Female Games (Pac man, bridge, etc.)

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One of the more interesting points about Pac Man, one of the revolutionary video game greats, that rarely gets touched is that its creator, Moru Iwatani, intended the game to be a break from the rather monotonous shoot-em-ups at the time, and to try to appeal to a female audience.

Looking back at my days spent chained to video game arcades in super malls, I can't really say it really brought out the female element to arcades, at least in America (or else I would have been a MUCH happier kid much sooner!)... but it did somehow neutralize game ideas away from male specific role types.. for a while.. which I think is a very good thing. (In fact, anthony told me about a homosexual reading on Pac man.. but I'll let him elaborate if he so wishes). It's also one of the things I liked about the whole Pokemon craze.. vicious and annoying marketing tactics aside.

Now, video games -- or games in general -- couldn't be more male dominated. Sure, there are lots of female characters in fighting games that are often popular choices amongst the guys.. but I think it's more of strange mixture of role playing and voyeurism, more than anything else. So, are we getting set up for the ULTIMATE FEMMY VID GAME to rool the ROOZT0R? If so, what would that game be like?

More importantly, why is there a trend of less female involvement in game culture these days? It's really kinda sad. And about the few true female dominated card/tile games to this day.. Bridge and Mah Jongg. Why are they only so popular with older women? Why can't general card game enthusiasts start up a Bridge game the same way they can start up Hearts or Poker or Crazy Eights or whatever?

― Brian MacDonald, Wednesday, 19 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Yay - a bridge thread (sort of) at last!

Have to take issue with your premise, however - bridge is very much a male-dominated game/sport/whatevah, in Europe anyhow. One of the players in the UK club I used to play at used to say, half-jokingly, that women were useless at bridge until they reached the menopause. (I suspect the real truth is they consider there are 100 better/more important things to do with their time. Possibly they are right).

― Jeff W, Wednesday, 19 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Wasn't the success of Sims down, in part, to the fact that it appeals more to females than it does to males? More intuitive, more Mac than PC.

― Dom Passantino, Wednesday, 19 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

SO why call in Pac MAN then? eh?

― Pete, Wednesday, 19 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Because of the assumption is that a clean simple graphic is male because to be female you need fancy signifiers like big lips, a dress or pigtails. Then graphics improved and so we got MS PACMAN.

― N., Wednesday, 19 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Women were also alleged to enjoy Tetris because it appealed to their innate love of 'tidying up'.

― N., Wednesday, 19 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Equality for women will not be reached until they start spending 13 hours a day playing Championship Manager.

― Dom Passantino, Wednesday, 19 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

A lecturer on my computer science degree claimed that Pacman was popular with women because it's like hoovering. He clearly had only met women who regard hoovering as terrific fun. And, naturally, men who disliked it (this is the more plausible part of this theory).

― Martin Skidmore, Wednesday, 19 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

my cousin employs a polish cleaner who ADORES cleaning (hoho polish = from poland) => i can ask him to ask her what her feelings abt pacman are (i think the gender generalisation here is silly but the idea that pacman is a game that wd appeal eg to alex in big brother is interesting...)

― mark s, Wednesday, 19 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Pacman surely appeals as much to gluttonous instincts as hoovering ones?

― N., Wednesday, 19 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Women were also alleged to enjoy Tetris because it appealed to their innate love of 'tidying up'.
loved the game. LOVED IT. now I can't be bothered (and my dad plays Tetris all the time so I coudln't play it if I wanted...)

The only other video game I sometimes play is tennis. I can sit on my ass and WIN each time. it's dead easy. I

― nathalie, Wednesday, 19 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

hit submit too fast. Anyway I loved the old games because of the simple design. Now it's all cluttered and flashy.

― nathalie, Wednesday, 19 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

This tennis game obv. appeals to women's innate love of sitting on their arses (and winning)

― N., Wednesday, 19 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I too loved pacman (but that was only when I could visit the neighbours and play on their magic computer box -we got a commodore 64 alot later and the only 'game' we had was speedtype.) anyway what was my point? oh yeah mahjong -LOVE IT! saving up for a set and teaching my friends the rules so we can play at our ladies luncheons.

No I am not on the old age pension

― jeskam, Wednesday, 19 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I'm surprised nobody has mentioned the video game "Ponny 'n' Paddy" about a menses-soaking duo of unsanitary napkins. Or my favorite, "Speculum Warriors" - can anyone beat my personal best, 9.2 inches of dilation?

― Kate Spiren, Wednesday, 19 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Women were also alleged to enjoy Tetris because it appealed to their innate love of 'tidying up'.
this is right, it is a stat.fact females are better at multitasking than men. The ultimate femmy vid game would optimize the usage of this ex-monkey trait.

― The Hegemon, Wednesday, 19 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I play bridge! I don't know about it being female dominated. The only other people my age I know that play are male.

A lot of Somerset Maugham stories incorporate cattyness, male and female, about and over bridge.

― felicity, Wednesday, 19 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I'm not really a typical girl but I love Tetris and Mahjong. I also love Diablo, StreetFighter, Altered Beast, Tron, Carmaggeddon, MDK and most of all Colin McRae Rally Championship (or whatever it's called).

I blame the Colin McRae game for me writing-off my last car. I thought I could do tricky swerves to avoid an accident and it never occurred to me to brake.

I like the car-sticker that says "You are not playing Need for Speed". In fact, I think the penalties for crashing in car games should be much higher in order to condition people to avoid accidents because then they might be more likely to avoid real life accidents too.

― toraneko, Thursday, 20 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

two years pass...

I am interested, in the answer to this. Is "getting better at things with no particular aim or profit in mind" something that's currently male-dominated, as an idea?

― Gravel Puzzleworth (Gregory Henry), Monday, 31 January 2005 23:33 (twenty-one years ago)

street fighter 2.

― cozen (Cozen), Monday, 31 January 2005 23:34 (twenty-one years ago)

Cozen is mysterious.

― Gravel Puzzleworth (Gregory Henry), Monday, 31 January 2005 23:58 (twenty-one years ago)

Diablo's just like shopping. shopping really violently. in a mall full of skeletons. (which is not wholly unlike being at Yorkdale mall actually)

― Kim (Kim), Tuesday, 1 February 2005 04:20 (twenty-one years ago)

kim has a beautiful mind

― Kingfish MuffMiner 2049er (Kingfish), Tuesday, 1 February 2005 06:24 (twenty-one years ago)

My mum used to adore 'Frogger'

― Ste (Fuzzy), Tuesday, 1 February 2005 13:58 (twenty-one years ago)

three years pass...

http://img370.imageshack.us/img370/6241/pmundiesml8.jpg

― ＴＥＥＮＡＧＥＤＩＡＬＥＣＴＩＣＳ (libcrypt), Saturday, 13 December 2008 05:23 (seventeen years ago)

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