@TheDarkSpot @GaryAtkin01

I don't see the point to be honest. Sexy women in games are just pixels, and that doesn't interest me in any way as they're not real. I see your point now though!

@Articuno76 @immortaltech6

You're reading far too much into the causal market. The stats which suggest females make up nearly half of all gamers included games from all platforms. Most females still stick to mobile gaming, in the UK only 6% of women studied said they were 'hardcore gamers'.

@aots_twilight @GaryAtkin01

Because discrimination against men is considered normal (and even funny) for some twisted reason. It is shocking how we are still fighting for "feminism" - we should be fighting under a 'Gender Equality' umbrella, not a gender-biased movement that has created a generation of divisive and aggressive women.

@midnightxdrive1 @GaryAtkin01 @Uber-G

The issue you here is that you are suggesting a male dominated industry is immature because it doesn't conform to a modernist female agenda.

The majority of AAA players are still men, and is likely to be men for some time. My issue here is with freedom of expression.

The whole "White made lead character bad, black female lead character good" etc. concepts are creating a bigger issue.

Studios should not be criticised for putting content in games that they wish to put in. It is their choice, and if it sells, what's the problem?

@Articuno76 @GaryAtkin01

I agree, and that's what most people here are asking for. They're saying "fine, bring in diversity, but not at the expense of freedom of expression).

@Uber-G

Yeah... cause a stale games industry is going to be fixed by having more women as lead characters.

Diversity can be a good thing, if it's what the audience is after. At the end of the day though you are just one person with an opinion who believes they speak on behalf of everyone. You don't.

The fact of the matter is, the lead character is an integral part of the game and the world it creates. If you place in a character in a game that doesn't "fit", the overall feel of the game itself is going to be diminished.

Take action games for example, men are stronger, faster and more brutal than women on average, meaning it's easier to accept a strong male lead than a strong female one. Men make up the vast majority of armed forces, and pretty much exclusively lead the elite teams (SAS etc.) due to their phyiscal dominance. Regardless of how realistic or unrealistic the mechanics of the game are, believing in the lead character makes a massive difference to the enjoyment.

This worked in TLOU because Ellie was totally believable. She wasn't unrealistically tough, but she was smart and cunning. She was a fantastic character whom I enjoyed the presence of in the game.

Put women in Call of Duty - no problem, it's believable, they serve on the front line. Put women in Splinter Cell as the lead character, it takes something away because the likelihood of women being in such a role in real life is slim.

This is just one view of course focusing on physicality, but it is one of the ongoing issues.

@TheDarkSpot

Are you suggesting all males that aren't interested in playing a game with a non-sexualised lead female character are sexist?

What happened to freedom of choice...?!

@Harbinger_CR

He does and he doesn't. The issue here is that we are bypassing logic at times in favour of keeping a certain demographic happy. Now I'm more than happy to see various leads in games, but I can tell you which will sell more... It'll be the games which have a character those playing can relate to.

You can twist the arm of a gamer as much as you want and tell them how it "really is", but you can't bypass desires or how one relates to something. In action games for example, men admire tough guys and want to be with the attractive women - most gamers (and most gamers are male) are not interested in playing a game to prove a political point to show "women are tough too."

@aots_twilight

Not to mention the way men are portrayed in the media in recent times as useless idiots who don't know their arse from their elbow. I find it frustrating that we are still focusing on one-sided gender equality (women) rather than ensuring both sexes are treated with respect.