Sims – Freemium model – casual audience – more try out the game – more impressionable Sims literally depicts life – good medium for propaganda/hyperdermic needle imagined communities – sims creates communities of virtual people – allows differing/similar opinions and viewpoints/ideologies to mix Banned in certain parts of the world – China/UAE/Saudi Arabia due to possibility of establishing a homosexual relationship – goes against Skinner’s concept of “free will” and shows strict regulations of the game and goes against Livingstone and Lunt’s theory that powerful media companies (i.e EA) are commonly able to waive regulation policies. Game is quite literally a simulation of life – Baudrillard
Audiences of video game products such as Sims or Tomb Raider could be argued to reject or accept ideologies conveyed by media products, and this process is often the product of industrial strategies to mitigate risks as identified by Hesmondhalgh, and the representations of products appealing to the concept of Postmodernism.
Audiences of video game products such as Sims or Tomb Raider could be argued to reject or accept ideologies conveyed by media products as a result of media effects theories, and this process is often the product of industrial strategies to mitigate risks as identified by Hesmondhalgh, and the representations of products appealing to the concept of Postmodernism.
Media Language Media Representations Media Industries Media Audiences
Cultural
Paper 2
Media Language
Media Representations
It could be argued that the iconic protagonist from the Tomb Raider franchise, Lara Croft, is a positive role model for young girls because she is an athletic action hero who ventures through mysterious environments, defeating enemies and saving the world. However, some believe that her entire design is made to satisfy the male gaze.
The preferred reading of Tomb Raider celebrates the main character’s strength and her significant role within the game’s narratives. It’s likely that some girls might use Lara Croft‘s positive representation to help construct their own identities.
The oppositional reading rejects the female empowerment message, viewing the character’s representation as an exaggeration of the female body that appeals to adolescent fantasies. It’s possible that some girls may become insecure or dissatisfied with their own bodies because the representation of Lara Croft creates a false consciousness that they too need to be perfect.
The negotiated reading recognises both interpretations of the text and positions itself in the middle. Although there is a need for diversity and realistic representations of women in video games, Lara Croft is a strong female character who the audience should continue to enjoy playing as.
Lara Croft is the dominant signifier on the front cover
Paradigm of signifiers relating to action, adventure and violence
Iconic signs such as a gun, rope, gloves and a backpack create connotations of a more masculine woman which counteracts the stereotype of women and femininity. – the gun also implies the basic stock types of ‘Good guy vs Bad guy’
Use of the colour gold could be a symbolic sign linking towards treasure and wealth whilst also implying theft
The coding engraved into the stone on the back cover could be representing a different language – typically a non-English speaking country This also creates the sense of ‘the other’ without specifically othering a specific country
The age rating is a denotation as it warns customers the game may be inappropriate for ages younger
Language links to Roland Barthes, C.S. Pierce and Ferdinand de Saussure
Representation:
The dominant signifier is a reactionary representation of women as the lack of clothing worn represents the over-sexualisation of women and women in all media platforms. Her features are also exaggerated and accentuated through the use of tightly fitted clothing which creates unrealistic standards and ideologies of women for both genders to look up to. This can increase anxieties around body image and be damaging for young girls growing up. This also teaches girls and women to base their worth off the validation they receive from their body appearance, as both genders will learn that is socially acceptable to objectify women and to compare women to others. Furthermore, this will create and even bigger gender divide as it creates a lack of understanding for other connections other than physical. Camera positioning also contributes to the way in which women are perceived, women within video games are often seen with their features in shot at all angles whilst men are not. The characteristics also vary as women are seen to ‘saunter’ with some sassy walk and men are seen to walk ‘normally’ which shows that even within a video game woman are ‘seductive’. (Feminist frequency videos) However, Tomb Raider also provides a contrasting representation of women as the dominant signifier is female rather than male. Which countertypes to the usual ‘damsel-in-distress’ stereotype of women in video games- or even sometimes they are the ‘trophy’.
Representation links to Laura Mulvey (Male Gaze) and John Berger (Ways of Seeing) + (Feminist critical thinking)
Genre:
Tomb raider’s genre consists of action and adventure. Steve Neale talks about the repetition and differences within genre and weather they follow the typical conventions. Whilst Tomb Raider does follow the typical genre conventions featuring themes of violence however it does challenge the stereotypical male lead by utilising a main character as female, which serves to maintain interest in an evolving genre. The game utilises a third-person perspective which allows the audience to look around the character without her moving.
Narrative:
Perhaps the most poignant action code is the fatal battle between Lara and Larson. In this quick time event, the player takes limited control of the character and follows the on-screen prompts to shoot Larson. Each button press seems more intimate than the last. It’s clear from the softer music and Lara’s facial expressions that she regrets having to kill the henchman.
While these hermeneutic and proairetic codes provide the internal chronology of the narrative, the representation of the hero and villain is the most obvious example of Barthes’ definition of a symbolic code. Of course, Natla is dressed in a black suit – the colour code connoting her evil intent – and Lara is in her blue top. This simple binary opposition is also established by their different hair colour and accents.
When the player takes control of the avatar we are already in the disequilibrium stage. The player must overcome obstacles, puzzle and fight beasts in order to repair the disequilibrium and create a new equilibrium linking to Todorov’s narratology theory.
Audience:
Albert Bandura’s investigations demonstrated a link between young people watching violence on television and then expressing deviant behaviour in real life. The psychologist called this process symbolic modelling “Tomb Raider: Anniversary” is an action-adventure game which rewards violence because the players use their weapons to overcome the obstacles and save the planet. That final conflict with Larson is quite direct and emotional because it is performed as a quick time event where you make a clear and conscious decision to kill the character.
We can also link this to George Gerbner and his cultivation theory and mean world index as Tomb Raider exposes players to a series of violence. Where children may be at risk of perceiving the world as more violent then reality.
Industry:
[The original “Tomb Raider” was the first game developed by Core Design. The independent company was acquired by Eidos Interactive 1996 who helped finance their projects. After further mergers and acquisitions, Eidos Interactive is now a British subsidiary of Square Enix – a Japanese entertainment conglomerate.
This level of consolidation is typical of the concentration of media ownership identified by David Hesmondhalgh who was eager to highlight how the cultural industries were dominated by a very small number of firms. Although this gives the conglomerates incredible power, some critics would also argue this business model enables the creation of increasingly complex and financially risky games. For example, Core Design needed substantial funding to complete “Tomb Raider” or the game would never have left the design board.
It is also worth noting Eidos and Sony worked together to make “Tomb Raider” exclusive to the new PlayStation console rather than developing the game for the Nintendo or Sega platforms. This marketing strategy, which Hesmondhalgh called artificial scarcity, certainly helped the PlayStation brand to dominate the industry.
The computer game industry is one of the largest sectors in the entertainment business. It might be bigger than Holywood, but there are still lots of financial and legal pressures. “Tomb Raider: Anniversary” is a good illustration of the three formatting techniques used by companies to improve their chances of success.
First, it uses the iconography of action-adventure which will appeal to audiences who are already familiar with the genre. Third-person shooters are also incredibly popular with players. Lara Croft has developed into a cultural icon with her own fanbase, so the game can rely on her star power. Finally, franchises are easier to promote because the intellectual property is firmly established and there will an audience eager for the next instalment.
Square Enix reported the game sold 1.3 million copies worldwide, falling short of the return from the previous Tomb Raider games. It’s a risky business.]
Title of the game suggests themes of space and/or science fiction – Pun for ‘meteoroid’
The iconic sign of a gun, like Tomb Raider, also implies violence
The dominant signifier is a girl (Samus Aran); however, this isn’t obvious as on the main cover she is disguised in an over-sized space suit.
Indexical signifiers such as mathematics related coding, numbers and diagrams and shapes, create a myth that displays links to action, suspense and a quest.
The symbolic sign of the white-like highlight that contours the dominant signifier, could symbolise innocence or power and goodness. – connotating to the fact that she is the ‘Good guy’
Language links to Roland Barthes, C.S. Pierce and Ferdinand de Saussure
Representation:
This character counteracts the stereotypical representation, demonstrating a radical presentation of women and video games. The character’s appearance is not revealed until the last part of the game which helps to enhance a sense of freedom from the player as they can imagine/perceive the character to fit themselves. It is also implied the relationship between fictional characters and our factual lives are to do with the influence of media from a young age. Alike Tomb Raider, the dominant signifier is female which is a radical representation of women as it shows women in a more masculine dominated area. It helps to break the stereotype of women being the weaker gender or at least less capable in comparison to men. However, at the end of the game, Samus Aran is revealed wearing a blue body suit, in which, her body is majorly exaggerated and enhanced. Presenting an idealistic and non-realistic body type. This refreshing presentation is snatched away and the game, like so many others, fall into the archaic ways of appealing to the Male Gaze as a sales strategy.
Representation links to Laura Mulvey (Male Gaze) and John Berger (Ways of Seeing) + (Feminist critical thinking)
Genre:
Metroid is a hybrid genre due to its feature of action and adventure, horror and sci-fi. Steve Neale says there’s an ‘interplay of codes’ which refers to all the features connoting to a genre which help to convey attitudes and beliefs on an ideological world. An example in Metroid is ‘If you weren’t afraid of the dark before, you will be.’ which was a tagline used in marketing the game. It is reassuring for the audience to be able to recognise these codes within the game, such as violence, fictional worlds, powers, and parallel universes are all genre conventions of sci-fi and action. However the differences within this game also helps to entice/engage audiences.
Narrative:
The main character, Samus Aran, serves as the stock character of the hero as she goes on a rescue mission to find her missing troops. Here we can see Todorov’s narratology theory containing the structure of equilibrium, disequilibrium, recognition, resolution and new equilibrium. The threat posed by the bad guys is the disequilibrium, she then flies across three planets to collect a light and return it to it’s rightful place which serves as the repair that will create peace and a new equilibrium. The game also shows Levi Strauss’ binary oppositions between the characters. As in order to have Samus Aran as the hero that foreshadows there must be a villan which interweaves with Propp’s stock characters.
Audience:
Scanning through the game, most people would assume the target audience is mainly male because of the stereotypical representations of male and female games and the symbolic link between colours such as blue and pink that are associated with gender. An advert that was used to market the game also only featured two young boys playing the game, this also connotes that the primary target audience is male. Nintendo also called their controller the ‘Game Boy’ which would also suggest a gender bias. However, an industry historical review reported that more females were becoming “video game fans” and that 27 per cent of NES players in 1988 were female. The video game is regulated by PEGI and rated a 12 due to the features of violence.
Although we are exploring a virtual world full of ridiculous signifiers, audiences are still learning values and behaviours from a game which celebrates violence. In the development of his cultivation theory, George Gerbner included cartoon depictions of violence in his research because they resonated with the audience. He says the more someone is exposed to something the more they start to recognise it and believe the world is a far more dangerous place then it really is which links to his second theory of mean world index. Aether is a fictional planet. There was no catastrophic meteor. But the violence in the game feels real to a player immersed in that experience especially as it is played through first person which still creates the same tension and adrenaline as someone living in that experience. Here we can see the links to hyperreality and simulation that connotes to Baudrillard’s theory. Albert Bandura also drew attention to television as a socialising agent. Through a process of symbolic modelling, we copy the behaviour we see on the screen, especially if there is positive reinforcement. “Metroid Prime 2: Echoes” rewards players for their skill, gaining power ups and bonus content to defeat the bosses.
Industry:
As a Nintendo game Metroid is the product of one of a handful of conglomerates which dominate the video games industry, a context which means that the study of the industry raises issues which are central to contemporary media studies: • The structure of Nintendo as a company and its control of production, distribution and circulation • The use of digital platforms to expand the output and reach of the games demonstrates how institutions have responded to the impact of new technology. • Regulation of games through PEGI • Cultural industries including Hesmondhalgh
Social and Cultural contexts:
Metroid is a Japanese, sci-fi, action adventure video game developed by Nintendo. It is one of Nintendo’s most successful franchises with 11 games available across all of the company’s platforms. Metroid is a culturally significant game in the gaming universe due to its mix of style and tone which combines Super Mario Bros style platforming with darker content, but also due to the representation of the central character, Samus Aran. Aran is a bounty hunter whose gender identity has been the subject of controversy and debate, leading some commentators to identify the character as transgender reflecting contemporary social and cultural contexts.
Article:Why Diversity Matters – Links as to why media should include more diversity in their representations. These quotes are referring to the gaming industry.
‘ The industry traditionally projects an image that is young, white, straight and male’
‘Most games feature white protagonists’
‘A scene in Pakistan displays shop signs written in Arabic, even though Pakistani people speak English and Urdu, not Arabic’
2 CSPs I will compare = Tomb Raider and War of the Worlds.
Tomb Raider
Lara Croft – Main character and female partaking in violence – previously unheard of. The gameplay being as violent as it is with the main character being a woman could often confuse players who read into it even slightly – what is going on? Women running around with guns?
Despite this, Lara Croft is still dressed in very revealing clothing in order to appeal to heterosexual male audience – “Male Gaze”
This mix of such opposing elements is incredibly confusing and could even leave people wondering what kind of game they are playing – what culture and time period are we in where this type of product could succeed? How is the product helping individuals, societies or communities?
War of the Worlds
War of the Worlds was broadcast in 1938 and has been said to be a cause of over 7 million American people becoming terrified, and actually believing that aliens were invading the earth.
This was due to the fact that radio was still very new at the time, and it used the codes and conventions of a news broadcast in order to make a made up explosion and invasion of aliens seem like a real world issue and crisis.
CBS likely exaggerated impact of War of the Worlds for marketing and publicity purposes – people didn’t actually kill themselves and believe martians were invading – according to Jean Baudrillard’s theories around postmodernism. He states that “people lose the ability to distinguish between reality and fantasy”.
This links to the idea that the people who consumed War of the Worlds could not discern the fact that what played out in the broadcast was but a simulation and so did not occur in the real world. The idea of hyperreality is also relevant here because although aliens obviously do not exist, our world is so undefined and unfinished that change in this manner is not shot down immediately by humanity as a collective. The realm of possibility that mankind opens up by our own ways of thinking allow foreign and alien ideas to blossom, and this is what Baudrillard discusses and defines as a “postmodern” society. The fragmented truths and complications of our world can result in massive confusion, and this is evident in the outbreak of hysteria from War of the Worlds.
In this essay I will be discussing the representation of women in both the Metroid and Lara Croft game covers. I will argue that both radical and reactionary views are shown across the covers.
Metroid’s front cover presents a dominant signifier of a character in a space suit, from looking at the cover it is not known whether they are male or female – however from context we know that the character is a woman. This signifier can be seen as reactionary without context, where most people would assume the character in the spacesuit is a man. The Character is presented as big and broad, typically seen as masculine characteristics, and is holding a gun – something usually seen as reactionary for men. Due to not knowing the character’s gender, many people will see this and incorrectly assume the character is a man because it is radical seeing a female protagonist in a spacesuit with a gun. The addition of the gun on the spacesuit presents themes of violence and action, which again is seen as reactionary for male characters – further pushing the idea of the character being a man to players. However, knowing the context of the game, having a woman as the main protagonist and carrying a gun to save the day juxtaposes the stereotypes of men saving the day – and normally a “damsel in distress” – letting a woman take this mantle instead. This juxtaposition also avoids the “male gaze”, a term coined by Laura Mulvey which describes the sexualization of women in media to sell to men. The protagonist wearing a space suit and shown in the way she is, as big and broad, countertypes this as she is not sexualized in any way.
The front cover of Lara Croft also presents a dominant signifier of a female character, however it is clear that Lara is a woman from the cover. From a first glance, seeing Lara’s guns may seem radical and different from what people are used to, however it is quickly seen that this cover is not much different from others. For example, the position that Lara is in manages to accentuate both her breasts and her behind – and her clothes don’t help either – Lara is shown to be wearing a tight shirt and tight shorts. Both of these examples set an unrealistic example for women, that they should sexualize themselves to be seen as sexual objects. This matches with the male gaze, and Laura Mulvey’s views; “woman displayed as a sexual-object is the erotic spectacle”. Overall, whilst Lara’s guns show that she can be tough and fend for herself – contrasting typical views of women in video games, where they are normally “the damsel in distress” – the front cover of the game also feeds into the stereotype of sexualizing women in games. The quote “For every forward step however, there is often a reminder of how far is left to travel” from the article “diversity matters” perfectly describes how this front cover portrays Lara Croft.
In conclusion, both the Metroid and Tomb Raider front covers juxtapose stereotypes of women in video games to differing degrees. Metroid shows Samus as strong and does not sexualize her, completely opposing what would be expected. Whereas Tomb Raider shows Lara as strong but still sexualizes her character. It is clear that there is a slow shift of how women in video games are portrayed, but games like Tomb Raider are slower to stop sexualizing women than Metroid.
ANALYSE THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SIGNIFIERS AND SIGNIFIEDS IN THE TWO CSP GAMES COVERS.
The relationship between signifiers and signified in the two CSP games covers can be seen and analysed in multiple different ways. For example, feminist film expert, Laura Mulvey invented the concept of women being looked at in a very sexualised way by males in order to make them feel important and better about themselves, objectifying them. This is called the ‘Male Gaze’. For example, in ‘Tomb Raider’ the main thought as you look at the front cover is immediately the stereotype of women in a ‘man’s eyes’ in video games. This can be supported by the iconic signs such as the props Lara Croft is holding/has on her person, which symbolises her being strong, appearing more attractive to males. Another part of this to mention is the way Lara Croft has been portrayed with exaggerated body parts in order for the males to enjoy the game more, which of course is seen as reactionary.
While Tomb Raider can be seen as a very negative representation of feminism and is reactionary for its audience, you could also argue that it is radical. For example, the very fact that it shows a woman having the ability to be strong, involved in action and have the practice in firearms, proves that women do not always have to be the ‘damsel in distress’ as several videos ‘Feminist Frequency’ have posted explaining. Most video games that include female characters usually have them kidnapped or something happen to them at the beginning of the story, so the main character (a male) can save them from the danger, subtly hinting that women cannot save themselves. The quote “This poor representation of Asian women perpetuates the stereotype that they are meek, submissive, sexual objects who exist purely for men’s entertainment” from the article ‘Levelling up Representation’ indicates in detail about not only women in general but women with specific ethnicities being sexualised and objectified for men’s entertainment.
Another way that further explains this is the concept of ‘Feminist, female, feminine’ introduced by Toril Moi, where the difference between the three is explained, and how there is ‘male’ and ‘manly’ but no equivalent for ‘feminist’. This instantly shows that males have always had a sense of authority and hierarchy over females, which can be seen in the game cover of Metroid. The cover presents a very strong, manly character in a suit that can be described as ‘only male characters wear’. At the very end of the game, the manly character reveals themselves to be female. This suggests how nobody knows until the end of the game, many people who play the game automatically assume it’s a male because of the appearance in the ’suit’ and that stereotypically, women don’t present themselves that way, once again showing that males have more authority over women. Once Samus (the character) reveals to be a female, it shows that you will never know what gender the character is. Would it decrease sales of the game if it was known from the start that Samus was a female? When she reveals herself, she is massively over sexualised wearing a tight blue suit and has her hair in a long ponytail. The juxtaposition between a very ‘manly’, strong character who ends up being, yet another over sexualised female is major and should not be allowed.
In summary, I believe that the two game covers are reactionary for its audience, both males. For Tomb Raider, the character is female and extremely over sexualised, allowing customers to purchase the game more as they are attracted to the front cover. For Metroid, the character is male and is perceived as strong, again allowing the customers to buy it more as the male audience like the fact the character is strong and manly. Both are seen as reactionary and radical in their own ways and I personally think that they should do better and think about how they are perceiving women and how damaging that is.
ANALYSE THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SIGNIFIERS AND SIGNIFIEDS IN THE TWO CSP GAMES COVERS
The relationship between signifiers and signifieds in the CSP game covers: Tomb Raider and Metroid can be interpreted in differing ways and can be supported by differing evidence, ideologies, and theories. For example, Ferdinand Saussure’s theory states that “signs of language are arbitrary”, meaning that there is a clear link between a symbol’s physical appearance and the deeper connotation, or meaning we take and express from it. In both video game productions, Saussure’s theories are displayed through the representation of gender. Furthermore, I will interpret the stereotype’s today’s society associates with gender, expression of sexuality, race and ethnicity.
In this essay, I will argue that Tomb Raider is both a reactionary and a negative representation of femininity, I believe that the cover presents a damaging and unrealistic portrayal of the female body and female identity, in general, to the gaming community, also children and teenagers who are influenced by modern media, and the games they interact with.
On the other hand, I will argue that Metroid is a radical and relatively more positive representation of femininity, and masculinity. I believe that the game displays a refreshing and counter typical portrayal of female identity which is often lacking in the majority of game productions. However, the representational ‘norm’ of females still manages to feature.
The ‘Tomb Raider’ cover design includes a dominant signifier, main image of a female character (Lara Croft), her appearance is over sexualised and exaggerated through the character having emphasised physical features as well as tight and exposing clothing which accentuate her ‘perfect body’. Her skin is flawless, with excessive makeup and her hair perfectly styled, creating a totally unrealistic figure for players to look up to. It is evident that this character has been constructed to appeal to and satisfy the ‘Male Gaze’. The ‘Male Gaze’; a feminist, theoretical ideology that was formed by Laura Mulvey, a British film critic, within her essay ‘Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema’. The theory encapsulates the idea that female characters, or feminine characters, in visual arts and literature are often presented as sexual objects for heterosexual male gratification. The presentation of this character also echoes the theory of voyeurism which is the act of gaining sexual pleasure from watching others present themselves in a sexual nature. Lara Croft’s representation links to Mulvey’s notion that “The cinema offers a number of possible pleasures. One is Scopophilia.” In this case, video games take the place of the Cinema, however, the idea remains un-changed. The way in which the dominant signifier is idealised and how her expression of sexuality is exaggerated displays the way in which the video game industry use women as an object that are desired and created solely for the male player to ‘enjoy’. The cover also includes a paradigm of signifiers relating to adventure, action and violence. These iconic signs such as: a gun that the main character holds, a backpack and a rope counteract the social stereotype of femininity as they have connotations of a more masculine personality.
On the other hand, this production could be interpreted as a counter-type as it, seemingly, goes against the stereotypical ‘Damsel in distress’ device that is featured heavily in many games, even the most successful: Mario series uses this plot device to make out that women are somewhat weaker or less capable than their male counterpart. Anita Sarkeesian of ‘Feminist Frequency’, an online blog that comments on the representation of women in popular culture, expressed the theory that female, cartoon, video game characters are portrayed as the hyper-sexualised ‘damsel in distress’, who is dependent on the strength of the male hero to be saved from difficulty. Sarkeesian said that “Adventures in which women work to save men in peril are extremely rare” – so – this is archaic, systemic presentation is never seen with a role reversal. This misogynistic, dominant ideology is clearly influenced and ingrained by the patriarchy in society. Rising feminist attitudes have sparked change and development however the selective representation seen in video game production demonstrates the way in which the industry views women. I believe that the societal view on femininity counteracts with how society sees feminism as a celebrated, powerful and political movement showing strength. The symbolic signifier of the black background on the CSP could symbolise a danger, a quest or a difficulty the character has to face and the symbolic signifier or the gold beams of light could signify victory that the character will achieve on her own, or the slightly more masculine representation of her could manipulate the player and denote that she will play the expected role of the Damsel in distress after all.
Additionally, the Metroid cover contains a dominant signifier, main image of a female character (Samus Aran) disguised as a robotic figure (Metroid) which has many links to science fiction, robotics and combat. These signifiers are accompanied by indexical signifiers such as mathematics related coding, numbers and scientific diagrams and shapes, creating a myth that displays links to action, suspense, a quest or challenge which may feature in the game, symbolising the characters hegemony. The symbolic signifier of a white, smoke-like effect behind the dominant signifier could connote to a sense of power and independence the character has, on her own, regardless of her ‘Metroid’ alter-ego. The Metroid character is commonly most associated with more masculine connotations and would stereotypically be depicted by a male. Evidently, this character counteracts this stereotypical representation, demonstrating a radical presentation. The media industry rarely displays counter-types in a positive light. Specifically in gaming, counter-types don’t reflect the real world, this reflects this quote – “what often gets lost in the exhausting, furious online discourse around representation is real-world experience” – from Guardian article: ‘Why diversity matters in the modern video games industry’. Along with representation of gender, the concept can relate to a lack of representation of different identities such as someone’s race, sexuality, ethnicity and personal background. Diversity within the virtual gaming world is often scarce. A quote from the same article sourced from the Guardian; “The industry traditionally projects an image that is young, white, straight and male”. Even though “A 2015 study showed that 83% of non-Hispanic Black teenagers play video games”, players of minority group’s struggle to find a projection of themselves in the games they chose to play. Not only does the industry lack realistic representation of women, it also lacks diversity and inclusion of people of colour. However, at the end of the game, Samus Aran is revealed wearing a blue body suit, in which, her body is majorly exaggerated and enhanced. Presenting an idealistic and non-realistic body type. This refreshing presentation is snatched away and the game, like so many others, fall into the archaic ways of appealing to the Male Gaze as a sales strategy. To summarise, both ‘Tomb Raider’ and ‘Metroid’ include signifiers relating to power, strength and masculinity which are juxtaposed by the use of two female, feminine characters. Even though these characters create a strong, independent figure for players to aspire to, the political occupation of their bodies represents the characters as sexual objects for male pleasure which is not a positive aspiration.
In this essay I am going to apply a semiotic analysis to both the Tomb Raider and the Metroid video games covers. I will argue that Tomb Raider portrays a radical representation of female protagonists whereas Metroid presents a more reactionary representation of a typical male protagonist.
The cover of Tomb Raider provides a dominant signifying image of the main protagonist Lara Croft who is presented as feminine. This corresponds to Toril Moi’s analysis of the distinction between female, feminine, feminist categories of representation (1987) and is highlighted by the characters long hair and soft features which have been culturally identified as womanly characteristics. Despite being represented as feminine, the mise-en-scene yields a radical representation of women due to the guns being used as indexical signs which connote to danger and therefore contradicts the typical ideology that women are weak and pathetic – instead, Croft is portrayed as a brave and daring protagonist. Her rebellious persona is reinforced through the plot line of the game where she must undergo a dangerous journey independently which juxtaposes Anita Sarkeesian’s idea of the ‘damsel in distress’ (Feminist Frequency). The trope highlights the stereotypical plot line where by typically there is a female character (the ‘damsel in distress’) which ‘must be saved by a male character’ as ‘motivation for the protagonists quest’ which is not the case in Tomb Raider. This creates a positive representation of women as, contradictory to most games, Croft does not rely on the help of a male character to complete her quest and therefore creates a beneficial influence on the gaming community as it encourages them to have a more open mind in terms of the way in which women should be presented compared to how they typically are presented.
Whilst this representation may feel liberating for female audiences, in terms of her physical appearance and the sexual nature of the way in which she is presented, can also be seen as degrading in the sense that her sexual image is being used to attract a more dominant, profitable male audience. The paradigm of small, tight clothing, provocative stance and seductive facial expression which make up her objectified persona, reflects upon Laura Mulvey’s notion on the male gaze in that the dominant signifier is designed in such a way that she appears sexualised – in the words of Mulvey, she is a character whose “appearance [is] coded for [a] strong visual and erotic impact” (“Visual and Other Pleasures”, 1989) in order to feed the voyeuristic tendencies of the video game industry. By dressing Lara Croft in small clothing and using her body as a selling point, video game designers are criticising the counter-type of bringing a female protagonist into a male-dominated industry as it takes away from the practical, liberating aspect of her character well as her purpose in the game. In that sense, you could argue that this is a reactionary representation of women as this is a common image used in media in order to generate sales
In contrast, the front cover of Metroid provides a dominant signifying image of a robotic figure , presumably the main character, and is presented as masculine however, is not explicitly said to be male. This contrasts to Toril Moi’s analysis of the distinction between female, feminine, feminist categories of representation (1987) as the build of the protagonist appears muscular and broad which are characteristics which have been collectively recognised as masculine. This creates a reactionary representation of men as the cover displays a stereotypical masculine hero which is presented as powerful and dominant in order to fit their common purpose of ‘saving the world’. This is reinforced by the white glow surrounding the protagonist which is a symbolic sign representative of their integrity and selflessness – typical personality characteristics a hero would posses. The indexical sign of the gun attached to the robots suit also implies this as it has connotations of combat and violence and therefore portrays the signifier brave and fearless. This juxtaposes Anita Sarkeesian’s, from Feminist Frequency, idea that women are more than often the selling point of video games – she states that designers ‘make them [women] exude sexuality for the entertainment of the presumed straight male player’ which is not the case for Metroid. Instead, Metroid displays how it is easy to exceeded sales using a perfectly masculine character rather than utilising the objectified image of a woman to do so.
However, according to my schematic knowledge on the game Metroid, beneath the masculine armour is a female protagonist which is not evident from the front cover. Therefore you could argue that Metroid creates a radical representation of women in that it once again contradict the ‘damsel in distress’ trope theorises by Anita Sarkeesian as discussed earlier as Samus is portrayed as the hero rather than the victim. However, and more importantly, it once again uses the image of a sexualised women to generate a wider, typically male, audience. Similar to Lara croft from Tomb Raider, the objectification of the dominant signifier corresponds with Laura Mulvey’s theory of the male gaze which attracts ‘obsessive voyeurs and peeping toms whose only sexual satisfaction can come from watching, in an active controlling sense, an objectified other.’ (Visual and Other Pleasures (1989)). This highlights the common utilisation of women in media as profit-makers whilst according to Jean Kilbourne on her observations of women in advertising does not ‘directly cause violence against women but they [it] normalise[es] a dangerous attitude’ (for TEDx) which is when problems begin to arise.
To conclude, both Metroid and Tomb Raider portray two rather similar representations of female protagonists in the sense that they are both presented as radical due to their bravery and independence as well as also both being sexualised to meet the wants of the typical straight male audience. However, the small difference is that this representation is a lot less obvious with regards to the Metroid front cover compared to the Tomb Raider front cover due to the main character being portrayed as a masculine figure at first glance.
