Souley Coulibaly

DMS 448

3/4/20

            Based on an observation of multi player shooting games during class I was able to notice the gender wars amongst users. Most of the online game play consisted of a large amount of woman slander that wasn’t initiated by the female user. Throughout her online gameplay experience she was constantly verbally abused with taunts revolving around her being a woman. Personally, I found what I saw to be quite harsh and unnecessary because of the toxic environment that slander was causing. As a gamer I strongly believe gender wars are instigated by games developers at times unconsciously and consciously.

            One instance where the lack of sensitivity towards woman was ignored was with the game developers of, Dead Island, a survival game. It was reported that a data file for Dead Island consisted a string that was named “FeministWhorePurna”. The term “FeministWhorePurna” was utilized by the developers as a name for a skill power-up for a female character named Purna that would be given an extra damage boost when killing opposition of a different sex. According to Robert Yang “FeministWhorePurna is not just a rogue prank by a sole misogynist commercial game developer: it is a useful lens to articulate wider systemic problems of gender representation in video game culture. Specifically, there is a history of gendered combat “perks” in open-world RPG games similar to Dead Island, and it is very likely that many gamers would interpret the logic of FeministWhorePurna within the context of that history. What is the procedural rhetoric of gendered combat within these games, and how do these game-play systems and simulations enact a specific logic of “gender war” to be performed by players?”

            With that being said, it is becoming too common for video games to pin males and females against each other. The leaders behind the game responded to the matter stating that “To the developer’s credit, the company took substantial responsibility: “This has been inexcusably overlooked and released with the game…This is merely an explanation but by no means an excuse. In the end that code was made a part of the product and signed with our company name. We deeply regret that fact and we apologize to all our customers or anyone who might have been offended by that inappropriate expression.” They’re conveying that this issue has continued for years and has actually been perceived as wrongdoings by game companies themselves. Addressing women in an unfair manner through narratives is a concept that video games developers need to work towards avoiding. For example, assigning Purna with characteristics that align with inferiority, because she possess qualities that are consistent with the stereotypical black women with attitude. Purna in comparison to Xian Mei holds a much more contrasting set of qualities that are depicted through the actions and scripts from the game developers. Many games such as Dead Island may unintentionally reintroduce societal norms in their character’s narratives. Although game creators may not have that goal in mind when developing narratives, it is essential to acknowledge the potential of instigating a divide amongst male and female gamers/people.

Works cited

Yang, R. (n.d.). On “FeministWhorePurna” and the Ludo-material Politics of Gendered Damage Power-ups in Open-World Rpg Video Games.