by Vivienne Chan
Ever since I finished playing Bayonetta a few years ago, I’ve had this hazy image of what my ideal female lead in a video game might look like. These thoughts were obviously triggered by all the discussion around how Bayonetta was or wasn’t sexist, how it did or didn’t support traditional views on women, and all the rest of the stuff related with unrealistic lady bits and female appendages. A few years on, following extensive reflection through a variety of video games (and life lessons, admittedly), that hazy, misty, vaguely formed femme has somewhat solidified.
Before I describe her to you, what you need to know is who I am. This impulse is far from me tooting a self-made horn or even being possessed of a bone-crushing desire to talk more about myself, the point of this is to impart to you the importance of CONTEXT. I am a heterosexual, cisgender lady in my late 20s who has recently discovered the “girly” world of makeup, nail polish and self-indulgent skincare. I struggle with issues of body image, thinking one day that I am the hottest bitch that ever walked the earth, yet hating everything I see in the mirror on the very next day. I was born in Hong Kong and am Chinese. I have a younger sister and my parents are still together. I’ve lived a privileged life that has found me living in new cities and countries, spanning three continents, every few years. I currently work in the mental health industry. I am in a stable relationship and I would like to one day get married and have kids. I would also one day like to become a family therapist.
Given all that, my ideal female lead in a game would different than it may be for a lady who is younger, older, married, single, from a different cultural background, from a different socioeconomic background, or in a different career. It would also be different to that of a lady who has kids, who had a single parent, who was an only child, who is homosexual… you get my drift. The point I’m making is that there is no magical “ideal” female lead that all ladies will agree is the “ultimate” or “best” paragon of femininity. There is only one that can be defined by the individual, based on that individual’s values, beliefs, and experiences.
And that, I suppose, is where discussions about whether Bayonetta is the hallmark of age-old misogyny or that of a revolutionary new kind of feminism all fall flat on their face. Context matters. There is no right or wrong answer, only the expression of a view that is informed by your life, which is highly individual, no matter how “close” or “similar” you may feel to your peers. Everyone – and I do mean EVERYONE, male or female – is going to have a different answer to “what makes a great female lead in a video game.”
Maybe that speaks to a greater failing in the world in general, where context is so easily forgotten because we get so wrapped up in our own that we lose sight of the equally valuable and rich stories of the people around us. Very likely. But that’s a much bigger discussion, better had in dialogue rather than in a single-sided expression of an opinion.
So: my ideal female lead would be someone who is shamelessly beautiful, almost to the extent that it can be offensive. She would have long dark hair, she would be tall, and she would be athletic with slamming curves. She would also be fully aware that she was beautiful, but it wouldn’t be her defining characteristic; instead, her defining characteristic would be her tenacity, her drive, her complex personality that is caring but ferocious at the same time. It would be her ability to beat down enemies – women and men alike – without breaking a nail, and she would do so wearing whatever the hell she thought was the best thing to wear at the time, whether it be a skimpy catsuit unzipped to her navel or full body armor. She would be charming and intimidating at the same time, and will make no goddamn apologies for who she is or what she stands for. (And if she snags an equally badass Turian boyfriend with a sexy visor and a sexier voice along the way, with whom she can be a badass and show the vulnerability that any believable character has smashed down deep within, so much the better.)
Basically, I want Bayonetta and FemShep and Faith (from Mirror’s Edge) to collide head-on in a merging of pure, unadulterated, utterly feminine awesomeness. Screw the “muted” attractiveness that Jade from Beyond Good and Evil brought to the table – I want a lady who is unapologetically gorgeous and is comfortable in that skin.
It’s a tall order and a very likely unrealistic one. Stepping away from the specifics of it, really what I’m looking for is a three-dimensional female character who does not apologize for being female. Jade was a great character, but some of her acclaim as a female lead came from the fact that she was obviously attractive, but in a “toned down” way. I’m saying that I don’t think you need to make a girl look less girly in order to appreciate that girls can be taken seriously.
There will be ladies who disagree with my view, and that’s okay. In fact, that’s the point. It doesn’t mean anyone is right or wrong. I just think it’s useful for us to remember that there are multiple definitions of a “strong female” and getting locked into just one definition is as unhelpful as some straight-up old school sexism.
Am I aware that female video game characters are frequently designed – in character and in appearance – by men? Yeah, of course. The number of 36DD’s I’ve seen that defy all laws of bra design and physics (and biology, come to that) can attest to that. But that’s not to say I have an issue that’s specific to big boobs or even revealing clothing. If it’s true to the character and if it’s true to the style of the game, true to who she is, and true to what she’s about (i.e. Bayonetta), then go have the time of your damn life! And FemShep does well, too, what with wearing practical armor that doesn’t show off much, but apparently also indulging in some lacy underwear. Fine by me. But if the big-boob-small-bra get-up is there for sake of fan service, for no reason other than to make people drool while playing the game, then I have to wonder precisely what the intended message is.
And maybe that’s what I’m trying to say here. A strong female lead can take many forms and we each (as women and men) have differing views on what those forms look like. These views are informed by highly personal influences, from our culture to our experience. So you’ll never make everyone happy, not really; you can only truly hope to appease or to give a token nod. But no matter what the end “product” winds up looking like, I reckon that more than seeking to satisfy some mythical definition of the “strong female,” game designers and players alike should ask: “What’s the message here?” What message is this character communicating to me? What does this character portray or symbolize? When I, the player, or I, the designer, look at this character, what impact does she have on the way I perceive women? I think when it becomes more evident that this message has taken the (more obvious) lead in character design, we’ll begin to see more unique, unboxed, complex female characters that are equal parts memorable, influential, positive, and feminine.
Further reading: The Buxom and the Beast: Why I Need Monsters as a Feminist (Medium Difficulty)
Round One: Brazzers vs. the Fighter Industry (Medium Difficulty)
