I'm sorry. We've fallen so far.

I remember a time when it was okay for a videogame character to have big boobs. For that matter, I remember a time when it was okay for characters to be manly. Apparently, it isn't anymore. Apparently, despite the game industry's desperate plea to be considered "art", we shoot down art whenever it pops up beyond the confines of the Unreal 3 Engine. Apparently, in our desire for videogames to be seen as "art", we've placed our bets on hyper-realistic military shooters with absolutely no artistic value, yet when a game comes out that is - literally, since it is hand-drawn - art, we cry about it. Apparently, we've forgotten the countless "distasteful" works of art from all centuries leading up to this one, works of art that are now considered classics.

I remember a time when it was okay for animals to be videogame heroes. Apparently, it isn't, not if PETA has anything to say about it. Apparently, naming your videogame based on a heroic raccoon flying into space "StarCoon" is now considered racism by some. Apparently, as a Caucasian male, I should have been offended by games like "White" Knight Chronicle, or Planet "Cracker".

I remember a time when videogame journalists reported the news. Apparently, they don't anymore. Apparently, our journalists have gone from hype machines to paid shills to industry watchdogs who pick on all the issues that no gamer cares about, and then back to hype machines. Apparently, doing stuff that journalists in other industries do (like calling out Big Corpo in defense of customers, or properly analyzing a market's direction, or representing the majority as well as the minority) is beneath our heavenly gaming journalists. Apparently, we can't call out big companies like Microsoft, for the RRoD fiasco, or Sony, for their outright lies regarding "remote play", or Nintendo, for their failure to acquire third parties like they said they would, or EA, Ubisoft, Activision, etc for their terrible business practices. Oh! Sure! Our journalists will write token articles about it every once in a while, but when review time it comes, it's 10 out of 10. When interview time comes, it's "hey! guns are cool. What was your inspiration for putting guns in Call of Duty?" Apparently, videogame journalists forgot how to ask a real question.

I remember a time when the game industry was united. Yeah, we would fight. We would squabble. Fanboys will be fanboys, right? Apparently, we've resorted to turning on one another now that Metacritic scores, console sales, and total number of exclusives isn't a hot-button issue like it used to be. Apparently, our game developers have so much time on their hands, they would rather attack their fans (saying "deal with it") or attack one another ("F***ing lol"), and yet they can't seem to meet a freakin' deadline, can they?

I remember a time when games were games. They didn't integrate with social networks. They didn't assault you with endless DLC packs. They didn't lock away the game behind an "always on" requirement. They didn't force obscure motion control or touch control or camera control mechanics into games that didn't need it. Apparently, we were all able to play games and have fun and play with one another without all the social features and DLC and nonsense being added to games nowadays. Apparently, the pure, unadulterated pleasure of Wii Sports was just too "dumb", so we had to cram it into everything else to see if it worked.

I remember a time when attacks against videogames came from without, not within. We all knew who our enemies were: Joe Lieberman, Jack Thompson, and various other public figures who wanted to make a scapegoat out of our favorite hobby, people who wanted to blame games and blame the "murderers" who played them for society's ills. We even rolled our eyes in unison whenever Uwe Boll would announce a new movie and/or defend his butchering of our favorite franchises. Apparently, with those enemies defeated, we've made one another the enemy. Before, it was silly name-calling like "Ninty fanboy" or "Xbot" or "Sony defense force". Now we shout out "racist" and "sexist" and "bigot" and "you just don't get it!" against our fellow gamer.

Many people are very excited for the next generation of gaming. I'm not, not if this is what we're left with. Many people say we're growing up as a gaming industry. I don't think we are. We're simply "playing adult" by squabbling about quasi-adult topics while shouting and ignoring and calling names. At least before all this, I was simply called a "fanboy" for owning a PS3. Now, I'm a "sexist" because I'll be buying Dragon's Crown for my Vita. Now, if I don't support gun ownership (I do) but I buy Call of Duty (I don't), I'm a "hypocrite". At least before, my only gripe was that journalists sometimes seemed unusually harsh or unusually lenient toward certain games. Now, I have to put up with consistently bad analysis of the gaming market, "moral dilemma" articles that are borne out of thin air, self-indulgent navel-gazing, and worst of all, a constant dismissal and arrogance toward gaming's biggest demographics (based on how we treat kids games, casual games, motion games, etc).

I'm sorry. We've fallen so far as an industry. Am I to blame? I'm no one of importance, but did my playful joking and occasional trolling forums contribute to all this? Did my occasional purchase of DLC make things the way they are? Did we cause this, gamers? Maybe. Or maybe we ALLOWED it. We sat by while it was all forced upon us.

I guess I'm just sick of how things are turning out as we go into the next generation. It seems as though every game platform is "doomed" like it's 2008 again or something. News for next-gen systems is met with irrational criticism, and any excitement is labelled as "faboyism". Any legitimate concerns or fears are also labelled as "fanboyism". We praise consoles that sell horribly (the Gamecube) but mock consoles that sold amazingly (the Wii), and then we wonder why videogame companies are tanking left and right.

I don't know what the solution is. All I know is that I hate to see what our industry has morphed into. Is there hope for a change? I guess. I guess I'll just keep supporting the companies I like and writing a blog about it every once in a while.

[Warj]

Excellent and heartfelt. It echoes many of my thoughts on current trends.

To bad more people will attack/ignore posts like this than agree with it.

[Blacktric]

"Apparently, despite the game industry's desperate plea to be considered "art", we shoot down art whenever it pops up beyond the confines of the Unreal 3 Engine."

I love this sentence.

I LOVE IT SO MUCH!

[specialagent4532]

Damn by far the best blogger on n4g. Yeah its what I been trying to say during this entire generation. Game Journalism has jumped the shark and gamers need to do something about it. While this blog is an excellent portrayal of how console gaming has fallen. PC gaming is rising and finally getting better not just in games but by becoming more accessible. I also want to point out the awesomeness of kickstarter finally able to fund and promote our games (please please please support CONSORTIUM AMONG THE SLEEP). Meaning gamers not old fart money greedy publishers fund the games. Independent game developers have really put most mainstream developers to shame. Sadly there is too much nostalgia (metroid vania games, old school games) along with zombie games yes lots of indie zombie games. Trine franchise, Gemini Rue, Emerald City Confidential, To the moon (yes I mention this game way too much), the walking dead ( is traveler tales indie or mainstream) are some of the best games ever. Survival horror games are back only on PC amnesia dark descent, lucius, lone survivor, home, etc.... So yes by far the worst console gaming generation ever. But on PC from Amazon to STEAM sales, steam workshop (one click away and none of the optimization bullshit or watching the game crash due to the incompatibility of say mod). Steam green light the ability to choose my own pool of games worthy of being sold on STEAM. Kickstarter is better did I say to fund and support CONSORTIUM AMONG THE SLEEP games.....

[MattyG]

"Game journalism has jumped the shark..." What you are referring to isn't game journalism, it's a huge amount of twats that got a blog and fancy themselves important because they have an opinion, no matter how s**t said opinion is. Anyone can have a voice in the gaming industry now as long as they have an internet connection, and it's f***ing people's perception of gaming journalism up.

[specialagent4532]

I do agree but even the so called official game websites like ign, game spot, ugo, etc. Their gaming journalism is terrible and most popular games like call of duty, mgs, Mario, etc have high scores all the time. So yes in a way we need professional gaming journalists that at least have a masters degree in journalism. I forgot to mention how broken is the financial analysts for games.....

[smashcrashbash]

I have been talking about all you said in your blog all the time we have fallen so very far as gamers and many people haven't even notice or have accepted with almost no thought at all.Gaming is going down a terrible road and most people are just running down it with their noses in the air attacking anyone who says anything about it. My friends and I used to argue about which was better Mario or Sonic without resorting to name calling,threats or all out war.I think this is the result of gaming becoming more mainstream. Before gaming was kind of for an elite few who respected gaming and treasured every game and system and valued their contributions no matter how small they were. Now we are in an age where people cross their fingers hoping that a system or game will fail so they can point fingers and boast that they were right.When the Dreamcast fell I took no joy in it's destruction despite me being a Sony fan and I saw it as a waste.

Also games could do things without people constantly accusing them of racism, bigotry,sexism or anything. I played Odin Sphere without thinking anything of the skimpy outfits or short skirts or anything and now people descend up Dragon's Crown for a few big breasts and curvy women? Why? Who cares? I think we are all evolved enough to know that the people that they made aren't supposed to be taken seriously or are models on how all men or women look.And 'journalists' are nothing but chaos causers.They say what ever to takes to cause people to be at each others throats. They don't care if it is true or fake or inappropriate. In fact many game 'journalist' seem to not know much about gaming or the history of gaming making strange claims and giving out wrong information without even checking the facts. Look at Kotaku. They are the main offenders of that and if you call them out of saying nonsense or causing problems people claim it's 'damage control' or fanboyism.We are in a bad state and the media is just pushing us down the road and people are walking blindly down it as gamers just become more and more immature and insufferable.We can't even have a normal conversation without some idiot coming in with some chaos causing post. Even the trolls have become nothing more then one phrase wonders saying 'This system sucks' or repeating the same post over and over again in different articles. At least back then even when you trolled it was with clever remarks rather then blatant stupidity

[SageHonor]

The problems in the gaming industry can be summed up in

> Political correctness
> Polarization of people
> Corruption

Just like society in general today. It's only going to get worse.

[Simon_Brezhnev]

I know right its by far the worse industry and its getting worse by the year. They bitch about the most craziest things. I have yet to see the so called journalist defend gamers from the press for calling us murderers with all the crazy killing going on.

[Bimkoblerutso]

I, too, hate gaming journalism these days, though probably for different reasons. Gaming journalists (and journalists in general) have a tendency to cherry pick very controversial topics that COMPLETELY waylay the real issues behind many of these debates.

The boobs, for example. It's been done to death. I understand that games like these are made specifically to appeal to the male demographic (and why should men be responsible for portraying women in the first place?), but then there are times during my day when I DON'T necessarily feel like I need to be sporting wood. In fact, I would say that the vast majority of my decidedly male-centric day includes me NOT thinking of boobies with a bulge in my pants.

So why on God's green earth does it seem like EVERY GODDAMN FEMALE in so many games these days needs to appeal to that relatively small portion of the male identity? The short answer is, they don't. Historically, men have just as easy a time appreciating interesting, minimally-sexualized female characters (Alyx, Jade, Samus) as they do interesting male characters. Developers have simply become so uncreative over the years that they have developed a laundry list of male-centric cliches that are included in almost every game these days. THAT'S the real problem here.

So why do so many male gamers feel like they need to defend every game that depicts a female character with giant boobs hanging out and an ass that would make Nicki Minaj blush?

Because idiotic sites like Kotaku completely miss the point, that's why. They pick a controversial topic, like sexism, that can be easily thrown around to drum up some attention and then they sit back and let the publicity build itself up.

[matgrowcott]

"Because idiotic sites like Kotaku completely miss the point, that's why. They pick a controversial topic, like sexism, that can be easily thrown around to drum up some attention and then they sit back and let the publicity build itself up."

Or they get the point entirely. Man, I'm sick of people talking as if Kotaku (and pals) don't know exactly what they're doing. They pick a really easy topic, write 500 words, then take the high road when people complain. They never look bad for it - not compared to the vocal group that come in - and it brings in hits.

Because the alternative is doing work, and I can tell you from experience that high quality lengthy articles rarely get even 10% of the hits that articles that people like you flock to under a blanket of moral outrage.

[smashcrashbash]

I think you take it wrong way. First of all there are women with big breasts. That is a fact.You shouldn't believe that big breasts takes anything away from a woman's personality. My sisters are very busty women and they are very strong willed, smart women. Secondly if we are using Dragon's crown as an example notice the Archer has a much smaller bust then the rest. But people only notice the Amazon and the Sorceress.How is it that people can only see and focus on the woman with the biggest bust in a game but make sure not to mention there are other women in the game with decent sized breasts? It's like old people who claim EVERY girl likes to wear short skirts when there are clearly other girls who don't wear short skirts but you can't see them only the ones with the short skirts.

Thirdly like most people you missed the fact that the men also have unrealistic proportions that are problematic to men to as we have to live up to such images of bulging muscles and well toned bodies. But once again people only see breasts which I believe is all you can see as you don't see fit to complain about the exaggerated proportions of the males because you are too busy staring at the Sorceress breast shape and size.In fact that is all that concerns most people. You don't care how the game looks or plays or it's length but rather about female proportions that were never meant to be taken seriously or as a template for the human female. So no I don't think it's a problem of lack of creativity rather the broomstick gamers these days have up their butts where they feel that must jump on everything and allow morons like Kotaku to make a mountain out of a mole hill.

Odin Sphere had women with skimpy clothes and short dresses and I shrugged my shoulders and played the game and still enjoyed it.I believe it is only immature people that can't tell the difference between a serious matter and something that is nothing and can be allowed to pass through.As long as the Amazon and Sorceress have just as important roles as the others and are equals i could give a damn what they are wearing or how big their breasts are.Long story short you pick you battles and know when it something to make a fuss about instead of jumping as soon as you have woman who isn't flat chested or has a skirt that goes above her kness

[Bimkoblerutso]

You missed the point. Like most people, you have been programmed to always transform this into an issue of sex.

I like big breasts. I like them a lot. I have no problem with busty, super-sexualized women in video games, per se, but rather that they are far and away the absolute most overused characterization for women in video games. It's the same as any other cliche or trope in the industry. The fact that characters like the elf are a rarity should demonstrate that point.

And while we're at it, yes, the characterization and depiction of men is equally generic, only for some reason no one seems to remember all the complaining that games like Call of Duty and Gears of War receive for having stupidly written, manly men as their protagonists.

Again, I like the boobies, but it's just too much, too often. It's the same as getting sick and tired of shooting people in the face in CoD or grinding in MMO's.

The state of boobs in the industry are not a sign of sexism. They are a sign of stagnation.

[dedicatedtogamers]

@ Bimkoluerutso

"The state of boobs in the industry are not a sign of sexism. They are a sign of stagnation."

While I - personally - think boobs are a sign of an entertainment medium just being an entertainment medium, you do make a good point. I'm glad that some people can recognize that putting boobs in a game doesn't immediately mean a drooling bunch of...what did that journalist say? A bunch of 14-year-olds are being sexist behind the scenes. Rather, let's at least consider some more likely explanations like "sex sells" and "videogames are getting stale, so let's add boobs". There isn't some malevolent spirit of sexism at work here, either intentional or unintentional.

[coolbeans]

"While I - personally - think boobs are a sign of an entertainment medium just being an entertainment medium, you do make a good point."

He doesn't state anything that's contradictory to that. Only the current situation of them in the industry.

[Deadpool616]

The game industry is getting so bad I'm debating on if I'm going to move forward to the next gen consoles. I've actually decided to go backwards to last gen and purchase a Japanese Playstation 2. There are several excellent games that I've been meaning to play that never made it to our shore. It's amazing to see how much the Playstation 2 still has to offer.

[smashcrashbash]

@ Bimkoblerutso. Oh come on.No offense but who do you think you are fooling? If I hadn't mentioned the fact about the men being characterized they way they are you would never have mentioned them. No one ever does. Like most people you are stuck on how women look constantly when the depiction of men is no less used then with women.But like most people you attack the way the women look more then the men. I mean really? How many conversations have you seen with guys saying to stop the over muscular depiction of men? All the complaining. I am not sure what complaining you refer to but obviously not enough for anyone to remember.The point is the body of the person does not translate into their character.You are mistaking body type for character type.You immediately assume that the Sorceress's body type matches her skills or her personality.If you want to claim that people who think the women with big breast or hips immediately think they should act oversexed that is different.If the archer the way she was was oversexed in personality would you have accepted her because she isn't falling out of her costume?

My point is who cares how they look or about the character models as long as it is a well told story or a well made game? This is why I have been constantly saying 'Who cares how they look, just be concerned about how the game plays'.As long as they place them in a well made game I couldn't care less.I don't believe character models make the industry stagnant unless they follow the same formula over and over again. COD is a problem to me not because of the bad depiction of men but because of it's repetitive nature.THAT is the problem you should be concerned about not how many big breasted women are in them. If they make games only based on the fact that the women are voluptuous e.g.Rumble Roses with bad gameplay and mechanics hoping that the fact you get to see half nude girls in it then that is a problem.If Dragon's Crown is a blast to play, has great controls and mechanics and has replay value who cares?

[fsfsxii]

DLC BS can end, if people would stop buying them, as for me , i only bought 3 DLCs in my entire gaming years, which is Skate 3 howayan dream or however its spelt, and MK9 Kenshi and Rain, only that. Considering fanboyism, people need to grow up, i used to be a fanboy but i stopped now, simply because i find it pointless and a waste of time, if i like a console, i talk about it, if i don't i just talk why i don't, no need to bash it or anything.
Nice blog.

[SilentNegotiator]

They won't be happy until all characters are done like on TV; women are smart, snarky, successful, and in control....men are just horny morons that make all of the bad things happen in the plot.

This needs to be about good characters, not appearances.

[MyNutsYourChin]

Wow. I'm very impressed by the ignorance and apathy toward human dignity both in these comments and in the poorly written article. It's no wonder the industry is still not considered to be legitimate. I'll be un-sarcastically impressed when games and gamers have some maturity and compassion for the reality that gets represented in the virtual world.