Evolving Narrative Representation of Women in Video Games
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Virginia Commonwealth University VCU Scholars Compass Theses and Dissertations Graduate School 2019 Out of the Margins: Evolving Narrative Representation of Women in Video Games Rowan Lucas Virginia Commonwealth University Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/etd Part of the Digital Humanities Commons, Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Commons, Other English Language and Literature Commons, and the Other Film and Media Studies Commons © The Author Downloaded from https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/etd/5882 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at VCU Scholars Compass. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of VCU Scholars Compass. For more information, please contact [email protected]. © Rowan Lucas 2019 All Rights Reserved Out of the Margins: Evolving Narrative Representation of Women in Video Games A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts at Virginia Commonwealth University by: Rowan Lucas Director: Dr. Les Harrison, Associate Professor and Director of MA, Department of English Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond, Virginia May, 2019 i Table of Contents List of Figures ................................................................................................................................. ii List of Abbreviations ..................................................................................................................... iii Abstract .......................................................................................................................................... iv Introduction: The Cultural Context for Games Studies ...................................................................1 Defining Terms of Narrative Games: Avatars, Empathy, and Immersion ....................................28 Video Games and Female Representation: Categories, History, and Implications .......................41 Damsel in Distress and/or Submissive/Dependent Female Characters .............................53 ‘Lingerie as Armor’/Appearance: Character Attire, Body Build, and Shape ....................56 Ms. Male Character ............................................................................................................59 Sinister Seductresses/Sexualized Female Villains .............................................................62 Historical Representation ...................................................................................................64 Case Studies ...................................................................................................................................68 Bayonetta and Lara Croft ...................................................................................................70 Dragon Age ........................................................................................................................73 Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice ..............................................................................................90 Horizon: Zero Dawn ..........................................................................................................99 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................................111 Bibliography ................................................................................................................................118 ii List of Figures 1.1 Zoë Quinn Inbox Messages ........................................................................................................7 1.2 Sexualized Female Characters ................................................................................................14 1.3 Average Sexualization by Year of Release ...............................................................................19 1.4 Sexualization of Characters Over Time ...................................................................................20 2.1 Dragon Age: Inquisition (2014) Dialogue Wheel ....................................................................33 2.2 Tone Choice in Mass Effect: Andromeda (2017) .....................................................................33 2.3 Standard vs. Branching Game Narrative.................................................................................35 2.4 Decision Point ..........................................................................................................................36 3.1 Jansz and Martis Study Results................................................................................................49 3.2 Bayonetta and Her ‘Armor’ .....................................................................................................56 3.3 Dalish Leather Armor: Male vs. Female Character ................................................................57 3.4 Ms. Pac-man and Pac-man ......................................................................................................60 4.1 Bayonetta and Lara Croft ........................................................................................................71 4.2 Morrigan and Isabela from Dragon Age .................................................................................76 4.3 Female vs. Male Armor in Inquisition .....................................................................................77 4.4 Vivienne’s Armor Styles ...........................................................................................................78 4.5 Dragon Age (2009-2014) Series Box Art .................................................................................78 4.6 Senua ........................................................................................................................................93 4.7 Senua Addresses the Player .....................................................................................................94 4.8 Aloy’s Armor Sets ..................................................................................................................103 4.9 Aloy and Nil Armor Comparison ...........................................................................................104 iii List of Abbreviations AAA – Triple A game; games produced by large-scale publishers AI – Artificial Intelligence DLC – Downloadable Content NPC – Non-Player Character PC – Player Character RPG – Role Playing Game iv Abstract OUT OF THE MARGINS: EVOLVING NARRATIVE REPRESENTATION OF WOMEN IN VIDEO GAMES By Rowan Lucas A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts, at Virginia Commonwealth University. Virginia Commonwealth University 2019 Director: Dr. Les Harrison, Associate Professor and Director of MA, Department of English This thesis examines narrative representation of female characters in video games and how game narratives and representations contribute to socio-cultural discourse. First, this thesis explores and defines the cultural background for female representation in video games. It then defines video games as a type of text and describes the features that are unique to games, such as the use of avatars, and what impacts these features have on game narratives. The thesis attempts to establish evidence of an evolutionary arc of comprehensive female representation in video games by first exploring historical female narrative tropes, and then comparing them to narrative case studies of female characters within five recent game titles (Tomb Raider, Bayonetta, Dragon Age, Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice, and Horizon: Zero Dawn). In these case studies, the implications for their representations of female characters are analyzed in the context of socio- cultural discourse. Furthermore, this thesis argues for the importance of diverse representation within video games as a form of media, and as cultural objects that contribute to social discourse. 1 Out of the Margins: Evolving Narrative Representation of Women in Video Games I. Introduction: The Cultural Context for Games Studies Historically, the video game industry has been a masculine-dominated space. From a lack of women on the development side, to a hypermasculine narrative standard, games have often struggled with the issue of diverse female representation. The pervasive trend has been for female characters to appear as secondary and hyper-sexualized, even from the industry’s inception. Indeed, most early video games feature male leads (like Pac-man, Mario, and Zelda) and female characters were either secondary (Princess Peach), without agency (Princess Peach and Princess Zelda), or sexualized (Lara Croft). However, in recent years, there have been a few games that feature well-rounded female protagonists/leads, both from indie and AAA (‘triple a’) studios, such as the AAA game Horizon: Zero Dawn (2017) and the indie game Transistor (2014) that break pre-established gender norm conventions within video games. As Malkowski and Russworm point out, “representations actually change slowly in digital media, just as they have in more traditional forms of media.”1 Thus, despite a problematic history, shifts are beginning to occur at all levels of gaming culture. Even so, until within the past two decades, there has not been sustained or prominent attention to theories of identity, politics, and representation from the broader world of visual culture studies—or to the use of games to 1 Malkowski, Jennifer and