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Well put, Andail.

You're absolutely right that modern feminism attempts to put us all on an even playing field.  The label of 'feminism' actually comes across a little too strongly in one direction.  It would be much better if we could call ourselves something else that more clearly states the purpose, similar to how the debate about "gay marriage" became about "marriage equality."  Traditionally, feminism has been geared towards affecting women, and touched mainly on women's issues, but the truth is that these viewpoints have combined with other issues of gender inequality to become what we have today.  Often times, I believe that some men (and women) overlook that fact and focus mainly on either improving things for women or the threat of these views on men.

I agree as well that it is absurd to expect her to go make a game of her own.  I was, maybe, not clear enough on my opinion here, because I did mention her game idea and her $150K Kickstarter campaign.  I didn't mean that she should be making the game herself, just that $150K spent on that game would probably serve the cause better than a series of drawn out videos on the topic.  I might be wrong.  I do applaud her for her work on these videos, despite how I may feel about the actual videos themselves, because her complaints have highlighted important issues and stirred discussion.

I'm looking forward to the next part of her series.  The damsel in distress is only one of 12 different tropes she aims to discuss, so it should be interesting to see what else she has to say.

[because]

To me she was delivering a message in a reasonable and calm tone, with a few facial expressions to show her feelings about the ads.

Imagine it this way: I have my own YouTube channel, and since you can't see this fake video, imagine the stuff in asterisks being what I'm doing on camera. I show the Twix commercial. I then start to say:
"See how obviously angry and possessive this wife is? *face palm* Her husband can't even enjoy the view of these beautiful women without getting nagged at. She's so bad that he has to lie to her to prevent any kind of argument. *rolls eyes* Women need to be more open to the idea that men have desires and should be free to view whomever they want, just as they should as well. If she wanted the same kind of attention, perhaps she should be wearing a tank top and miniskirt like these women in this obviously warm weather instead of that dull church sweater. *tilt head upwards with pride*"

Of course these aren't my views, and I did over exaggerate my point as I simply couldn't find a decent commercial to use for a proper example. If I made this video, men like this man would see me delivering the message in a rational manner and would agree with my argument. They wouldn't see attitude in my expressions. On the other hand, most women would see me as being a complete chauvinistic ass, reading my facial expressions as over the top and even more aggravating than my views alone.

Anita isn't this extreme of course, but after watching the Mike's Hard commercial I get blind sighted by her facial reactions. It takes her over the top argument that he's a scumbag and makes her message even more aggravating to listen to. Shifting her eyes. Widening them. Raising her eyebrows. Everything about her delivery here gives her argument so much less weight. It's probably something along the lines of what Andail mentioned with picking up on subtle cues.

I agree.  This is what I was trying to get at when I was talking about how men and women will react differently to things.

You like sexy women, Anita is saying that women being sexy in ads is a problem, therefore it might make you feel angry that she wants to take away something you enjoy and personally feel is harmless. I might be wrong, but if I'm not I can understand why she would irritate you.

She hasn't really expressed this at all, other than mentioning the Twix commercial needlessly having 3 models. I agree with her arguments of not having women shown in a degrading fashion, but from my perspective, I only see the men looking degrading (other than Paris Hilton, but that's her in a nutshell). In the Twix or Coors Light commercial, one could argue that these women being trusting is shown as degrading to their overall intelligence, I do not. Sure it shows them as being naive, but in all honesty, they're accepting they're spouse's word in trust. If you can't trust someone to this degree, you shouldn't be with them. Which is why it makes these men look like assholes.

I would've preferred to see the Twix commercial done this way: at the end, after she kisses him, he should've hung his head and said "I'm sorry, I was goggling", as she passes him the baby she says "I know".

Ryan makes some excellent points here.  In fact, reading this made me realize what I was really trying to say, but I was perhaps a little afraid of being sexist myself.  I mean, I acknowledge the complaints that are being made about the women, and how they may be viewed as gullible in these commercials, but I actually think that the men are portrayed in a more negative light.  The only problem is that there is no overt indication that the men are the bad guys here.  In fact, the men get away with their deplorable behaviors.  I think that is why the ad is viewed as more negative to women, because women are the ones who are suffering the consequences.

The funny thing is though that all these sexy women in bikinis drinking are great until someone gets laid or hurt. Then people say "She's a slut!" or "She was asking for it!" or "What did she expect getting drunk in that skirt?"

This is a hard topic to cover. There is no male equivalent to a bikini or miniskirt (I mean in terms of sexual attraction). Men are naturally designed to want to dominate and do their business with any woman they're attracted to. When a woman is wearing a skimpy dress or bikini, there's nothing more visually inviting and accessible, besides being naked. That's like swimming in a tank filled with friendly sharks, with meat wrapped around your body and then being surprised that these shark acted on impulse. Or even walking around the street with large sums of money in your hand.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying women shouldn't wear skimpy clothing. I'm just saying that there are guaranteed chances you will turn someone on. Which is likely why they wear these outfits, besides the comfort of being nearly naked. Rape shouldn't be on their mind when they choose their clothing, but "am I sending the wrong message?" should.

We could also take this discussion to the lighter version where the guy doesn't rape her, but seduces her to have sex just to release his sexual tension because of the clothing she's wearing. Then she feels used and wonders why the guys that show her interest are all assholes. Also thanks for the Louis CK vid, that was brilliant and enlightening.

Here's some honesty about myself and likely a lot of men, when I see a woman at the bar wearing a cleavage shirt and/or short shorts, I see her as a sexual object because that's what she's dressing as. I have very little respect for these women. Their only use to me in that social environment, in the clothing they're wearing, is the view they offer. I am massively more attracted to a woman in a simple t-shirt and jeans. This woman, now I would like to know her as a person.

I completely agree.  It is a very difficult topic.  Women will say that they should be able to wear whatever they want, and I agree with that as well, but they should be aware of how they are viewed.

Wearing little skimpy outfits is almost like wearing a sex object costume.  The men who openly objectify these women, through degrading cat calls or worse, are merely reacting to that costume.  I'm not saying it's OK to react in that way, these men are largely assholes.  I'm just saying it shouldn't be surprising in the least.  It should be expected to some degree.

Edit:  I've been having this discussion with others outside the forum, and wanted to clarify something.  Women shouldn't have to worry about how they will be perceived, but they should be aware.  It is never OK to rape or take advantage of a woman (or man), and I am in no way trying to say that a woman's choice of clothing indicates that she is asking for this type of reaction.  But a woman should be aware of the type of reaction that her choice will elicit.  She should make an informed decision.  When you go to a job interview, you dress in a way that evokes an air of professionalism.  That is what is appropriate for the way in which you would like to be viewed.  But what reaction will you get when when you go to a bar where there are a lot of intoxicated horny men, and you are dressed like a stripper or a streetwalker?  How will you be viewed in this situation?  Obviously you're not asking to be raped or abused, it would be foolish for anyone to assume this.  But maybe you are projecting a strong air of sexuality.  Not inviting objectification, but appearing nonetheless as an object of sexual desire.

All of this discussion can be very difficult, because men and women are inherently different.  They exhibit different behaviors, and have different understandings of what it all means.  I'm glad we're getting a lot of interesting responses here.  It's good to know there are a lot of open minded people on these forums who are willing to discuss these difficult issues.

Why can't we all just watch these videos as is, take a little from them we find interesting/insightful, and then move on? Why do we see these videos as an attack on who we are as gamers, but don't have this same reaction when we watch Zero Punctuation?

To be honest, I don't follow any of these vlogs (never even heard of them).  But I have heard of this series, as it is being discussed around the web (probably because of her overly successful $150K Kickstarter).  That's why I comment on this and not the others, because it's a bit of a pop culture phenomenon right now, it falls under current events more than simply game criticisms.

I personally find her to be a bit grating, and overly negative.  I am sure many other vloggers are being very negative as well, probably far more than she.  But she is trying to push an agenda, and one that I agree with for the most part, so it frustrates me to see her delivery come out in the way that it has.  Men and women react differently to things, and I think that what she says comes across strongly and positively to women, but not to men (well, not to all men).  Many men do see it as an attack to an extent, and that's because her tone and content are generally doing just that.  At least that's how it feels to me, and again, I agree with her.

You like sexy women, Anita is saying that women being sexy in ads is a problem, therefore it might make you feel angry that she wants to take away something you enjoy and personally feel is harmless. I might be wrong, but if I'm not I can understand why she would irritate you.

I'll agree to this statement.  I do like sexy women, and don't see any reason why they shouldn't appear in advertising.  It is a good way to market to men, surely.  It does not, however, need to be combined with chauvinist messages to be effective.  I feel that there should be more advertising that markets to women in the same (well, reverse) way.  The issue, I think, is that it wouldn't be as effective.  At least, that's what I'm led to believe by the lack of such ads.

I personally didn't find too much wrong with the Mike's Hard Lemonade ad, for example.  They are attempting to market the drink to men, so showing sexy women will help.  Showing those sexy women being somewhat responsive to their advances will help as well.  I don't think there's anything wrong with hitting on a woman, or even attempting to negotiate a ménage à  trois.  As long as the women are aware and treated respectfully, then what's the issue?  They didn't look too drunk to make a clear and informed decision about these guys.  They didn't seem to be treated as objects, rather as sexual humans.  I could see that same ad in the reverse being no different.

I get frustrated when any depiction of a sexy woman is taken by women to be nothing more than a sex object.  Can she not be a sexy woman, a human being who has and perhaps exudes sexuality?  Why must all sexy portrayals of women be deemed objectifying?  I suppose that's because many men are chauvinists, and there are men out there who actually only want to be with a woman for her sexual properties.  But I would think (or hope) that most men are not like this, and that many men would value the woman as a human being who can provide not only sex, but good company and stimulating conversation, perhaps even a relationship.  Men are often all lumped together as being collectively chauvinist through videos like these, and that can be as damaging to society as the sexist portrayals of women.

The Twix ad is definitely showing some sexist attitudes.  The man lying to his wife and her acceptance of the lie are clearly indicative of an attitude that it's OK to lie to women, and tries to say that women are dumb enough to fall for it.  It was also sexist in that it implied that men are a bunch of drooling sex fiends and liars.  Sort of equal opportunity sexism, but sexist all the same, and more strongly against the women.  I didn't like that ad at all.

The Coors ad is mildly sexist, in the same way as the Twix commercial.  It paints the woman as being a bit dumb in not seeing through his lie, and alludes slightly to her possibly being a nag (otherwise the man would simply be honest with her).  It also paints the man as being continually deceptive, and engaging in stereotypically macho activities like watching the game.  Again, equal opportunity, and more strongly directed at the woman.

However, when you begin to put all these little ads together it starts to show women are less respected in our culture. We are the butt of the joke, the nagging wife, the stupid girlfriend, the sex toy. These micro-aggressions barely register alone but they infiltrate our culture, reinforcing a message that women are sex objects until they become your sexless, boring, nagging wife. And that is just one of many messages. Like you have experienced yourself, one of the worst thing you can be as a man is feminine. I like George Carlin's thoughts on some of this. But also think about the sort of insults that you hear like pussy, bitch, c**t. All feminine words at their heart. The worst thing you can call someone is feminine, even when you cuss them out. These too are micro aggressions. Tiny things alone, but when you add them all up it shows a rather pernicious attitude towards women threaded throughout our society.

You make a lot of good points, and I'm not going to discuss the entirety of your post because I largely agree with you.

I agree that when you put all of these small things together they can depict women as being less respected.  Getting back to the original damsel in distress videos, they did illustrate that there is (and has been) a trend in gaming towards that trope.  Individually, there may be nothing wrong with some the games.  Often times the damsel in distress is the most appropriate story for the game, but it is certainly not the only appropriate story for any game.  I'll agree with many before me here and say that sticking to this trope could be indicative of poor writing or the easy story, but I'll also say that sometimes it actually works, and there's nothing wrong with the trope in and of itself.  It's when it becomes overused to the point of overshadowing all of the other story types that it becomes an issue.

The example in her video that bothered me the most was Star Fox Adventures.  The original design for Dinosaur Planet looked appealing, and it boggles my mind to think of why it was abandoned and shoehorned into the Star Fox brand.  I mean, I understand that it made sense to try to tie it to a brand for the sake of brand recognition, but to fundamentally change the game in the way that they did is unnecessary and reprehensible.

I understand what you mean now you have clarified you would like there to be a male and female option in games, so that you could still play as male and that women could play as female. That would be great. I think I would ask myself why I don't want to play as a woman though and if it is because you only enjoy the immersion of playing as your own gender or if it is because you don't think female stories would be as interesting or valuable in a non sexual context. If I wasn't willing to play games as a male character I would have missed out on some wonderful games like Deus Ex, Half Life, Zelda, Metal Gear Solid, Monkey Island etc... You would miss awesome games like Tomb Raider, Mirrors Edge, The Longest Journey, and Beyond Good and Evil. I just wonder what it really is that makes a female character seem like a lesser experience? Sorry if I haven't understood again

I agree.  In many cases, especially with character driven games, there is a clear decision on the part of the developers to make the character either a male or female, and often times it is tied directly to the story they are trying to tell.  I do, however, understand where Ryan may be coming from, as we have seen that all too often a female representation of a character can be overly feminized to the point where a male might not be comfortable playing (much like the pink LEGO sets).  I don't think any of the games you mentioned would fall into that category, though, and I thank you for pointing out that there are good, positive representations of both genders in gaming.

She's not a game maker though. She's a feminist and a social scientist. She looks a popular culture from a feminist stand point. She isn't an artist or a game maker and she may not have an interest in making games. So why should she make one? She can consume a product and complain about it and ask for something different and it be valid without her having to make her own. If I don't like a meal at a restaurant I'm going to complain to the waiter and get the chef to fix it, I'm not going to walk into the kitchen and say "Well chef, you didn't cook this meal how I like it so I'm gonna have to cook it myself now." I don't have a food hygiene certificate for one, and two I am not interested in being a chef. 

The problem with saying "Don't complain!" or "If you dont like it fix it yourself!" Is that it is an incredibly reductive attitude. So someone with a full time job who likes video games isnt allowed to complain about them unless they make one themselves? How about we just end blogging and youtube as we know it? No one is taking issue with the huge number of review videos on youtube complaining about game mechanics or bad plots in games, but someone makes some videos pointing out a trend in games regarding sexism and suddenly it's all "She should just shut up and make her own game if it bothers her so much"?

Maybe I'm naive but I don't think that every time someone makes a complaint they have to the one to fix it. We are not all equally blessed in certain skill sets at the end of the day. Sarkeesian makes videos about feminism and runs Feminist Frequency. She isn't a game maker. Her not producing a game does not make her criticisms or arguments any less valid.

You know who is the solution to the problem? Game makers, especially those without a specific agenda. When we show that we can make games that are popular and fun without being sexist (which she did show with examples like Fez)then we pave the way for consumers to get used to that sort of content. We show publishers that these games can exist and be successful.

You're right, she doesn't have to make any games in order to make these statements.  I'm not in any way trying to invalidate what she is saying.  I was really just saying I would love to play her hypothetical game, and that increasing the availability of these games would be more beneficial to her cause.

Don't get me wrong here.  I agree with many of her points, and I feel that she has every right to voice her opinion.  She is attempting to provide a much needed service in pointing out these issues.  And admittedly, she does mention some games that are doing it right.  I feel that side of it should have been explored more.  I also feel that more of such games will make a larger impact overall than simple discussion.

As for the restaurant analogy, I'd wonder why you were eating in a place where they serve food you don't like.  Sure, you can eat anywhere, but why not frequent an establishment that provides food that you enjoy, or complain that not enough of them exist?  I suppose that's part of the issue.  If there are only so many restaurants, and they are all providing lackluster food, then what else can you do but complain?  But there are other alternatives.  I feel she spends the majority her time attacking the negative rather than praising the positive.  That is, however, the focus of these videos: to attack tropes that are damaging to women.

I'm not saying she can't complain and point out these issues.  I'm saying that there may be more productive uses of her time and money.  But again, I'll reiterate that I agree with many of her points, and that I feel it is important to discuss these things.  Bringing attention to the issues is a valuable service.

Just mentioning that there is a problem is not an effective way to fix a problem in a large amount of cases.

Which is why I think she should be highlighting and discussing what games are moving forward with the times, rather than harping on and on about boring tropes and stereotypes. They exist, get over it, moaning about them isn't going to change jack sh*t. Create a video aimed at kids that highlights cool games they can play (that don't portray gender stereotypes) and then if you want to include a classroom learning element, sneak it in there subliminally like an advert would.

I agree.

I believe it's important to discuss things like this (and while she may have disabled comments, we're having quite the discussion about it here), but it's also important to try to come up with solutions.

I believe that her $150K of Kickstarter funds would have been better spent making her hypothetical game a reality:

[embed=560,315]http://youtu.be/UZKtFfHIGrA[/embed]

It wouldn't bother me at all, because I do the exact same thing.

I'm trying to Americanize my spellings all around, though, for much the same reason that you state: Professionalism.

I finally started watching the series, but the damsel in the fridge in the second episode made me yawn and I turned it off.
But I like how she always mentions the old Donkey Kong where a giant ape kidnaps your gilrfriend and you have to rescue her and in no way she mentions that this could be inspired by a classic movie with impressive imagery that the videogamemakers might wanted to recreate and might have used as a trope in itself, nope, it is the same old damsel in distress...

If you're talking about King Kong, she does in fact mention that movie.  She references it as an example of the damsel in distress in film.

There are actually a lot of women in the gaming market:

Nuts, I was hoping to participate, but the assignment of random AGS games is going to keep me away.

I'll certainly enjoy watching everyone's progress!  Good luck!

Agreed, I am looking forward to entering!

I guess my opinion stems from being new here, and somewhat of an outsider.

I can see why veterans appreciate the quirky charm of these trophies.

You guys found some pretty decent voice actors!

Seeing and hearing it all in action just makes me want the game more.  Good work!

I like how the idea aims to keep things organized.  I would think that would be a benefit.

The concept of putting a standardized icon under the avatar is wonderful.  Custom trophies can still be fun, and we can put them in signatures if we want.

Eric's idea is great, but very ambitious.  It's a very large undertaking.

Personally, I'm still into the idea of randomly generated game box art.

Congratulations, winners!

And good job again to everyone involved.  There were a lot of great entries, many deserving of awards.  It's a shame only 3 can win.

Rather than choosing or assigning a game from the database, I'd be more comfortable with using the Video Game Name Generator, like a high resolution version of the recent Background Blitz.  I thought that produced some great results.

This way, I wouldn't feel like I was intruding upon someone else's property.  It also avoids the risk of designing a cover for a game we may not have played or enjoyed.

This would also allow for us to make something we could use later, should we decide to make the game.

I support this initiative.  Good idea, Andail!

I'd recommend a two-click interface, similar to Beyond a Steel Sky.  A lot of the other interfaces, like the 9-verb, verb-coin, and Sierra icon bar (default) are considered by many to be outdated and clunky.

As for the writing, I would suggest working to your strengths.  If you've had success with crime or horror, that might be the way to go.  You've mentioned an interest in a medieval setting, it would be interesting to set your scary crime story in that setting.  I'm a fan of dark humor, and I don't think it would be out of place in such a game.  And if you go the more serious route, there is always room for comic relief.

You've also discussed the possibility of using classic horror characters, such as Dracula and the Wolf Man.  I may be in the minority, but I feel that these characters are somewhat worn out.  Unless you can do something fresh in this context, it might be better to steer clear.  Having said that, I will acknowledge that these characters are very popular and could help bring attention to your project.  Also, I am not against the base concept of a monster hunter, there may be more to explore in that idea.

I'd like to echo the sentiments of others before me and say that you shouldn't focus too heavily on the market.  Instead, focus on creating something that moves you, something more personal.  Successful indie games tend to be passion projects.  In fact, that's the appeal of an indie game for a lot of players.  Building something unique that would not be available in the mainstream is a boon for the independent developer.

Finally, these are simply my own preferences and opinions.  Feel free to create what works for you, and good luck!

I'd love to see it, even if I don't end up participating.

I do need to hone my skills, though, so I might end up joining in.

Interesting. Clean #2 was one of my least favourites, I found it somewhat bland with the small cup and so much plain-coloured space around it. But basically all of the suggested splash screens look good enough to me.

I agree.  It looks too 'Windows 8' for me, personally.

I'd actually prefer Dark #2 with the empty cup from Dark #1.