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From Barbie to Mortal Kombat: gender and computer games
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1998
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Unknown Venue
Parents worry that video games influence children, yet consoles can prepare them for the digital world while also socializing boys into misogyny and marginalizing girls; the new games movement, driven by feminist activists and industry leaders, seeks to address these concerns and create a girls’ market. The contributors to *From Barbie(R) to Mortal Kombat* explore how assumptions about gender, games, and technology shape the design, development, and marketing of the industry as it seeks to build the girl market. The authors analyze existing games, propose tactics to avoid stereotypes, and draw on a lively mix of scholars, educators, psychologists, developers, industry insiders, and girl gamers. Contributors include Aurora, Dorothy Bennett, Stephanie Bergman, Cornelia Brunner, Mary Bryson, Lee McEnany Caraher, Justine Cassell, Suzanne de Castell, Nikki Douglas, Theresa Duncan, Monica Gesue, Michelle Goulet, Patricia Greenfield, Margaret Honey, Henry Jenkins, Cal Jones, Yasmin Kafai, Heather Kelley, Marsha Kinder, Brenda Laurel, Nancie Martin, Aliza Sherman, and Kaveri Subrahmanyam.
Many parents worry about the influence of video on their children's lives. The game console may help to prepare children for participation in the digital world, but at the same time it socializes boys into misogyny and excludes girls from all but the most objectified positions. The new games movement has addressed these concerns. Although many people associate video mainly with boys, the girls games' movement has emerged from an unusual alliance between feminist activists (who want to change the gendering of digital technology) and industry leaders (who want to create a girls' market for their games). The contributors to From Barbie(R) to Mortal Kombat explore how assumptions about gender, games, and technology shape the design, development, and marketing of as industry seeks to build the girl market. They describe and analyze the currently on the market and propose tactical approaches for avoiding the stereotypes that dominate most toy store aisles. The lively mix of perspectives and voices includes those of media and technology scholars, educators, psychologists, developers of today's leading games, industry insiders, and girl gamers. Contributors: Aurora, Dorothy Bennett, Stephanie Bergman, Cornelia Brunner, Mary Bryson, Lee McEnany Caraher, Justine Cassell, Suzanne de Castell, Nikki Douglas, Theresa Duncan, Monica Gesue, Michelle Goulet, Patricia Greenfield, Margaret Honey, Henry Jenkins, Cal Jones, Yasmin Kafai, Heather Kelley, Marsha Kinder, Brenda Laurel, Nancie Martin, Aliza Sherman, Kaveri Subrahmanyam.