What video games are appealing to women?

I was recently at my friend’s house for a BBQ. My girlfriend who hosted the soiree is a project manager at EA Games. Once my friend found this out his eyes lit up. Being a huge fan of the game Madden, an animated conversation was started about the game’s history. I was at a loss keeping up and my friend joked - “It’s a guy’s game”. Which made me question, "What are 'girls' games?'"

Personally, there not a lot of video games I like. I had a PlayStation for a few years and had a few games. But the only time I would play them was if a friend visiting wanted to play. I often found the game choices for women were really limited and I was often offended how violence and gross stereotypes of women were main focuses in most video games. I find myself now playing Yahtzee or Sudoku on my phone more than anything as its perfect while waiting for the bus or between appointments. Is this only specific to me or is this definitive of the female gamer?

Doing a little research, the stereotype of the female gamer portrays women as only being interested in casual games and only playing on the computer or online. They are unlikely to buy a game or console as they are not a committed gamer. Therefore, consoles and games are marketed heavily to men because that is the core demographic. However, a recent study counters this argument. Entertainment Software Association reported 40 percent of video gamers in North America are women. Women over 18 represent a third of the gamers, outnumbering the stereotypical teenage boy gamers, which only represent a fifth of the pie. Women also account for half of those buying games. Online and wireless, women gamers make up 44% of the gaming population. The top selling games of 2009 and early 2010 show the influence women gamers have on buying trends - 13 out of the 20 bestselling video game titles of 2009 were rated E for everyone and 11 were made for Nintendo Wii or DS.

It seems too that women are drawn to games that relate to their lives; whether it is something they can play with their kids to bond or connect to their life, values and schedules. Robyn Tippins, a community manager at Yahoo, commented in the article, "Where are the Video Games Women Really Want?": "Games that hook into real life more will broaden the market tremendously. Games like Wii Fit explore the connection between 'time wasted' playing a game and 'time used productively' playing a game. A game that lets me feel like I've accomplished something worth doing, rather than just another cool sword dropped in (as in World of Warcraft), appeals a lot more to me. And I need games that don't involve quite the time sink that so many traditional games do." I tend to agree with Miss Tippins, if I were to buy another console it would be a Nintendo DS which I could tuck into my purse in order to play Brain Age when a free moment arose. I guess that’s my “girl's game.”