Those complaining about the " skimpy" outfits then calling for realism boggle me. Considering in History it was very common for Warrior women and women leaders to go either topless or completely naked. LOL!
The clothes factor really doesn't bother me. Yes, I'm female. I like my toons to look good as I'm staring at them all day. If I think a male toon looks better, then I'll roll a guy. If I think a female toon looks better....same thing.
Personally, I like the difference in the male/female armor. I think it adds more to the game. I don't really like it when everyone looks the same. A sense of induviduality adds to the overall experience for me [meaning, I find it more easy to get into the lore/feel of the game when everyone isn't running around looking exactly the same]. If I wanted a warrior to look tough and be in full mail or plate, I'ld roll a guy. I however like the females of that class as they look sassy, sexeh while tanking a dragon etc.
Those complaining about the " skimpy" outfits then calling for realism boggle me. Considering in History it was very common for Warrior women and women leaders to go either topless or completely naked. LOL!
So you should have no problem with this:
Hatshepsut
I'd do her. Even with the beard.
-Letting Derek Smart work on your game is like letting Osama bin Laden work in the White House. Something will burn.- -And on the 8th day, man created God.-
I hate the bikini armor! I had to wear a frigging cape in WoW to cover up my thong covered fanny because I was so embarassed LOL.
It might be my age but I find that kind of armor low class and tacky. I'm glad LoTRO doesn't have it but even then, I think the breasts are way too big in that classy game ! I don't want size DD boobs on my pretty thin girly toons:) Gimme some A cup or B cup size boob options please:)
I wanna look like myself in games and never can. Making a thin AND small-chested lady toon isn't an option in any of the games I've played. It's too bad cus I love being little and I wish my toons could be too.
I hate the bikini armor! I had to wear a frigging cape in WoW to cover up my thong covered fanny because I was so embarassed LOL.
It might be my age but I find that kind of armor low class and tacky. I'm glad LoTRO doesn't have it but even then, I think the breasts are way too big in that classy game ! I don't want size DD boobs on my pretty thin girly toons:) Gimme some A cup or B cup size boob options please:)
I wanna look like myself in games and never can. Making a thin AND small-chested lady toon isn't an option in any of the games I've played. It's too bad cus I love being little and I wish my toons could be too.
I wonder what game you are talking about when you talk about boobs size? They are not that big just for your info. Even age of conan boobs are not big at all. Maybe you hate boobs period so it have to be small to look like a man boobs???
Anyway, i voted for the better the armor, more cover. I like porn, (everydays), but when i play a video game, i dont want to feel like i am in playboy mension. When i watch porn, i make sure that no one is around. I dont want to play a game and feel like i have to hide everytime.
Age of conan is not a problem because there is a difference between realistic, logic and exaggeration. Korean games is usually exaggeration so i dont like them.
Remember, it was a female designer that approved( and designed?) all of the revealing female equipment and armorless models in EQ.
Also, did the majority of women take up the feminist model after they won their "freedom"? Not even close.
You're trying to lump all women into one neat category that agrees with you which is a pretty ridiculous position to take.
parrotpholk-Because we all know the miracle patch fairy shows up the night before release and sprinkles magic dust on the server to make it allllll better.
Remember, it was a female designer that approved( and designed?) all of the revealing female equipment and armorless models in EQ.
Also, did the majority of women take up the feminist model after they won their "freedom"? Not even close.
You're trying to lump all women into one neat category that agrees with you which is a pretty ridiculous position to take.
You appear to like to make assumptions. The post is rather vague and doesn't say very much at all it only touches on some peoples outward expression but lacks any comment on the motivation which is where I would have a break down on categories for discussion. It does appear to make for nice flame bait though.
Forever looking for employment. Life is rather dull without it.
haha, you think that is flaming? Welcome to the internet; it will be a rough ride for you for sure. Yeah, and i found a woman who agrees with me therefore its okay and representative of women in general, still not a supported position to take.
parrotpholk-Because we all know the miracle patch fairy shows up the night before release and sprinkles magic dust on the server to make it allllll better.
haha, you think that is flaming? Welcome to the internet; it will be a rough ride for you for sure. Yeah, and i found a woman who agrees with me therefore its okay and representative of women in general, still not a supported position to take.
It appears the majority of women that posted on this thread enjoy the sexy armor. I would be fine if our characters could run around nekkid. I think it has more to do with personal issues with women being taught to be ashamed of their bodies, whereas from different cultural backgrounds it is just the opposite. Some view nudity as immoral, others do not- we were all born that way.
Some view restrictive clothing as being forced upon them by other religions and beliefs and view it as an oppression of women. That women must be covered because men cannot control themselves, and they wish to " hide" the women from their view. In this day and age, women should be able to do as they please, wear or not wear what they want and be proud of their bodies without concerning themselves with beliefs other than their own.
I Find it offensive that when Europeans invaded the Americas, they forced clothing upon the natives who had no issues without them. Why try and force your " beliefs " onto other women? To each their own. I think that both styles should be available in games so that women are free to choose how to dress their character however they wish.
haha, you think that is flaming? Welcome to the internet; it will be a rough ride for you for sure. Yeah, and i found a woman who agrees with me therefore its okay and representative of women in general, still not a supported position to take.
It appears the majority of women that posted on this thread enjoy the sexy armor. I would be fine if our characters could run around nekkid. I think it has more to do with personal issues with women being taught to be ashamed of their bodies, whereas from different cultural backgrounds it is just the opposite. Some view nudity as immoral, others do not- we were all born that way.
Some view restrictive clothing as being forced upon them by other religions and beliefs and view it as an oppression of women. That women must be covered because men cannot control themselves, and they wish to " hide" the women from their view. In this day and age, women should be able to do as they please, wear or not wear what they want and be proud of their bodies without concerning themselves with beliefs other than their own.
I Find it offensive that when Europeans invaded the Americas, they forced clothing upon the natives who had no issues without them. Why try and force your " beliefs " onto other women? To each their own. I think that both styles should be available in games so that women are free to choose how to dress their character however they wish.
I am all for choices. That's not the issue i have at all. If people want their characters close to naked, that's their choice. This individual I was referring to seemed to think that because one woman had a hand in design, that means what exactly, that she represents women in general. No she doesn't. No more than any other woman represents all women. The crack about feminism... right, because most women want to be paid less for equal work right, be treated like a second class citizen... I don't think so. I am guessing this person just has an issue with some women he labels as feminist who are representing only a part of what was the feminist movement.
parrotpholk-Because we all know the miracle patch fairy shows up the night before release and sprinkles magic dust on the server to make it allllll better.
I Find it offensive that when Europeans invaded the Americas, they forced clothing upon the natives who had no issues without them. Why try and force your " beliefs " onto other women? To each their own. I think that both styles should be available in games so that women are free to choose how to dress their character however they wish.
I'm pretty sure that's not what happened. European interference with the native americans disrupted their ability to make their own clothes, as they had in most instances (with a few exceptions) been doing for a long time. See here. That's not to say a million horrible things weren't done to native americans by Europeans and the American settlers, because tragically there were, but I don't think that was one of them.
EQ1, EQ2, SWG, SWTOR, GW, GW2 CoH, CoV, FFXI, WoW, CO, War,TSW and a slew of free trials and beta tests
I Find it offensive that when Europeans invaded the Americas, they forced clothing upon the natives who had no issues without them. Why try and force your " beliefs " onto other women? To each their own. I think that both styles should be available in games so that women are free to choose how to dress their character however they wish.
I'm pretty sure that's not what happened. European interference with the native americans disrupted their ability to make their own clothes, as they had in most instances (with a few exceptions) been doing for a long time. See here. That's not to say a million horrible things weren't done to native americans by Europeans and the American settlers, because tragically there were, but I don't think that was one of them.
It was what happened. Of course tribes in colder climates wore more than those in warmer climates, but when Columbus first arrived, the people there had never even seen clothing. LOL, But of course European History is written by Europeans, so they leave much out.
"The Taino had never before seen white men, clothed people, people with beards or ships like that - they thought these people must be from heaven. So the Taino came out to greet them, as was their custom, and brought the travelers - who surely must have been tired and hungry - food, drink and gifts. Such strong swimmers were the Taino that some of them swam right out to the boats some three miles offshore." ----------
"Columbus installed himself as Governor of the Caribbean islands, with headquarters on Hispaniola (the large island now shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic). He described the people, the Arawaks (called by some the Tainos) this way:
"The people of this island and of all the other islands which I have found and seen, or have not seen, all go naked, men and women, as their mothers bore them, except that some women cover one place only with the leaf of a plant or with a net of cotton which they make for that purpose. They have no iron or steel or weapons, nor are they capable of using them, although they are well-built people of handsome stature, because they are wondrous timid.... [T]hey are so artless and free with all they possess, that no one would believe it without having seen it. Of anything they have, if you ask them for it, they never say no; rather they invite the person to share it, and show as much love as if they were giving their hearts; and whether the thing be of value or of small price, at once they are content with whatever little thing of whatever kind may be given to them."[
haha, you think that is flaming? Welcome to the internet; it will be a rough ride for you for sure. Yeah, and i found a woman who agrees with me therefore its okay and representative of women in general, still not a supported position to take.
See. Did it again. Just had to add the word flamebait and you went right for it. Oh yeah, forgot. There ya go assuming again .
Forever looking for employment. Life is rather dull without it.
Realism doesn't matter to me. Do I like looking good? Why, yes! And often the sexy looks are the nicer looks.
I am comfortable wearing the bikini-maille in game. I do appreciate games that have the option of showing a clothing set or a stat gear set (or, in some games, hiding both), so that I can choose what look and level of coverage I am showing. I wish I had the amazing, gravity-defying body that my game characters generally do, and if I did, I might consider running around in nothing but a set of leather straps IRL too. ( < emoticon for the humor impaired)
For me, as a woman, the bottom line is this: What I really care about is numbers. If there's a thong of godliness that has stats better than the full-body oven mitt I've been wearing, I am going to wear the thong. Even if I am an ogress in that game. But if I can equip a nice dress for the visuals alone, I might do that, when it isn't going to affect my stats.
(Full-body oven mitt is the best description I can think of for some of the armor I ended up wearing on some characters in EQ2. It wasn't a flattering look.)
The OP seems to be assuming that there's a general consensus among women about armor in games. But just like you guys, we all have different tastes as well. Some women don't mind dressing up as though she should have her sword in one hand, and his sword in the other. Others would prefer that we keep it realistic - after all, back in medival days, armor didn't come in cup sizes.
Oh, I wasn't assuming any consensus, that's why I asked the question in the OP, to see what the different reactions were upon the female armor.
I think it's several questions that you encounter with this topic:
- it's the discrepancies between male armor and female armor with the same stats in a number of MMO's/games but where the female armor covers a lot less of the body than the male armor
- the level of believability of the gameworld you and many others are wandering around in: it's the difference between 'low fantasy' and high fantasy among others and often between western styled games and asian styled games, the asian ones fooling around more with realism (ie Aion's attacking mushrooms and high heeled combat) and needing less cloth, leather or metal for the female chars' armor.
- the average difference between how male and female gamers look upon the skimpy armor for women, in contrast to the less-skimpy armor for men.
I think for most women they look positive towards their characters (that they spent a lot of gametime with) looking sexy, but there's often a fine line between looking and feeling sexy and feeling as if they're a sex object, a piece of meat, and treated as such: where that line lies is different for every situation and for every woman, also it will make less of an impact within a MMO when it comes to the chars you play than when it happens IRL.
Regarding believability, some people like more realism in their game as also the poll shows, even if it is about a virtual world where magic is more common: they liken it more to be like a Lord of the Rings movies with higher realism and thus credibility than just a cartoonstyle magical wonderworld where anything can happen like even talking ducks or a mouse hitting the cat that chased him with a hammer ten times its size.
Looking at the posts, it looks like people'd like most of all having the choice what to wear for looks, without their choice being steered by stats.
The ease with which predictions are made on these forums: Fratman: "I'm saying Spring 2012 at the earliest [for TOR release]. Anyone still clinging to 2011 is deluding themself at this point."
Those complaining about the " skimpy" outfits then calling for realism boggle me. Considering in History it was very common for Warrior women and women leaders to go either topless or completely naked. LOL!
So you should have no problem with this:
Hatshepsut
Ah, but the same applied for the men If I recal correctly the Greeks liked to have their Olympics done naked (now that'd be an interesting take if it happened with the current Olympics), even in battles they'd go as good naked sometimes, and they were not the only cultures where the men went bare into battle.
So, following up on your argument, something like this should be acceptable too:
Originally posted by Elikal
Well, we need fairness. I want sexy looking male characters in skimpy gear EVERYWHERE! Muahahaha! XD
Let's show the girls who the REAL good looking gender is.
If you find THAT absurd... maybe you rethink your attitude that scantly clad women are ok. It's either both or none.
Heh, the pic is hilarious. But the point the pic and the poster makes is a good one: either both or none.
It's merely the case that it's currently more culturally acceptable for women to run around half (and more) naked in music videos and games and such than for men doing the same.
The ease with which predictions are made on these forums: Fratman: "I'm saying Spring 2012 at the earliest [for TOR release]. Anyone still clinging to 2011 is deluding themself at this point."
Why are women more often revealed in these games then men? Because the idealized feminine form is beautiful. Woman is a work of art. A man might be impressive in strength but nothing captivates the mind like the vision of a beautiful woman. Men wish to have her and women wish to be her.
Realism? None of this is even close. Real combat and conflict is swift and decisive. A guy gets stabbed in the gut with a sword, crumples over, probably whimpers for his mother and then bleeds out as his brain tries to deal with the pain. The person who gets the upperhand in the first few seconds of the battle is usually the one that wins. The dying part usually takes longer than the fight. None of this makes for good game play. There is a reason that boxing and even UFC has so many rules. It is so a fight might last more than a few hits.
It is even less realistic when you mix men and women fighting, or gnomes and orcs for that matter. Size and strength matters in hand to hand combat. Having 50 or 100 lbs advantage is huge. Again, this is why modern ring fights are split up according to weight class.
So is it unrealistic for a 110 lb woman to swing a 50 lb broadsword in high heals and a skirt? Sure it is, but not much more so than it is for her to swing that broadsword at all and make solid contact. Hell, most men who sit in front of a computer for extended parts of the day wouldn't be able to swing that broadsword much better.
War is ugly, brutal, fast, frightening, painful and dirty. I don't want to play a game like that.
Actually, I don't wish to be her. I'd be bleedin' cold, and getting sick all the time, my womanly parts hanging out like that. The woman I want to be like isn't always pretty, but sure hits hard as hell and can take a punch like a champ. I mean, thing is, the women are made JUST for the men. Not really for the women. I wish, instead of making my boobs bigger (like some advanced char creations allow) that I could give her decent biceps. Maybe a slight beard. No, no, sorry. Maybe not that XD
It is true that realism, true realism, isn't what the games are about. It is about fantasizing - and the problem is that only one gender is given true freedom to explore those fantasies. As long as skimpy outfits are mandatory, the games will truly pander only to men. Women are allowed in on sufferance (while guys get to complain that not enough ladies play). I would not ask a man to cover up his lovely female chars, if he enjoys watching her jiggly boobs as she runs, just as I wouldn't cover up my guy chars chest when I'm feelin' frisky.
We all wear things that reveal parts of our body. Women wear form fitting clothes. That's not a myth o.o We do. Men do not. I'd rather wear somethign revealing them something super ugly and bulky. I want to feel feminine, even while playing a game. So honestly, don't care. As long as the outfit is pretty, I'm happy. Some go over the top, but I tend not to play those games anyway, so I could care less. The outfits in say Mabinogi are . And all MMO's should have a billion dresses and outfits to try on like that.
It's something that has me curious for a while now: the armor for female characters in MMORPG's.
Yes, I know the adagium, 'sex sells', and they're games, not based on reality, but really, when you look at a lot of the skimpy outfits in a lot of the MMORPG's, like also the latest one TERA, then you have to wonder: what are they protecting against?
The only thing I can realistically think of is mosquitos flying in unwanted holes, but certainly the armor is no real protection against sharp swords and arrows. A few strips of leather or metal as armor is stretching believability, it makes one wonder that with one slash it'd all fall off anyway (now that'd add a new dimension to combat, armor that would get rent and removed when damaged enough in fights).
MMORPG's are not that unique in this image of women running around scantily clad, we've grown used to it in all kinds of advertisement, in music video clips (R&B and Britney Spears-type singers), and also in other singleplayer games. You certainly won't hear the majority of men complain about it - although, if the armor for male chars would become as sexy and skimpy so they'd have to run around as gigolo strippers I'm guessing a lot of male players would find it too 'gay' for their taste.
But I wonder: what do girl/woman gamers think of it, the female chars often having to run around in armor that's sometimes nothing more than a enhanced bikini set, while the male chars have more suitable armor?
And to the male gamers, would you care if the armor of male chars would undergo a 'sexification' and make you run around as a Chippendale stripper, or could you care less since it's pixels, nothing else?
Oh yeahh... these damn fantasy chippendalers...
like this? or him? Ohh... that one? And this... totally overdone. And that... eeww...
No, I really cannot understand where they got all this ideas in gaming.
I think game designers in general don't really think that women want to look cool, and skimpy pieces of string and panties are not what most women consider cool.
I think the best system is when a game lets all toons pick their own style and offer a range to pick from. Some prefer the rogue like look, some like heavy plate, some like lots of cloth covering them and some like wearing very little (however if i see a female character wearing little and looking like a ho, i think man, and im 99% right)
But in games we most see that the better games dont force women to wear rubbish clothes, wow for instance mostly lets you wear cool things, same with eq2, same with lotro, same with fallen earth.
I have given feedback against it in all the games I played where I was force to wear tiny clothes (warhammer) or wear it kept being pushed in my face (ROM). I find it insulting.
Comments
Those complaining about the " skimpy" outfits then calling for realism boggle me. Considering in History it was very common for Warrior women and women leaders to go either topless or completely naked. LOL!
So you should have no problem with this:
Hatshepsut
The clothes factor really doesn't bother me. Yes, I'm female. I like my toons to look good as I'm staring at them all day. If I think a male toon looks better, then I'll roll a guy. If I think a female toon looks better....same thing.
Personally, I like the difference in the male/female armor. I think it adds more to the game. I don't really like it when everyone looks the same. A sense of induviduality adds to the overall experience for me [meaning, I find it more easy to get into the lore/feel of the game when everyone isn't running around looking exactly the same]. If I wanted a warrior to look tough and be in full mail or plate, I'ld roll a guy. I however like the females of that class as they look sassy, sexeh while tanking a dragon etc.
Remember, it was a female designer that approved( and designed?) all of the revealing female equipment and armorless models in EQ.
Also, did the majority of women take up the feminist model after they won their "freedom"? Not even close.
Forever looking for employment. Life is rather dull without it.
Haven’t they sorted out teleportation yet? Scientists are lazy. Great post there GTwander, but getting to the Moon is so yesterday.
I love threads like this, where else are you going to see historical babe pictures used to prove a point?
Not into looking at female dwarfs in full plate mail. Give me an skimpy elf any day of the week.
We're video game dorks for crying out loud!
Is there a good reason for comparing equal rights for women as men to the fashion sense of women?
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I'd do her. Even with the beard.
-Letting Derek Smart work on your game is like letting Osama bin Laden work in the White House. Something will burn.-
-And on the 8th day, man created God.-
I hate the bikini armor! I had to wear a frigging cape in WoW to cover up my thong covered fanny because I was so embarassed LOL.
It might be my age but I find that kind of armor low class and tacky. I'm glad LoTRO doesn't have it but even then, I think the breasts are way too big in that classy game ! I don't want size DD boobs on my pretty thin girly toons:) Gimme some A cup or B cup size boob options please:)
I wanna look like myself in games and never can. Making a thin AND small-chested lady toon isn't an option in any of the games I've played. It's too bad cus I love being little and I wish my toons could be too.
I wonder what game you are talking about when you talk about boobs size? They are not that big just for your info. Even age of conan boobs are not big at all. Maybe you hate boobs period so it have to be small to look like a man boobs???
Anyway, i voted for the better the armor, more cover. I like porn, (everydays), but when i play a video game, i dont want to feel like i am in playboy mension. When i watch porn, i make sure that no one is around. I dont want to play a game and feel like i have to hide everytime.
Age of conan is not a problem because there is a difference between realistic, logic and exaggeration. Korean games is usually exaggeration so i dont like them.
C:\Users\FF\Desktop\spin move.gif
You're trying to lump all women into one neat category that agrees with you which is a pretty ridiculous position to take.
parrotpholk-Because we all know the miracle patch fairy shows up the night before release and sprinkles magic dust on the server to make it allllll better.
You appear to like to make assumptions. The post is rather vague and doesn't say very much at all it only touches on some peoples outward expression but lacks any comment on the motivation which is where I would have a break down on categories for discussion. It does appear to make for nice flame bait though.
Forever looking for employment. Life is rather dull without it.
haha, you think that is flaming? Welcome to the internet; it will be a rough ride for you for sure. Yeah, and i found a woman who agrees with me therefore its okay and representative of women in general, still not a supported position to take.
parrotpholk-Because we all know the miracle patch fairy shows up the night before release and sprinkles magic dust on the server to make it allllll better.
It appears the majority of women that posted on this thread enjoy the sexy armor. I would be fine if our characters could run around nekkid. I think it has more to do with personal issues with women being taught to be ashamed of their bodies, whereas from different cultural backgrounds it is just the opposite. Some view nudity as immoral, others do not- we were all born that way.
Some view restrictive clothing as being forced upon them by other religions and beliefs and view it as an oppression of women. That women must be covered because men cannot control themselves, and they wish to " hide" the women from their view. In this day and age, women should be able to do as they please, wear or not wear what they want and be proud of their bodies without concerning themselves with beliefs other than their own.
I Find it offensive that when Europeans invaded the Americas, they forced clothing upon the natives who had no issues without them. Why try and force your " beliefs " onto other women? To each their own. I think that both styles should be available in games so that women are free to choose how to dress their character however they wish.
I am all for choices. That's not the issue i have at all. If people want their characters close to naked, that's their choice. This individual I was referring to seemed to think that because one woman had a hand in design, that means what exactly, that she represents women in general. No she doesn't. No more than any other woman represents all women. The crack about feminism... right, because most women want to be paid less for equal work right, be treated like a second class citizen... I don't think so. I am guessing this person just has an issue with some women he labels as feminist who are representing only a part of what was the feminist movement.
parrotpholk-Because we all know the miracle patch fairy shows up the night before release and sprinkles magic dust on the server to make it allllll better.
I'm pretty sure that's not what happened. European interference with the native americans disrupted their ability to make their own clothes, as they had in most instances (with a few exceptions) been doing for a long time. See here. That's not to say a million horrible things weren't done to native americans by Europeans and the American settlers, because tragically there were, but I don't think that was one of them.
EQ1, EQ2, SWG, SWTOR, GW, GW2 CoH, CoV, FFXI, WoW, CO, War,TSW and a slew of free trials and beta tests
It was what happened. Of course tribes in colder climates wore more than those in warmer climates, but when Columbus first arrived, the people there had never even seen clothing. LOL, But of course European History is written by Europeans, so they leave much out.
"The Taino had never before seen white men, clothed people, people with beards or ships like that - they thought these people must be from heaven. So the Taino came out to greet them, as was their custom, and brought the travelers - who surely must have been tired and hungry - food, drink and gifts. Such strong swimmers were the Taino that some of them swam right out to the boats some three miles offshore." ----------
"Columbus installed himself as Governor of the Caribbean islands, with headquarters on Hispaniola (the large island now shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic). He described the people, the Arawaks (called by some the Tainos) this way:
"The people of this island and of all the other islands which I have found and seen, or have not seen, all go naked, men and women, as their mothers bore them, except that some women cover one place only with the leaf of a plant or with a net of cotton which they make for that purpose. They have no iron or steel or weapons, nor are they capable of using them, although they are well-built people of handsome stature, because they are wondrous timid.... [T]hey are so artless and free with all they possess, that no one would believe it without having seen it. Of anything they have, if you ask them for it, they never say no; rather they invite the person to share it, and show as much love as if they were giving their hearts; and whether the thing be of value or of small price, at once they are content with whatever little thing of whatever kind may be given to them."[
See. Did it again. Just had to add the word flamebait and you went right for it. Oh yeah, forgot. There ya go assuming again .
Forever looking for employment. Life is rather dull without it.
Realism doesn't matter to me. Do I like looking good? Why, yes! And often the sexy looks are the nicer looks.
I am comfortable wearing the bikini-maille in game. I do appreciate games that have the option of showing a clothing set or a stat gear set (or, in some games, hiding both), so that I can choose what look and level of coverage I am showing. I wish I had the amazing, gravity-defying body that my game characters generally do, and if I did, I might consider running around in nothing but a set of leather straps IRL too. (
< emoticon for the humor impaired)
For me, as a woman, the bottom line is this: What I really care about is numbers. If there's a thong of godliness that has stats better than the full-body oven mitt I've been wearing, I am going to wear the thong. Even if I am an ogress in that game. But if I can equip a nice dress for the visuals alone, I might do that, when it isn't going to affect my stats.
(Full-body oven mitt is the best description I can think of for some of the armor I ended up wearing on some characters in EQ2. It wasn't a flattering look.)
Oh, I wasn't assuming any consensus, that's why I asked the question in the OP, to see what the different reactions were upon the female armor.
I think it's several questions that you encounter with this topic:
- it's the discrepancies between male armor and female armor with the same stats in a number of MMO's/games but where the female armor covers a lot less of the body than the male armor
- the level of believability of the gameworld you and many others are wandering around in: it's the difference between 'low fantasy' and high fantasy among others and often between western styled games and asian styled games, the asian ones fooling around more with realism (ie Aion's attacking mushrooms and high heeled combat) and needing less cloth, leather or metal for the female chars' armor.
- the average difference between how male and female gamers look upon the skimpy armor for women, in contrast to the less-skimpy armor for men.
I think for most women they look positive towards their characters (that they spent a lot of gametime with) looking sexy, but there's often a fine line between looking and feeling sexy and feeling as if they're a sex object, a piece of meat, and treated as such: where that line lies is different for every situation and for every woman, also it will make less of an impact within a MMO when it comes to the chars you play than when it happens IRL.
Regarding believability, some people like more realism in their game as also the poll shows, even if it is about a virtual world where magic is more common: they liken it more to be like a Lord of the Rings movies with higher realism and thus credibility than just a cartoonstyle magical wonderworld where anything can happen like even talking ducks or a mouse hitting the cat that chased him with a hammer ten times its size.
Looking at the posts, it looks like people'd like most of all having the choice what to wear for looks, without their choice being steered by stats.
The ACTUAL size of MMORPG worlds: a comparison list between MMO's
The ease with which predictions are made on these forums:
Fratman: "I'm saying Spring 2012 at the earliest [for TOR release]. Anyone still clinging to 2011 is deluding themself at this point."
Ah, but the same applied for the men
If I recal correctly the Greeks liked to have their Olympics done naked (now that'd be an interesting take if it happened with the current Olympics), even in battles they'd go as good naked sometimes, and they were not the only cultures where the men went bare into battle.
So, following up on your argument, something like this should be acceptable too:
Heh, the pic is hilarious. But the point the pic and the poster makes is a good one: either both or none.
It's merely the case that it's currently more culturally acceptable for women to run around half (and more) naked in music videos and games and such than for men doing the same.
The ACTUAL size of MMORPG worlds: a comparison list between MMO's
The ease with which predictions are made on these forums:
Fratman: "I'm saying Spring 2012 at the earliest [for TOR release]. Anyone still clinging to 2011 is deluding themself at this point."
Why are women more often revealed in these games then men? Because the idealized feminine form is beautiful. Woman is a work of art. A man might be impressive in strength but nothing captivates the mind like the vision of a beautiful woman. Men wish to have her and women wish to be her.
Realism? None of this is even close. Real combat and conflict is swift and decisive. A guy gets stabbed in the gut with a sword, crumples over, probably whimpers for his mother and then bleeds out as his brain tries to deal with the pain. The person who gets the upperhand in the first few seconds of the battle is usually the one that wins. The dying part usually takes longer than the fight. None of this makes for good game play. There is a reason that boxing and even UFC has so many rules. It is so a fight might last more than a few hits.
It is even less realistic when you mix men and women fighting, or gnomes and orcs for that matter. Size and strength matters in hand to hand combat. Having 50 or 100 lbs advantage is huge. Again, this is why modern ring fights are split up according to weight class.
So is it unrealistic for a 110 lb woman to swing a 50 lb broadsword in high heals and a skirt? Sure it is, but not much more so than it is for her to swing that broadsword at all and make solid contact. Hell, most men who sit in front of a computer for extended parts of the day wouldn't be able to swing that broadsword much better.
War is ugly, brutal, fast, frightening, painful and dirty. I don't want to play a game like that.
All die, so die well.
Actually, I don't wish to be her. I'd be bleedin' cold, and getting sick all the time, my womanly parts hanging out like that. The woman I want to be like isn't always pretty, but sure hits hard as hell and can take a punch like a champ. I mean, thing is, the women are made JUST for the men. Not really for the women. I wish, instead of making my boobs bigger (like some advanced char creations allow) that I could give her decent biceps. Maybe a slight beard. No, no, sorry. Maybe not that XD
It is true that realism, true realism, isn't what the games are about. It is about fantasizing - and the problem is that only one gender is given true freedom to explore those fantasies. As long as skimpy outfits are mandatory, the games will truly pander only to men. Women are allowed in on sufferance (while guys get to complain that not enough ladies play). I would not ask a man to cover up his lovely female chars, if he enjoys watching her jiggly boobs as she runs, just as I wouldn't cover up my guy chars chest when I'm feelin' frisky.
We all wear things that reveal parts of our body. Women wear form fitting clothes. That's not a myth o.o We do. Men do not. I'd rather wear somethign revealing them something super ugly and bulky. I want to feel feminine, even while playing a game. So honestly, don't care. As long as the outfit is pretty, I'm happy. Some go over the top, but I tend not to play those games anyway, so I could care less. The outfits in say Mabinogi are
. And all MMO's should have a billion dresses and outfits to try on like that.
Oh yeahh... these damn fantasy chippendalers...
like this? or him? Ohh... that one? And this... totally overdone. And that... eeww...
No, I really cannot understand where they got all this ideas in gaming.
I think game designers in general don't really think that women want to look cool, and skimpy pieces of string and panties are not what most women consider cool.
I think the best system is when a game lets all toons pick their own style and offer a range to pick from. Some prefer the rogue like look, some like heavy plate, some like lots of cloth covering them and some like wearing very little (however if i see a female character wearing little and looking like a ho, i think man, and im 99% right)
But in games we most see that the better games dont force women to wear rubbish clothes, wow for instance mostly lets you wear cool things, same with eq2, same with lotro, same with fallen earth.
I have given feedback against it in all the games I played where I was force to wear tiny clothes (warhammer) or wear it kept being pushed in my face (ROM). I find it insulting.