It’s the kind of desperate salivating for victory and the accolades of others mentioned in this article that turns me away from fighting games (and most competitive enterprises in general). In the eyes of a lot of folks, that has made me less of a “man,” less “brave,” of questionable masculinity, especially in my 'tweens and teens, when the Gender Norm Police are out in full force and have so much to lose by not being able to define that as “other.” Because I don’t want to engage in a dick-measuring contest with some dink with something to prove, I must be somehow weak or effette.
I suppose at the end of the day we all just want permission from the world to be who we are (even if we don’t NEED it, we still WANT it). So I guess let me start.
Hey, Maddy: It’s cool that you’re pretty kick-ass at fighting games and it’s admirable that you try so hard to be the best. I think you belong there. That’s all.
I think you hit the nail on the head there. True maturity (not just social or biological) happens at that point where you can happily flip off the masses and go your own way comfortably.
Its also very odd, hoisting a man-flag on video games. Wouldn’t that be better hoisted on something that actually (supposedly) contains traditional “many” virtues? Sitting on your butt mashing a controller wouldn’t be in my stereotypical manly wheelhouse. I’d think they would be more secure in measuring their manhood by how many critters they can shoot, our how well they can throw a ball around.
Reminds me of a charming short film (but bicycle, not video game):
It has been rare for me to find games journalism compelling. This was a great read.
Didn’t read right now, but I was pretty good at the first Mortal Kombat. I also was solid at Killer Instinct. I had friend who got the game and I kept beating him with Kilgore. So he selected a character, spent all week learning her moves, and then I proceeded to embarrass him again. I didn’t know hardly any of the special moves, just a few, the rest were just punches and kicks.
This article adds to the many depressing things (concerning sexism) I’ve heard about the competitive fighting game scene. Is there any indication that it’s getting better? Normal sport is basically a lost cause, but I keep hoping that eSports will usher in the era of gender-neutral competition.
Really well written interesting story. I like her insight about the need to win and be the best in a world, even as you know there will always be someone better.
In my experience with games, there’s pretty much always been a hard time on women trying to just show up and have fun. Fighting games are definitely no exception to that, and I think sometimes I feel like what I’ve seen on the scene makes it worse. It’s not so much that playing video games makes you the “manliest of men,” but chasing after expertise in a game that is based on beating the crap out of your opponent? That definitely breeds a more macho vibe than usual.
I’m honestly probably wrong about that, I haven’t been a part of that many competitive scenes, but I’ve seen a LOT more women playing games like League of Legends. I can still count on my fingertips how many women I’ve seen playing in Street Fighter tournaments.
Also, I’ve been there, on the “I’ll never do it” boat. It’s true that theres always someone out there that’s better than you, and that goes for ANYTHING that you might end up involved in. Theres just something about competitive gaming where the mantra becomes “play to win.” Having fun, which is the initial goal of the game, gets tossed to the wayside in lieu of trying to play perfectly 100% of the time. I dont think that’s a healthy mentality.
Why the hell cant we want to win AND have fun at the same time?
I think when you attach a pot, or give something an audience, the fun aspect flies out the window immediately. Suddenly money or egos are at stake, and that becomes all that matters. All the innocent (and fun) smack talk gets serious pretty quickly once things have a reward attached.
I’ve noticed, in the few “sporty” things I’m good at, once I realize I’m good, and other people realize I’m good the stakes get oddly personal. I used to play a lot of Soul Calibur, and was pretty good at it (not professional level, but within my circle of friends). The second I got a reputation, each game became personal; I was more likely to get insulting, get arrogant when winning, or get petulant when losing. After I noticed this, I pretty much quit playing. There as too much at stake, which is odd since there was basically nothing at stake.
See also: any ‘competitive’ sport. Competitive surfing would top my particular list, but that’s just me.
It was even like this back when one could only play at the stop 'n go and put your quarter on the machine to mark your place in line at taking down the champ. They was always some guy who could play all day on one quarter and it was serious business.
I’ve really enjoyed playing Dead or Alive 1 + 2 back in the day. I finally met someone who also played (but this time it was #3) and was happy to be able to play against a fellow human. However, He didn’t just play the game - he knew the game. It was the first time for me that I played against someone who knew and recognized the STARTING ANIMATIONS for each move. He could predict all my moves and almost subconsciously react to them. I finally won a match, but by then we were both done. It was clear that the distance between our skill levels was so vast that neither of us would have any fun playing.
Even though I have not played in quite awhile, I see this with Warhammer tabletop. Happily I started in that sort of stuff before they were the big kid. While the game group was more or less a ‘guys night’ we didn’t exclude anyone at all and we always played from the view of hey we are here having fun and escaping from reality first. The only real rule was stuff had to be painted and we would always share with anyone new who came in with unfinished models. I just kinda boggle at the hypercompetitive sorts cause we are grown adults playing with toy soldiers.
This article makes me lament the days when we would enjoy the polar opposite of competitive gaming–Lucasarts style Adventure games.
A genre where regardless of who’s driving, everyone can participate and enjoy, or spectate as they want.
This isn’t actually bad in itself. The problem isn’t with the competitive mentality but the with the poor sportsmanship that often goes along with it. Competitive gaming is currently so insular that being a dick to your fellow player isn’t really stigmatized the way it should be.
One can derive pleasure from the act of competing, and I don’t see anything wrong with that. The issue is that marginalizing other players by bad (e.g., sexist) behavior ruins the experience for them.
Even if you’re a legend in your own time, your time will pass…
I think she’s bumped into the uncomfortable fact that in the end, solo fighting games are just inherently solitary, and offer little to someone who’s not hellbent on being No 1. They are DESIGNED to be rewarding only if you’re winning winning winning. And the sexism and general nastiness that the online world is so good at just made it that much worse for her.
It was even like this back when one could only play at the stop 'n go and put your quarter on the machine to mark your place in line at taking down the champ. They was always some guy who could play all day on one quarter and it was serious business.
Yeah, but (in my experience at least) that’s on the player, not the game. I want to expand on your post.
I picked up Magic: The Gathering a few months ago and ran into players who are definitely super-competitive serious business. They can make incredible plays and think five steps ahead, but seem annoyed while playing, like you’re wasting their time. They’re not interested in people who aren’t on their level.
However, I also ran into players who realized how new I was and stopped the game to break down the subtleties for me. They peeked at my hand and advised what a good play would be. After rounds ended they’d do a postmortem, picking apart my deck and suggesting better cards. When I surprised them with a clever play, they’d cheer with me (and then proceed to steamroll my deck).
It took me a while to figure out which stores were full of toxic players so I could avoid them, but I’m pretty happy with my hobby now, and I’ve met some great people. So I’m hesitant to ascribe the toxic nature of a game to the game itself. I’d be interested in a more expanded look at the competitive fighting game world because I’m curious about the density of hostile community members.
