Misconceptions About Girls

WARNING: There is one picture in this post that has been deemed as Adult Content by others.

Ever since I was old enough to read, I've been a geek. And I don't say that with any kind of regret, as 'Geek' and 'Nerd' are badges I proudly wear! My family in general is this way, with my father, brother, and I usually gaming together, and reading most of the same books. Now, I never knew it was odd, until I hit Middle School, and started  seriously gaming.

As it turns out, there are some SERIOUS stereotypes about girls who play video games.

1.) We Are Ugly
Really? Just because we play games we're automatically ugly? You're kidding right? I put on make-up, wear actual clothes, and do my hair to go to Wal-mart, which is more than the common college age girl can seem to do. I may not be the prettiest rose in the garden, but I'm not a Troll.

2.) We Are Fat
I'm going to go ahead and reference the above, NOT A TROLL. I'm 135 lbs, and trying to gain weight. And who says being larger is bad? My mom is a larger woman, and I think she's beautiful. I know quite a few men who like a thicker and curvier woman. It's many of the 'hardcore' gamer guys who seem to put so much emphasis on weight, so screw you for that. I'll just go on being happy about how I look, which is all that matters anyway.


3.) We Are Sluts Who Like To Send Naked Pictures Of Ourselves To Strangers On Xbox Live
I wish I was kidding about this, I really do...but sadly, there is a sub-culture of girls who pose half naked or completely nude with gaming paraphernalia and call themselves Gamer Girls.  Like this.

Yeah, I'm sorry I had to show you that...I just had to prove a point. This in turn has made it impossible to play a game online, and be a known female. Why? Because the SECOND you talk over chat, you're swamped with 100+ friend requests by seemingly every guy on the server. Now if you do like me, and play online such as Lord of the Rings Online, sometimes you literally have to join a Fellowship (A group of different players combined in one group, usually for a short amount of time) to do certain quests and gain certain achievements. And if you're like me, you have to get ALL the achievements, or the game is not completed. So when you join a Fellowship, you have to talk to each other in order to know what everyone is going to do during the quest. This can be done over a headset, like I and most gamers use, or the microphone on your laptop. Sure, you could type it all out, but really, who has time for that when a the Balrog is destroying you? So you speak up, and literally the next thing every guy in the Fellowship says, and I quote, " HOLY S**T, You're a girl?!" Followed by way too many friend requests, in hopes that you will later send them topless photos of yourself.

Umm...No. Not going to happen. EVER. For one, I have a boyfriend, one I've had for 5 years almost, and who I am over the moon happy with. Second, since when did girl gamer automatically equal whore? I was raised with some kind of decency and self respect, so sending naked photos of myself to a stranger, not happening in this lifetime, or any for that matter.

4.) We Suck At Games
I have to politely beg to differ here. I know girls who dominate every guy on the server, using tactics a guy never would have thought of. Just because we have a uterus doesn't mean we suck at playing a game. It just means we know how to rub some salt in your woulds when we pipe up and laugh at you over chat for everyone to hear. That's right, you just got owned by a girl. Suck on it.

5.) We Are Complete Nerds
Ok, for once, I have to agree. This may not be true for all girls who play, but I know it is for me. I love Star Wars, Star Trek (NG, DS9, and Voyager, in that order), Doctor Who, Sherlock, Marvel Comics (DC is awful), Lord of the Rings, Historical Reenacting, Ren Faires, and so on and so forth to a ridiculous degree. Plus side, my boyfriend also reenacts.

And it's not just the Western stuff, I love, oh no, I watch anime, read manga and cosplay too. I even pack my lunch in the traditional Japanese style of Bento.

And we've already been over my love of Steampunk. Pretty much any hobby where you make a costume and dress up, I do it.

6.) We Only Started Playing Games Because Our Boyfriends Introduced Them To Us
This one just makes me laugh. Really? I was raised in family who played our NES until it burned up. I could play Nintendo before I could add and subtract properly. I was a Pokemon Master by 10, and savior of Hyrule by 12. I didn't have a boyfriend until I was 13, and even then it was just a puppy love type of thing. In fact, no boyfriend I have ever had liked to play video games, current one included. He will play every once in a while, but it has to be a great game, like Red Dead Redemption or Left 4 Dead 2. So I find it funny when someone tell me I only started playing to get a boyfriend, or because of a current boyfriend.


7.) We Only Play Silly Games Like Farmville
I HATE FARMVILLE. Now that we've covered that...

I have to admit I have a few 'silly' games, such as simulation games about raising horses or dogs, but hey, I love animals, so an animal centered game appeals to me. But by no means does that mean I only play those types of games. As stated before I play serious online games. In fact, here are a few of my LotRO Characters.

 

Also, let's include the Halo franchise, The Elder Scrolls franchise, Assassin's Creed franchise, Red Dead Redemption, Zelda franchise, Mario games, Pokemon, etc. The point is, I love a lot of games, and many are the furthest from 'silly' that you can get.

8.) We Don't Like Violent or Scary Games
I have no issue with violence in video games. Some of the creepier games, I'll play only well before bed, and with all the lights on. I'm still a girl after all, and one that happens to have a fear of the things in the dark. That said, I have a passion for zombie games. Nothing makes for a better afternoon than slaying some walking dead, while playing as your favorite redneck badass; Ellis.

So yeah, I love violent games. There's nothing quite like the graffiti that explodes everywhere when you make a headshot on a grunt. No kidding, that's something that happens in Halo. 

9.) We Don't Really Exist
If that were the case, how did I manage to spend an entire afternoon turning my desktop into a chamber at Aperture Science? With working RSS feed, time, date, and weather? Oh, did I forget to mention I can code too?

Yeah, I thought so. Nerdy girls exist, we play games, we dominate them, and nothing you can say will make us stop. And really, are we so different that you just can't come to the realization that there are more girls playing now?

Love and Lightning Bugs,