PDA

View Full Version : The Feminist Game Match-Up Quiz



IMPress Polly
09-26-2015, 12:50 PM
The Women as Reward thread has given me want of gauging just where in the spectrum of egalitarianism everyone falls. Below I'll make up a brief but hopefully helpful quiz to help everyone figure out what does and doesn't constitute a feminist game and to the measure the degrees of feminist content in games, as there seems to be some confusion on the subject. All questions will be in the form of game vs. game match-ups. The reader's task is to pick what they think the more feminist game is in each match-up or, if applicable, to assemble the list in order from what they feel is the most to least feminist. I'll post the correct answers at a later time, after some people have taken the quiz. Note here that none of this is meant as a judgment call on the overall quality of any given game, but rather simply a gauge of its gender representation(s). Anyway, here goes:

1. Let's start easy. Which of the following classic games from the 1980s is the more feminist title?

A) Donkey Kong
B) The Great Giana Sisters

(If you can't guess this one right, we need to talk!)


2. Here's another '80s game match-up that ought to be fairly easy. Which of the following is the more feminist game?

A) Super Mario Bros.
B) Super Mario Bros. 2 (American version)


3. Alright, now that the brain cells are operating, let's try something a little bit tougher, still using classic '80s games:

A) The Great Giana Sisters
B) Metroid


4. Okay, now let's really get into the thick of it. List the following four female-led '90s games in order from most to least feminist:

A) Barbie's Super Model
B) Mischief Makers
C) Tomb Raider II
D) Magic Knight Rayearth


5. Okay, now for an equally interesting challenge. Pick the more feminist game in this match-up of classic titles from the early 2000s:

A) Luigi's Mansion
B) Metroid Prime


6. Now let's try a pair the elusive female-centered sports games. Pick the more feminist of these titles from the early 2000s.

A) Mia Hamm 64 Soccer
B) Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball


7. Alright, now let's try a pair of male-led games from recent years that have both been described as "feminist" by different people:

A) Papo & Yo
B) WATCH_DOGS


8. Now let's try a pair of recent RPGs. Which of these is the more feminist title?

A) The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
B) Dragon Age: Inquisition


9. Finally, for the ultimate challenge, list the following games from recent years in order from most to least feminist:

A) Papo & Yo
B) Gone Home
C) Bayonetta 2
D) Beyond: Two Souls

Peter1469
09-26-2015, 12:59 PM
A
B
B (loved that one)
C, A, D, B
B
B
A
A
D, B, A, C

iustitia
09-26-2015, 02:38 PM
Pretty sure all Mario games are feminist. Mario fights armies of monsters to save the Princess, and all he ever gets is a kiss on the nose and a cruddy cake.

Cthulhu
09-26-2015, 02:51 PM
A
B
B (loved that one)
C, A, D, B
B
B
A
A
D, B, A, C
This reads like an old sega cheat code.

Just sayin'.

Sent from my evil, baby seal-clubbing cellphone.

IMPress Polly
09-26-2015, 03:03 PM
At least he participated. Just sayin'. :wink:

Cthulhu
09-26-2015, 05:47 PM
The Women as Reward thread has given me want of gauging just where in the spectrum of egalitarianism everyone falls. Below I'll make up a brief but hopefully helpful quiz to help everyone figure out what does and doesn't constitute a feminist game and to the measure the degrees of feminist content in games, as there seems to be some confusion on the subject. All questions will be in the form of game vs. game match-ups. The reader's task is to pick what they think the more feminist game is in each match-up or, if applicable, to assemble the list in order from what they feel is the most to least feminist. I'll post the correct answers at a later time, after some people have taken the quiz. Note here that none of this is meant as a judgment call on the overall quality of any given game, but rather simply a gauge of its gender representation(s). Anyway, here goes:

1. Let's start easy. Which of the following classic games from the 1980s is the more feminist title?

A) Donkey Kong
B) The Great Giana Sisters

(If you can't guess this one right, we need to talk!)


2. Here's another '80s game match-up that ought to be fairly easy. Which of the following is the more feminist game?

A) Super Mario Bros.
B) Super Mario Bros. 2 (American version)


3. Alright, now that the brain cells are operating, let's try something a little bit tougher, still using classic '80s games:

A) The Great Giana Sisters
B) Metroid


4. Okay, now let's really get into the thick of it. List the following four female-led '90s games in order from most to least feminist:

A) Barbie's Super Model
B) Mischief Makers
C) Tomb Raider II
D) Magic Knight Rayearth


5. Okay, now for an equally interesting challenge. Pick the more feminist game in this match-up of classic titles from the early 2000s:

A) Luigi's Mansion
B) Metroid Prime


6. Now let's try a pair the elusive female-centered sports games. Pick the more feminist of these titles from the early 2000s.

A) Mia Hamm 64 Soccer
B) Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball


7. Alright, now let's try a pair of male-led games from recent years that have both been described as "feminist" by different people:

A) Papo & Yo
B) WATCH_DOGS


8. Now let's try a pair of recent RPGs. Which of these is the more feminist title?

A) The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
B) Dragon Age: Inquisition


9. Finally, for the ultimate challenge, list the following games from recent years in order from most to least feminist:

A) Papo & Yo
B) Gone Home
C) Bayonetta 2
D) Beyond: Two Souls

B
B
B
CABD - I think.
B
B?
A?
A? Not sure either are really "Feminist" though. They are just titles in my eyes.

...and nine? No friggin' clue. Last time I touched a console was when we were in Iraq murdering each other in Halo.

Although they do slut up Cortana enough, so I think that could count as something feministish enough, right?


Sent from my evil, baby seal-clubbing cellphone.

IMPress Polly
09-27-2015, 09:56 AM
ANSWERS AND EXPLANATION, PART ONE:

I guess this is the best we're going to do for participation (:tongue:), so thank you Peter and Cthulhu for putting in the effort! Anyway, here are the correct answers:

1. B
2. B
3. A
4. D, B, C, A
5. A
6. A
7. A
8. B
9. B, D, A, C

So out of a possible 15, Peter got 4 right and Cthulhu got 3 right, so...guys, we need to talk because you're nowhere near passing grades. :wink: I suspect that at least part of the reason is simply a lack of familiarity with several of these games, but there's also more than that at work because I think you two are familiar with most of the older titles that I mentioned. Allow me to help! I'll guide you through the quiz item-by-item:


1. Let's start easy. Which of the following classic games from the 1980s is the more feminist title?

A) Donkey Kong
B) The Great Giana Sisters

How did you get this one wrong, Peter? :tongue: Even if you'd never played The Great Giana Sisters (which is, I suspect, the case), you should've been able to just guess the correct answer by the game's title, considering what the gender relations in Donkey Kong are: damsel in distress. I thought I just GAVE that one to you! :wink:

For anyone who doesn't know, Donkey Kong is a game wherein you work to rescue a damsel in distress from an ape who has kidnapped her, which rewards the presumably male player with the woman's affection. The Great Giana Sisters, by contrast, is basically a Commodore 64 knock-off of the original Super Mario Bros. wherein you control a pair of Italian sisters rather than a pair of Italian brothers. The player platforms their way to collecting enchanted items (note that your victory prizes are items, not women or, for that matter, men) that enable them to escape from the dream world they're trapped in. Said plot probably inspired that of the American version of Super Mario Bros. 2, which was released the following year, as the premise of that game is basically the same as that of The Great Giana Sisters. Anyway, I think you can see how it's obvious which game in this match-up (DK vs. the Gianas) is more feminist.


2. Here's another '80s game match-up that ought to be fairly easy. Which of the following is the more feminist game?

A) Super Mario Bros.
B) Super Mario Bros. 2 (American version)

As pointed out above, Nintendo seemed to more or less copy/paste the premise of The Great Giana Sisters into the American version of Super Mario Bros. 2, which eliminated, for unfortunately one franchise installment only, the original's damsel-in-distress set-up. In fact, Super Mario Bros. 2 offers the player the option of using any of four characters to complete each stage: Mario, Luigi, Toad...or Princess Toadstool (as she was known back then) herself! That's right, the princess was actually one of the selectable action heroes in that game! I kind of wish the franchise had continued this direction, personally. It was certainly a more feminist one than what one saw in the first title. Anyone familiar with both games should've easily picked Super Mario Bros. 2 as their answer for question 2 and you both did, so good work!


3. Alright, now that the brain cells are operating, let's try something a little bit tougher, still using classic '80s games:

A) The Great Giana Sisters
B) Metroid

Here I think we might've once again run into 'not familiar with The Great Giana Sisters' problem, though this is an example of the type of question that even some more casual feminists familiar with both titles might find tricky. The correct answer is The Great Giana Sisters. Why? Because while Metroid (secretly) stars a female action hero protagonist, it also uses her body as a prize for presumed male players. The faster you beat the game, the less clothing she'll be wearing on the game's final screen. Beat it fast enough and you get to see Samus in a bikini. That's pretty much the dictionary definition of sexual objectification and it's not a feature of The Great Giana Sisters. The latter title didn't presume or suck up to a male player base: it didn't keep the gender of its protagonists a secret, leading the player on to believe they were using a male character (e.g. Metroid's instruction manual refers to Samus using male pronouns like "he" and "his") or sexualize its female leads. Both games were pretty progressive, especially in the context of the 1980s, but the Giana Sisters more so than Metroid.


4. Okay, now let's really get into the thick of it. List the following four female-led '90s games in order from most to least feminist:

A) Barbie's Super Model
B) Mischief Makers
C) Tomb Raider II
D) Magic Knight Rayearth

I suspect a lack of familiarity with Mischief Makers and Magic Knight Rayearth might have been at least partially responsible for the incorrect answers the two of you gave, as both of you were at least able to figure out that Tomb Raider II at least challenges gender stereotypes in some way (namely by having its female protagonist be a gun-wielding action hero) where Barbie Super Model makes no effort to challenge people's prejudices in any way. You were right to consider Tomb Raider II a more feminist game than Barbie Super Model, though to be frank, I thought that much was obvious. I included Barbie Super Model on this list as a giveaway. I'm surprised hence that neither of you instinctively positioned it last on your lists.

One of the things I was looking to clarify by having you order these four female-led games from most to least feminist was that feminism ISN'T just about "girl power" per se. I think that needs clarification because it seems to me that that's how most people see feminism: as just being about female empowerment and nothing more, as if the most feminist thing a game developer could do would be to simply copy/paste the image of a woman into what has traditionally been considered the archetypal role of men: that of the stoic warrior. That's not the case! Feminism is more than that. It's about more than just challenging stereotypes about what women are and aren't capable of. More importantly, as it applies to entertainment, it's about humanizing the way that people in general are portrayed. Why? Because patriarchy not only relegates women themselves, but also all values commonly associated with women (e.g. cooperation and empathy), to a secondary status; a position of less esteem. Think: Why, in real life, is there more social stigma attached to transgendered women than to transgendered men? Why is their more social stigma attached to gay men than to lesbians? Because society commonly associates these things with men adopting "female traits", and that's considered to be worse than women adopting so-called "male traits". Likewise anything that's considered gentle or vulnerable is often described as "girly", while a courageous individual (male or female) is often described as "having balls", with the latter being thought of as usually a good thing and former as invariably a bad thing. What I'm saying is that we as a society not only value men over women, but also the warrior over the nurturer because we consider the warrior naturally male and the nurturer naturally female. That's a deeper thing that patriarchy does.

It is not natural for human beings to pidgeonhole our behaviors according to our gender. Presenting game characters (or film characters or whatever applies) in a realistic manner challenges the common prejudice that says not only are women weak and inferior, but so too are "female values" weak and inferior. It challenges that prejudice by showing human beings to be complex, multi-dimensional creatures who broadly possess both courage and compassion, both individuality and a social impulse, both pride and vulnerability, etc. It shows both to be intrinsic and necessary to the human experience. It is to this end that Magic Knight Rayearth is the most feminist game on this list. Magic Knight Rayearth is an RPG about a trio of teenage girls who set out to rescue a kidnapped princess, who ultimately turns out to have traveled with the (male) villain voluntarily because she supports his malicious plans and is determined to carry them out, which results in our trio of friends having to kill her. Along the way, the trio must overcome huge personality differences -- one is tomboyish and headstrong, another is intelligent and nurturing, and the other is a quick-tempered and no-nonsense only child -- and learn to work together for the common good and eventually become friends. The game's sheer number of female characters on both the sides of good and evil renders it impossible to differentiate them within the framework of gender stereotypes and therefore compelled the all-female development team (how many of those are there?) to show that girls possess a wide range of different personalities and characteristics: sometimes very gentle and nurturing, sometimes very assertive and combative, etc. The game presents none of these qualities as inferior to the others, but rather shows their integral nature by promoting their unity in the form of cooperation. In these ways, Magic Knight Rayearth fully humanizes its female characters. That's a lot more feminist than just slapping the image of a woman (and a sexualized one designed to one-sidedly appeal to men at that) onto a male archetype.

As for Mischief Makers, it falls somewhere in-between where Magic Knight Rayearth does and where Tomb Raider II does on the feminist spectrum in that our robotic female action-hero protagonist challenges common gender stereotypes in ways that are more fundamental than the ways in which Tomb Raider II does -- for example, by being a very expressive, non-stoic, non-sexualized female lead who, as a major part of her adventure, must rescue her male creator, thus actually reversing some traditional gender roles -- but, at the same time, in ways that are less sweeping and complete than the ways in which Magic Knight Rayearth does, mainly for a general lack of female characters besides the protagonist herself. Mischief Makers affords us only one noteworthy female personality, which isn't at all like life and rather limits the extent to which the game can avoid pidgeonholing an entire gender.


5. Okay, now for an equally interesting challenge. Pick the more feminist game in this match-up of classic titles from the early 2000s:

A) Luigi's Mansion
B) Metroid Prime

This may be counterintuitive to a lot of people, but the correct answer is Luigi's Mansion, yes even though that game is about male characters where Metroid Prime is mainly about female characters. This I included as something of a trick question in that sense. What the reader may not be fully appreciating is that, while both games challenge traditional gender role assignments, the former does so in a way is both less common and more complete and therefore requires more audacity.

As I spoke to in my remarks on question 4, there's more social stigma attached to men who exhibit "female behaviors" than there is to women who exhibit "male behaviors". Where Metroid Prime's Samus Aran is nothing but women taking on the roles of the archetypal male, that of the stoic warrior, our male protagonist in Luigi's Mansion is a complex, multi-dimensional character who is vulnerable and emotional while also being courageous and heroic at the same time. The premise of Luigi's Mansion is that your brother Mario has sent you an invite to a mansion the two of you won in a raffle, but when you (Luigi) arrive, you can't find your brother...and it turns out the mansion is haunted. As you explore and suck up the ghosts you encounter in your Ghostbusters-inspired spectral vacuum cleaner, you eventually learn that the raffle was organized and rigged by Bowser in order to lure the brothers into the mansion and trap them in the paintings therein. He has so trapped Mario and it's now up to you to save him...which is no easy task, as our protagonist, much unlike his fearless brother, is scared of his own shadow, to say nothing of ghosts! But it's precisely Luigi's fear that reveals how brave he really is in that his willingness to face a whole mansion full of ghosts for the sake of his brother requires even more courage and selflessness than it would for Mario! This dynamic of Luigi trembling and shrieking his way to his brother's rescue shows the integral nature of strength and vulnerability. It shows that they are not mutually exclusive. Rather, in a way Luigi's fear makes him more courageous! At the end of the game, the brothers are reunited in tears of joy over all that's been overcome and weathered.

Luigi, in other words, is not a archetypal male character or an archetypal character of any kind at all, but a very complex and human one, and that makes him a more believable, relatable, and interesting character than Metroid Prime's Samus Aran. His unconventional role in Luigi's Mansion shows how there's nothing weak about possessing so-called female traits. To that end, it's one of the most feminist games you'll ever play.


6. Now let's try a pair the elusive female-centered sports games. Pick the more feminist of these titles from the early 2000s.

A) Mia Hamm 64 Soccer
B) Dead or Alive: Xtreme Beach Volleyball

I expect the two of you got this one wrong based on a lack of knowledge concerning either game referenced because it's really an easy match-up. Probably saw the terms "Xtreme" and "Dead or Alive" in the one game's title and therefore assumed that it was a girl power sort of game. Well anyway, for an education, Dead or Alive: Extreme Beach Volleyball is more an exercise in voyeurism than it is a sports simulation, as well illustrated by the inclusion of such features as alterable "breast motion physics", where Mia Hamm 64 Soccer is literally the only straightforward sports simulation revolving around an actual women's league that I've ever seen before. My main point in including this match-up was to distinguish between actual feminism and "sexy" feminism. I aimed to show that the latter, in making concessions to male voyeurism, really tends to reduce women to their bodies and, in that way, comes nowhere near full humanization.

Volleyball has also long been considered something of a "female sport" anyway. Soccer not so much. A female-centered soccer game is hence almost automatically more challenging to people's gender prejudices anyway.

IMPress Polly
09-27-2015, 09:56 AM
ANSWERS AND EXPLANATION, PART TWO:

Continuing on...


7. Alright, now let's try a pair of male-led games from recent years that have both been described as "feminist" by different people:

A) Papo & Yo
B) WATCH_DOGS

Both of these are male-led games that have been described as feminist by different crowds. Let's see who's right:

It has been argued by various men's rights activists that WATCH_DOGS is a feminist game because, as a major part of your male protagonists adventure, you rescue, rather than say exploit or kill, a group of female sex slaves. The other female characters in the game (the ones important enough to have names) all die. But is merely positioning a male protagonist as the (frequently unsuccessful) hero of girls and women enough to qualify a game as feminist? No. No it isn't. The core gender dynamics of WATCH_DOGS are no different than those of cartoony damsel-in-distress games like nearly all Super Mario titles save that the damsels in question are more sexualized and subjected to more violence...which I think a reasonable person would assess is more misogynistic, if anything! Furthermore, though the game includes mechanics designed to discourage it, the player in WATCH_DOGS is also afforded options that would never be included in a Super Mario game, like the option of killing prostituted women yourself. Such options aren't included NOT to be used by anyone. What I think all this illustrates is that the mere fact of not being Grand Theft Auto V doesn't make a game feminist. At all. If all the female characters in the game exist solely to be victimized, a feminist game it ain't!

Now Papo & Yo, on the other hand, is a male-centered game that many feminists (like Anita Sarkeesian) have described as feminist. It's a game that ventures into rare territory in revolving around a South American boy's struggle to navigate physical abuse from his alcoholic father. That women do not play a significant role in said game matters much less than the fact that our protagonist is a very humanized, well-developed character who exhibits the full range of emotional complexity. He is shown to be fearful, emotional, sad, and also very brave at the same time. Papo & Yo's feminist credentials extend beyond this emotional complexity though by delicately and thoughtfully tackling a subject that games rarely even address at all, let alone take seriously: physical abuse of boys. Given that it's considered masculine to suppress the appearance of vulnerability, the fact that this game revolves around the vulnerability of a male character, and in a way that's not demeaning or just a lazy excuse to establish a revenge narrative, makes it a very feminist game indeed!


8. Now let's try a pair of recent RPGs. Which of these is the more feminist title?

A) The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
B) Dragon Age: Inquisition

This one was fairly easy, I thought. The correct answer is obviously Dragon Age: Inquisition for multiple reasons. For one thing, female characters play an equal role in Inquisition versus a secondary role in The Witcher 3. For another, The Witcher 3's characters (especially the male protagonist, Geralt) largely adhere to gender stereotypes in terms of their personalities, where in Inquisition your player character, whose gender you can choose, is a blank slate on whom you can mentally impose whatever personality you want and the other characters, both male and female, are quite complex and emotionally developed. In The Witcher 3, characters are substantially reduced to stereotypes like the stoic male hero (e.g. the male protagonist conveniently has a genetic defect that prevents him from crying), the overly emotional female victim, etc. Victory sex. That sort of thing. The Dragon Age franchise seems to have evolved out of those sorts of things. For example, while Inquisition has optional romance arcs that include sexual encounters, it does not feature brothels or otherwise treat women's bodies as prizes. In short, while neither game strictly reduces women to the role of victim or anything like that, Dragon Age: Inquisition is definitely the more feminist RPG of the two.


9. Finally, for the ultimate challenge, list the following games from recent years in order from most to least feminist:

A) Papo & Yo
B) Gone Home
C) Bayonetta 2
D) Beyond: Two Souls

Gone Home is the most feminist game on this list for reasons similar to those I cited for Magic Knight Rayearth in my address of question 4: a large female cast well-developed female characters renders it impossible for the developers to differentiate them within the framework of tropes and stereotypes. Gone Home goes for authenticity above all and succeeds. Set in 1995, it's a mystery adventure about a pair of girls who fall in love (yes that kind of love) and struggle to keep their relationship going amidst problems like disapproving parents, plans for one to be sent to a military academy, etc.

Beyond: Two Souls does an excellent job of fully humanizing its female protagonist as well, but does not feature nearly as large a female cast relative to the total number of characters. As with Mischief Makers vis-a-vis question 4, this game's main shortcoming in terms of gender representation lies in that a large majority of the game's important characters are male even though the narrative is about a female character. (Don't compare the two too closely though: the heroine of Beyond is a far more complex and interesting character than that of Mischief Makers!) It's worth saying that, in spite of this small representational shortcoming, I like the actual story that Beyond tells ever so slightly better than that which Gone Home tells because it tackles a wider range of subject matter, from poverty to (at least metaphorically) schizophrenia, and much more. But that doesn't change the fact that Gone Home is still objectively the marginally more feminist game of the two.

I included a male-led game on the list of options, as in question 5's match-up, to throw the reader off a little and make this a bigger challenge and point out once more that male-led games can be more feminist than games that have female leads, even as action heroes. Papo & Yo is definitely more feminist than Bayonetta 2, for example. Bayonetta 2 is another cliche girl power game that mindlessly slaps a hyper-sexualized female body onto the stoic warrior male archetype. All your "fighting" moves in that game are stripper moves and your most powerful ability conveniently involves the protagonist removing all her clothes. Forget about humanization, is that even female empowerment so much as male voyeurism? Papo & Yo is a game that revolves around promoting empathy. It is far more feminist. However, I have to count both Gone Home and Beyond: Two Souls are more feminist than Papo & Yo only because games with female-centric narratives are far less common than those with male-centric narratives and hence are more needed to move toward equal representation.

This was a tough question that many serious feminists would probably get wrong because it requires an appreciation of fairly subtle representational distinctions, not gigantic and painfully obvious ones...to which end, I was surprised that Peter, who slipped up on the easy peasy first question, did pretty well on this one, only getting two out of the proper order!

THAT WRAPS IT UP!

I hope this has been helpful in terms of everyone's grasp of what feminism actually is, particularly in that it's about more than just promoting "empowerment". It's about promoting more representation for women, yes, and representation that's not demeaning, yes, but it's also about promoting equal respect for the values most commonly associated with women: empathy, cooperation, that sort of thing.

Private Pickle
09-27-2015, 10:07 AM
Interesting....well back to GTA V for me...

Peter1469
09-27-2015, 10:16 AM
ANSWERS AND EXPLANATION, PART ONE:

I guess this is the best we're going to do for participation (:tongue:), so thank you Peter and Cthulhu for putting in the effort! Anyway, here are the correct answers:

1. B
2. B
3. A
4. D, B, C, A
5. A
6. A
7. A
8. B
9. B, D, A, C

So out of a possible 15, Peter got 4 right and Cthulhu got 3 right, so...guys, we need to talk because you're nowhere near passing grades. :wink: I suspect that at least part of the reason is simply a lack of familiarity with several of these games, but there's also more than that at work because I think you two are familiar with most of the older titles that I mentioned. Allow me to help! I'll guide you through the quiz item-by-item:



How did you get this one wrong, Peter? :tongue:

Cthulhu and I make for very bad feminists....

IMPress Polly
09-27-2015, 06:41 PM
No worries Peter, it's all about learning!

The Xl
09-27-2015, 07:27 PM
Not going to cheat and check the answers. Here it goes.....

B
B
B
CDBA
B
A
A
ACDB

Haha, I probably did horrendous. I didn't know a few of those games at all, so that probably didn't help

GrassrootsConservative
09-29-2015, 12:21 AM
I don't like feminist inequality ideals so I'll just pass on this one.

kilgram
09-30-2015, 01:40 AM
The Women as Reward thread has given me want of gauging just where in the spectrum of egalitarianism everyone falls. Below I'll make up a brief but hopefully helpful quiz to help everyone figure out what does and doesn't constitute a feminist game and to the measure the degrees of feminist content in games, as there seems to be some confusion on the subject. All questions will be in the form of game vs. game match-ups. The reader's task is to pick what they think the more feminist game is in each match-up or, if applicable, to assemble the list in order from what they feel is the most to least feminist. I'll post the correct answers at a later time, after some people have taken the quiz. Note here that none of this is meant as a judgment call on the overall quality of any given game, but rather simply a gauge of its gender representation(s). Anyway, here goes:

1. Let's start easy. Which of the following classic games from the 1980s is the more feminist title?

A) Donkey Kong
B) The Great Giana Sisters

(If you can't guess this one right, we need to talk!)


2. Here's another '80s game match-up that ought to be fairly easy. Which of the following is the more feminist game?

A) Super Mario Bros.
B) Super Mario Bros. 2 (American version)


3. Alright, now that the brain cells are operating, let's try something a little bit tougher, still using classic '80s games:

A) The Great Giana Sisters
B) Metroid


4. Okay, now let's really get into the thick of it. List the following four female-led '90s games in order from most to least feminist:

A) Barbie's Super Model
B) Mischief Makers
C) Tomb Raider II
D) Magic Knight Rayearth


5. Okay, now for an equally interesting challenge. Pick the more feminist game in this match-up of classic titles from the early 2000s:

A) Luigi's Mansion
B) Metroid Prime


6. Now let's try a pair the elusive female-centered sports games. Pick the more feminist of these titles from the early 2000s.

A) Mia Hamm 64 Soccer
B) Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball


7. Alright, now let's try a pair of male-led games from recent years that have both been described as "feminist" by different people:

A) Papo & Yo
B) WATCH_DOGS


8. Now let's try a pair of recent RPGs. Which of these is the more feminist title?

A) The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
B) Dragon Age: Inquisition


9. Finally, for the ultimate challenge, list the following games from recent years in order from most to least feminist:

A) Papo & Yo
B) Gone Home
C) Bayonetta 2
D) Beyond: Two Souls
1) B
2) No idea (not knowing well both games) I never liked Mario
3) A
4) D
5) I don't know the games
6) A
7) A
8) Both (The female characters are strong and fight against the oppression that they suffer)
9) D, B, A, C

I don't consider a game as being feminist for only featuring a female character. It is important also how they fit in the story and how they are treated. For example, the case of Donkey Kong and the princess where the woman is merely accesory, and therefore we can agree in that game there is no feminism.

But, in games that maybe women are not main character or playable, they have a very strong rol. If the women portrayed there are not merely accesory, they are independent and very well developed in character then can we talk about a game lacking of feminism or not being represented in some way there, even if for limitations of the story they are not playable.

Obviously, a game that gives the option to choose any gender can be considered more equalitarian and feminist, we should see how is dealed with the overall of the female characters to conclude if we are in a feminist game or not. Not only having a female character can be considered feminist.

Have you played the Witcher, Polly? Because I don't see the women in any way as you represent them. They are strong, independent, politically influential, their roles are very important. Ciri is the only one who can save the world (that is a secondary role?), the fighting style of Ciri makes her stronger than Geralt.

As I've explained, feminism is the struggle for the rights of the women. I see in the Witcher series how this struggle is represented, therefore I don't see it as a non feminist game, I would say that it is more neutral, if you want.

If a game that in the plot there is represented a problem of racism, sexism,... and it is seen as a problem in the game, can be the game considered racist or sexist? I see that if those problems are considered and the gamer can try to influence and solve/reduce those problems, it would make the game pretty anti-racist and anti-sexist, feminist.

kilgram
09-30-2015, 01:52 AM
I don't like feminist inequality ideals so I'll just pass on this one.
Obviously you prefer the status quo of the XIX century when there was no inequality of any way.

GrassrootsConservative
09-30-2015, 06:21 AM
Obviously you prefer the status quo of the XIX century when there was no inequality of any way.

That's right. I like no inequality. Am I to assume you do like inequality?

kilgram
09-30-2015, 06:50 AM
That's right. I like no inequality. Am I to assume you do like inequality?
Me? I don't like inequality, for this reason I am feminist.

I don't like the status quo of the XIX century as you like it.

Отправлено с моего Aquaris E5 через Tapatalk

Safety
09-30-2015, 07:07 AM
Me? I don't like inequality, for this reason I am feminist.

I don't like the status quo of the XIX century as you like it.

Отправлено с моего Aquaris E5 через Tapatalk

The point you made earlier soared right over his head.

GrassrootsConservative
10-01-2015, 04:11 AM
The point you made earlier soared right over his head.

That I don't like inequality?

Didn't go over my head.


Obviously you prefer the status quo of the XIX century when there was no inequality of any way.

He's right. I prefer NONE of the inequality feminists and progressives do. So what went over my head, again?

IMPress Polly
10-02-2015, 01:39 PM
The Xl wrote:
Not going to cheat and check the answers. Here it goes.....

B
B
B
CDBA
B
A
A
ACDB

Haha, I probably did horrendous. I didn't know a few of those games at all, so that probably didn't help

Hey, @The Xl (http://thepoliticalforums.com/member.php?u=865) !

Reviewing your answers, it looks like you accidentally skipped one question altogether! (It looks like it was question 8.) However, even without answering that one, you still scored higher than Cthulhu and Peter both (although so far Kilgram has scored the best). Specifically, out of a possible 15, you got 5 right. That may not sound too good, but considering that I skewed the quiz on the hard side and presumed a hardcore gamer level of gaming knowledge, that's actually about as well as I think the average gamer would do. Could you successfully pass yourself off for a scholar in women's studies? Mmm...maybe not. :tongue: However, you could probably pass for a casual feminist. I say that because, unlike Cthulhu and Peter, you got all the easy questions right, which to me suggests more than dumb luck was involved; that you do possess some gender consciousness. To heighten that level of awareness though, I will point you to the answers and explanations here (http://thepoliticalforums.com/threads/51338-The-Feminist-Game-Match-Up-Quiz?p=1272154&viewfull=1#post1272154).


Kilgram wrote:
1) B
2) No idea (not knowing well both games) I never liked Mario
3) A
4) D
5) I don't know the games
6) A
7) A
8) Both (The female characters are strong and fight against the oppression that they suffer)
9) D, B, A, C

Not bad, kilgram ! You got the most answers right of anyone so far: 7 out of 15! That's especially not bad considering that you were unfamiliar with some of the games, and also considering that I think you misunderstood what I was asking on question 4, as I was requesting a list like in the last question. See the link I posted earlier in this post for the answers and explanations.

For some other, general comments:


But, in games that maybe women are not main character or playable, they have a very strong rol. If the women portrayed there are not merely accesory, they are independent and very well developed in character then can we talk about a game lacking of feminism or not being represented in some way there, even if for limitations of the story they are not playable.

You're on the right track here toward an advanced-level understanding of feminism in that you highlight the importance of character development in that this corresponds to full humanization. However, it isn't actually essential that a game feature girls or women in order to qualify as feminist (though it does help).


Obviously, a game that gives the option to choose any gender can be considered more equalitarian and feminist, we should see how is dealed with the overall of the female characters to conclude if we are in a feminist game or not. Not only having a female character can be considered feminist.

Not necessarily. Many games with more detailed narratives require a focus on developing the player's character and therefore can only feature one playable gender. I'm not against those kinds of games. In fact, most of the games I enjoy the most are that way, to be honest. However, on balance, there should be about an equal amount of games about male characters, female characters, and games where you can choose the gender of your character or wherein gender doesn't apply, and since there's currently a comparative shortage of games featuring female leads compared to the other two categories, that's where the biggest increase is needed.

The Xl
10-02-2015, 03:48 PM
I thought about picking Luigis Mansion, that was the toughest one. I think I did miss question 8, but I don't know either game anyway so I would have just guessed.

I'm no feminist, but I don't really classify myself as anything, I'm a diverse guy and don't like labels. No issue with female leads or females in power though, one of my favorite series, the Ace Attorney series, has a lot of strong and important females.

kilgram
10-02-2015, 08:09 PM
Well, I consider myself pretty feminist. Therefore, I knew more or less what to choose. The truth is that most of the games are not in my preferences so I didn't know them very well.

And, there is a question that however I knew what answer you expected as the most feminist games of the two options I disagree with that point of view :) (you know which one, or I believe it) :)

For the rest, yes I think that agree with most of the points. (but as I said, I was pretty unfamiliar with most of the games so it made harder for me to be able to answer appropriately, more when both games had "similar features").