Blog #7

In Super Mario Brother 2, gender roles are present in that there are both male and female characters to choose. Unfortunately, for women that want to use a female character there is only one female character. I guess this alone shows the gender issues seen in the gaming industry that Anne-Marie Schleiner discusses in her journal article titled, “Does Lara Croft Wear Fake Polygons? Gender and Gender-Role Subversion in Computer Adventure Games.” Playing Super Mario Brothers 2 is an interesting way to evaluate gender-roles in the gaming industry. Interestingly, although the characters were similar regardless of gender, there are subtle differences in male and female characters. For example, an important difference is the way that Princess Peach reacts to the gamers cues. The Princess seems to be more graceful and actually hover more than the other characters. This seemingly is what female gamers prefer or perhaps what the gaming manufacturers “think” that females prefer. Personally, I like the faster and kick butt reaction of the male characters. Another issue is that female gamers like the ability to choose between a few different female characters as the male gamers can.

Schleiner describes creating the female characters specifically so the game manufacturers will make more money. Importantly, by opening the game up to a much more diverse audience the game manufacturer will have bigger sales. Accordingly, Schleiner suggests, “The fusion of femininity, death, and technology in characters like Lara Croft is a lucrative and enduring formula in capitalist market-based economies…,” meaning the gaming industry foresaw the importance of a female character to create a more profitable game (222). I agree that if the female characters did not bring in profits for the gaming industry, then there would be no need to create characters like Princess Peach and Lara Croft.

Works Cited

Princess Peach. Digital image. ING.com. 20 May 2008. Web. 24 Mar. 2011. <http://cheats.ign.com/dor/objects/6695/super-mario-bros-2/images/super-mario-bros-2-20080520104104340.html>.

Schleiner, Ann-Marie. "Does Lara Croft Wear Fake Polygons? Gender and Gender-Role Subversion in Computer Adventure Games." MIT Press 34.3 (2001): 221-26. Web. 17 March 2011.