Yeah, they're models - models?

But yeah.. They're fasion models, but I still think they'd fit in the game, I mean.. Aight, here is my [censored]: The left one looks like a pretty-face, the right one looks like Cruela Deviles' sister they'd probably be good for Medium or Light, so they must know something of how to create a varied amount of faces for the girls, ''over pretty ones'', ''normal ones'' and ''the cat dragged something in'' like The Veteran for the guys, he's old and saggy :l

If you think that sounds odd, you clearly haven't played MP games over Xbox Live enough.

A women can be battle-hardened.
But that doesn't mean she can't be pretty at the same time.

While I get tired of sausage-fests as well, I'm going to have to burst your bubble on this one.

85% of the market for online video games is male, a lot more that half.

"Here's a game that says, we want you to learn to become a good FPS player, "enjoy these great multiplayer experiences" .... but NO CHICKS." You're trying to make it sound as if girls aren't allowed to play the game, which is amazingly untrue.

It does when you factor in money and time constraints.

As I've said countless times before, how good the game is will determine the players, of both genders. If the gameplay svcks then it will just be a dress up game.

How is that decidedly pro-female? I know a lot of girls who play and enjoy Call of Duty, and it has neither of those things.

The more time goes on, the more I wish customization wasn't even a part of the game. So people wouldn't feel the need to bicker about it. (which includes me >w>)

It's definitely less of an issue for most games than it is for Brink. Character creation is an opportunity to express your individuality and wear it like a sort of badge online, but I admit I'm at a disadvantage when trying to identify with a male avatar and really make it personal to me. The presence of character customization without female options is less of an issue than, say, actual glitches or bugs in the game, and I'm happy that the developers focused on actual issues, but the design choice to exclude female characters has resulted in an obvious rift in the player base. I'm not saying "OH MAI GAW SPALSH DMAAGE CHANGE IT NAO~~" I'm just saying there is a definite demographic here that would like to see female character options, and an avatar I can identify with would be a very welcome addition to the game.

I'm still going to play the game, make no mistake. My ugly, beefy rugby-player is going to be running around The Ark either way. :3

Eh, british kids calling me a [censored], a [censored], a [censored] [censored], a [censored] [censored], a [censored] [censored], and all weird-ass combinations are probably enough

At one time I came across a girl playing however, she stopped talking when all other guys started :<

But I still don't think we NEED any specific gender, really, a game is a game, a person is a person, the controller wont work differently becuase a woman is holding it opposed to a man

They look great!
+1 to the art team from me also.

How much of that is marketing targeted at men, and how much of that is an actual male demographic? I know that at least along the east coast, my employer - a major technology retailer - has told us that it's closer to an even spread of men vs. women than ever before. A lot of our marketing is meant to be gender-neutral now, and not just for "girl games." (ugh)

^ WIN ^

You mean something like http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLPZmPaHme0?

Semantics. Of course girls can play. Are they catered to? Only by the gameplay. Otherwise, no. This is my point.

Yes, it was a resource decision. In the long run, I don't think it was a good or practical one.

Stag-fest games are quickly becoming an anachronism.

And 85% is a miserable stat compared to most MMOs which have staked out the female market much better.

I want a character that is a giant wasp, am I catered to?

The irony in your statement is that you use the word practical.

You've stated that there are too many men playing, and then you say this, even more irony.

This isn't an MMO. Added to the legions of guys who play as chicks.

Even if this discussion is starting to get a little inflammatory, it's true that there are a lot of men who prefer to play female characters. The choice to not include female avatars affects more than women, it seems.

This statement might make some sense if you actually were a giant wasp.

Indeed, let me rephrase that. I want a character that is not hideous (true?) am I catered to?

I laughed while writing this I must confess.

Semantics come up in your argument as well...a phrase like "are they catered to?" carries an implication that we're asking for special treatment. I will appreciate Brink for the great game it is regardless of whether female characters ever take up arms within it. I would just like to make people aware that there is a rational viewpoint in support of their addition, and that a lot of games that do it do it wrong. My only point in making this thread was to make that viewpoint known, not to point fingers about who's at fault.

I honestly believe that the world is more ready now than ever for a strong female protagonist who is not designed specifically to provoke lust in men, but not a pandering "girl power" character either (or some strange combination thereof *cough*Lara Croft*cough*) The first creator to successfully embody this archetype in a game will be very, very successful.

Well, your aesthetics aren't. Your gender is. Fair enough?

I just happen to think girls should have the choice to be both ugly, and female.

I dunno, I always thought Faith, from Mirror's Edge, was a strong female protagonist.

You must be the giant wasp I had to kick out of my attic the other day. You know, you make a lot of noise buzzing around up there.

ForkInSocket made a good point with regards to that. Identifying with your character is an important part of immersion for a lot of gamers, and those of us without a Y chromosome can have a hard time really getting into a role and suspending our disbelief with a character who feels alien to us.

You know, that's a very good example. Still, it's one game, and a game that slipped under the radar for a lot of people. The trend is definitely towards applying female characters to a plotline with a crowbar and using them as either foils for the male leads or as love interests. (or worse, having a well-designed and robust female character ground up and put through a sixualization filter as in the case of Bulletstorm...but to be fair, perhaps a game like Bulletstorm is not a great venue for a strong female protagonist...)

Hahaha that last statement was hilarious. What is gender is this game but aesthetics? If gender wouldn't have an effect on gameplay then that's all it would be. If male characters weren't in the game I wouldn't complain, I would be shocked though.

Well you know... gotta have a romance for the main lead >.> its the James Bond complex...

But yeah I agree we do need more games with characters like Faith (or give me Mirror's Edge 2 DICE!!!) I thought Lightning from FFXIII would have been a good one and Square just made a mess of that game anyways...

On the flip side... you could always play a Female CDR. Shepard? :cookie:

I don't consider representation special treatment. It's not like I'm some sort of egalitarian. I just think it's smart business -- particularly when a game prides itself on its inclusiveness.

All my life, video games have attempted to cater, mostly to me, solely based upon generalizations regarding my gender. And they haven't been too far off. But if I were female, I would want a female avatar. I'd likely be sick of pretending to be a cigar-smoking space marine whenever I wanted to shoot somebody. This is where I'm coming from.

In my head Commander Shepard is canonically female. Something about the male version's facial expressions and voice actor rubbed me the wrong way. ^_^;

They've made it quite clear. They wanted uniformity in the character models so the modifications and clothing would fit everyone. Female avatars introduce the complexity of needing separate sets of clothing and voice options -- as you can see it would have complicated matters greatly.

- F