@theht said:
As for the toxicity, could be a bunch of things. Someone just trolling, someone feeling like their hobby is being attacked, someone feeling like they're being attacked, etc. And those are applicable on both sides.
Definitely agreeing with this sentence here.
I'll be the first to admit that I don't like it when people are attacked as being sexist just for trying to create a cool looking character, or trying to tell an interesting story, or (heaven forbid) giving a character believable flaws.
When Carolyn attacks the creators of Persona 4 for being 'homophobic,', I get upset. That game does a great job of developing characters who have conflicting feelings regarding sexuality, and how they respond to them. It's crazy to suggest that the creators have an irrational hatred for gay people.
When Patrick attacks DanganRonpa for 'not handling gender issues well, because there's a character who (spoilers),' I get upset because he makes it sound like (spoilers) is a negative or bad thing, and it's one of the best portrayals of a character like that in a game, especially considering all the other characters treating that person with respect.
When pretty much anybody attacks the creators of Tomb Raider because "a woman with a large bust only exists to titillate men" and that she "can't be taken seriously as an archaeologist," it upsets me. Putting it bluntly, I have some big ol' tits myself, and it feels kind of personal when everyone associates a busty character to 'only exist as male fantasy' and implying that women who naturally have that kind of body can't be seen as anything other than a sex object.
And when Anita calls Miyamoto 'a serial misogynist' for making a series about two brothers who save the land, by dunking a dinosaur in lava so that the princess can get back to ruling the kingdom, I get upset because that kind of thing is a serious accusation. You don't just casually insist that someone has a genuine hatred for all women just because he goes for the 'unlikely plumber/elf boy saves the world so that the ruler can rule it again' storyline. The amount of people who claim that Miyamoto is a misogynist after hearing her say that is shocking.
So yup. From my viewpoint, there's a lot of attacking from journalists about fictional and creative games. There's also a lot of 'speaking on behalf of all women' which I don't tend to approve of, either. I just want to play games with a lot of creativity, y'know? Not be branded a misogynist homophobic scumbag every other week just because I think the costumes look awesome in Soul Calibur, or that Kerrigan in Starcraft looks awesome, or because I don't see anything wrong with characters that look visually attractive, or because I like playing some games that have male characters. Those kinds of accusations on gaming sites tend to feel pretty personal, and it weirds me the heck out when I say something like "Oh man, I loved DOA2 on the Dreamcast!" online, and a bunch of people suddenly rush to call me a gross disgusting misogynist, even though I'm a girl (as irrelevant as it may be). I just like stylish fighting games, and I don't see anything wrong with characters that look stylish within it. D:
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