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DO YOU PREFER "STRONG" OR "SISSY" PROTAGONISTS?
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Closeif you have played even a single video game, it is quite obvious that the current fad for main characters and cohorts is that of the skinny/homosexual/sissy looking stereotype. From final fantasy games to that terrible kingdom hearts stuff, it seems that developers are focusing on these looks. Now, this troubles me for a number of reasons...
1) I understand that these are video games, and so realism just doesn't apply, but seriously... a 50 pound kid cannot lift a 100 pound weapon. and use it to kill things with? maybe every game could include one of the kid's powers as "can lift objects that are obviously too heavy for him!" but that's a cop out. nothing about being a protagonist means that you automatically get the ability to lift sometime 2 or 3 times your bodyweight. especially when the item in question is lifted by a kid that you doubt has even gone through puberty yet.
2) strong men are weak. yeah yeah, games have big guys too. great hulking behemoths that use their massive size and strength to lift... well, weapons smaller than the skinny kids use. freaking barrett in ff7 (a game i do not like) uses a GUN. he's the biggest playable character on your team, and he uses a gun... this means that there is zero reason to get strong in these pretend worlds. mothers must give their kids all kinds of amazing advice. "now don't bother eating eggs or vegetables and drinking your milk. strength doesn't do shit, and you'll be able to lift a train when you hit the age of 9 anyways."
3) skinny does not look tough. i admit that this one has a few things to do with my real life experiences. when i see a skinny kid that might be 100 lbs soaking wet, i am not intimidated by him. the most he could do to me would be to spray me in the eye with his asthma inhaler. not intimidating. and these kids are the ones that lift swords bigger than trees to fight people? or that defeat DRAGONS? once again, i understand that these things are all pretend, but it's just too far fetched. scrawny kids that can't even climb the rope in gym class do not slay dragons.
now, this might seem like a rant, but it isn't. it's just providing some background for my question. i am currently making video games, and i need to understand the type of reaction i will be getting if my protagonists are actually strong people. these are video games, so of course we're talking guys that can all squat 800 lbs in full plate mail, but i'm concerned that the idea of a strong person doing the mighty feats that are usually reserved for the obvious and stereotyped video game powerhouses (scrawny kids) will not be appreciated or believable.
any thoughts?
1) I understand that these are video games, and so realism just doesn't apply, but seriously... a 50 pound kid cannot lift a 100 pound weapon. and use it to kill things with? maybe every game could include one of the kid's powers as "can lift objects that are obviously too heavy for him!" but that's a cop out. nothing about being a protagonist means that you automatically get the ability to lift sometime 2 or 3 times your bodyweight. especially when the item in question is lifted by a kid that you doubt has even gone through puberty yet.
2) strong men are weak. yeah yeah, games have big guys too. great hulking behemoths that use their massive size and strength to lift... well, weapons smaller than the skinny kids use. freaking barrett in ff7 (a game i do not like) uses a GUN. he's the biggest playable character on your team, and he uses a gun... this means that there is zero reason to get strong in these pretend worlds. mothers must give their kids all kinds of amazing advice. "now don't bother eating eggs or vegetables and drinking your milk. strength doesn't do shit, and you'll be able to lift a train when you hit the age of 9 anyways."
3) skinny does not look tough. i admit that this one has a few things to do with my real life experiences. when i see a skinny kid that might be 100 lbs soaking wet, i am not intimidated by him. the most he could do to me would be to spray me in the eye with his asthma inhaler. not intimidating. and these kids are the ones that lift swords bigger than trees to fight people? or that defeat DRAGONS? once again, i understand that these things are all pretend, but it's just too far fetched. scrawny kids that can't even climb the rope in gym class do not slay dragons.
now, this might seem like a rant, but it isn't. it's just providing some background for my question. i am currently making video games, and i need to understand the type of reaction i will be getting if my protagonists are actually strong people. these are video games, so of course we're talking guys that can all squat 800 lbs in full plate mail, but i'm concerned that the idea of a strong person doing the mighty feats that are usually reserved for the obvious and stereotyped video game powerhouses (scrawny kids) will not be appreciated or believable.
any thoughts?
I think that Sabin is the only character to actually lift a train. We don't know if he could do it at age 9, though.
Also, I am a firm believer in the rule of cool. Realism does not have a place in my games. If a ten-foot-long sword works, it works.
Alsoalso, they are trying to look like a homosexual? Really? I didn't know that homosexuals were all scrawny.
Also, I am a firm believer in the rule of cool. Realism does not have a place in my games. If a ten-foot-long sword works, it works.
Alsoalso, they are trying to look like a homosexual? Really? I didn't know that homosexuals were all scrawny.
catmitts
4952
i absolutely do not care but if i ever need to choose i'd go with the latter kind if only to annoy gross people who get worked up at the thought of playing as a "skinny/homosexual/sissy".
Sated
4005
How the character fits into the game world and how the character fits with the role they play in the party is more important than whether or not they use an oversized sword.
I do see what you're trying to get at, but the fact is that most of the games you are talking about are games with fantasy worlds. If you wish to create a more realistic world then I wouldn't worry about people disliking it because it doesn't fit with fantasy stereotypes because you're clearly not creating a fantasy world!
A realistic world will be appreciated if you pull it off correctly. However, you shouldn't assume that all RPGs should have realistic worlds just because you wish to create one; this is why genres exist, so different people can do different things!
I do see what you're trying to get at, but the fact is that most of the games you are talking about are games with fantasy worlds. If you wish to create a more realistic world then I wouldn't worry about people disliking it because it doesn't fit with fantasy stereotypes because you're clearly not creating a fantasy world!
A realistic world will be appreciated if you pull it off correctly. However, you shouldn't assume that all RPGs should have realistic worlds just because you wish to create one; this is why genres exist, so different people can do different things!
sunshinesan
534
The "scrawny" characters are more attractive (to most people) than the jacked-upped ones you expect.
Plus the scrawnier the protagonist, the bigger his sword looks in comparison, and we all know big swords are cool.
Plus the scrawnier the protagonist, the bigger his sword looks in comparison, and we all know big swords are cool.
Sated
4005
Why can't a scrawny MC pack on the muscle as he levels (assuming he's raising Strength)?
Time/graphical limitations?
I agree, though, that would be a fairly cool feature.
I hate the pansy heroes and their sissy looks and spaghetti arms, and I am vocal about it. I should not have to wonder whether the hero is a boy or a girl.
(and manly beefcakes are way more attractive than little scrawny ladyboys)
(and manly beefcakes are way more attractive than little scrawny ladyboys)
post=142029A more serious response, and in the same vein, why are all female characters oversexualized namby-pambies? Why wouldn't a sword-wielding warrior woman be a little beefier and brawnier? (and why do the females always have to strike some alluring pose in the game's promo art?) That irks me just as much as pansyboy heroes.
Better question: why do we automatically assume the main character is male?
Rowan
131
Most standard JRPG heroes are scrawny (sometimes angst and emotional as well), while western rpgs focus more on the permastubble and bulging biceps. As for females, well.. there's a reason why most of the women in video games share the same common superpower.
Let's have an overweight male in the party or the lead even. Better yet, let's make the chick an overweight female and the love interest. As long as neither are the "I'm not fat, just big boned" or "it's the inside that counts, not the outside" types.
Because more then likely their designers are male. Plus, the majority of gamer's are male. Sex Sells.
Let's have an overweight male in the party or the lead even. Better yet, let's make the chick an overweight female and the love interest. As long as neither are the "I'm not fat, just big boned" or "it's the inside that counts, not the outside" types.
post=142033
A more serious response, and in the same vein, why are all female characters oversexualized namby-pambies? Why wouldn't a sword-wielding warrior woman be a little beefier and brawnier? (and why do the females always have to strike some alluring pose in the game's promo art?) That irks me just as much as pansyboy heroes.
Because more then likely their designers are male. Plus, the majority of gamer's are male. Sex Sells.
It's hard to deny the correlation between the bigger the breasts, the more fierce a warrior in the gaming industry.
EDIT:
Rowan made me think of this.
EDIT:
Rowan made me think of this.
