There's one reason I sometimes roll a female character: ELVES
There is an unwritten rule it seems that all male elves must be feminine in their movements and posture. If my character is going to prance around like a cheerleader, it may as well at least be female.
I can't speak for women, generally or any one in particular.
As a guy, I make female characters because I like females. For me it's like playing Tomb Raider with the Angelina Jolie character. What's not to like about that?
I suppose if I thought I was my character, that might get confusing. But I'm not daft.
EQ1, EQ2, SWG, SWTOR, GW, GW2 CoH, CoV, FFXI, WoW, CO, War,TSW and a slew of free trials and beta tests
Oh look, another thread based on the 'Why guys play female toons'. The one topic that never, ever dies. I remember replying to one 6 years ago on SWG forums.
Guys playing female toons is an anomaly of vast proportions. It is so very wrong to do this. We should single these players out and condemn them, ridicle them, and banish them out of the MMO community forever. They are a disease. /sarcasm
I can't speak for women, generally or any one in particular.
As a guy, I make female characters because I like females. For me it's like playing Tomb Raider with the Angelina Jolie character. What's not to like about that?
I suppose if I thought I was my character, that might get confusing. But I'm not daft.
The only games I've ever "played" as a female character were Borderlands (Siren) and Zoey (Left 4 Dead).
I'm a stickler for playing the same gender, but in those games you don't have a choice since it's all pre-determined. Playing a female character in an MMO as a male irl is just wrong on so many levels. If you want to stare at TnA, ffs at least look at the real thing (even online if you're too socially inept to get the real thing).
Men want to fap to their avatars, and women want to get attention for being women.
Or... I dunno this seems to be the best generalization I can come up with. I play female toons and try to make them have my characteristics, because I want to translate myself into the video game the best I can. I had a good homosexual male friend, who played female toons because that's how he felt on the inside. I prefer it when people play the gender they are in real life, but whatever floats everyones boat *shrug*.
-------------------------- Playing: FFXIV, TERA, LoL, and HoTS My Rig: GPU: GeForce GTX 770, CPU: i7-4790K, Memory: 16 GB RAM
I would say probably for the same reason blokes dont play blokes lol...because for the most part they are just hideous or they look a tad bit on the gay side....now is it more gay to play a full blown girl or to play a tad bit gay looking guy...i don't know really
But being honest i would have to say it is because most girls play a toon that in a way represents them where as guys play toons they please them visually, so it is a couple of things in my mind, they like to perv at computer animated characters because they are a little bit on the sad side in real life or they play girl toon because that is what they wished there girlfriend/ dog /horse looked like either way it is still sad.
in most games avatars are hansom or to damn sexy they are perfect in every way.
men play as women because of the hotness. the perfect body. we irl have a disperfection or two and men dream to have that perfect girl with the perfect curves. men are motivated most by desire.
woman look at the male avatars. see them just to perfect, the unattainable hunk who is probably 10 times hunkier than their husband/ boyfriend. they see it as unobtainable . but the true reason they go for a female avatar is due to the body. the perfect body they dont have. due to social stress on how a female has to be due to commercials ect. they wish they were their avatars.
in most games avatars are hansom or to damn sexy they are perfect in every way.
men play as women because of the hotness. the perfect body. we irl have a disperfection or two and men dream to have that perfect girl with the perfect curves. men are motivated most by desire.
woman look at the male avatars. see them just to perfect, the unattainable hunk who is probably 10 times hunkier than their husband/ boyfriend. they see it as unobtainable . but the true reason they go for a female avatar is due to the body. the perfect body they dont have. due to social stress on how a female has to be due to commercials ect. they wish they were their avatars.
well thats just a wild guess.
You must live on a very strange planet. Very strange.
Men typically want to look at pretty things, where as female want to look cute themselves.
I think women (generally speaking) consider the toons/avatar/character is either how they want to look or perceive themselves. While men do it for several reasons, want free stuffs, want something other than another man to look at all day...
I'm sure you will get different answers
As a female gamer- I NEVER make my toons look like me. I make my toons look like a dumb blonde bimbo and find that quite humorous.
It has nothing to do with me, it is just funny to whoop someone with a blonde bimbo and no other reason. LOL
Now I hardly ever( can;t say never) make my main characters male because- to be honest, They look stupid as hell. What guys want thier toons to look like usually to me look completely stupid. Most guys toons in game just like make me want to shove their head out the bus window and roll it up on them making them ride the whole way home that way- I can;t help it. They generally look like dumbasses.
Personally, all men in games should look like this:
But that is just one girls opinion.It isn't MY fault that men want to walk around looking like dorks. Those Amine toons are the worst. LOL I could make fun of them all day.
Men typically want to look at pretty things, where as female want to look cute themselves.
I think women (generally speaking) consider the toons/avatar/character is either how they want to look or perceive themselves. While men do it for several reasons, want free stuffs, want something other than another man to look at all day...
I'm sure you will get different answers
As a female gamer- I NEVER make my toons look like me. I make my toons look like a dumb blonde bimbo and find that quite humorous.
It has nothing to do with me, it is just funny to whoop someone with a blonde bimbo and no other reason. LOL
Now I hardly ever( can;t say never) make my main characters male because- to be honest, They look stupid as hell. What guys want thier toons to look like usually to me look completely stupid. Most guys toons in game just like make me want to shove their head out the bus window and roll it up on them making them ride the whole way home that way- I can;t help it. They generally look like dumbasses.
Personally, all men in games should look like this:
But that is just one girls opinion.It isn't MY fault that men want to walk around looking like dorks. Those Amine toons are the worst. LOL I could make fun of them all day.
This is exactly what I'm talking about. Men are gross. It looks like in the picture above on the left there is poo coming out of his loin cloth, and the guy in the middle has stinky arm pits, and he is sniffing the air admiring his own smell. Yuck.
Men typically want to look at pretty things, where as female want to look cute themselves.
I think women (generally speaking) consider the toons/avatar/character is either how they want to look or perceive themselves. While men do it for several reasons, want free stuffs, want something other than another man to look at all day...
I'm sure you will get different answers
As a female gamer- I NEVER make my toons look like me. I make my toons look like a dumb blonde bimbo and find that quite humorous.
It has nothing to do with me, it is just funny to whoop someone with a blonde bimbo and no other reason. LOL
Now I hardly ever( can;t say never) make my main characters male because- to be honest, They look stupid as hell. What guys want thier toons to look like usually to me look completely stupid. Most guys toons in game just like make me want to shove their head out the bus window and roll it up on them making them ride the whole way home that way- I can;t help it. They generally look like dumbasses.
Personally, all men in games should look like this:
But that is just one girls opinion.It isn't MY fault that men want to walk around looking like dorks. Those Amine toons are the worst. LOL I could make fun of them all day.
This is exactly what I'm talking about. Men are gross. It looks like in the picture above on the left there is poo coming out of his loin cloth, and the guy in the middle has stinky arm pits, and he is sniffing the air admiring his own smell. Yuck.
LMAO! too funny- I didn;t even notice any of that until you pointed it out.
As a girl, my focus on the first pic was damn he has buns of steel, 2nd pic omg nice buldge downunder! and 3rd lower that strap a bit more & niiice abs... ROFL!
But now that you mention it.. wtf is that poking out in the first pic?
EDIT: now that you said something I can;t stop looking at that object poking out. Ty for ruining a girls wet dream!
Men typically want to look at pretty things, where as female want to look cute themselves.
Think its something along these lines. I don't know if it's socially learned, or genetics, or what, but men more often want something attractive (to themselves), while women want to be attractive (to others). Of course most people want both, and it varies from person to person, but the difference is in which usually takes precedence.
When I want a single-player story, I'll play a single-player game. When I play an MMO, I want a massively multiplayer world.
As a women i have played a undead mage male for like 2 years in WoW and a male hobbit in LoTrO for just as long, every other game i sick to Female chars,in Asian grinders males look like females half the time anyway
I can't speak for women, generally or any one in particular.
As a guy, I make female characters because I like females. For me it's like playing Tomb Raider with the Angelina Jolie character. What's not to like about that?
I suppose if I thought I was my character, that might get confusing. But I'm not daft.
The only games I've ever "played" as a female character were Borderlands (Siren) and Zoey (Left 4 Dead).
I'm a stickler for playing the same gender, but in those games you don't have a choice since it's all pre-determined. Playing a female character in an MMO as a male irl is just wrong on so many levels. If you want to stare at TnA, ffs at least look at the real thing (even online if you're too socially inept to get the real thing).
So, if you choose to play a game that only allows you to have a female avatar, that's ok. But if you have a choice, and choose the female avatar, that is "wrong on so many levels." Because you say so lol. And if anyone disagrees, they are a socially inept virgin. Got it.
EQ1, EQ2, SWG, SWTOR, GW, GW2 CoH, CoV, FFXI, WoW, CO, War,TSW and a slew of free trials and beta tests
Oh look, another thread based on the 'Why guys play female toons'. The one topic that never, ever dies. I remember replying to one 6 years ago on SWG forums.
Guys playing female toons is an anomaly of vast proportions. It is so very wrong to do this. We should single these players out and condemn them, ridicle them, and banish them out of the MMO community forever. They are a disease. /sarcasm
To you, and others who say this topic is "old" and therefore uninteresting, I would point to the number of posts there have been.
Also, given that six years after you replied on a forum addressing this topic there are still lots of people interested enough to read, hopefully reflect on the topic and then perhaps post tells me that subjects like this will always be of interest to some of us.
I like any question which prompts some thought and lively debate, but then I enjoy thinking, and reading other people's thoughts and opinions.
This particular question fascinates me because it highlights not just some possible gender differences in how we approach our gaming in mmo's, but also how impossible it is to stereotype gamers, or to generalise. Some male gamers may genuinely enjoy looking at the rear end of a female toon in a sort of vaguely sexual manner, others might like exploring different aspects of their own personality/appearance which may feel extremely restricted in real life, and for others it might well be interesting to explore the different reactions they get from other players if the roll a female character. There are other reasons, too, as we see from this thread.
For myself (female, age 53 - just in case that seems relevant to anyone), I tend to play as a female because I play as myself (unfortunately, given my age, a very idealised version of myself in physical terms). By that I mean that the personality of my character matches my own personality, and the toon, for me, is a virtual representation (albeit idealised) of myself in a game, so to play as a male character just doesn't feel right for me. I have tried several times to create a male char, but I never feel so immersed in the game. Same goes for playing strange animal type toons (like Tauren in WoW); it just breaks my immersion.
I am an animation nazi . . . If I don't like the animations of the male I will play the female. If I don't like either animations I will likely not play at all.
There is just something about watching an overly bulked up male character totter from side to side when walking that really urks me. As a second thought most males in these games look like females anyway; minus the breasts and plus arms the size of tree trunks.
It's a Jeep thing. . . _______ |___| \_______/ = |||||| = |X| \*........*/ |X| |X|_________|X| You wouldn't understand
There are allot of guys who play female toons in mmorpg ((mostly men online role playing girls )) but I have never met a female who likes to play male toons in an mmo they always go female
I guess everyone has their reasons. I rarely if ever play a female character, primarily because when I play a game I try and play it as close to what I would consider myself being in that situation, meaning if I'm a lizard, I make myself look as close to how I think I would look as a lizard.
Every now and then I'll get the idea to play as a chick, but usually to be in stark contrast to my other characters. Usually my chicks are tanks, or abnormally strong (yet tiny) DPS dealers.
I don't really do it for any sexual reasons, though I don't doubt there are those out there that do.
Comments
See:
Hussain, Z. and Griffiths, M. D. (2008). Gender swapping and socializing in cyberspace: An exploratory study. CyberPsychology & Behavior, 11(1):47-53.
Also Nick Yee's summary:
http://www.nickyee.com/daedalus/gateway_genderbend.html
Lots of psych stuff out there on the subject actually and some research into avatars.
There's one reason I sometimes roll a female character: ELVES
There is an unwritten rule it seems that all male elves must be feminine in their movements and posture. If my character is going to prance around like a cheerleader, it may as well at least be female.
I can't speak for women, generally or any one in particular.
As a guy, I make female characters because I like females. For me it's like playing Tomb Raider with the Angelina Jolie character. What's not to like about that?
I suppose if I thought I was my character, that might get confusing. But I'm not daft.
EQ1, EQ2, SWG, SWTOR, GW, GW2 CoH, CoV, FFXI, WoW, CO, War,TSW and a slew of free trials and beta tests
Oh look, another thread based on the 'Why guys play female toons'. The one topic that never, ever dies. I remember replying to one 6 years ago on SWG forums.
Guys playing female toons is an anomaly of vast proportions. It is so very wrong to do this. We should single these players out and condemn them, ridicle them, and banish them out of the MMO community forever. They are a disease. /sarcasm
The only games I've ever "played" as a female character were Borderlands (Siren) and Zoey (Left 4 Dead).
I'm a stickler for playing the same gender, but in those games you don't have a choice since it's all pre-determined. Playing a female character in an MMO as a male irl is just wrong on so many levels. If you want to stare at TnA, ffs at least look at the real thing (even online if you're too socially inept to get the real thing).
Men want to fap to their avatars, and women want to get attention for being women.
Or... I dunno this seems to be the best generalization I can come up with. I play female toons and try to make them have my characteristics, because I want to translate myself into the video game the best I can. I had a good homosexual male friend, who played female toons because that's how he felt on the inside. I prefer it when people play the gender they are in real life, but whatever floats everyones boat *shrug*.
--------------------------
Playing:
FFXIV, TERA, LoL, and HoTS
My Rig:
GPU: GeForce GTX 770, CPU: i7-4790K, Memory: 16 GB RAM
I would say probably for the same reason blokes dont play blokes lol...because for the most part they are just hideous or they look a tad bit on the gay side....now is it more gay to play a full blown girl or to play a tad bit gay looking guy...i don't know really
But being honest i would have to say it is because most girls play a toon that in a way represents them where as guys play toons they please them visually, so it is a couple of things in my mind, they like to perv at computer animated characters because they are a little bit on the sad side in real life or they play girl toon because that is what they wished there girlfriend/ dog /horse looked like either way it is still sad.
this topic comes up every few months, maybe it should just be a sticky.
in most games avatars are hansom or to damn sexy they are perfect in every way.
men play as women because of the hotness. the perfect body. we irl have a disperfection or two and men dream to have that perfect girl with the perfect curves. men are motivated most by desire.
woman look at the male avatars. see them just to perfect, the unattainable hunk who is probably 10 times hunkier than their husband/ boyfriend. they see it as unobtainable . but the true reason they go for a female avatar is due to the body. the perfect body they dont have. due to social stress on how a female has to be due to commercials ect. they wish they were their avatars.
well thats just a wild guess.
I'm a guy, but guys kind of gross me out. I like girls, they're prettier.
You must live on a very strange planet. Very strange.
As a female gamer- I NEVER make my toons look like me. I make my toons look like a dumb blonde bimbo and find that quite humorous.
It has nothing to do with me, it is just funny to whoop someone with a blonde bimbo and no other reason. LOL
Now I hardly ever( can;t say never) make my main characters male because- to be honest, They look stupid as hell. What guys want thier toons to look like usually to me look completely stupid. Most guys toons in game just like make me want to shove their head out the bus window and roll it up on them making them ride the whole way home that way- I can;t help it. They generally look like dumbasses.
Personally, all men in games should look like this:
But that is just one girls opinion.It isn't MY fault that men want to walk around looking like dorks. Those Amine toons are the worst. LOL I could make fun of them all day.
This is exactly what I'm talking about. Men are gross. It looks like in the picture above on the left there is poo coming out of his loin cloth, and the guy in the middle has stinky arm pits, and he is sniffing the air admiring his own smell. Yuck.
LMAO! too funny- I didn;t even notice any of that until you pointed it out.
As a girl, my focus on the first pic was damn he has buns of steel, 2nd pic omg nice buldge downunder! and 3rd lower that strap a bit more & niiice abs... ROFL!
But now that you mention it.. wtf is that poking out in the first pic?
EDIT: now that you said something I can;t stop looking at that object poking out. Ty for ruining a girls wet dream!
I hate you now.
Would you watch male only porn?
Yes - roll male
No - roll female
unsure - roll both
:-)
Think its something along these lines. I don't know if it's socially learned, or genetics, or what, but men more often want something attractive (to themselves), while women want to be attractive (to others). Of course most people want both, and it varies from person to person, but the difference is in which usually takes precedence.
When I want a single-player story, I'll play a single-player game. When I play an MMO, I want a massively multiplayer world.
As a women i have played a undead mage male for like 2 years in WoW and a male hobbit in LoTrO for just as long, every other game i sick to Female chars,in Asian grinders males look like females half the time anyway
So, if you choose to play a game that only allows you to have a female avatar, that's ok. But if you have a choice, and choose the female avatar, that is "wrong on so many levels." Because you say so lol. And if anyone disagrees, they are a socially inept virgin. Got it.
EQ1, EQ2, SWG, SWTOR, GW, GW2 CoH, CoV, FFXI, WoW, CO, War,TSW and a slew of free trials and beta tests
To you, and others who say this topic is "old" and therefore uninteresting, I would point to the number of posts there have been.
Also, given that six years after you replied on a forum addressing this topic there are still lots of people interested enough to read, hopefully reflect on the topic and then perhaps post tells me that subjects like this will always be of interest to some of us.
I like any question which prompts some thought and lively debate, but then I enjoy thinking, and reading other people's thoughts and opinions.
This particular question fascinates me because it highlights not just some possible gender differences in how we approach our gaming in mmo's, but also how impossible it is to stereotype gamers, or to generalise. Some male gamers may genuinely enjoy looking at the rear end of a female toon in a sort of vaguely sexual manner, others might like exploring different aspects of their own personality/appearance which may feel extremely restricted in real life, and for others it might well be interesting to explore the different reactions they get from other players if the roll a female character. There are other reasons, too, as we see from this thread.
For myself (female, age 53 - just in case that seems relevant to anyone), I tend to play as a female because I play as myself (unfortunately, given my age, a very idealised version of myself in physical terms). By that I mean that the personality of my character matches my own personality, and the toon, for me, is a virtual representation (albeit idealised) of myself in a game, so to play as a male character just doesn't feel right for me. I have tried several times to create a male char, but I never feel so immersed in the game. Same goes for playing strange animal type toons (like Tauren in WoW); it just breaks my immersion.
Edit: grammatical - forgot to close the brackets
I don't buy the answer - "I'd rather look at the backside of a female instead of a male!".
I absolutely agree that the dudes who spit out that canard "doth protest too much."
And what's this talk about "elven males"?
What elven males?!
(hehs)
Old enough to know better - young enough to do it anyway.
I am an animation nazi . . . If I don't like the animations of the male I will play the female. If I don't like either animations I will likely not play at all.
There is just something about watching an overly bulked up male character totter from side to side when walking that really urks me. As a second thought most males in these games look like females anyway; minus the breasts and plus arms the size of tree trunks.
_______
|___
\_______/
=
|X| \*........*/ |X|
|X|_________|X|
You wouldn't understand
Ha! My wet dream is back- All male characters should look like this:
Now that is a SEXY man beast!
Your anime big headed stupid looking guys can not even compare.
Short answer; men like to look at virtual T&A.
/facepalm
I guess everyone has their reasons. I rarely if ever play a female character, primarily because when I play a game I try and play it as close to what I would consider myself being in that situation, meaning if I'm a lizard, I make myself look as close to how I think I would look as a lizard.
Every now and then I'll get the idea to play as a chick, but usually to be in stark contrast to my other characters. Usually my chicks are tanks, or abnormally strong (yet tiny) DPS dealers.
I don't really do it for any sexual reasons, though I don't doubt there are those out there that do.