elementary school, Canada,
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
Summarize findings on girls’ interactions with computers and discovers how girls generate views and knowledge that are both personally meaningful and useful. Provides practical considerations for classroom use of technology.
Keywords:
book, chapter, editorial, professional gaming, CounterStrike, gender stereotypes, gaming culture, what women want, gender identity, gender equity
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
Description of observations based on about four years of playing EverQuest as a female necromancer gnome.
Keywords:
book, chapter, editorial, EverQuest, gaming culture
Full Text: No | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
Describes a talk given at the 1997 Computer Game Developers Conference about what types of games would appeal to girls.
Keywords:
media-press, what women want, gaming culture, report
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes
Synopsis:
A study of the game Counter-Strike, played in internet cafes, and its accessibility to women.
Keywords:
academia, gaming culture, gaming social context, what women want, counterstrike, non gamers
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
An analysis of postings that contained some sort of gender-performance from online forums concerning the RPG Final Fantasy X-2.
Keywords:
conference, case study, gaming culture, gaming social context, internet use, feminine, masculine, Final Fantasy X-2, fandom
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes