Women and Casual Games: A Rant

So in a study recently conducted by the Electronic Software Association, it was found that adult women now almost outnumber teenage boys as gamers. To which  many people responded “Duh”. It certainly makes sense when you consider not only the increase in mobile games, but that women in general are genuinely getting more into gaming.

But of course with such a huge announcement comes the inevitable backlash and it only takes one look at a comments section on the study to see just how polarizing the opinions are. The major point of contention seems to be that the study was skewed due to mobile phones, and their majority middle aged mom demographic, being included.

This isn’t a new argument. The “mobile games aren’t real games” debate has been going on since the invention of mobile games themselves. It’s nearly as long as the “casual vs. hardcore gamer” debate, but not quite as long as the “Are women gamers?” debate (although that’s not so much a debate as it is trying to convince a wall to move).

So let’s address the first issue, which is one that has been plaguing the gaming community since the advent of smart phones: Should mobile games be considered games? What makes a game? Should the likes of “Candy Crush” be taken out of the study because of its lack of storyline and depth?

Full disclosure: I have yet to play Candy Crush

Well…no…no, it shouldn’t. Look, guys, there is a cold, hard truth that you are going to have to accept: games are evolving. The sheer scope of video games has increased dramatically since the days of Pong. There are FPS’, adventure games, survival horror games, platformers, puzzle games, simulations, strategy games. Some of them are Triple A titles. Some of them are Indie. Some are considered works of art. Others are considered just bright, colourful fun (hi, Nintendo!). Some are on PC. Some are on consoles. Some are on Facebook. And some of them, yes, are on your phone, a device that everyone in this First World of ours uses.

They are numerous and they are varied, but at their heart games all have one thing in common: they are virtual, interactive experiences. To take one genre out simply because you don’t feel it fits into your definition of what makes “a game” or because you feel it skews the demographic of who developers should be marketing would be is pointless. We might as well break down every single genre and subgenre. How many women play PC games? How many play PC indie games? Or Nintendo games? Or Playstation FPS games?

Or 2D side scrolling sandbox games?!

But that that brings up the next issue: who cares? Oh, I know why the marketers care. They want an idea of who they should be making games for. They need to know how to make money.

But why do we, the gamers, care? Why do we get so upset at the idea that women might play more games whether they are an intense FPS or a simple Facebook game? You’d think it would be welcomed, but there they were: men, still arguing that women aren’t relevant in the gaming community; women, defending their status as a gamer declaring that they would never be caught dead with casual games; both women and men, appalled at the idea that their grandma would be included in the ranks of gamers.

And you know what? I’m ashamed to say that my knee jerk reaction was much the same. I even wrote a play a few years ago in which I took jabs at those Facebook games. Why should my mom who plays Words With Friends be compared to my ten hour a week commitment to complex, story-driven games (and the occasional shooting rampage)?

But then I thought about it. And the main question became not “Who should be included?” but “Isn’t this a GOOD thing?”. Isn’t it? More people are playing games. That is amazing news. So why are we worried?

There are the usual reasons. You’ve read them all over and over again in many articles so there’s not much need to go through them in detail. Guys feel threatened by all women gamers. People feel their exclusive club is being invaded by the “casuals”.

Terrifyingly simple but ADDICTIVE

And…admittedly, it’s somewhat true. Casual games are incredibly popular. They’re easy to access and quick to play. And yes, they are more often than not a money grab by social media websites. So it’s natural to have a fear that those casual games will eventually take over the entire market, that the complex Triple A titles or the experimental indie titles will be choked out by them. It happened to adventure games (oddly enough, they are now finding a new home on the mobile), what’s to say it won’t happen now?

This isn’t the first time we’ve had a debate like this though. Console games were once thought to be a threat to PC games. Mutliplayer was supposed to eradicate the single player game. And lo and behold, both are still alive and kicking today.

At least until this thing makes everything obsolete

As for the demographic itself…we have to accept that it’s evolving. It’s easy to assume that gamers belong to an exclusive club. It’s easy to dismiss anyone who doesn’t fit into our definition. But it’s an archaic and frankly dangerous belief.

We are on more equal footing. We now have generations of adults, both men and women, who grew up with games and who will continue to play them into their old age (if we don’t destroy ourselves in the apocalypse first). And yes, we have mothers and grandmas who have suddenly taken an interest.

But rather than exclude this new found demographic, rather than keep them out of a club that shouldn’t even exist, maybe we should be embracing the fact that they want to play games. If we’re worried about poorly made casual games taking over the market, then maybe we should introduce those casual gamers to other games.

Because you know what? There are many casual gamers who are still completely unaware at just how many games there are out there. Show them the Journey’s, the Gone Home’s, the To The Moon’s. There are some who might not show interest, but there are some that will. Or even better, show them some of the awesome mobile games out there. And there are some awesome ones. The more people are playing those games, the more likely developers will create them. That is what is known as a “good thing”. Numbers talk.

Let’s make a community, not a club. Let’s share our games, not put them up on a pedestal only we can reach. Or you could just go back to the Comment Section of Doom. I can assure you it’s not nearly as fun as you think.

Besides which, have you SEEN some of the mobile games lately? They are FANTASTIC! Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to play 2048 for the billionth time.

Jealous? Yoooou’re jealous!