Girl Gamers Get Down With Internet Online Games

?Girl Gamers Get Down with Internet Online Games

Whenever there is talk of online gaming, the games that are most often mentioned are the action games with their shoot ‘em up, beat ‘em up mindset. Of course, in these instances we assume that the gamers are all male, right? Wrong! Did you know that there is a large group of girl gamers that get down with Internet online games?

As a matter of fact, there are a number of online communities that cater to girls – and by extension, women – who enjoy playing Internet online games but having enough of the sometimes derogatory remarks they encounter in typically co-ed communities.

So, just who are the girl gamers that are taking the gaming world by storm? Are they like the stereotypical male counterpart? Could they be considered geeky? When you think of the typical male gamer, you may think of a slightly geeky teen or twenty-to-forty year old, either painfully skinny or morbidly obese, pimply or unshaven, in a dark bedroom or efficiency apartment, with yesterday’s cold pizza still sitting on the desk. Of course, this is a stereotype, meaning that there are probably a fair number of individuals who fit into the mold, but by no means does everyone. When it comes to the stereotypical female gamer, there are fewer opinions around, but usually it is the “odd kid” with long, stringy hair and devoid of make-up who plays the games. Sometimes she is considered mousy and shy, at other times loud and bullying. No matter which way you slice it; she is considered socially inept and therefore withdrawn. Her games of choice are educational games, dating games, or visual novels.

Of course, nothing could be further from the truth. Girls can blast laser cannons just as efficiently as the boys, and many already do it! High school students, college kids, and professionals who by day do indeed wear makeup and pantyhose, let their hair down at night and take up the fight against evil, no matter if it is in the science fiction realm, on the battlefield, or in a vast made up universe. After the kids are in bed, many log on and do not flinch at shooting the enemy. Many actually relish the online competition, the teamwork that characterizes tactics games, and the equality they enjoy with the boys during a mission. Sometimes girl gamers will band together to form an all-female squadron and may play in competition with the men, while other times they just join and already existing co-ed squad.

Quite possibly the greatest fascination that online games hold for the girls are the fact that they can create their own worlds to suit them, and that they can set the parameters of acceptable and non-acceptable activities within these parameters. Things that in real life are hard or impossible to change can be overcome with the click of a mouse in the online world of fantasy. Many girl gamers state that they have been introduced to video games at very early ages, sometimes as young as in preschool, and that they never were given the notion that girls could not, should not, or would not play video games, or that this was still a boys’ domain.

Of course, overcoming stereotypes is not an easy feat, and some of the responsibility should be laid squarely at the door of the game developers who go to great lengths to market their wares in gender-specific ways rather than on an individual basis. Nonetheless, these half-baked opinions are here to stay, and if you are a girl and ready to take on the online gaming world and have some fun, here are some quick tips to make it more enjoyable:

If you encounter some sexist opposition, just picture him as a pimply little geek sitting in a dark bedroom and it will be easier for you to ignore his taunts.

Band together with others girls and present a united front.

Make sure you learn the rules of the game and practice just like you would with any other game.

Play to have fun, not to prove a point.

If you keep these little thoughts in mind, you will be able to have fun, meet some great people, play a lot of fun games, and deal with the occasional geek who has not quite evolved yet. Don’t let them stop you!

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