Feminism in Play

Feminism in Play focuses on women as they are depicted in video games, as participants in games culture, and as contributors to the games industry. This volume showcases women's resistance to the norms of games culture, as well as women's play and creative practices both in and around the games industry. Contributors analyze the interconnections between games and the broader societal and structural issues impeding the successful inclusion of women in games and games culture. In offering this framework, this volume provides a platform to the silenced and marginalized, offering counter-narratives to the post-racial and post-gendered fantasies that so often obscure the violent context of production and consumption of games culture.

Auteur

Kishonna L. Gray is an assistant professor in the Department of Gender and Women's Studies and Communication at the University of Illinois at Chicago, USA. She is also a faculty associate at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University, USA.

Gerald Voorhees is Assistant Professor of Digital Culture and Communication in the Department of Communication Arts at the University of Waterloo, Canada. His research is on games and new media as sites for the construction and contestation of identity and culture.

Emma Vossen is an award-winning public speaker and writer with a PhD from the University of Waterloo, Canada. She served as Editor-in-Chief of game studies publication First Person Scholar and her research about gender and games was the focus of a nationally broadcast CBC Radio documentary.

Résumé

Feminism in Play focuses on women as they are depicted in video games, as participants in games culture, and as contributors to the games industry. This volume showcases women's resistance to the norms of games culture, as well as women's play and creative practices both in and around the games industry. Contributors analyze the interconnections between games and the broader societal and structural issues impeding the successful inclusion of women in games and games culture. In offering this framework, this volume provides a platform to the silenced and marginalized, offering counter-narratives to the post-racial and post-gendered fantasies that so often obscure the violent context of production and consumption of games culture.

Contenu

1. Introduction: Reframing Hegemonic Conceptions of Women and Feminism in Gaming Culture (Kishonna L. Gray, Emma Vossen, and Gerald Voorhees)

Part I. Neither Virgin Nor Vixen: Representations of Women

2. Women by Women: A Gender Analysis of Sierra Titles by Women Designers (Angela R. Cox)

3. The Material Undermining of Magical Feminism in Bioshock Infinite: Burial at Sea (James Malazita)

4. From Sirens to Cyborgs:The media politics of the female voice in games and game cultures (Milena Droumeva)

5. The Magnificent Memory Machine: The Nancy Drew Series and Women's History (Robyn Hope)

6. The Sexual Politics of Videogame Graphics (Robert Mejia & Barbara LeSavoy)

Part II. All Made Up: Gendering Assemblages

7. Women's Experiences on the Path to Game Development (Johanna Weststar & Marie-Josée Legault)

8. Rule Makers versus Rule Breakers: The Impact of Legislative Policies on Women Game Developers in the Japanese Game Industry (Tsugumi Okabe)

9. Sexism and the WoWGirl: A Study of Perceptions of Women World of Warcraft (Thaiane Oliveira, Reynaldo Gonçalves, Alessandra Maia, Julia Silveira, and Simone Evangelista)

10. With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility: Video Game Live Streaming and its Potential Risks and Benefits for Female Gamers (Lena Uszkoreit)

Part III. Beyond Feminization: Gaming and Social Futures

11. Doing/Undoing Gender with the Girl Gamer in High Performance Play (Emma Witkowski)

12. The Magic Circle and Consent in Gaming Practices (Emma Vossen)

13. Shoot the Gun Inside: Doubt and Feminist Epistemology in Video Games (Elyse Janish)

14. Women Agents and Double-Agents: Theorizing Feminine Gaze in Video Games (Stephanie C. Jennings)

15. Feminism and Gameplay Performance (Emma Westecott)