IP#5 Hegemonic Play: Gatekeeping Game Culture

As I was going through the readings, I found myself reacquainted with the Ubisoft news article. I still remember those events unfolding but never thought much about it back in the day. What I was more curious about was how things are in recent years.

I began my search for supplementary resources in the world of MMOs, where I've personally experienced some of the most sexist and racist comments I've ever seen on the internet. Indeed, back when I still played MMOs (a decade ago), the chat wasn't regulated and the conversations that occurred 'publicly' were often openly offensive.

As expected, World of Warcraft is still a place that is hostile to female gamers. Even more, WoW characters that are female are often sexualized with armor sets that are scantily clad providing legendary bonuses to character stats (which never made sense to me). I wondered if that was still the case.

Indeed, not only is World of Warcraft itself a game that misrepresents and is seemingly hostile against women, the game studios are Blizzard seems to be under fire for these issues as well (Jiang, 2021).

Curious, I set my sights on another massively popular online game - one that I haven't played, but am sure there are issues around access and equity for women given its popularity genre and player base - Fortnite.

What I found was that even attempts at creating access and equity for women, for example, an all-women's tournament, received hate comments and doubts from the gaming community, and became an outlet for outright sexism-charged comments (Gardner, 2022).

For my IP, I wanted to change it up and decided to write a poem to encapsulate what I found and the current state of these issues, as well as hopes for the future.

"A World of Dreams" - by Leon Lam

A world of dreams, where game pixels reign,

And heroes and villains share a domain.

But in this realm, women are often erased,

Their struggles unheard, their stories misplaced.

In "World of Warcraft," a hero's tale,

Yet few women in the game prevail.

Their armor is scant, their roles are reduced,

A world designed for male amusement seduced.

In "Fortnite," battles rage and guns ignite,

Yet a woman's presence is barely in sight.

Their characters few, their skins so rare,

A world so vast, yet women so spare.

In the gaming world, women face abuse,

Harassment and threats, a world obtuse.

But they persist, and fight for their place,

Deserving inclusion, respect, and grace.

The world of gaming must be more diverse,

A space where all players are free to immerse.

So let's make it a world of equality,

Where stories of joy abound endlessly.

A game of pixels, an anvil for dreams,

Where heroes and villains reign supreme.

You get to create it, you’re the main character,

Choose to be a hero, love, and do not falter.

Jiang, S. (2021, September 17). Blizzard reduces titty in world of warcraft, but not sexism at the company. Kotaku. Retrieved February 27, 2023, from https://kotaku.com/blizzard-reduces-titty-in-world-of-warcraft-but-not-se-1847697184

Gardner, M. (2022, November 9). The ugly hatred faced by women in Esports, and how we fight back. Forbes. Retrieved February 27, 2023, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/mattgardner1/2021/03/19/the-ugly-hatred-faced-by-women-in-esports-and-how-we-fight-back/?sh=46130d6537d8