Still reading it myself, but I'm surprised there wasn't a thread about it that I've seen.
Couple early quotes:
Couple early quotes:
The Anita Sarkeesian Story: 10 Years of Feminist Frequency (Polygon Article)
- Thread starter crienne
- Start date
Its a testament how shitty the game industry and its rotten juvenile core base is. They fostered a group of people that couldn't stand the idea that maybe just maybe there are women who like to see female characters not depicted as sex objects and share the same protagonist roles that are available.
But no, harassment is what she deserves for such extreme views. This was a good article.
But no, harassment is what she deserves for such extreme views. This was a good article.
I read this earlier, and it might be wise to put a trigger warning in the OP. There are some really revolting passages that detail some of the harassment she received.
This was a good read. I really enjoyed her videos and I'm saddened we won't be getting any more. But I'm glad to hear that the series did make some impact on audiences and devs/pubs. I wish her all the best with what she does next, we need more voices like her's putting a good message for people.
This was a good read. I really enjoyed her videos and I'm saddened we won't be getting any more. But I'm glad to hear that the series did make some impact on audiences and devs/pubs. I wish her all the best with what she does next, we need more voices like her's putting a good message for people.
I remenber those videos, i liked a lot, didn't agree with everything, but her arguments where conving enough, and didn't come across as petulant at all. Just a gamer talking games she came across, why would anyone flip about it?
I don't personally agree with everything she says, but her perspective was -and still is- needed in the industry, even if she misses the mark by a lot sometimes.
It's weird how a lot of people just go "I disagree with her on this specific point so that invalidates everything else she said before" though. I don't mean you specifically, but I've seen it happen. Men don't usually get that kind of knee-jerk response for some reason.
Her overall message was great. It was some of the smaller, more niche crap that turned me away (Like the Mario/Bowser/Peach thing). At the very least, We can agree that the industry has a ways to go when it comes to representing anything other than the standard male. Im honestly glad she flipped the mat over helping everyone see all the shit that had been swept under there.
So one video on one specific point completely invalidates everything else that she has done and said? Most of which were completely correct.
Yeah I've never seen a critic I'd agree 100% with. Like let's take Ben Moore of EZA who I think is excellent in what he does, but then he goes on to praise these silly anime games and I shake my head. But I'm back for his next review.
Or AVGN who called Mega Man Legends worse than the DOS Mega Man games, but I still enjoy his content.
And don't get me started on Jim Sterling.
User Banned (2 weeks): Dismissing Concerns on Sexism and Rhetoric Associated with a Hate Movement; Prior Severe Infraction Related to Sexism
Shows she's disingenuous. She makes up a story to push a narrative, a false one, for clicks and money.
She'd have been fine to say the obvious: that Bowser treats Peach like a commodity, but she goes astray saying Mario is also doing that, when in truth Mario and Peach are good friends. Who wouldn't try to save a good friend?
She's kind of fringe, and I'm more of a centrist.
Not that weird, really. When someone says something you don't want to hear (e.g. "your hobby is pretty shitty to anyone who's not a cishet white man"), you instinctively grasp for anything you can use as an excuse to invalidate them and silence the cognitive dissonance. There's nothing more human than that, sadly.
Glad for her voice. She forced swaths of this industry and community to reflect critically on the medium, or otherwise exposed just how poisonous the ground we stand on really is.
Not a huge fan but her emergence a. Exposed a lot of rot in the culture. B. Helped further the maturation of the media since whether you agree with the conclusions or not criticism is not only needed but necessary for a medium to grow up and C. Gave her a chance to keep Carolyn Petit employed doing something more important than game reviews for gamespot.
So congrats Anita, hope you keep on keeping on.
So congrats Anita, hope you keep on keeping on.
She's done a great job of helping get the issues out there for studios and players to learn about in spite of how many shitty people have sent her threats constantly that would make others give up for their own safety and mental well being.
Speaking of false narratives, you're fully aware the the femfreq videos aren't monetized yes? It's always been nonprofit. In fact, the article even says as much incredibly early on. But i'm sure you've read it. 🤔
In Super Mario Odyssey literally the point of the ending is that Bowser and Mario are both being petty and possessive and Peach decides she's had enough and leaves on her own.
JFC just shut up 🙄 🙄 🙄 🙄 🙄 🙄 🙄
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The fact that her criticisms were kind of skin deep and reeked of milquetoast liberalism yet gamers still lost their fucking minds over her is the takeaway for me.
It was actually kind of a turning point for me. I was frequently using 4chan during the early 2010s, and when Anita started to become popular (...in a way) at first people were just taking the piss on her and I was like "alright." Then I saw the violent threats and I was like "wait, why do we see this as a good thing?" It sort of made me re-evaluate my general understanding of entitled nerd culture and edgy 4chan contrarian shitposting. Then you get GamerGate and... yeah.
Gamers suck.
Also imagine calling yourself a centrist unironically.
It was actually kind of a turning point for me. I was frequently using 4chan during the early 2010s, and when Anita started to become popular (...in a way) at first people were just taking the piss on her and I was like "alright." Then I saw the violent threats and I was like "wait, why do we see this as a good thing?" It sort of made me re-evaluate my general understanding of entitled nerd culture and edgy 4chan contrarian shitposting. Then you get GamerGate and... yeah.
Gamers suck.
Also imagine calling yourself a centrist unironically.
She was one of the first big voices talking about the subject in the industry which was an important role and I think she had good arguments around some of the more obvious/big feminist issues in games like damsels and a lack of female protagonists. I do also think she misses the mark a lot (at least in her earlier work, I haven`t followed her closely for a few years) and her arguments were often a bit nonsensical and it didn`t always seem like she really understood the games she talked about. I admire her courage and appreciate her opening the way for others to talk about these subjects.
Reading about all the harrasment and threats she recieved is really sad and just makes me angry.
Reading about all the harrasment and threats she recieved is really sad and just makes me angry.
We couldn't even make it past 10 posts....
Thinking about it, gaming in its current form is really bad at fostering heterogeneity.
Can't even make a small change to input methods without gamers calling it the death of all things gaming.
the last decade+ have been so disappointing.
The general response to Sarkeesian's work certainly didn't help.
Thinking about it, gaming in its current form is really bad at fostering heterogeneity.
Can't even make a small change to input methods without gamers calling it the death of all things gaming.
the last decade+ have been so disappointing.
The general response to Sarkeesian's work certainly didn't help.
The supreme overraction that some youtube videos covering tropes has received will forever be a testament to how utterly fucked nerd culture is.
Even the ending to Odyssey acknowledges that Mario has a possessive side to him.
This post is spot-on.
I also don't agree with some of her talking points, but it's absolutely crucial to have the majority of the conversations she's trying to initiate.
The Mario thing is like, tame as fuck. If you don't like that example then disregard. It doesn't make the basis flawed. There no narrative to push, unless you think women are fairly represented in media.
Christ, speaking of disingenuous...
- "Disingenuous" doesn't mean "anyone who disagrees with me".
- Art analysis is precisely about interpreting narratives.
- If she was in it for "clicks and money" she'd have stopped after receiving the first death threat.
A centrist parroting alt-right talking points. thinking.gif
Is this real, someone actually says they are a centrist in this day and age thinking it's a good thing?
I thought the series was pretty well done. Some points I didn't agree with, others were pretty revelatory (the one about women being used as background props to exhibit violence and edginess in particular). Did she ever finish the series? there were some on the list of topics that I don't recall seeing the video for. I was also legit interested in hearing some real counter arguements, but never found any with any real merit. The ones that supposed " destroyed" her arguements were attacks on her character and stupid conspiracy theories.
I mean if you are outside the US I can see an argument for that.
But that usually denote a more liberal kind of thinking.
In this day and age in an english speaking forum though?
Yikes
As fringe as the people that conducted harassment campaigns in order to ruin her life?
10 years? Wow, so much has changed since then.
Hahahahahahaha. I see we're replaying all the classics for the anniversary.
Her analysis is some of the most milquetoast feminism around. And the Mario games do show Mario and Bowser competing over Peach like a commodity to the point where it is addressed in the latest mainline game. And, critical analysis is also open to how the critic wants to interpret the work anyway.
One of the things she (inadvertently) achieved was showing just how out of touch Gamers were/are with the real world, what with the way they accused her of "scamming" people with her crowdfunding.
"Videos don't cost that much money to make!" they cried.
Except, y'know, actual professional content kinda does?
"Videos don't cost that much money to make!" they cried.
Except, y'know, actual professional content kinda does?
You're free to disagree with her on things, why wouldn't that be allowed here?
Pretty much. The sheer volume of hysterical rage in response to basic critique was and is pathetic. The backlash became its own cottage industry, which unfortunately we're still stuck with today.
It's probably on the treating women with dignity he has a problem with.
that certainly wouldn't be allowed here.
And don't get me started on the whole "not real gamer"
when there's like a whole cottage industry of grifters trying to scam people for money with their conservative take on literally everything.
All was just projection because that's the only thing conservatives are good for.
For years, I've seen people on forums yearning for legitimate and academic gaming literature, that's an inherent part of the "games are art" argument. Feminist Frequency is akin to things like cahiers du cinema in the ways that they deconstruct and critically analyze the industry. You can't yearn for video games to be legitimate art but be afraid of an honest critical reflection.
Anita will forever have my respect for being a litmus test for exposing shitbags.
Still laugh remembering a thread on Era were I had a discussion with someone saying they didn't like Anita because she would cut their balls off given the chance.
Still laugh remembering a thread on Era were I had a discussion with someone saying they didn't like Anita because she would cut their balls off given the chance.
She should be immortalized in the rafters for the work she did to expose the industry and its consumer's bigotry and biases.
Because they'd probably be spewing the usual alt-right garbage points.
The response to Tropes vs Women in Video Games was incredibly telling. It was practically on the level of Feminism 101, and gamers still couldn't (and can't) help themselves from showing their ass.