We live in a world where video games have become a large portion of the screen time people absorb and I have heard many people complain about women’s portrayal in video games. I can see why they feel women are objectified in some video games like the "Street Fighter," (1987) and "Dead or Alive," (1996) franchises, but when we look at the beginning of video games, we find women who are seen as heroines and where strong women in gaming originates. Of course, we can look back all the way to the beginning, "Baraduke," (1985) and "Metroid," (1986), to see women as the main protagonists in gaming. Video games have expanded over time and have become even more centered on female protagonists. Games now either have strong female leads or strong secondary/supporting characters, but that doesn’t mean they are any less bad-ass or heroic. There are many heroines that have saved a galaxy, Shepherd from "Mass Effect," (2007), or that they are the video game version of Indiana Jones, such as Lara Croft from "Tomb Raider," (1996). Women are proving through video games that we are strong and can fight our way through situations to be the protagonist that every video gamer deserves.
There are several females that have appeared in early video games but when they starred as protagonists they excelled. Samus Aran from "Metroid" is one of these heroines. She is not only one of the first female protagonists to be revealed in a video game in the U.S., but she also has managed to carry herself through several more games and made appearances in every single "Super Smash Brothers" from Nintendo. For those who don’t know Samus’s story, she is a bounty hunter of momentous fame throughout the galaxy. She fights in space in her specialized suit. She is extremely agile and is an explosion expert. When she debuted in 1986 in her suit, she did not look female, until it was revealed that she was a female at the end of the video game. This has been said to be one of the most shocking reveals in all of gaming. She has been an inspiration for heroines in video games for some time now. She has been one of my favorite protagonists, male or female, that I have ever played with. I have played "Metroid" and she is my star character in "Super Smash Brothers." She is strong, elegant, and will always have a special place in my heart. Not to mention she is blonde like me so I feel a slight comradeship with her.
The other heroine in the video game world who has gained attention for her protagonist position is Lara Croft in the "Tomb Raider" series (as pictured above). She used to be a pixelated treasure hunter that had big lips and not proportional body parts. However, through the years and new games with better graphics, Lara Croft has become more realistic looking and shows of her acrobatic skills through her leaps and somersaults through the jungle in "Tomb Raider," (2013). She not only has her own movies starring Angelina Jolie, but her game series has become extremely popular with each game that comes out. She is the heroine in video games at the moment. Playing as her in the "Tomb Raider" is enjoyable-- not just because of her British accent-- but because of her tenacity and her gumption. She is a female force to be recognized in virtual games.
Not every female in a video game is going to be a respectable heroine that young gamer girls should look up too but that doesn’t mean that the video game industry objectifies all women. I am not going to say that it is non-existence but I don’t want those games to stop some from enjoying gaming. Women in video games are not all eye-candy for the male audience, there are respectable and inspirational characters that break down the general statement about how women are not respected in video games. The list goes on about the women that I have encountered in games, whether they are RPGs or just platform games, the feminine power always is obvious and genuine. Women should take pride in their female heroes and help them in their conquests by picking up a controller and letting them take you on heroic journey.
