To the females of the forum...

jaba

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Dec 25, 2003
Messages
780
A question, now this may seem pointless but I felt the need to ask and as a game designer it is kinda my job! :)

The question: what do you look for in a game?

for extra bonus points: why do you play? and what makes a game fun to you?

I am trying to see what the differences between male and female game players are in their type of games, if any and what appeals to both sexes.

So if anyone that is female on the board could answer or anyone whose wife plays could get them to answer, your responses would be much appreciated.

Thanks for your help!

Jaba
 

yaruar

Can't get enough of FH
Joined
Dec 22, 2003
Messages
2,617
jaba said:
A question, now this may seem pointless but I felt the need to ask and as a game designer it is kinda my job! :)

The question: what do you look for in a game?

for extra bonus points: why do you play? and what makes a game fun to you?

I am trying to see what the differences between male and female game players are in their type of games, if any and what appeals to both sexes.

So if anyone that is female on the board could answer or anyone whose wife plays could get them to answer, your responses would be much appreciated.

Thanks for your help!

Jaba

There are various studies which address this issue, I don't have details of the recent ones, but I can get you details of earlier ones.
 

Yoni

Cockb@dger / Klotehommel www.lhw.photography
Joined
Dec 11, 2003
Messages
5,020
1] What do you look for in a game?
I guess like anyone else i want something that will grab my attention and absorb me so I can escape for a couple of hours after work.

2] Why do I play?
To vent what has gone on during the day - I find fps a great way to relax :)

3] What makes a game fun to you?
Playing in a great team of individuals. I have been playing fps games with the same group of people for over two years. Being treated as an equal and not some novelty because of my gender :)

Added because I think its important

4] What games do you currently play
COD
BF:V
Planetside

recently stopped playing:
BF1942
Elite Force

No bashing people on the head with a wooden sword or sprinkling fairy dust here :p
 

jaba

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Dec 25, 2003
Messages
780
Thanks for the replies, Yaruar if you could point me in the direction of the studies it would be much appreciated, thanks Yoni much appreciated answers!

oh and shameless *bump*
 

Damini

Part of the furniture
Joined
Dec 22, 2003
Messages
2,234
I like games that don't require me to have cat like reflexes, perfect timing, or the ability to shoot straight. I like games that force me to use my brain (or at least a comprehensive walkthrough) to get anywhere. I like games where you can interact with the environment, pick items up, examine things. If a game has a dancing animal in it, all the better. I hate having to learn combo moves, so even if they exist you'll still see me running along doing the least effective moves because they're simpler.

I quite like hack and slashers, like Baldurs Gate or the Lord of the Rings game, especially if you have to apply tactical thought and not just charge in waving a sword, but I'm not keen on games from the first person perspective. I have no idea where I am, where I'm going, or what's behind me, and I spend my time perpetually lost in first person perspective (and yes, this does apply for life too).

Games I have known and loved:

ICO
Black and White (though I've not completed it because it all got a bit too complex multi tasking at the end, and I actually got a GAME OVER. I didn't even realise that could happen in Black and White.)
Broken Sword I,II
Monkey Islands....
Silent Hills and Resident Evils (although, confession time, I don't actually play these games. They make my heart hurt. I make other people play them for me, while I backseat drive. Kenny refuses to do this for me anymore, and so I had to kidnap my brother to make him play Silent Hill 3)
Eternal Darkness
Whiplash (but I've given up on this now. That stoopid 3-D map is so bloody hard to navigate around)
Neverwinter Nights
Ultima Online
 

jaba

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Dec 25, 2003
Messages
780
Thanks for the reply damini,and I certainly know what you mean about the resident evil series, I had to have someone else with me when playing those games, I couldnt face them alone! :(
 

old.Tohtori

FH is my second home
Joined
Jan 23, 2004
Messages
45,210
Jaba! Where you work at? Just curious since i'm in the same bizzy :p

Designer and IQA.
 

Lazarus

Part of the furniture
Joined
Dec 22, 2003
Messages
2,874
dysfunction said:
I think I died of boredom playing black&white
didnt realise you were a female dys (or are you somewhere in-between [shemale])
 

jaba

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Dec 25, 2003
Messages
780
Lol laz, cruel but funny!
I work for a mobile phone games company, so not proper games but im working on that! The company is called Mforma..how about you Tohtori?
 

dr_jo

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Dec 24, 2003
Messages
100
I'm not sure how much use this will be to you, since I've only been introduced to the world of computer games fairly recently, but here's my tuppence worth anyway.
I like puzzle/adventure games. Ones where it's all about getting your head around the story, and that means I actually think about it when I'm not playing.
I've only played one fighting type game, which is Baldur's Gate, and I have been enjoying it, I just think I need something a little easier to start with. The story got me involved, but I'm useless at the fighting - I think anything would get boring if you had to save and reload 7 times to win one simple fight.

The main problem I have is not being familiar with the controls. And navigation is a huge problem. Maybe it's a spacial awareness thing, but I definately agree with Damini. I can never tell which way I'm facing, or where I came from in first person games.
 

jaba

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Dec 25, 2003
Messages
780
Thanks dr_jo, how were all of you introduced into games? did you start youself or did parter tpye person force you to play them hehe? :D
 

Yoni

Cockb@dger / Klotehommel www.lhw.photography
Joined
Dec 11, 2003
Messages
5,020
I started off playing games on nintendo's of all varieties, when I came to live with JBP in the uk he was playing Q3 and then Elite Force came out. He played it continuously to the point where I wanted to see what all the fuss was about oh and to kick is arse (great motivation for getting good). It instantly gave me the vent I needed and yes I did kick his arse :p
 

Damini

Part of the furniture
Joined
Dec 22, 2003
Messages
2,234
If you're going way back, it all really kicked off with the spectrum. My Dad was an avid centipede'r, and we also had all the word games - Emerald Isle, The Hobbit, Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy and so on... I used to write my own programmes on the Speccy, and write games for us to play (short word games, and crappy guess the number games). Then (and I can't remember what computer it was) it evolved into playing Speedball Brutal Deluxe, and Lemmings, and those daft games where you shoot the bouncing ball and they divide into smaller bouncing balls. Oh, and Wings! That was an amazing game. For a long while I just stopped playing computer games so much, and then Ultima Online bit me and I became infected once more. That was my brother's fault, for introducing me to UO. I promptly declared squatters rights at the PC, and didn't go to bed until after 3 for the next year or so.

Edit:// thinking about it, the Spectrum really had a lot more uni sex appeal games. Manic Miner, Jet Set Willy, bounce a ball against a wall that crumbles, Centipede...
 

dr_jo

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Dec 24, 2003
Messages
100
My Dad played Myst, and similar, but I was really a bit too young to get into them - I didn't understand all the long words.
Then there's one of Ben's (shovel) flat mates to blame for getting me into Monkey Island, Broken Sword etc.
As for Baldur's Gate, that's all Ben's fault. He just came to visit one day, and said "Here, play this. You might like it".
 

nath

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Dec 22, 2003
Messages
8,009
Damini said:
I it evolved into playing Speedball Brutal Deluxe, and Lemmings, and those daft games where you shoot the bouncing ball and they divide into smaller bouncing balls.

Sounds like the Atari ST or the Amiga. And that bouncy ball game sounds like it might have been pang. I'm writing that for my programming project at uni at the moment :)
 

Wij

I am a FH squatter
Joined
Dec 23, 2003
Messages
18,185
Pang 0wnz :D

Oh, and if I can fill out the survey for Mrs Wij.

"Games are stupid."

:)
 

Damini

Part of the furniture
Joined
Dec 22, 2003
Messages
2,234
Yup, was definately Pang. With the flights in between levels, and those poxey ladders you had to shimmy up and down to get to the other side of the screen.

Another great old game - Bomb Jack. Or Bomber Jack?
 

yaruar

Can't get enough of FH
Joined
Dec 22, 2003
Messages
2,617
jaba said:
Thanks for the replies, Yaruar if you could point me in the direction of the studies it would be much appreciated, thanks Yoni much appreciated answers!

oh and shameless *bump*
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos...486/sr=1-10/ref=sr_1_8_10/202-5385205-4632641

Is one of the books i've got has a couple of chapters about women and gaming. It's a couple of years old, but should prove a good place to start. I'll see if I can find the studies it references this evening.
 

Athena

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Dec 22, 2003
Messages
234
I'll get around to replying to this one after I've had a think about it

affles
 

Salteh

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Dec 13, 2003
Messages
69
We've got a female in the clan.

Used to play TFC, now she plays NWN and ET.
And of course we also played UT2k4 and BF:V at the lan :p
 

Skyler

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Dec 23, 2003
Messages
688
I'm not really sure there is anything to this 'girls like different types of games' stuff... I mean so far what we have had is totally different likes of games. Yoni likes team based FPS type stuff and Damini likes thinking rpg type games...

Personally I think females like what they like and every individual is different, not by gender but by what they like themselves... all of the male gamers have unique tastes on what they like... the only real difference I see is in the amount of females playing games compared to males and that's probably down to upbringing more than anything else. As we move into a more computerised age with kids being taught on computers from very early ages I'm sure we will see more of both genders moving into computer gaming as a whole...

Definitely isn't a 'girly' game or a 'boyish' game really though, everyone can like each and every style of game in their own way and I think company's are foolish for trying to cater for girls with 'girl games' and boys with 'boy games'.
 

Ala

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Dec 23, 2003
Messages
1,385
what do you look for in a game?

I like lots of weapon choice, blood splatter and kewl moves. Also interesting and varied Ai in NPC's. Interaction, being able to roam around a bit. Good storyline. Nice up to date gfx. In mmorpg's I like to be able to customize chars extensively. Hmm thas all I can think of atm.

why do you play?

I play to relax and fill in time, like evenings. I don't watch TV so I enjoy the entertainment games bring.

and what makes a game fun to you?

Much the same as the 1st response. With mmorpg's I like grouping, quests and doing 'stuff' but I don't like slogging my way to the top. DAoC is a prime example, although that was my 1st mmorpg *shrug*. FPS - I liked Max Payne, Hitman, & Bloodrayne. Slick looking and I love the sniper/assasin roles.

I liked what 'PC Gamer' said recently in their '10 Commandments Of Shooter Design' article and I quote:

"Thou Obviously Shalt Not
1. Make it impossible to skip your crappy cut scenes.
2. Try to control when and where players can save.
3. Allow players to get stuck on geometry.
4. Let the phrase "you need the red key' feature prominently.
5. Include a completely useless grenade launcher.
6. License a crappy 80s sci-fi or war film.
7. Bind the 'r' key to "/cmd rape civilian".
8. Encourage the player to piss on homeless people.
9. Use nazis at all, unless they are maybe neo-Nazis. In space.
10. Think that Quake3 engine will make up for crap design"


Also...

Thou Shalt Not...
Promise realistic weaponry. No matter how many millions of manhours you have spent researching the ballistic profile of the Magnum .357, some spotty nerd out in gamerland will know ten times as much as you, and will decry any niggling differences that your engine has forced you to let creep in. Don't focus on the realistic behaviour of your guns, because some nut somewhere will write a ten-thousand word essay on why they're not realistic. In any case, real guns are too hard to shoot.


I could go on.... but I'm tired and i'm going out. Hope it helped. GL
 

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