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***Update 1 – 2015-08-21 – 19:48 CEST***

As Anita Sarkeesian released her “Hate and Heroism” video just the other day, It felt just about right for me to do an update on this article. Anyhow, this is how The Conference described Anita and her keynote presentation:

“2013 Anita Sarkeesian, Feminist Frequency, spoke at The Conference about online harassment and more specifically the threats she is receiving for her work. It hasn’t gotten better. Therefore Anita came back for a keynote presentation about the bigger picture and why baby steps isn’t enough to achieve goals we believe are fundamental for society. This is it. “



I have watched the whole +23 minutes long video, and there is no huge difference from Anita´s The Conference keynote presentation, and Anita´s “Tropes vs. Women in Video Games” video series. In the matter of fact, here are some of the things which Anita said during that keynote (many of them were repeated repeatedly):

“Gatekeepers”

“Gender gatekeeping”

“White straight men”

“Man dominated spaces”

“To make the internet a safer and more welcoming place for all genders”

“Sexism”

“Sexist thinking”

“Male Gamers”

And that made me think about a really good comment on the subject by a Reddit user called Bizz408 (as seen in the picture down below).

Then we got the part about Jonathan McIntosh being the puppet master of Anita Sarkeesian. If none of that ´s true, then how comes that they say almost the same exact things on Twitter and on other platforms all the time? Sure, even if McIntosh isn’t Anita´s puppet master. Then it´s at least a rather odd behavior I have to say.

And once again is Anita pushing the “victim narrative” when it comes to women in tech and Gaming. That men (aka “the boys club“) are discrediting females earned accomplishments. Where´s that facts to back that up? I would love to see some research and statistics on that subject.

Other than that, I have to say that Anita´s The Conference keynote was nothing more than a +20 minute long defense speech. And that most of the things that Anita brought up, has been said by her a million times before. However, it´s the first time that I´ve ever seen (or heard) Anita talk about the “Hitman Absolution” incident/fallacy in a defensive kind of way (it seems to have been a response to Thunderf00t´s “Anita Sarkeesian- BUSTED!” video).

Nevertheless, like always, Anita just claims that all the critique against her is nothing more than conspiracy theories, female harassment or false accusations. So it´s pretty much impossible to point out any flaws of Anita´s statements our video productions, as Anita uses these tactics by default (no matter the situation). I´m not saying that Anita shouldn´t have the right to defend herself (of course she do), because not everything that you might read, hear or see on the internet = the truth. However, if you watch videos such as “Anita Sarkeesian & GamerGate” (Feminism LOL), “Anita Sarkeesian Debunked (part 1)” (arbitor365), and “Anita Sarkeesian Lies Again” (MrRepzion), then you will start to realize that there is more to Anita (and her video series) than she will ever admit. And just for the record, we (The Gaming Ground) welcome females to come and work with us =) Just send us mail ([email protected]) if you´re interested to work with us.

So what do you guys and girls think about Anita´s “Hate and Heroism” keynote presentation? Let us know in the comment section!



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Let´s ruin the fun for everyone!

As Anita Sarkeesian and Jonathan Mcintosh (Feminist Frequency) have been whining, looking down on and ranting about video games since May 2012 (that´s the date when “Tropes vs. Women in Video Games“ Kickstarter campaign launched), I think it´s pretty legit to ask the following questions. What does Feminist Frequency want? What do they hope to achieve? And what would be the ultimate Feminist Frequency game be like? Especially since Feminist Frequency has targeted beloved AAA game titles and video game series for years now (FF pretty much doesn’t bother with indie titles. Hotline Miami is an exception though). However, over the years Feminist Frequency has always brought up the same old “issues”. And that would be “sexism”, “misogyny”, “sexist game design“, “male fantasies“, “female trope” and the constant whining about “masculinity” and “violence“. In fact, if you even try to understand the mindset of Jonathan Mcintosh. And try to put everything he has ever said about games into one single picture, then this would be it:

And if you have read everything there is to be read in the picture above, then you´re probably going to come to the same conclusion as the most of us. What does McIntosh (and Feminist Frequency) want from video games? I mean, the formula just doesn´t add up. Because no matter how much you twist and turn that picture around (and what FF and McIntosh have said), it´s pretty much impossible to make a game that doesn´t make Mcintosh or Sarkeesian upset in one way or another. And to prove my point, I took the liberty to gather some of Feminist Frequency´s tweets regarding games which they don´t like (most of which just happens to be famous AAA franchises).

So let´s have a look-see shall we?

Feminist Frequency on Doom 4:

Feminist Frequency on Fallout 4:

Feminist Frequency on Fallout Shelter:



Feminist Frequency on The Witcher 3:

Feminist Frequency on GTA5:



Feminist Frequency on Hotline Miami 1 and 2:



Feminist Frequency on Dying Light:



Feminist Frequency on Tomb Raider:



There is a lot hate and so little love for the games which we enjoy

And as you can see from the pictures which I have displayed for you (the ones above), Sarkeesian and Mcintosh have taken out a full swing at games such as “Doom 4,” “Fallout 4,” “Dying Light,” “GTA 5,” “Hotline Miami 1 and 2,” “The Witcher 3,” “Hitman Absolution,” and even “Fallout Shelter” and the “Tomb Raider” series. And there is a pattern to be found here. And that would be the fact that pretty much all the games which Sarkeesian and Mcintosh have ever complained about, is either one of the following:

A) A big AAA title or series

B) A game which contains violence

C) The game (s) has female or male characters (and I’m not being sarcastic either, because Feminist Frequency only bothers with characters whose gender can be told)

Whit that said, one might ask him/herself which games do Anita and Mcintosh enjoy? In fact, I do only recall two games which Sarkeesian has claimed that she really likes. And those games would be “Beyond Good and Evil” (Anita did not like Jade´s outfit though) and “The Scythian” (both games are a part of Anita´s “Positive Female Characters in Video Games” series). Nevertheless, the list over games which Feminist Frequency likes (approves of) are rather slim. So I thought for myself one night “what kind of game would be able to offer the ultimate Feminist Frequency gameplay experience?.” Well, with everything that I have just written fresh in mind. I have to admit that it´s rather hard to come up with a large list over games that Anita and Mcintosh would enjoy. And considering the fact that Tale of Tales (indie developers) “Sunset” failed miserably in a commercial success stand point (Sunset were made especially with Anita Sarkeesian in mind). It must be a rather hard task to create a game which FF won´t push aside as garbage, and at the same time try to create a game which have the potential to become an commercial success storie.

Well, as you might figure. This would be an impossible task to solve (the balance between keeping Feminist Frequency happy, and selling a lot of games), but let´s pretend that I/we are indie developers. And that we don´t care about profit, commercial success stories, the Gaming community etc . Then what kind of game would we create for Anita Sarkeesian and Jonathan Mcintosh? What genre would we pick? What would the game look and feel like? What would the plot be? Where would the game take place? And what would the character gallery look like?

Feel free to speculate on the subject and to share your thoughts and opinions in the comment section down below!

***Disclaimer***

This is a personal opinion of the writer, and it doesn’t necessarily represent the other writers (nor The Gaming Ground´s) opinions.



Robin “V-Act” Ek

The Gaming Ground

Twitter: @TheGamingGround

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Tags: Anita Sarkeesian, Feminist Frequency, Jonathan McIntosh, Portrayal of women in video games, Tropes vs. Women in Video Games