Helen Lewis

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The official Olympics videogame thinks women's sports are boring

Sega only likes women if they're in bikinis.

A male-only athletics race from the London 2012 videogame.
A male-only athletics race from the London 2012 videogame.

The official Olympics 2012 videogame -- called, imaginatively, London 2012: The Official Videogame -- appears to think men's sports are more important than women's.

The game, which is currently top of the all-formats charts, offers the following sports:

 

Archery

§  Individual

§  Team

Aquatics

§  3m springboard diving

§  3m synchronised springboard diving

§  10m platform diving

§  10m synchronised platform diving

§  Swimming – 50m freestyle

§  Swimming – 100m backstroke

§  Swimming – 100m breaststroke

§  Swimming – 100m butterfly

§  Swimming – 100m freestyle

Gymnastics

§  Trampoline (men only)

§   Vault

Shooting

§  25 metre rapid fire pistol (men only)

§  Skeet shooting

Track and field

§  100m (men only)

§  110m hurdles (men only)

§  200m (men only)

§  400m

§  Discus throw (men only)

§  High jump

§  Javelin throw (men only)

§  Long jump (men only)

§  Shot put (men only)

§  Triple jump (men only)

Other sports

§  Beach volleyball (women only)

§  Canoe slalom – K1 Kayak (men only)

§  Cycling – Keirin (men only)

§  Rowing – Single sculls (men only)

§  Table tennis (men only)

§  Weightlifting over 105kg (men only)

 

I've checked with the publisher, Sega, and they confirm that this is the correct listing. There are indeed 15 men-only sports.

There is just one women-only sport . . . and I bet you could have guessed what it was.

Yes, it's the one where the contestants wear bikinis:

 

I just find this really odd. It's not as though there is a huge extra cost involved in making female avatars. Neither is it the case that there are droves of world-renowned male canoe slalom contestants, but no female ones.

A source at Sega says that the sports were chosen "for what works best for gameplay", but that doesn't make much sense to me either. Is a manly way of firing a pistol much more enjoyable than a ladylike one?

The only conclusion I can come to is that Sega see "male" as default, and only include women where they're useful for sexy box art/promotional reasons. Which is really weird, given that the game's rating is "3" - ie suitable for ages three and up. This isn't a game where the buyers are assumed to be drooling male adolescents, which is the usual excuse people make for including objectified female characters.

So what's the reason for making London 2012 such a sausage-fest?

 

38 comments

Jamesthecritic's picture

I find you comparing my penis to a sausage highly offensive.

JohnR's picture

Great oaks from little acorns grow, and great umbrage from little sources, it appears. Let's see; by my count there are within this effort 15 both-gender games, 15 male-only games and 1 female-only game. I make that 30 male games to 16 female games. Unbalanced, definitely, but in what way does this support the opening:
"The official Olympics videogame thinks women's sports are boring.
Sega only likes women if they're in bikinis."
Are there no women in the "both-gender" game offerings?
I realize that much of these discussions is based primarily on emotion and resentment, but is it necessary to take that approach?
Personally, and speaking only for myself, while I much prefer to watch women's sports (which no longer include gymnastics, alas), I would rather play games involving male protagonists. Call me old-fashioned, but I have some level of discomfort playing as a female character - I can't concentrate properly on what I should be doing in the game. Is it possible that these games are aimed at, or expect to be purchased and played by, a largely male audience? I don't know, probably not, but I don't think you know either. As far as I can tell, you just picked your conclusion and ran with it. It would have been an interesting column if you had actually made more of an effort to find out what the underlying forces were, whether this was a more wide-spread phenomenon, and what (for example) Epyx chose to do with their series of computer games back in the 80s that included Summer Games, Winter Games and California Games, among others.

Darren Lee's picture

Also, what fun is it when the only difference is that the womens times will be slower, jumps lower, etc. I feel that if they did this you would have the complaint that the game is still unfairly biased towards women because they don't reach the levels men do.

Darren Lee's picture

Also, what fun is it when the only difference is that the womens times will be slower, jumps lower, etc. I feel that if they did this you would have the complaint that the game is still unfairly biased towards women because they don't reach the levels men do.

Darren Lee's picture

While it does seem questionable that Sega would not include many of the women's sprinting events, the main problem with this article is the tone. The way I read it, the article is very inflammatory. Instead of saying Sega needs to include women's events, you jump to the conclusion that they only like women in their bikinis. This makes people angry, and consequently, post additional inflammatory arguments back at you. You then use these new posts as proof that you're right and that all these women hating bigots are out to get you.

Also, it's almost impossible to use the argument that women in beach volleyball who wear bikinis are being objectified. Americans Walsh and May-Treanor (London 2012 gold medalists) and Kessy and Ross (London 2012 silver medalists) all perfer to wear bikinis during competition.

Darren Lee's picture

While it does seem questionable that Sega would not include many of the women's sprinting events, the main problem with this article is the tone. The way I read it, the article is very inflammatory. Instead of saying Sega needs to include women's events, you jump to the conclusion that they only like women in their bikinis. This makes people angry, and consequently, post additional inflammatory arguments back at you. You then use these new posts as proof that you're right and that all these women hating bigots are out to get you.

Also, it's almost impossible to use the argument that women in beach volleyball who wear bikinis are being objectified. Americans Walsh and May-Treanor (London 2012 gold medalists) and Kessy and Ross (London 2012 silver medalists) all perfer to wear bikinis during competition.

Joe Williams's picture

Regardless of whether there is an extra cost induced in making a female avatar, it's besides the point. You cannot make a game for an event which tries to emphasize equality within it and then only include one sexes events. It's not fair and is contradictory of what the Olympics strives to achieve

TOTO's picture

Women's sports are boring. It's okay

Jono's picture

The real question that remains to be answered is... how can you actually make a decent video game out of half those sports?

hugh markey's picture

Game-theory? Participation in the virtual world? How's that again?

Avatar

Job Lot's picture

Trampoline: men only? Surely some mistake?

TheOldStatesman's picture

Funnily enough, I've just picked up my iOS device and looked at the London 2012 game for it, and every single discipline that you can enter involves both men and women in the same race.

@wooznam's picture

market analysis was probably used before hand, which would have probably suggested the typical marget group that play game console games are male and thus the events portrayed in the game would reflect this market group.

Be honest, out of those of you complaining, how many of you intend to go out and buy the game. If not, it is exactly for that reason, that you are not the target group. I doubt any sexist principles were applied, only target marketing and what will maximise revenues

WeekWoman's picture

Maybe more of them would buy the games if they were not so clearly aimed at a different 'target'; furthermore, at least 40% of gamers are women. Not sure the sound marketing argument holds in the face of that statistic...

John A's picture

My guess would be that this came down to time or resources. Adding the women's versions of events would require extra assets--not just the avatar models but a whole new set of animations and sound--so I'd guess that someone decided to spend the resources making more events but having some of them men-only, rather than fewer events available to both sexes. Which is still sexist, but is understandable.

McMac's picture

Perhaps they bottled out? How would the feminist twiterers and online critics react to a game where the female avatars ran slower, jumped lower, threw closer than the male ones? What’s the politically correct way of handicapping virtual female canoeists to maintain a realistic differentiation in performance?

A realist's picture

They are not even especially men or womens sports. Women do most of the sports that men do.
Women in sport is going to be the next big thing. Football, martial arts, weight lifting, running, swimming, rowing, archery, shooting. You name it, women are in it. I've spoken to lots of men at the gym that love womens football and not just for the shorts, but love watching the game.

Many girls and women like playing computer games and this is a massive market to ignore. Totally foolish. It's not even just an equality issue, but a stupid marketing and financial mistake not to include women. If i was going to invest a few quid, it would be in womens sport. Even saudi arabia is getting involved- big money to be had.

completely random's picture

Have Sega been able to make enough avatars to fill the seats, so that you can be watched whilst playing male dominated sports?

McMac's picture

How bizarre, why wouldn't they make female versions of events? A poorly judged decision. Lots of female sports are just as compelling as the male versions.

I assume 'Official' means there's some sort of IOC licensing, wonder what they have to say on the subject?

joe hill's picture

Feminazis whinging about unimportant stuff. Does it ever end? God, does it ever end. get a life. Womens sports ARE boring. Except the beach volleyball obviously (and unoriginally)

sianushka's picture

wow, male commenters using silly insults to write about how they think an article is unimportant, so unimportant that they felt the need to click on the link, read it and comment. when will it end? god when will it end.

Brandon's picture

I just don't see the point in caring... The game won't do that well anyway... How about that Chic-fil-a thing... that seems like a much better way to waste time and money...

Aren't there people dying somewhere for stuff... or something like that...?

completely random's picture

There used to be, but now the only thing that matters in the world is the Olympics. I can't even remember where Syria is on the map, much less exactly how many thousands of people have been slaughtered so far.

GO GB, I'll just die if we don't win lots of medals!

Spud Middleton's picture

Oh jesus...this auld chestnut. Here's the thing: women's sport is boring...a lot of them anyway. And I speak as someone who's coached a girl's football them and a women's football team...and enjoyed doing it. I got immense satisfaction from it as the women became more skilful, more confident, better organised and indeed successful. Both teams won their respective leagues and we won a local cup competition. All in all, a most gratifying experience both for myself and the players. I still watch local women's football occasionally out of interest as I know many local players and coaches. But would I watch a women's game for pleasure? No chance. Not if there was a men's game as an alternative; which, let's face it there always is. The skill levels, fitness, pace and aggression are all markedly higher.

Last time I had this argument I was confronted with the "yeah but it's so much more more graceful" line of thinking. To which I rejoin a) no it isn't and b) WTF's grace got to do with it? It's sport we're talking about. Any sport which rewards "artistic interpretation", has a "degree of difficulty" factored in or can be played with a fag in your mouth isn't a sport in my book...and I suspect many other people's especially men's. Such activities are at best pastimes. But more generally, if you're into athletics, say, which is about being fastest, strongest or going further or higher etc, you'd have to privilege men's sport over women's; not through any latent misogyny but from the intrinsic logic behind the whole point of the events in question.

The article also fails to mention whether any Paralympic events are included. Now I'm not gonna accuse the writer of any ableist tendencies as a result of this omission, but if her concerns about the absence of women's sport rests on sport's ability to embody drama, courage, fortitude and endeavour which are, indeed, no less prevalent in women's sport than men's, then I find it curious that Paralympians, in whom all these qualities area often doubly pronounced just by making it to he start-line, aren't mentioned. Personally, I watch sport hoping to see all these attributes. It's just that as the ability levels rise all these qualities tend to benefit from a dramatic heightening by virtue of the greater tension and stakes at the elite levels of the men's versions. Just as Shakespeare wrote King Lear and not 'Stan Lear' the retiring chip shop owner who can't decide which daughter gets the fish slice.
I think this results from differing attitudes to sport among men and women and he fact that most gamers are men. It was a decision based on economics. Unless of course you're on a mission to find misogyny wherever you look in which case it's another case of the patriarchy seeking to belittle and undermine women at every turn.
The beach-volleyball thing is a fairly depressing but predictable turn. However, the need to pander to adolescent male fantasies, could be ameliorated by giving the sprinters disproportionate bulges in strategic locations. It's probably a good thing that little sleaze bags at least get to feel like inadequate little sleaze bags.

Pavlova's picture

The trouble with men is they think that everyone thinks like they do.

I prefer watching wmen's sport. It's more artful, more involving, the participants seem more interesting characters, they seem to value taking part rather than just bashing through time barriers. And I genuinely cannot stand watching male football as the players are such repulsive people on and off the pitch, the women's game is a breath of fresh air.

As to the point about market research, it's a chicken and egg situation, i would suspect that most women expect computer games to be sexist and hostile, whether that is true or not, and so their interest in them reflects that.

Hmmm's picture

You realize that the entire point of spriting events, both male and female, is to "bash through time barriers". You may want to understand what your argument is prior to posting something.

Spud Middleton's picture

"I prefer watching wmen's sport. It's more artful, more involving, the participants seem more interesting characters, they seem to value taking part rather than just bashing through time barriers. "

More "artful"? Well that's nice. I've got nothing against "artful", but "artful" has no place in sport. Sport is not about art. It's about skill, strength, fitness, coordination, strategy, efficiency but not "art". And why exactly does it have to be "involving"? Are you hinting that you're looking for "inclusivity"? This reminds me of the days of non-competitive sportsdays at schools. I went to one once where we all had to stick around to cheer on the fat kid for making it to the finish line 5 minutes after everybody else- mainly cos he'd stopped for a breather and a Mars bar half way around. I'm possibly being a bit too dismissive of that kind of thing here; it has its place but it isn't competitive sport. And this is a game based on the Olympics; not St Michael's primary egg and spoon relay. 'Competitive' and 'inclusive' just don't hit it off. Seriously, if you're looking for artful and inclusive, why are you looking to sport? Wouldn't you be better off going in for tap dancing or Zumba?

TheOldStatesman's picture

Wow. Way to open with a massively sexist line, Feminazi!
It goes both ways you know.

You genuinely cannot stand to watch male football but good luck getting a ticket to a Team GB Men's game. I can still get tickets to the womens...

Pavlova's picture

Hardly surprising as men's football has dominated Britain's sport coverage for the past 100 years isn't. Men do like watching themselves, talking about themselves and celebrating themselves, but this has little to do with how interesting they are to the rest of us.

Spud Middleton's picture

Well I'm not going to stoop to such a stupid and artless generalisation and make a disparaging comment about the whole of womankind. I find many many women fascinating, informative and inspirational. I'll restrict myself to present company and simply let you know that you're about as interesting as the radiator I painted this morning...though perhaps slightly less entertaining.

Dark Heart of Toryland's picture

While I do wholly agree with your general point about mindless and unthinking sexism, it has to be said that the Official Olympics Videogame is hardly the most enticing of prospects anyway. I can't imagine it would be any less mind-numbingly tedious than it sounds, even it did accurately represent the gender balance.

Helen Lewis's picture

You say that, but it's Number One!

Ben_Jay's picture

Perhaps if the writer of this article had actually played/viewed the game instead of just copying and pasting the list of sports, they would realise it includes dozens of women-only events, it's just that they also include men-only events of the same sport. There are women-only versions of the breaststroke, high jump, skeet shooting and archery in this game to name but a few. There are plenty of female avatars as well as female commentators.

Helen Lewis's picture

Hi Ben,

I didn't just "copy and paste"  - I checked the list with Sega and they confirmed it was accurate. As the article says, both male and female version of the archery, aquatics, skeet shooting etc are included.

Helen  

 

Ben_Jay's picture

The list is accurate but it's not explicitly stated that most of the sports feature women rather than just one as implied by the article, which judging by some of the comments is what a lot of readers have understood from it. If there was only one sport with women athletes I'd disapprove too, but as this is not the case, it's misleading to say 'Sega only likes women in bikinis' and uses them for promotional reasons. It just seems to me there are more important, real examples of sexism out there.

Eddie_b's picture

Ben you have missed the point. I think I have worked out what an electronic peinis is.

Eddie_b's picture

Also if you think about it how many pixels does it take to make an electronic peinis and what would this "item" function in the game anyway?

GarrowsKai's picture

The biggest issue is just what's the point of not having both sexes on each sprt featured. Really does just make no sense.

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