http://www.thekartel.com/viynl_vixen/blog/2010/03/02/top_5_reasons_why_its_difficult_being_a_girl_gamer
Now the article starts off with a picture of an attractive girl playing an Xbox 360 in what would have to be one of the worst positions to play any video game ever. Obviously a lot of work was done with this image, considering it was the second image result in a Google search for “gamer girl Xbox”. Also the image is a little over 2 years old. Thanks Google for helping lazy article writers everywhere!
The article opens with a qualifier, because I have to know that she has apparently been playing video games since she was 7. If not, I would have obviously assumed that she had picked up a controller about a week ago and declared herself a girl gamer and quickly ran to the nearest Gamestop to pick up an Xbox 360. Good thing I was well-informed!
Now lets look over the five oh-so-difficult reasons why life is tough for the girl gamer.
5. Being kicked from a game
So, from the sound of your sob story about a host kicking you out of a game, it seems you were able to play plenty of games to become “amazingly good at Gears of War and own everybody's @$” instead of being constantly kicked out of games. Something tells me you probably did something stupid to deserve it, just like everybody else that gets kicked out of most games.
4. Angry Male Gamers
People who shout out obscenities on Xbox live do it without discrimination. They are out to insult you so they will say almost anything concerning your gender, skin color, sexuality, and/or nationality. You are not special, being a girl just means they have a different set of ammo to use against you than if you were a guy. Get over it and play like any real gamer would do.
3. Being mistaken for a 10-year old boy
Obviously you have never heard 10 year old boys be confused for girls. People like to know who or what they are playing with, if your voice is higher-pitched then you may be confused for someone younger. This article writer really needs to get over herself.
2. Girl gamer stereotypes
This one really gets me, simply because of how ironic it is and how misinformed this article writer happens to be. The stereotype of girl gamers is not about how they play The Sims, Cooking Mama, own a Wii, and use Wii-fit every day. That falls under the category of casual gamer and it applies to both genders. I like how the article writer finally mentions other games besides Gears of War, because at this point I was ready to believe she (if she is a she, I’m having trouble thinking so.) buys old copies of Gears of War and blends them into a fine powder, mixes it with water, and uses an IV drip to inject it directly into her bloodstream.
Truth is, the Girl Gamer stereotype is a girl that plays games for the purpose of giving themselves an ego boost and goes out of their way to let everyone know they are a girl. “Oh, you just got beat by a GIRL!” is an example of the girl gamer stereotype. Everyone has to know she is a girl; she will use the word “girl” in her alias/gamer tag. She will spend more time chatting instead of playing, just to make sure the guys in the game know she is a girl.
The article writer seems to fit that bill a bit, not all the way, concerning how the article is written, but still enough to be labeled pretentious.
1. Being hit on by nerds
Oh you poor baby. You got hit on while playing on Xbox Live. The amount of dumb people on Xbox live is as much as 90% of the people asking questions on YahooAnswers. A dumbass stalked you around a game pestering you? Too hard to mute him or hang your headset around your neck? Yeah, no, not gonna fly. You like the attention. The fact that the article writer takes the time to post a derogatory picture to go along with it shows his/her shallowness and overall pretentiousness. Once again, you are not special.
Now, the article ends with another confirmation that she is a girl that loves to play video games, which is why she only seems to know the names of games that have come out within the past 4 years. I was all prepared to put this article writer in the category of “Gamer Girl” which is a totally different category than Girl Gamer. But the last two lines sealed the deal. No, there is no shame in being killed and beaten by a girl in
I promise I won’t tell anyone.
