Sexism and Misogyny in Gaming

[Jinsai]

It's something I've thought a lot about... and in various ways it's obviously prevalent, and not just because a lot of the people contributing to the discussion are young men.

But this news story, where an outspoken feminist has had to cancel her speech after an online threat makes me realize it's a much more volatile issue than I understood it to be.

I don't agree with Anita Sarkeesian. I think Bayonetta is innocent jokey mockery of sexual objectification. I think she's too quick to freak out about things that are a non-issue. But now I wonder if maybe she's right, because the response to her opinion seems to entirely validate everything she says. It's horrifying.

[liquidcalm]

The whole GamerGate saga just disgusts me, while many people claim that it is for 'ethics' in game journalism, the fact that it supports such actions against people making valid criticism means that it is entirely undermined.
I quite like the Anita videos, and do disagree with her on several things, often per video. It does sometimes come off as nit picky, however the claims she makes are not undermined, you can see the angle and at the very least accept that if you take a feminist viewpoint, then yes you can see an issue.

The main problem I have is the entitlement for being able to see and abuse women, the whole mens rights thing is just awful and you can see it in many many forms of media. For example the other day when it was announced that the new Ghostbusters film would feature a cast of women rather than men, the BBC allowed comments such as "Why? Women aren't funny!" and "Ghostbusters has always been about men bonding, not women trying to be funny" on their Facebook group to go unchecked and un-countered. Thats the wider issue. The celebrity 'nude pictures' is abuse of women and privacy. Sending death threats to someone because they are making a game with a female lead is abuse and a crime.

The thing is, even in Anita's videos the claim that a game, ie the gameplay, is bad is never made, it is most often the content of the stories or the way the game has been sold. While I hate the word 'trope', its an easy idea to explore that more often than not women are used as bait or goals for the purpose of the game, and while you can make exceptions, they are few and far between, and not the norm. The important thing to really bare in mind is the exploration of sexism in games is not going to take away Call of Duty, Assassins Creed, or Mario games, its there to make sure writers try harder to make characters relatable, to make them think about what stereotypes they are perpetuating and out of this, make better games. I see games like Uncharted, Last of Us, Bioshock Infinite (some arguments there, I'm sure), many Final Fantasy games, even Destiny (ie you can choose, and it doesn't matter to the story) as great examples of how to deal with gender in games. I too think Bayonetta is an innocent mockery, as well as when you play something like Outrun 2... Ehh anyway.. I could prattle on for ages... these arguments are not going to wind up pretty the majority of the time.

[Khrz]

I find the Bayonetta example interesting, on that regard. Trying to encompass the whole world on that issue is sooo tricky. Although we are approaching an age of World Wide Culture, feminism has a very different history from one nation to an other. Some countries have made it a non-issue centuries ago, some are still awful when it comes to equality... Japan has such a weird place when it comes to this, and comparing this culture's products to the American ones, treating them like they're one and the same, is a huge mistake. When it comes to female characters, Japan has shown it's capable of the very worst and the very best, it's all over the map. The anime I watched as a kid had systematically strong female characters, or even female leads. On the other hand, I don't remember many cartoons where it was the case.
Trying to judge a product like Bayonetta from a western perspective / cultural history seems like an exercise in futility. It may seem relevant to the debate, but it's not. We're trying to drag them in a conversation that is ours, linked to our issues and history.

[xmd 5a]

I stopped self-identifying as a "gamer" out of embarrassment during the initial misogynist backlash against Sarkeesian in 2012. The past two months have further solidified my distaste for the "culture". Music, film, literature and art have been subject to critical analysis, even feminist critical analysis, for decades (if not centuries). "Gamers" should be embracing this analysis as validation of the medium as an artform. But no, gotta preserve the gross 'boy's club' mentality and confirm literally every negative stereotype about people who play video games in the process. Jesus fuck I couldn't have less respect for these fuckers if I tried.

If it wasn't for the fact I spent hundreds of bucks on an XBONE and a bunch of games just before this GamerGate bullshit started I would have sworn off gaming for good. 20 solid years of playing games and misogynist pricks ruin my enjoyment and pride in the hobby in 2. And I'm male. I can only imagine how women in the culture and industry feel. Especially those unfortunate enough to be at the centre of the shitstorm. Anita Sarkeesian, Zoe Quinn and Brianna Wu (among so many others) must have nerves of adamantium to keep the resolve to push forward through this crap. I couldn't do it.

[Khrz]

Music, film, literature and art have been subject to critical analysis, even feminist critical analysis, for decades (if not centuries). "Gamers" should be embracing this analysis as validation of the medium as an artform. But no, gotta preserve the gross 'boy's club' mentality and confirm literally every negative stereotype about people who play video games in the process.

Well, all those medias and arts have seen the same kind of evolution and resistance. Women masquerading as men to get published, "supporting" (actually creating, inspiring and inventing) their husband's art while the man gets all the credit, women fighting for their right to express their art, their knowledge, their skills, fighting so that women aren't represented as mere symbols and allegories (mostly nude, because, well, something something archetype + butts ?)...
So, what's happening here is a logical evolution... Wait until the technology makes it ridiculously easy and cheap to create a game, and you'll get the cubist, surrealistic or self-referencing meta/pop art games (although, given that those currents are pre-existing, it may come sooner than I imagine it will)...
I'm optimistic. I can't imagine this evolution to stall. The discussion is happening, and the subject is overwhelmingly bigger than the realm of gaming... I'm not saying there will be any revolution, evolution is excruciatingly slow as a general rule, but things evolve nonetheless.
And as a sidenote : I've always thought that when dickheads are way too proud to wave your flag, that should be the best incentive to raise it higher and show everyone what are the real values behind it...

On the subject of women having nerves of adamantium : it's everywhere. Under particular circumstances I had a taste of what they're enduring, and I snap and rage instantly. The fact that women are capable of brushing off the brunt of what they have to suffer on a daily basis just floors me. I'd kill someone.

[Jinsai]

Well, all those medias and arts have seen the same kind of evolution and resistance. Women masquerading as men to get published, "supporting" (actually creating, inspiring and inventing) their husband's art while the man gets all the credit, women fighting for their right to express their art, their knowledge, their skills, fighting so that women aren't represented as mere symbols and allegories (mostly nude, because, well, something something archetype + butts ?)...
So, what's happening here is a logical evolution...

Sure, we can view it as an evolutionary step (we're still at an infancy stage where the medium is not considered an art form at all by many people), but it's shameful that we have to even arrive at such a basic fundamental level in 2014 with regards to human decency. I was wading through the comments section of an article about the cancelled Anita Sarkeesian lecture, and it was flooded with either outright childish misogyny, or people trying to be subtle about their disdain with some kind of weak MRA whimpering. All in all, it was pathetic, and I couldn't believe what I was seeing. This wasn't just some outlier pricks, this was about half of the commentary... on an article about a death threat!

I think a large part of this issue is that the nature of it is steeped inseparably in internet culture. Anonymous, trolling behavior is leaking out into "the real world" here in an alarming way. I've wondered for a while if the nature of that sort of bullshit is actually breeding a new kind of vicious, disconnected sociopath. It's possible that a lot of the people weighing in on the issue in such a shitty way don't even realize what a serious issue this is.

I have to admit this is the first time I've actually heard of Sarkeesian... and I have to admit that I disagree with a great deal of what she says. In fact, some of her opinions are a little irritating... but that's where I would come into a discussion and actually engage it, not respond like a complete psycho. I'm worried that this issue isn't so much of an evolutionary step, but evidence of a real problem that might not be going away anytime soon.

It's sad, but apparently video game "culture" is dominated by immature brat trolling and an incredibly hostile form of misogyny... and to a certain degree, I think those things are related, and we're not going to get rid of one of them without the other.

[Space Suicide]

Misogyny or not, I've come to seriously notice there are A LOT of rude people online playing games on both consoles and even PC. It makes me really wonder why on Earth so many things need to be said? The words don't offend me in messages or words I get but there's no need to read or put up with some of the stuff I've gotten in my inboxes.

Whenever I've been in games with girls, there's not so much hate and vile being spewed as there is endless fawning and people harassing her to play/talk to them. It's sad really. She just wants to blow your head off your neck with that .50 cal like you would and anybody else does, dude. She doesn't give a damn who you are or what you do. Leave 'em alone.

[ambergris]

God, I really want to understand gamergate but everytime I start to read about it, I am repelled by its complexity and its banality.

[Rabbit]

The gaming community is the worst group on the internet, period. They're just downright awful.

[xmd 5a]

God, I really want to understand gamergate but everytime I start to read about it, I am repelled by its complexity and its banality.

A bunch of platitudes about "ethics in journalism" thinly veiling an abhorrent sea of misogyny, transphobia and highly unethical behaviour. The ethical problems are things like journalists having friends in the industry they cover, journalists talking to other journalists, women having sex, journalists reviewing things they bought with money, journalists having opinions anywhere to the left of the Tea Party, journalists saying maybe the stereotype of "basement-dwelling nerd" should be put out to pasture.

Nevermind the fact most of said "ethical issues" exist in music, film and sport journalism. Where's #ListenerGate? #ViewerGate? Where are all the people demanding Pitchfork writers shouldn't have friends in bands or review music they bought off Bandcamp? Where are all the people slamming Ebert for chumming it up with his favourite directors?
The "ethics in journalism" shield is transparently ridiculous to anyone who has any perspective.

GamerGate started as a harassment campaign against Zoe Quinn (literally the first thing Tweeted under the hashtag was a video attacking and defaming her) and has only succeeded in harassing tons of other prominent women in games since then.

Sorry for the rant. I've wasted far too much of my time over the past two months reading about this drama.

The gaming community is the worst group on the internet, period. They're just downright awful.

I dunno. The atheist community can give them a run for their money. Remember Elevatorgate? *shudder*

[Rabbit]

I dunno. The atheist community can give them a run for their money. Remember Elevatorgate? *shudder*

Nah, that's not even close to this and that doesn't happen often within the atheist "community". The gaming community is nasty almost all the time. It can be something as silly as an analyst suggesting a change in sales... literally, an analyst by the name of Patcher speculated on something recently and is being pelted on twitter. They overreact to everything.

Plus, i think in the "elevatorgate" scenario the girl was being a bit ridiculous. She screwed up equating sexism with a guy simply asking her for coffee.

[Jinsai]

I don't know, I'd say this surpasses the whole atheist debacle by a long shot. Still, and I'm a fan, but Richard Dawkins' letter in that case was insane.

[Madmya]

Yeah, gamers are the worst. I've particularly noticed this in the last few years where they've become petulant little wankers. If one thing in a game is not how they expect it should be they'll bring it down, they won't even play the game but they'll bring it down anyway. It's not a friendly community where we're just happy to be able to play games anymore. The amount of hate for Destiny is a good example. Another thing that's particularly irked me is the shit Bioware copped for the original Mass Effect's elevator loading times. It was a loading scene for fucks sake. One that made the Citadel feel like one seamless big space. The criticism led to the sequel's citadels being chopped up into sections with loading scenes, for the worse imo.

I don't think sexism is rampant in the games industry, but gamers being a pack of shitcunts is. Also, I hate Polygon. I needed to say that.

[Space Suicide]

Yeah, there's a real sense of entitlement and smug attitude when it comes to the gaming community. I dislike how DLC and multiplayer is given and handled sometimes but if there's pre-order DLC, an unnecessary multiplayer in a game (like Tomb Raider) they completely bash it immediately. I know people that actually cancelled their pre-orders and refused to buy Tomb Raider since it had multiplayer. I mean jesus christ, did it matter? You didn't have to play the shit.

I also don't consider or call myself a "gamer" as I find it silly. I might have my choice words when it comes to some practices, Sony/PS4 communities and policies but I honestly don't care that much like some of these fuckers.

[Corvus T. Cosmonaut]

The atheist community can give them a run for their money.

The Venn diagram depicting #GamerGate and internet atheists would probably exhibit significant overlap.

[xmd 5a]

The Venn diagram depicting #GamerGate and internet atheists would probably exhibit significant overlap.

Yep. That's kind of what I was getting at. Thunderf00t, Amazing Atheist and other similar smug obnoxious YouTube ranters have jumped on the GG bandwagon hard.

I totally agree about the toddlerlike sense of entitlement that pervades the gamer community. My 3 year old daughter takes not getting her own way better than many of these tantrum-throwers. Look at the user scores on Metacritic to see how over-the-top offended they get over the smallest perceived slights. I've lost count of the amount of games they've review-bombed with 0s over the smallest minutiae. Imagine if their despised "SJWs" kicked up as big a stink over representation as whiners do over DRM or DLC or Mass Effect 3's ending?

[icecream]

The internet atheists/gamers/4chan people have got to be the most annoying bunch of people on the planet. The overlap in a Venn diagram of the three would somehow end up looking like a fedora. It's why I hardly game anymore, especially online. Every 12 year old past their bedtime calling me a fag got really old quickly.

As proven by the way the gaming community has reacted to the criticism, I think it's fair to say sexism and misogyny are prevalent in the gaming community. But, with most social issues, the longer it's being discussed will do a lot of good in changing people's opinions and the way they act to the criticism.

Entertainment isn't perfect. In movies and t.v there are plenty of sexist or racist things being portrayed. In regards to music, Jack White just gave an interview where he was asked why he uses so many female musicians. His answer was something along the lines as women have to work twice as hard as men to prove themselves and be taken seriously in the industry. But by far, the worst is gaming in terms of questionable content and fans.

[Millionaire]

I'm not surprised by the gamer reaction. A lot of games, maybe most of them, are geared toward the angry young male and thats the audience they will usually attract. Games are at the stage where they are expanding on the definition of what a game can be, but the core of the industry is still the angry young male fantasy. I do like me the occasional explody shooter game, but I look forward to the day when there are a lot more different experiences to be had with games, and the audience reflects the diversity. I'm not an Anita Sarkeesian fan at all, but I think if it has gotten to the point where she has to cancel a speaking engagement due to a violence threat then it has gotten a bit out of hand.

[sa_nick]

Wait wait wait, what's this atheist stuff got to do with anything? Aren't atheists generally pro-women?

IMO, the whole thing's stupid. The idiots sending threats were going to be sending them to SOMEONE, these chicks were just in the wrong place at the wrong time and their reaction just fed the nerds. It's a bunch of sad, angry dudes who attack people for fun. They're so desensitised to the words they use that to them they have no meaning. On the other end, the people reading these comments are idiots for over reacting about some shit a nerd twittered. These petty sentiments are jokes created to shock people and they're all falling for it. I wish everyone could just grow up.

Random internet douches shouldn't hold any power over these women.

[littlemonkey613]

Wait wait wait, what's this atheist stuff got to do with anything? Aren't atheists generally pro-women?

IMO, the whole thing's stupid. The idiots sending threats were going to be sending them to SOMEONE, these chicks were just in the wrong place at the wrong time and their reaction just fed the nerds. It's a bunch of sad, angry dudes who attack people for fun. They're so desensitised to the words they use that to them they have no meaning. On the other end, the people reading these comments are idiots for over reacting about some shit a nerd twittered. These petty sentiments are jokes created to shock people and they're all falling for it. I wish everyone could just grow up.

Random internet douches shouldn't hold any power over these women.

I think you are just not admitting the fact that its so many people who think/feel that way and the fact that the industry is essentially catering to the exact demographic where most if not all of them exist. Shit isn't a joke. Every time a woman tries to engage intelligently and critically with the gaming community and analyze ways in which its sexist, racist or bullshit they get death threats and people organize to make them feel uncomfortable, harass and demean them. I don't think trying to change that aspect of culture is overreacting. I think society has a responsibility to try and correct it especially when the problems are so racist, transphobic and sexist. And honestly if you really look into whats going on with gamergate I don't think you'd come to the conclusion that they are all joking.. I think most of them seriously have these opinions.

We live in a world with MRA people and Elliot Rodgers are things and I would be scared to death if I were these women. Who knows how far these sociopathic "nerds" are willing to go with their oppressive bs.

[tony.parente]

For every Bayonetta and GTA there are 1000 God of War, Metal Gear, NFL, WWE and Mortal Kombat games. Video games are meant to be an exaggerated version of self in both the positive and negative, and the vocal/terrible minority in no way represents the majority.

[Khrz]

We live in a world with MRA people and Elliot Rodgers are things and I would be scared to death if I were these women. Who knows how far these sociopathic "nerds" are willing to go with their oppressive bs.

Out of all the asshats riling each other in an immense circlejerk of hate and rejection, there's bound to be a handful who are actually more sociopaths than trolls. I don't think the women being targeted are overreacting in any way. That shit is too big and aggressive to not be fucking dangerous.

And it definitely goes beyond 4chan, trolls and nerds. The subject is way bigger than a discussion about gaming, that's why it got picked up by the news outlets. There's no "growing up", no "take a joke". It went far beyond immature trolling at this point.
Also, the fact that rape and death threats are still brushed off as "trolling" is a problem in itself that speaks volume about the situation, to me.

Edit : There is no reason why atheists would be "pro-women" (whatever that means). That's like saying muslims are bound to be pro-salad, you can't make a blanket statement about such a disparate group of people when each part of the equation have no fundamental connection whatsoever. And it wasn't about atheists as a whole, it was about atheists on the internet, just like that whole discussion is about gamers on the internet. I believe the nuance is important here.

[thelastdisciple]

There's no doubt that things need to change on either side of the games whether it's the diversity of developers or the attitudes of the gaming community in general but regarding games and how things are depicted in them with physical features vs. reality... I've always just approached it as fantasy/parody caricatures like those warped portraits people do of celebrities or whoever.

Take the image below for instance..



Everyone with half a brain knows that's not what he really looks like, it's an exaggeration like the big heads mode in Goldeneye 64 and to know the difference is very much like knowing the morallity of right/wrong between what you can do in a game vs. what's acceptable in reality.

Bit of innocent fun to me i mean how can you be offended over that? Sure it can be a bit excessive sometimes and certainly feel overboard but at the end of the day you play what you choose to play nobody makes this decision for you and if there's something you don't like, get a refund and look for something else.

I would say what would need much more of an improvement is not necessarily the cartoon depictions of our reality but the writing, story and roles we've come to experience from within this form of media.

[Dra508]

that's why it got picked up by the news outlets..

True. I'm not a gamer and the first two tidbits of this story I got was the Utah State talk getting cancelled and story above I heard whilst driving last night.

[aggroculture]

This makes me feel old. When I was young, videogames meant staying at home with the Sega Megadrive (Genesis) or Super Famicom (SNES) and playing El Viento or F-Zero. Now I see it means threatening to rape and kill women in real life. Progress, how does that work?

These people are completely revealing their own stupidity: with their actions they've made Anita Sarkeesian and her message far more famous and high-profile than it would have been, and have revealed themselves to be lowlife scum: totally self-defeating behavior. As @Jinsai said, they've proved she was right. If feminist analysis of videogames is something so unacceptable to them that someone who does it must be banned or even killed, then it must hit a nerve, it must contain some truths. And they have revealed this to be the case.

For me the cherry on the cake has to be that Anita asked the police for protection for her lecture, to put a metal detector in the lecture hall: they said no because that would interfere with Utah "open carry" laws.
So: the law is on the side of those threatening to kill. Just wow.

[Rabbit]

The internet atheists/gamers/4chan people have got to be the most annoying bunch of people on the planet..

Uh, i've been part of all three at one time or another and bundling atheists in there is pretty unjustified. Besides that stupid "elevator gate" thing there hasn't been anything remotely close to that

[Millionaire]

These people are completely revealing their own stupidity: with their actions they've made Anita Sarkeesian and her message far more famous and high-profile than it would have been....

Thats another thing about this, that it has probably given Sarkeesian more of a soapbox than she deserves(just my opinion). I don't think there is as much misogyny in the games as she may think(I mean, Bayonetta? Really?), but there is probably more coming from some of the gaming audience than the actual games. Most of the sexuality in games are no different than what you would see in movies or a Carl's Jr. ad, yet because of the death/rape threats and the comments sections of some popular game sites(where sprinkled among the petty talk of console favoritism and 'this game is better' complaints is some actual misogynistic dialogue) she has more ammo. Many people who play games aren't what she paints them to be, but some of the internet tough guys are doing their darnedest to earn the validation.

[Dra508]

I dunno, again I'm not a gamer so I can't give examples, but just that one in the news hour report while maybe historically accurate (pick a whore or whatever the comment was) is offensive in the 21st century and certainly shouldn't be perpetuated amongst even a segment of the population. This isn't about being politically correct, this is about respecting humans.

[liquidcalm]

Thats another thing about this, that it has probably given Sarkeesian more of a soapbox than she deserves(just my opinion). I don't think there is as much misogyny in the games as she may think(I mean, Bayonetta? Really?), but there is probably more coming from some of the gaming audience than the actual games. Most of the sexuality in games are no different than what you would see in movies or a Carl's Jr. ad, yet because of the death/rape threats and the comments sections of some popular game sites(where sprinkled among the petty talk of console favoritism and 'this game is better' complaints is some actual misogynistic dialogue) she has more ammo. Many people who play games aren't what she paints them to be, but some of the internet tough guys are doing their darnedest to earn the validation.

...and this is the thing, what she is asking for isn't that much, its a critical analysis from a feminist perspective. Her whole mission is to highlight the ways in which games are perpetuating sexist themes. To ask people to consider maybe not just trying to save your girlfriend, or to not have women only in background roles, or why its always women there, and if that is right, which can be asked on an overall, or case by case basis, because it is criticism, it is critical of the subject matter. None of these things make a game *bad* from a fun/enjoyment perspective, nor will addressing it ruin a story. Some of Anita's first videos do address movies and other pop culture, and these did not cause such a stir, but now the focus is on games, all hell has broken loose, and like you say, the many people aren't what they are being painted as, but the 'you mess with our games, we'll threaten your life!' is not a valid response to, well, anything..

Then instead of talking about feminism the focus moves to journalistic ethics.. which is another bizzarre thing, because its linked to accusations and 'proof' that journalists are colluding with the indie devs, mostly women, to give them more exposure, bend to publishers wishes and are all in contact with each other. This is without the understanding that of course people who work in a public facing industry full of trade shows, conferences, press events, roadshows plus twitter/facebook/reddit etc, people from many different websites/outlets get brought together and may, you know, get to know each other. The same thing happens at science conferences, does that mean biologists are all together as part of a global flu conspiracy? Yes there are 'ethical' issues with bias across all journalism, particularly around opinion pieces or reviews, because you are asking one persons opinion and asking them to place an arbitrary number/grade to something... but that is no less 'ethical' than choosing Fox/Sky news then being surprised at the strong right leaning balance.

... and then I'm told its not about women, but about ethics... but if I look back at the first and only time I sent a Tweet with the unspeakable hashtag (which basically said "have people forgotten to be nice to each other?"), the first response was regarding Zoe Quinn apparently blowing five guys. Which apparently isn't true. Or is it? You know, what is harder to believe, a blog post written by an ex-boyfriend, or a woman saying that its not true. Who has more to loose? And even if it is true, does it make Depression Quest (which I believe was releasing on Steam that week.. hmm?) a bad game? I call bullshit on the whole thing.

[Corvus T. Cosmonaut]

It's increasingly clear that the shroud is a filmsy neon facade they've only chosen to call "ETHICS" with big air-quotes — where "unethical" means covering the stories of Anita Sarkeesian and Zoe Quinn et al without "balancing" that story by explaining that GamerGate "is totally about ethics in journalism", that "it isn't about misogyny", that some anti-GG writer for a web site "also said bullying things", that "there are concerns about the veracity of the threats these women have received!", especially that "there are many women that support GamerGate!", and various other concerns pertaining mostly to harassment. The ethical take to them is the one that goes out of its way to make them look best.

Some good pieces:

It's Dangerous to Go Alone: Why Are Gamers So Angry?: The subset of entitled, belligerent gamers convinced that being ‘objectively’ right entitles them to defend their rightness by any means necessary is overwhelmingly male.

"No, they say it’s about “corruption.” About “developers in bed with reviewers,” and the stain this leaves on the “integrity of games journalism.” At its most feverish, it becomes about the “conspiracy” of cliquish insiders that controls the industry, silences dissenting voices and ultimately harms all gamers by keeping their desires from being heard in favor of the “feminist agenda.”

"To which I can only respond, “ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME?!”"

http://www.thedailybeast.com/article...-so-angry.html

Of Gamers, Gates, and Disco Demolition: The Roots of Reactionary Rage
How are YouTube videos criticizing sexist video games important enough to threaten a school shooting? Read the #GamerGate tag and realize that underneath the anger is fear.

"Does any of this ancient history of the bellbottom era sound familiar to you, fellow millennial geeks? Same song, different lyrics. Different battlefield, but the same “culture war,” the same sides."

http://www.thedailybeast.com/article...nary-rage.html

How to attack a woman who works in video gaming: A culture of hate and suspicion has descended on the games industry, and at the centre of the vortex is a familiar foe: women. Ask Anita Sarkeesian and Zoe Quinn.

"When harassing brave women, be sure to maintain that your campaign isn’t about gender. And in a way, it isn’t. Sustained abuse knows no gender, race, religion or creed. It hurts everybody."

http://www.theguardian.com/technolog...in-video-games

The Routine Harassment of Women in Male Dominated Spaces

"What this whole “#gamergate” thing is really about depends a lot on who you’re asking. If you ask someone who writes about games for a living, or someone who keeps in touch with what’s happening with indie game devs (lots of other indie game devs, for instance), they’ll all give you the same answer. It’s a massive, loosely organized campaign, spurred on by a pack of angry angry kids formerly from 4chan, now from 8chan, bent on utterly destroying the lives of an ever-growing list of women, starting with Zoë Quinn, and added to any time a woman publicly calls them out for it.

"If you ask the people who show up if you mention #gamergate in a tweet, or look at 8chan.co/gg/ or various youtube videos, you’ll get a different answer every week or two, as each answer they come up with is firmly debunked, and they scramble to find a new one. Even then though, if you pull the thread long enough, they’ll always toss out the name of SOME woman involved in gaming at some level who is the root of some perceived evil."

http://secretgamergirl.tumblr.com/po...male-dominated

The Future Of The Culture Wars Is Here, And It's Gamergate

"By design, Gamergate is nearly impossible to define. (...) This ambiguity is useful, because it turns any discussion of this subject into a debate over semantics. Really, though, Gamergate is exactly what it appears to be: a relatively small and very loud group of video game enthusiasts who claim that their goal is to audit ethics in the gaming-industrial complex and who are instead defined by the campaigns of criminal harassment that some of them have carried out against several women. (Whether the broader Gamergate movement is a willing or inadvertent semi-respectable front here is an interesting but ultimately irrelevant question.)"

http://deadspin.com/the-future-of-th...rga-1646145844