We've all seen the pictures this week of GameStop's ridiculous new display featuring "Games 4 Girls." We've read the vitriol, and it's largely spot-on -- this little marketing campaign is insulting, stereotypical, and in fact damaging to budding girl gamers.But not really because of the marketing, atrocious as it may be. No, the blame for this one can largely be pushed at the developers themselves who cannibalize characters that young girls recognize and identify with for their crappy, low quality games. Sure, we could spend our time railing against the very notion that young girls identify with Bratz characters, but those are symptoms of a deeper disease, one that we're not going to cure any time soon, no matter how much we wish we could. That cancer will have to be dug out of society over time. So let's instead rail about something that is meaningful here, to us, to gamers ... a song we often sing ... can we stem this tide of craptacular pseudogames, please?
While this may seem like the segue from hell, it isn't. How many of us know girls who, at the age of 8-12, did in fact play some games ... but later, their interest evaporated? Is it because That's So Raven didn't grow with them? It's doubtful that's the reason. What's far more likely is that they buy these games, the Bratz titles and such, because those are the things they like (or their parents buy them), and they open them with all the excitement we experience at the latest Zelda or Castlevania ... but instead of the rich and fulfilling experience those games provide, they get shoddy gameplay. But wait! The Little Mermaid on the DS is actually pretty good, some insist, lowering their voices and shifting their eyes to make sure no one is listening. But think -- the very fact that we have to qualify that there are a few "girl-friendly" titles out there that are decent indicates that the vast pantheon of pink-and-pretties are not. Most aren't fit to be polluting landfills, much less sitting inside a gaming console.
And so these girls learn to be disappointed by games. They learn that games are fun for a few minutes and then they're to be tossed aside in favor of something else. Is it any wonder that later, most don't want to try anything deeper than Bejeweled? Perhaps we are birthing casual gamers right here at home.
Want to introduce a girl to gaming? Give her something you know is entertaining that may also factor in to her other tastes. For younger girls, why not let her take a pass at something like Yoshi's Island? Between the babies and Yoshi himself (with whom I've had a deep fascination since being a wee girl myself), all the cuteness requirements are easily filled. Or hey, let's even mention the other guys, with the Katamari games, Loco Roco, or even -- gasp -- Guitar Hero. There are so many games that serve as both a great introduction to the fun of gaming and that aren't shoddy or insulting. Then she can show you exactly what the girls can do, and it doesn't have to be about anything but having fun.
The selection itself is one of the (many) problems with a display like this. Is it any challenge to point to a Bratz game and say, hey, young girls, this is for you? It's certainly not for anyone else. Any girl could physically walk around GameStop and say, hey, Little Mermaid. I like the Little Mermaid. So could her parents. They don't need an arrow pointing it out. If we must endure something like this, then shouldn't it feature the less obvious games? Great, Cooking Mama is there. Let's add some others, like the aforementioned Yoshi's Island and what the hell, Gunpey. For that matter, where's Kirby? Regardless of age and gender, everyone loves the puff. This display needs more puff. And parents, when shopping for games for their young children, may need to be led to the games they don't know about, that they don't know are appropriate for their younger children. We're pretty sure The Little Mermaid is appropriate for young girls (at least, when Disney is done with it). But parents may not know about a world of other, equally appropriate titles, most of which demonstrate better craftsmanship and playability. Market those, because playability doesn't even belong in the same sentence with a lot of games that are supposedly made for girls.
And while we're at it, why not add Games 4 Boys? Games 4 Men? Games 4 Old Folks? Where are those displays? Let me guess -- they don't need to be told which games to buy? Hate to break it to the guys at GameStop, but girls don't need to be told to buy these games, either.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
11-15-2006 @ 5:43PM
Crazylink said...
Those games are just sad. If my sister still played games I know she wouldn't even think about trying them.
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11-15-2006 @ 6:33PM
Alisha Karabinus said...
Yeah, my niece used to play games. Games like this.
She doesn't play games any longer. I wonder why.
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11-15-2006 @ 7:02PM
DiahrreaMan said...
I can agree with that article. My sis is 11 and she LOVES to play Super Smash Brothers on the N64 with me. She bugs me every day to put out some time to go a few rounds. She plays with (you guessed it) Kirby, and can kick some ass on a 4v4 free-for-all. I stick with my man Link, though I often wish he could float like Kirby 'cause she gets me mid-air every now and again. Conclusion? Blatant stereotypic ads like that won't help anyone. On a side note, she also likes to go a few rounds on MP:H and she gets a kick out of it (though most of the time she gets owned). Girls can play any games out there, no need to say "these are for your "kind"".
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11-15-2006 @ 7:35PM
Howard said...
Certainly anyone, and than we not such as you?:)
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11-15-2006 @ 7:41PM
Isaac said...
Great article. Not to mention it comes from an informed perspective!
"props", whatever that means?
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11-15-2006 @ 7:45PM
Hannah said...
Great article, Alisha. Drives me batty to see stereotypical "girl" games. What a load of rubbish.
Reminds me of when I was younger and my teacher lamented that it was impossible to get me to read any books. Well, duh. Who the heck wants to read silly squirrel stories? And other "girly" books? The moment my aunt gave me a book with substance, I became a reader for life.
Change that scenario to gaming and maybe GameStop would get a clue. Retailers need to understand that girls are perfectly capable of enjoying quality games, too!
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11-15-2006 @ 7:48PM
Kefka said...
Erk, this kind of crap irks me too...
Yes, there are some young girls who will enjoy these sorts of games more than others. But for the love of gaming, DO NOT put up big billboards saying "this is what girls should be playing."
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11-15-2006 @ 8:27PM
Tom Boucher said...
My daughter is 5. I have a heck of a time keeping her from asking for these stupid games. The barbie ones are the worst, followed by the Disney ones.
fortunately she's really enthralled with Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2 right now. She still loves 'her puppies' with Nintendogs but it's fun that she's starting to play other games more.
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11-15-2006 @ 9:00PM
Chinami said...
Someone got it right! I'm not crazy!
But ew. If anyone told me to play those games, I'd probably stab my eyes out.
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11-15-2006 @ 9:11PM
Schuyler said...
That is the definately the truth. I have a sister who plays games and has always played games and i have a feeling its because she played good games like mario and the legend of zelda instead of crappy games that they make for people of her age and gender group.
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11-15-2006 @ 9:17PM
ts8lemonade said...
Who the hell cares? OH NOES NOT MARKETING! Seriously, it wasn't directed at teens and women, it was directed at GIRLS, meaning like 12 and under. Move on, it's not the fucking end of the world just because some asshole at Gamestop corporate decided to have a small marketing section directed at female children. I'm sure nobody gives a flying shit that I feel that every male character in a game stereotypes me because they are all handsome and well-built. And nobody cares about your dumbass rantings either.
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11-15-2006 @ 9:37PM
Rory said...
How is this demeaning to girl gamers?
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11-15-2006 @ 9:48PM
DiahrreaMan said...
@11
Wow, you missed the entire point of the article. Well, you don't sound like an educated gamer regardless, so I'll just ignore your comment.
@12
They're singleling out the games girls are "expected" to play, would you mind if they had like in the article a stand saying "games for boys", full of fps and gta's? What about Mario games? Do they count as "boy" games? would I then look not "normal" for purchasing a game that doesn't fall under the category of a "boy" game? That's the point of the article, everyone has the ability to choose for themselves what to play and what not to play. I choose not to play much fps and gta's simply because that's not what I look for in a game. I want fun, period. Does that make not "normal"?
STILL WAITING FOR GOLDEN SUN 3 DAMMIT!
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11-15-2006 @ 9:49PM
Alisha Karabinus said...
ts8lemonade, the piece is not written about women or teens, but about young girl gamers.
There are better games than lolBratz for young girls. LOTS of better games.
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11-15-2006 @ 10:29PM
ts8lemonade said...
@13
No, I didn't miss the point of the article. She was complaining because Gamestop has a display targeted at little girls with games like "Bratz" and "Barbie" on it and she feels this stereotypes female gamers into buying something they don't want. That seems pretty dead on to me. The fact of the matter, is that I don't care. It's marketing, they always target a specific audience and try to sell their product to that audience, that's the way it works. Does it affect you? No, then who gives a shit, just move on. If you want to play Mario and Zelda that's fine, then go play those and just don't complain about stupid shit.
And also, hell no I wouldn't care if they set up a "Games for boys" section that had sports titles and shooters or something. Does it affect me? No, so I just move on and go buy the game I was looking for and that's that.
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11-15-2006 @ 10:36PM
Gnizmo said...
The concept is at list slightly interesting. I haven't noticed the display in the Gamestop I go to, but I also didn't realize they had a GBA display still set-up until a couple weeks ago. Do they at least have Super Princess Peach in the display? Or maybe even Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time. Or is it all My Little Pony crap?
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11-15-2006 @ 11:01PM
Lotrfish said...
This is stupid. My little sister is 12 and wouldn't ever play these stupid games. She used to but I steered her away from that disaster. Now she's really looking forward to Wii Sports, Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz, Rayman: Raving Rabids, Excitetruck, and *OMG GASP* Red Steel. Yes, even Red Steel. When I told her about the game she asked, "Do you get to kill stuff?" I told her and she's like, "YES!" Girls like good games too, even shooters. Girls will steer clear of gaming when they play crappy games like Little Mermaid and put them down after 2 minutes.
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11-16-2006 @ 12:03AM
DiahrreaMan said...
Exactly. This reminds me of an ad I saw a while back. It had a little innocent-looking girl with a caption at the bottom that read: "I may not look it, but I pwoned you in that last match-up." I thought it was awesome and reminded me of my sis who plays MP:H online more than I do. (I steer clear actually :3)
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11-16-2006 @ 10:45AM
Nightravyn said...
@15 - The problem is is they are "marketing" to what they -think- are games girls want. They are taking substandard games, making sure they are packaged in pink, and sending them out for girls to play, because "no girl would ever want to kill things, they just want to shop!" This is the same thinking that causes gaming magazines to write articles on how to get your girlfriend to game but showing her all the cute fluffy things she can buy in a game. And as far as a "Games for Boys" section, that's the whole reason they made the "Games for Girls kiosk - the whole store is seen as a "Games for Boys" section.
Gaming Marketing, by stores AND developers, needs to quit playing the "oh here, let us hold your hand while you look at the big scawwy game machine" ploy at girls and concentrate on something that ALL gamers want: games that are actually worth our money to buy and time to play.
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11-16-2006 @ 11:41AM
Isaac said...
@15
Again you're missing most of the point. It harms the industry to tell parents (who are easily marketable to since they're out of the loop in terms of what games are good) to buy these shoddy titles for their daughters. They start to associate gaming with disappointment and as such will not buy games when they grow up.
However if you wave Mario Kart or Bubble Bobble in front of, say, a 20 year old girl now - it might get her back into playing games. Sadly not many girls nowadays are playin the actual good games, they're just playing cheap half-assed titles built on a franchise.
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