Men and Women: Who Makes a Better Protagonist?

There's been much discussion across the internet recently about male privilege in video games. Men don't have to worry about discrimination based on their sex, they're never sexually harassed online by the opposite gender because of the way their voice sounds and the validity of their "gaming cred" is never on the line because of the chromosomes that make them who they are. One huge negative to this male-oriented world is the overabundance of male protagonists that fill the role of main "good guy," the person the spotlight is almost always on and, more importantly, the character that players will spend a vast majority of their time controlling.

Just off the top of my head I could say Kratos, Jak and Daxter, Cloud, Mario, Marcus Phoenix, Dante, Mega Man, Wander etc. etc. etc. without so much as the blink of an eye. And in many of those situations there is a woman that needs rescuing or protected. It would take me quite a while to come up with that many female leads. I mean, seriously a long time.

The few that come to mind immediately are Bayonetta, Zero from Drakengard 3, Lara Croft and Samus, which I think more than a few of us all mistook for being a guy until one of our friends said "Actually, that's a chick kicking all that alien ass, man!" It's a sad truth, but many of gaming's greatest heroes have a penis. But this article isn't about the under representation of women in gaming- it's about who makes the better character. Who draws us in the most and grabs our attention? Who best gets our blood pumpin' and our tears flowin' and gets us ready to fight that final boss and watch a sad tale, long journey or hard-fought battle come to a joyous close?

While I can't answer that question for any of you, I can without a doubt say that a strong male character will always pique my interest the most. Surprise, surprise, trust me, I know. But that's just what I like, and quite frankly, it's what I've almost solely been exposed to for the majority of my life- playing games or not. At a young age I fell in love with Secret of Mana and the story of a boy from Potos village who had to kill his pet dragon to save the world, a task that also erased one of his best friends from existence.

Move down my gaming timeline several years and I come into contact with two games that I still consider to be some my most influential interactive experiences: Kingdom Hearts and Shadow of the Colossus. The former has a young boy(about my age at the time) named Sora fighting to rescue two childhood friends from the grips of the darkness, a force that looks to consume all that is good. Throw in a handful of Disney and Final Fantasy characters, an upbeat and incredibly atmospheric soundtrack and the age old story of good vs. evil with elements of bravery and the importance of friendship, and 12-year-old me couldn't ask for a better game. It's a childish title with cliche after cliche, I knew that even back then, but it keeps my eyes glued to the screen for hours at a time with overdramatic proclamations and over-the-top combat to back it up.

Three years later, Shadow of the Colossus came to take all of those lessons on heroism and good guy overcoming the bad guy and turned them upside down. The game's protagonist, Wander, is a mysterious warrior we know nothing about other than his quest to save a deceased woman he brings to a forbidden land. In order to resurrect this person, he must defeat 16 colossi that guard part of the land. After each victory, Wander becomes more battle worn and dark, eventually succumbing to what appears to be a demonic possession. Throughout the game the lines blur between right and wrong and the focus shifts more toward what a person will do to bring back the ones they love- basically, this game is melancholy incarnate. It was one of the most subtly breathtaking games I've ever played, and still has me apathetically holding my breath for The Last Guardian.

As a writer, man, human being, art enthusiast and , most importantly, gamer, I love these titles for so many reasons I could never hope to express with a few paragraphs. These stories, among many others, did their best to engage me with gameplay, emotion, art style and soundtrack, but one part of these games I will never forget are the characters used to enrich all of these aspects. From smaller traits such as eye color, fashion sense and hairstyle to more substantial features such as background, morals and personality, I wouldn't want these characters to be altered in any way- and that includes gender.

It might be that I grew up in a time where lead female characters barely existed or it could be that I feel more attached to someone because we share a common trait as seemingly trivial as what we have between our legs, but when it comes to protagonists, I prefer men to women. It might be a stupid, uninformed and largely ignorant opinion, but it's mine and nobody can take that away from me. One thing, however, is for sure: As ignorant as I might be for having that opinion, I would be a thousand times more so if I didn't understand that there are millions of women out there who want and appreciate the same thing I do- a protagonist they can relate to through gender, as well as personality, morals and whatever else a person thinks creates a truly memorable character.

The games I listed above truly shaped who I am as a gaming enthusiast, and I have come to expect the same level of storytelling, sound design and gameplay from anything I pick up. Every gamer has these same building blocks in their past. Games that we will forever remember and hold close to our hearts. Games that will dictate how we look at every other title that comes into our hands. Like so many other parts of life, the first things we do in anything will continue to echo with us every step of the way.

But what does that have to do with determining which gender makes a better protagonist? Quite frankly... everything. For me, I wouldn't change a single detail about those games. Those original experiences created an outline for my gaming expectations that will last the rest of my life. As a young kid, I didn't really have much of a choice. Everything that looked fun to me happened to have a male protagonist. But, again, that's because almost EVERYTHING had a dude at center stage. For that, all I can say is THANK GOD I'm a white male(a saying I've found will almost certainly never lose it's validity).

[You know what? Come to think of it, this article might be about women's under representation in gaming after all. Who could have seen that coming?]

But what about all the girls and women out there now who want the same things as me? What about the females who want to play as females?

Well, as it turns out, while there may be a decent number of games to support female avatars, games like Zelda, Halo and Ratchet and Clank(where the character is much more personal than just an avatar) the pickings are quite slim indeed. Keep in mind, I'm talking MAIN CHARACTERS, while there are many great supporting females in gaming, the amount of title characters is sorely lacking. Here's the list of many of the biggest female characters in gaming:

Samus Aran, Lightning(FFXIII series), Aya Brea(Parasite Eve), Jade(Beyond Good & Evil), Regina(Dino Crisis), Sheva(RE5), Bayonetta, Zero(Drakengard 3), Faith Connors(Mirror's Edge), Nilin (Remember Me), Lara Croft, April Ryan(The Longest Journey), Chell(Portal series), Terra(FF6), Miku Hinasaki(Fatal Frame), Ms. Pac Man, Red(Transistor), Aqua(KH: Birth By Sleep) and some might argue Ellie from the Last of Us.

There's 19 names right there. Although it's not EVERY SINGLE female protagonist, that's a huge portion of them. Spanning all of gaming- I was able to come up with 19 names. Compare that to male protagonists and, well... there is no comparison. Now, understanding this, think about the fact that in a 2014 study by The Guardian, 52% of gamers are female. Sure, that includes mobile games that often times don't feature main characters, but with numbers like that, surely  30-40% of women must be playing the titles that offer protagonists. Even if just 10% of the 52% were playing story-driven games, let's face it, 10% of main characters are not female. It's sad but it's true.

Now, I know there's going to be people out there who say "Who cares about the character? As long as the gameplay is on point what else is there?" or "Most games with female protagonists don't sell as well so developers stray away from them." or "Game development is a male-dominated field and the games only reflect that because it's easier to tell a story about a guy if you are a guy.". Honestly, the arguments go on. We're in the middle of a very heated time in gaming's history and there's plenty of viewpoints to be heard and opinions to be explored.

But amid all the outcry and accusations I come to you to simply say people care a great deal about the characters in the games they play.

I'm not here to talk about how women should dress in video games(fashion has never and will never be my strong suit), I'm not here to say we need more women working on video games and I'm not here to talk about the obscene injustice that befalls not only women, but everybody during online gaming interactions(there's a lot of potty mouths with low self esteem, weak moral guidance and a penchant for acting tough out there. Shocker, the internet is a horrible place that brings out the most vile in people.)

I'm just here to say that I still remember the first time I beat Kingdom Hearts and saw Sora make an incredibly cheesy, yet powerful promise to one of his best friends ever. I still remember watching Wander's horse, and only link to the living world, Agro, fall from a cliff in Shadow of the Colossus. The sad look on his face as he walked away to face the last colossus. A rare moment of emotion from the rather stoic warrior. And I remember watching my brother finish Secret of Mana and restoring peace to a land plagued by evil- a memory I had from a time when I could barely hold a controller.

These are characters I will surely remember as long as my brain is able to store information. They have made me smile, laugh, rage, wonder, crave, and rejoice. Such strong feelings have come from something as simple as a few properly placed pixels and that's silly, but that's who I am, who I've come to be and what I've been exposed to. I couldn't have asked for anything more.

The only thing I do ask is that women be afforded the same chance to have those deep experiences with female characters. Nowhere does it say that females must play as females to get the full experience- absolutely not! But it would be nice if they could at least say they had more of an equal opportunity. I mean, even though I prefer male characters maybe I could benefit more now from a few more strong female leads. Tomb Raider and Metroid Prime are some of my favorite games of all time, so why should I stop there?

Hell, why should anybody stop there? Why should developers stop there? We need more African, Native American, Asian, Mexican etc, etc. protagonists. Not just for all of the races represented there but for everyone. A little diversity could go a long way in this industry. I mean, it's a little strange that almost everybody worth making video games about are white males, and again THANK GOD I'm a white male, but variety is the spice of life and, for me an many others, gaming is a lifestyle. Let's do something about that.

Now, full circle here. To answer my original question about "who makes a better protagonist", I would again say males make for a better protagonist. But my question to you is: What do you expect me to say? I don't know much of anything else, do I?

2014 Game of the Year: CAN. YOU. DIG IT? Edition

It's difficult for me to think about what should be GOTY when there's so many hugely immersive and wonderful experiences I didn't get a chance to partake in this year. Right off the bat, Dragon Age: Inquisition, Titanfall, anything from Telltale Games and FarCry 4 are a few examples of games I've heard resounding praise from but haven't had the pleasure of experiencing. It's a sad truth, but playing everything is almost an impossible feat to accomplish. No matter how much I wish I could.

With that being said, though, I was still able to pick up a vast number of titles that blew me away. I said it once and I'll say it again, between the 3DS and Wii U, Nintendo really stepped up their game in 2014. Franchise staples such as Mario Kart and Smash Bros. came around to save the day once again for the big N, but a few smaller titles featured on the system also brightened the library of a struggling Wii U and already hugely successful 3DS.

It's one of these smaller titles that stole my heart as well as my pick for 2014 GOTY.

Game of the Year: Shovel Knight

Although I didn't pick up Shovel Knight until mid October, the only experience I can really liken my time with this game to is summer love. It comes on hard, fast, hot, sweaty and makes you sad at the thought of it ending, but you just have to keep going back for more!

The characters are colorful, the fights are intense, the music is masterfully arranged(not to mention collectible) and the storyline is a mixture of goofy and uplifting that'll stick with you long after your first playthrough. There's really not much to complain about in this game either. The controls are tight, there's plenty to collect, multiple difficulty options with achievements to obtain and the length of the game is just right.

Take all of that into account and add on the fact that this is a picture perfect throwback to some of the best side-scrolling games to ever grace us with their existence. I'm talking Mario, Mega Man, Metroid, Yoshi's Island, Castlevania- that's right, this game is right up there in the big leagues with some of those gems we now call classics. Not only that, but you can play it at home or on the go with a choice between being a Wii U/PC download or a 3DS download. I played it on the 3DS and loved every second of it. I mean, this game made a strong impact on me in a way that had me picking it over the likes of Theathrhythm Final Fantasy Curtain Call and Super Smash Bros. for the 3DS- two games that I was very rarely ripped away from.

Plain and simple, I'm giving GOTY to this title because it's just a damn good game in almost every sense of the word. Sure, it didn't bring anything new and inventive to the table and it didn't blow me away with stellar graphics or advanced AI, but it did something just as awesome in my book. It took a formula and feel we've seen a million times before and it rocked the shit out of it. It's not easy to be a game in a genre with so many absolute classics, near to the soul of any gamer who grew up with an NES or Sega Genesis- constantly having to live up to the likes of Sonic, Mario and Mega Man. But Shovel Knight does it and good God it does it with a thumbs up, smile and wink that lets you know all is right in the world of gaming.

Plus, I mean, you get to be a knight who brandishes a shovel and hops on dragons' heads like he's on a pogo stick. If that doesn't interest you, you are a poor soul indeed, my friend.

Honorable Mention: Towerfall: Ascension

Okay, so at this point you're probably thinking "Oh look, another indie title. This tree-huggin' hipster's in love with anything made by a small company." To that, I say who you callin' tree hugger? But just hear me out on this one.

Towerfall Ascension is a fast-paced, frantically fun archery arena game that'll have you impaling, exploding and stomping on the heads of your best friends, laughing and trash-talking every step of the way. Controls are simple and has newcomers contending with veterans quickly while at the same time allows for skillful tricks to those with an innate sense for timing and quick reflexes. This creates for zany matches that will have you and up to three other players shooting each other for hours on end. The amount of match customization options adds to this and lets you create almost an endless amount of game scenarios each as engaging as the last.

On the other side, you can go solo or bring along a friend to play through the game's campaign. There you'll face green blobs, tornado-flicking bird men and floating gems that shoot homing lightning at you. Yup, I just said homing lightning. As if lightning wasn't scary enough by itself. The different difficulties and objective to beat every level on the hardest difficulty without dying will have you ripping out hair in clumps, but will also lead to some of the most amazing triumphs you've had in a long time. If you're a completionist and thirst for a good challenge, this is one game that you seriously can't miss.

Either way, this game is a blast and will most likely go down as one of the most entertaining multiplayer experiences in the last few years.