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DO YOU PREFER "STRONG" OR "SISSY" PROTAGONISTS?
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Zeph
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mila26
11
post=142038
Because more then likely their designers are male. Plus, the majority of gamer's are male. Sex Sells.
Rowon obviously has the right idea,I usually hate cliche hero's myself where are all the gay/lesbian or overweight hero's or protagonist with necrotics problems >.> (or black or brown person) .
(personal want a yaoi rpg.)
AznChipmunk
4613
Dhux's Scar has an excellent protagonist. The main character is a wimpy merchant fellow, and he fights like such in battles. He is "sissy" but does not wield a massive sword or anything--his physique makes sense with his battle style and dialogue.
1. i'm not sure what universe everyone else lives in, but where i'm from, any male who espouses a preference for a strong and muscular physique in men usually finds his sexuality immediately suspect.
2. japanese game developers, by and large, don't care about YOUR preferences, they care about japanese ones. concurrently, japanese men do not view themselves as wimpy - within the realm of the japanese population, one would likely encounter a proportion of "wimps" to "bullies" statistically similar to your own population. any suggestion to the contrary is a holdover from the era where ethnocentric thought was prevalent and acceptable in the western world.
add to this the fact that most RPG protagonists tend to be very young, and the games' stories often tell a story more focused on their mental/social development than their physical one, because frankly, a story about going to the gym every day isn't very exciting
3. THE GAMING WORLD NEEDS MORE GENDERQUEER IN IT
2. japanese game developers, by and large, don't care about YOUR preferences, they care about japanese ones. concurrently, japanese men do not view themselves as wimpy - within the realm of the japanese population, one would likely encounter a proportion of "wimps" to "bullies" statistically similar to your own population. any suggestion to the contrary is a holdover from the era where ethnocentric thought was prevalent and acceptable in the western world.
add to this the fact that most RPG protagonists tend to be very young, and the games' stories often tell a story more focused on their mental/social development than their physical one, because frankly, a story about going to the gym every day isn't very exciting
3. THE GAMING WORLD NEEDS MORE GENDERQUEER IN IT
post=142654
1. i'm not sure what universe everyone else lives in, but where i'm from, any male who espouses a preference for a strong and muscular physique in men usually finds his sexuality immediately suspect.
Yep, I should like whimpy girly fragile guys better, or I'll look gay.
AznChipmunk
4613
guys if we can't figure out this topic the site is doomed
we are the REAL MEN network after all
we are the REAL MEN network after all
post=142654
1. i'm not sure what universe everyone else lives in, but where i'm from, any male who espouses a preference for a strong and muscular physique in men usually finds his sexuality immediately suspect.
People naturally want to to play a character type they related to. As I get older, the whole 'young hairless little woman boy' archetype grows less and less relevant to me.
Yep, I should like whimpy girly fragile guys better, or I'll look gay.
also this ^
post=142654
2. japanese game developers, by and large, don't care about YOUR preferences, they care about japanese ones.
Yes, well, the world is bigger than Japan. Read around; Japanese developers are slowly realizing this as their international sales are starting to drop.
post=142654
concurrently, japanese men do not view themselves as wimpy.
Except for the whole 'Japan's population growth is dropping like flies' thing, part of which being a lot of Japanese men can't get women because either the dudes aren't interested in their women at all, or their women are busy dreaming of delicious, white (and sometimes black), manly American/European men (or at the very least, Japanese men who man up)? (I am not making this up by the way). There's more to the whole thing than that, but I am not making that part up.
Except for the whole 'Japan's population growth is dropping like flies' thing, part of which being a lot of Japanese men can't get women because either the dudes aren't interested in their women at all, or their women are busy dreaming of delicious, white (and sometimes black), manly American/European men (or at the very least, Japanese men who man up)? (I am not making this up by the way). There's more to the whole thing than that, but I am not making that part up.Indeed. The men care more about work, hobbies, and friends than getting a girl and making babies. The women, in turn, want manly men which actively look for them. A market mismatch and general non-interest in girls within the Japanese male population is doing wonders for the Japanese birth rate and population
EDIT: On the actual topic, it really depends on the game's environment. In general though, I opt for somewhere in-between.
uh
197
KAif it's a world that's very similar to the one I live in I want to play a character I can relate to not necessarily one like me but just one that could potentially exist without stretching my imagination to the point of discomfort I guess.
EDIT: On the actual topic, it really depends on the game's environment. In general though, I opt for somewhere in-between.
if it's a world of complete fantasy, or if it's set in some exotic or distant time and place then I'd rather be some crazy lizardman or 8-legged robot or brain-in-a-jar-on-a-skateboard or something
also RE all the anti Gears of War hulking "POWAAAHH ARMMAAHHHHHHHHHHRRGH" style protagonists: that stuff is weak as heck but unfortunately it's a middle schooler's wet dream so, just like SLADE MCBLACKDARK type angry black wearing gun toting totally and needlessly hard and brooding antihero character types, it's here to stay in games! The best we can do is to keep it out of our own :p
3. THE GAMING WORLD NEEDS MORE GENDERQUEER IN IT
IT HAS ENOUGH OF THIS
like SLADE MCBLACKDARK type angry black wearing gun toting totally and needlessly hard and brooding antihero character types, it's here to stay in games!
: (
Seriously though I will take Vincent Valentine over "Dom" any day.
nukei
0
I usually don't have any preference for physique... I actually don't even notice it until someone mentions it. I kind of feel like I play the "reader" of the story, rather than any of the characters.
You're not sensing anything. I'm just telling it like it is, and trying to dispel the whole "JAPANESE PEOPLE LOVE THEIR MEN PUMPED WITH ESTROGEN" thing that everyone throws around. The whole 'man boy' thing is really only in a relatively small demographic overall; what fans prefer in video games and anime isn't exactly an accurate litmus test for an entire society. Japanese culture likes their men a little 'softer' than say, rockin' and rollin' Americans, but people like to exaggerate it to extremes.
Living space and costs may be an issue to the population thing...if they ever even got that far into the issue to begin with. The whole connection just isn't happening to begin with. Japan has the lowest numbers for how many times they have sex in a year (30 something), and Japanese women just seem to be leaving their men behind, especially the more they travel and experience other cultures and men within those cultures. They're just not really impressed by Japanese men anymore. Add that to the stress of working and the perceived 'risk' of seeking out relationships for men, nothing is really going on.
But you don't have to take my word on it, all of this is information anyone can find out themselves.
On topic: I play the 'reader' myself, and I don't play any of the characters. Regardless, you get tired of looking at womanly boy characters. It's tiring scenery.
Living space and costs may be an issue to the population thing...if they ever even got that far into the issue to begin with. The whole connection just isn't happening to begin with. Japan has the lowest numbers for how many times they have sex in a year (30 something), and Japanese women just seem to be leaving their men behind, especially the more they travel and experience other cultures and men within those cultures. They're just not really impressed by Japanese men anymore. Add that to the stress of working and the perceived 'risk' of seeking out relationships for men, nothing is really going on.
But you don't have to take my word on it, all of this is information anyone can find out themselves.
On topic: I play the 'reader' myself, and I don't play any of the characters. Regardless, you get tired of looking at womanly boy characters. It's tiring scenery.
GTMatt
0
I remember having nearly the same argument 10+ years ago when effeminate and/or moody male leads were growing in popularity in RPGs.
Some gamers were used to stoic, cool teens (Crono, SoM guy, Alex from Lunar) or seasoned warriors (Cecil, Maxim) and characters like Cloud and Squall created a fuss with their spiky hair and their emo attitudes.
Looking back now, it was a lame argument, full of unfair generalizations.
Better to analyze on a game-by-game basis: does the character fit the plot and the theme? Did they sacrifice appropriateness or marketability? Etc
Some gamers were used to stoic, cool teens (Crono, SoM guy, Alex from Lunar) or seasoned warriors (Cecil, Maxim) and characters like Cloud and Squall created a fuss with their spiky hair and their emo attitudes.
Looking back now, it was a lame argument, full of unfair generalizations.
Better to analyze on a game-by-game basis: does the character fit the plot and the theme? Did they sacrifice appropriateness or marketability? Etc
The strong shall prevail; the scrawnies shall perish.
So, yes: I like my protagonists to be TUFF!!!11
http://www.rpgamer.com/games/ff/ff2/art/para.gif
So, yes: I like my protagonists to be TUFF!!!11
http://www.rpgamer.com/games/ff/ff2/art/para.gif
I like powerful protagonists, but not, macho over-muscled steroids poppin' characters(I can't see those character fighting day after day random battle after random battl before their heart gives up before the end of the game...). Just something a little badass. Though I wouldn't mind so much a scrawny character if he was like a magician of some sort cause in certain scenarios that works.
It annoys me a little when I see a battle-worn character who's been through some epic warfare/battle/lifestyle and is visually unscathed. He should show at least some bags under his eyes, have some mental defect from trauma, a scar or two would be nice just to show he's been through it. Sometimes it feels like glue the story to the pretty character. The character CAN still be pretty, but I like it when they're pretty and believable.
It annoys me a little when I see a battle-worn character who's been through some epic warfare/battle/lifestyle and is visually unscathed. He should show at least some bags under his eyes, have some mental defect from trauma, a scar or two would be nice just to show he's been through it. Sometimes it feels like glue the story to the pretty character. The character CAN still be pretty, but I like it when they're pretty and believable.
