The Sarkeesian Era
In the West, the last 20 years has seen success for many progressive movements. The LGBTQIA movement has achieved much and changed what the world defines as the norm in terms of sexuality. Ironically, however, this sexual revolution has also been extremely regressive in some ways. Recently, this regressive mindset appears most evident in entertainment – namely, video games.
It’s no secret that the gaming industry has undergone significant transformations over the years. One such transformation started with the release of the “Tropes vs Women in Video Games” YouTube series. Created by Anita Sarkeesian, founder of feminist frequency, it aimed to legitimize her opinion that video games portrayed women as sexist stereotypes. The buzz this generated and the flood of donations that funded her channel changed gaming forever. Activism had reached the industry, and it was lucrative.
Historically, video games were mostly a young, male space. As such, studios heavily catered to that audience. This, of course, was a simple task. Men are generally very easy to please. However, the landscape soon changed. Gone were the days of sexy female characters, masculine heroes, and unbridled storytelling. The “wild west” had essentially been tamed. The new sheriff in town enforced representation, political narratives, and the de-sexualization of female characters.
In recent times, studios shifted their focus to a “modern audience.” Coincidentally, this audience aligns perfectly with feminist sensibilities. Things that were once considered normal, exciting, and fun, became toxic, offensive, and problematic.
The Ugly Truth
Over the last few years, terms like DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusivity) and ESG (environmental, social, governance) crept into the gaming world. Many gamers believe this has only made the problem with games worse. Indeed, these ideologies correlate with a sharp decline in the quality of games and the ever-widening rift between developers and gamers.
Neither diversity nor inclusivity are bad goals to aspire to. After all, gamers come from all walks of life, and consists of both males and females. The issue is that the aggressive pursuit of equity has pushed the pendulum to another extreme: the sensibilities of a relatively small, yet influential group of gamers that hate straight men. As a result, modern games catering to that “modern audience” have suffered.
Recently, the “uglification” of female characters has become a contentious topic of debate. From small YouTubers like ChattySisa to larger accounts like Vara Dark, female gamers have also noticed the phenomenon, and they’re not happy either. As pointed out by this X user below, original face models for female characters are consistently and intentionally changed to appear less feminine.
Arguments like these arose as early as 2019 but are now starting to pick up steam. Older gamers who still recall the pre-Sarkeesian era of games seem to be the most bothered by it. One obvious motivation for this phenomenon is the push to subvert the “male gaze.” In feminist theory, the male gaze is the act of depicting women from a masculine, heterosexual perspective that presents women as sexual objects for the pleasure of the heterosexual male viewer.
It easy to see how these abrasive, feminist interpretations on male sexuality attribute to the decline of beautiful female characters. The theory itself is a hideous portrayal of heterosexuality. Therefore it’s only natural that consultation companies that adhere to this theory, like Sweet Baby Inc, are connect to games that corrupt the beauty of women. This mindset led to what is now called Gamergate2 with Kabrutus and the Sweet Baby Inc Detected curator list being at the center of it.
The Same Old Tactics
“Why do you care? Women don’t exist for your porn material! Have you ever touched a real woman?”
In the West, male heterosexuality is nearly a taboo. It’s often depicted dangerous, unwanted, and misogynistic. This, of course, is in stark contrast to homosexuality which is praised and promoted in our society. In the case of the hetero-male gamer, his sexuality is not allowed to play any part in his gaming experience. Slurs like “porn-brained”, “Incel”, and “coomer” are often used to shame male gamers that express the desire for beautiful female characters.
For a long while, these shaming tactics silenced male gamers, but nature always wins in the end. The truth is that sexuality plays some part in nearly everything we do. Understanding this concept is not only key to knowing yourself, it’s key to understanding your art and audience. Shaming or attempting to “force behaviors” (here’s looking at you, Larry Fink) has never been a winning strategy in a free market. Thankfully, wherever there is a need, someone will seek to fill it.
In the midst of this controversy, Shift Up, a Korean gaming studio, was about to launch an atom bomb on the industry. On March 29, 2024, the “Eve Protocol” was initiated, and Stellar Blade’s demo hit the store.
The Awakening
The Cambridge Dictionary defines the word “Eve” as the day or period before an important event. In this sense, the moment Eve emerged from her space pod was as culturally significant as it was visually stunning. It was a moment that marked the end of the “Sarkeesian Era” and the eve of a new one. One in which straight male gamers no longer feel the need to apologize for their sexuality. The provocative, stylish, yet controversial demo launched and received overwhelming praise.
Apart from the awesome gameplay, stunning OST, and great story, Stellar Blade unapologetically leaned into what modern activists consider offensive – the “male gaze”. Ultimately this turned out to be a good move. The game now boasts the highest user score of 2024, the highest PS5 User score, and the highest user score for a Sony game.
For many gamers, Stellar Blade was a breath of fresh air. It gave them something they didn’t even know they had a right to ask for. As such, gamers’ tolerance for sanitation and censorship have reached an all-time low. There’s now a heightened resistance in the community to such games. Games like The First Descendant receive instant praise for its “Based” character models. Meanwhile, games like Concord that focus heavily on DEI receive criticism, low interest, and even petitions.
In the words of an anonymous Twitter user, “the porn-brained insults just aren’t hitting the same way anymore.” The fact is that gamers love Stellar Blade. They love the design, they love the endless outfit options, and they really love Eve. Stellar Blade proved you can have a strong female character that doesn’t sneer at its core audience. It proved that male gamers don’t mind playing with female leads, but no one gets to dictate how or why they should like them.
Conclusion
The success of Stellar Blade is a turning point for the industry and will likely affect how studios approach development in the future – if only just a bit. In the past few days we’ve already seen organizations like Microsoft quietly turning back the dial on DEI and others, like SHRM attempt a rebrand with “I&D.”
Ultimately, only time will tell how Gamergate2 concludes. Although, one thing is for certain: things have changed. Gamers, especially male gamers, have become much more vocal about what they want. The pressure to deny that their sexuality influences decisions is swiftly waning.
All in all, changes are taking place in the gaming world, and male gamers from all over the world can now comfortably say:
“Yes, Eve is hot.”
“Yes, her looks add enjoyment to our gaming experience.”
“And, yes, we want more beautiful women in our games.”
Deal with it.