The Misogynistic Gamer Girl
The Misogynistic
Gamer Girl
I
n the past, society has seen women fight for
their right to game, with gaming seen as a
primarily male-dominated hobby. Whilst this
is still relevant today, the rise of female gamers
has also brought about some interesting issues
in itself. Recently, I have begun to notice a real
discrimination against women who game; and it
comes from other women.
It seems strange to think that women who enjoy
playing games would discriminate against others
who share the same love and passion for this
huge entertainment industry. I’d like to, within the
confines of this article, explore how and why this
happens, the possible reasons behind it and why it
needs to stop.
Fi rst off, let’s take a look at some of the ways this
discrimination is occurring. Interestingly enough,
rather than taking place in the virtual game worlds
in which we play, it is happening in the ‘real world’
and often through the medium of the internet, in
particular, social media.
Slut shaming. We’ve all heard it, it’s a hot topic at
the moment, and the discussion around the issue
is both divided and vigorous to say the least. At the
moment I am regularly seeing slut shaming going
on in the gaming community, and it is almost
exclusively instigated and perpetuated by women.
Issue 51 • January 2014
12 • GameOn Magazine