Done with Barbie dolls_

First of all, sorry for the late post, procrastination life got in the way.

As I have previously stated, I love to play videogames for that sense of power and control on my decisions and paths that I don’t get to have many times in real life. And that’s why I love to pick female avatars: to feel that I, as a woman, can be hailed as the heroine and admired by all is self-empowering and elevates my self-esteem.

But, more often than not, I feel frustrated and insulted by the games I play, not from clear sexist remarks in-game, but from subtle messages that it transmits.

Women, in media, are constantly sexualized and represented by stereotypes, and games are no exception. 

Game developer companies still create their products to cater the straight white dude, the guy that is never shamed by media, that rarely hears racist or sexist remarks, that always gets his way, while leaving the minorities in the dirt. 

Yes, it’s true that progress has been made, lately companies have included same-sex relationships in their games, and more prominent roles for female and queer characters, as well as making them less one-dimensional, but their representation is nowhere near to perfect. 

But focusing more on female misrepresentation, all companies fail in my eyes: when they include female characters, they may have the most complex personality and story ever, but their body models are still the same unrealistic Barbie doll imitation. Even my heroine has that tiny waist, bodacious behind and bountiful breasts.

To protect the identity of this woman, her features have been censored. 

Every time I play these games, I unwittingly think to myself: “I wish I was that tall”, “I wish I had those boobs”, “I wish I had a body that lean.” These thoughts wither my self-esteem when I’m not raging at how unrealistically women are represented. 

The problem isn't that there are women in games that have the so-called “perfect” measures; it’s that every single woman has that body model. This sends the wrong message to men and women: to gals, that to be normal, their body type should match that in-game, and to guys, to expect all women to look like that. 

Women lack diversity in games, even if a game includes a female character, she’s sexualized and relegated to a stereotypical role: the damsel in distress, the walking sex toy, the I-can-take-care-of-myself bitch or the flower on the wall. 

I need you to help me look for my sister, so take a long look at my ass, we're identical.

Children and teens, which comprise a large group that plays videogames, are highly susceptible to the images and information that media feeds them, and without media literacy, will absorb the data they receive and accept it as the norm, and most will try to emulate it. 

“You can’t be what you can’t see.” If teenage girls can only play games in which women are always portrayed in skimpy outfits, in which women who are nice are submissive and women who go get what they want are bitchy, in which women are simply decorations with nothing to contribute or simply aren't there, what message are they receiving? 

In an era where racial, gender and sexual awareness is highly promoted, these misrepresentations or lack of representation are inexcusable, and it’s about time that women in games are portrayed realistically and with dignity, not just as a tool to appeal to the straight dude; that’s just insulting to both men and women.

So why do I play these games? Well, if abstract from the fact that women are sex objects, I can get a great kick out of the game as I wield all that PHENOMENAL COSMIC POOOWER!