arbiter
Guest
;D
Gender Balance of Playable Characters
- Thread starter tofurkey
- Start date
Well, honestly, I don't plan it out.
In Barren, my current main game, the (only) main character is male.
In Empty Faith (god I hate working titles) the main character is a lesbian captain of the armed forces, just because that happened to fit the character.
I basically say fuck gender balance, I'm putting in whichever characters work, in the storyline.
In EF, the main character comes from a race with a long history of gay rights/equality, etc.
Plus she's highly motivated, so it's not like being in charge of military for a small town is some kind of 'o hai yu're a woman hurr hurr we give you job' thing. She just happened to deserve the job. Then her wife and adopted child got killed by a homicidal psycho nutcase who claims to talk to god who later tries to kill her, all the while warning about demons. Of course, he actually turns out to REALLY BE talking to (a) god, and if he'd managed to do what he was sent to do he'd have saved the town so basically playing the game is one gigantic screwup where you doom everybody to death because you can't take a hint, but that's just how my plots tend to work out.
Should I introduce lovey-dovey scenes in the middle of a war to stay alive while the main character's family's corpses are STILL WARM, just because I don't have any? Hell no.
It's the same with the characters.
If it doesn't fit, not happening. If it does, it's already written down.
In Barren, my current main game, the (only) main character is male.
In Empty Faith (god I hate working titles) the main character is a lesbian captain of the armed forces, just because that happened to fit the character.
I basically say fuck gender balance, I'm putting in whichever characters work, in the storyline.
In EF, the main character comes from a race with a long history of gay rights/equality, etc.
Plus she's highly motivated, so it's not like being in charge of military for a small town is some kind of 'o hai yu're a woman hurr hurr we give you job' thing. She just happened to deserve the job. Then her wife and adopted child got killed by a homicidal psycho nutcase who claims to talk to god who later tries to kill her, all the while warning about demons. Of course, he actually turns out to REALLY BE talking to (a) god, and if he'd managed to do what he was sent to do he'd have saved the town so basically playing the game is one gigantic screwup where you doom everybody to death because you can't take a hint, but that's just how my plots tend to work out.
Should I introduce lovey-dovey scenes in the middle of a war to stay alive while the main character's family's corpses are STILL WARM, just because I don't have any? Hell no.
It's the same with the characters.
If it doesn't fit, not happening. If it does, it's already written down.
sixtyandaquarter
Member
gratheo, I'm baking you some cookies later for that
Hmm. Since I base characters on the people I know, it usually ends up that the party has far more women than men. I have more female friends than male friends. I don't even mind a full female cast, I think I've done that in a game or 2.
I tend to use a modern setting, so it doesn't matter which gender I use either. I may usually base part or most of the game on an experience I've had (like maybe a vacation, or being at work, stuff like that), so usually the characters I pick are selected because they were the people that were around during that time. If it happens to be all guys, so be it. If it's 7 girls and 2 guys, that's how it is. I'm not going to change it for love triangles or whatever, that tends not to even be an issue in the games.
The characters roles in the gameplay is based on what they do in real life. So if a girl is studying to be a doctor, she'll be doing more healing in the game. If a girl is a black belt, bare handed fighting is what she'll be doing in the game, or if they play a sport, that will influence what they do too, and so on. I won't instantly equate a girl with healing, a guy who is studying to be a nurse or doctor would take that position, it just depends on who I feel would be most suited for it.
I tend to use a modern setting, so it doesn't matter which gender I use either. I may usually base part or most of the game on an experience I've had (like maybe a vacation, or being at work, stuff like that), so usually the characters I pick are selected because they were the people that were around during that time. If it happens to be all guys, so be it. If it's 7 girls and 2 guys, that's how it is. I'm not going to change it for love triangles or whatever, that tends not to even be an issue in the games.
The characters roles in the gameplay is based on what they do in real life. So if a girl is studying to be a doctor, she'll be doing more healing in the game. If a girl is a black belt, bare handed fighting is what she'll be doing in the game, or if they play a sport, that will influence what they do too, and so on. I won't instantly equate a girl with healing, a guy who is studying to be a nurse or doctor would take that position, it just depends on who I feel would be most suited for it.
I can't deny that if I were to play a game with a heavily unbalanced gender ratio (like 15:1?), I would notice and think it's weird.. or rather, different. That doesn't mean, however, that it would be a bad idea. Why would I want to play something that felt the same as every other game?
But as fifty others have said, don't force anything.
But as fifty others have said, don't force anything.
sixtyandaquarter
Member
My healer from an abandoned project was an old man named Olaf who was a kind and gentle old man to neighboring children, but a very strict practitioner of self punishment in the name of his God. The story followed 3 groups, and each had a healer, some might have any combination of the 3 actual healers at any point.
The other one was a bishop who was carrying for a dead girl, an actual corpse of his sister lost to the plague that was reanimated, and the other was a lunatic who wanted to unlock the power of death and was cursed with the power of life as punishment.
They were all male. It worked better. I tried having a nun, it didn't blend well, the idea in my head of a nun in battle didn't fit. A bishop though, that fit. So it stayed. The only reason I went for a nun was because the reanimated zombie if you will, "sister" was initially another nun (so two nuns effectively - one being a zombie). She just became a bishop instead because it was more appealing at the time.
The other one was a bishop who was carrying for a dead girl, an actual corpse of his sister lost to the plague that was reanimated, and the other was a lunatic who wanted to unlock the power of death and was cursed with the power of life as punishment.
They were all male. It worked better. I tried having a nun, it didn't blend well, the idea in my head of a nun in battle didn't fit. A bishop though, that fit. So it stayed. The only reason I went for a nun was because the reanimated zombie if you will, "sister" was initially another nun (so two nuns effectively - one being a zombie). She just became a bishop instead because it was more appealing at the time.
Well write what you know. If you're a sexist guy *cough* Cooking Mama *cough* then knock yourself out. . I mean rmxp isn't playstation so we wont have to worry about too many seeing the same bs yet done by average joes. If you're good at writing stories, write what you know.
You don't need to force females into your sausage party.. especially if you're a male that really haven't spoken to a female. Joan of Arc was a pretty bitchin female protagonist (in my eyes) she has shown the world the power of womankind and died the manliest death short of being hung by your genitals. There is nothing really to say if people have it set in their minds that "Lol women are about as useful as a nail, yet I'm still too scared to actually talk to one." Mmm yeah.. All of this politically correct bullshit ticks me off. It -is- to be expected though since the majority of rm games are inspired by jrpgs.. which has a history of giving women forced roles as honorary fuckboxes.
You don't need to force females into your sausage party.. especially if you're a male that really haven't spoken to a female. Joan of Arc was a pretty bitchin female protagonist (in my eyes) she has shown the world the power of womankind and died the manliest death short of being hung by your genitals. There is nothing really to say if people have it set in their minds that "Lol women are about as useful as a nail, yet I'm still too scared to actually talk to one." Mmm yeah.. All of this politically correct bullshit ticks me off. It -is- to be expected though since the majority of rm games are inspired by jrpgs.. which has a history of giving women forced roles as honorary fuckboxes.
Write a good story, period. Write characters that work and support the story. Write what you know.
Don't change characters to balance race, sex, creed, disabilities or anything else. Don't add characters to balance race, sex, creed or disabilities.
That said, I'm tired of seeing:
Sword wielding main characters
White mage females who don't talk and are from an ancient civilization/heaven/another planet
Black mage sexy females who are a) Goth or b) smart-arses
The main characters thick-headed bruiser friend
Bad guys who are bad guys to be bad boys who like boys to be girls who do boys like they're girls who do girls like they're boys
Sexy bishounen badguys
The badguys right-hand chick who ditches her man to bone the main character
The quiet angsty assasin
ANY quiet/angst-y character
Adorable mascot characters
Of course I can dig any of these if they're well written or make sense for the storyline... Or if the female characters are sexy enough.
Don't change characters to balance race, sex, creed, disabilities or anything else. Don't add characters to balance race, sex, creed or disabilities.
That said, I'm tired of seeing:
Sword wielding main characters
White mage females who don't talk and are from an ancient civilization/heaven/another planet
Black mage sexy females who are a) Goth or b) smart-arses
The main characters thick-headed bruiser friend
Bad guys who are bad guys to be bad boys who like boys to be girls who do boys like they're girls who do girls like they're boys
Sexy bishounen badguys
The badguys right-hand chick who ditches her man to bone the main character
The quiet angsty assasin
ANY quiet/angst-y character
Adorable mascot characters
Of course I can dig any of these if they're well written or make sense for the storyline... Or if the female characters are sexy enough.
sixtyandaquarter
Member
And ixis just shot down almost every FF character since FF7, and half the cast of todays RPGs. :thumb:
arbiter
Guest
;D
I had a project on these forums, and all of you didnt even bother to read my plot,characters,or game features, you all just called me gay (literally, you said that my game was me insinuating that i was gay.)becuase i had 5 male playables and 2 females. then when i said its more practical for men to be important figures you guys called me sexiest. Thus why i started actively campaigning against xp.org, and i just recently re-joined, thinking things would be different. No, your all just wafflers.
Sorry if that comes off rude, its just annoying that i got slammed for this same topic.My stance, in fantasy girls are important, but thats just it , fantasy. Real life, if theres a catastrophic meteor comeing, a team of trained MEN would take it, not a balanced 3 males and 3 females.
Sorry if that comes off rude, its just annoying that i got slammed for this same topic.My stance, in fantasy girls are important, but thats just it , fantasy. Real life, if theres a catastrophic meteor comeing, a team of trained MEN would take it, not a balanced 3 males and 3 females.
sixtyandaquarter
Member
In real life a balanced team of people who are the best at what they do would take it. NASA isn't going to go "Oh wait, she wears a skirt... next!"
Though other than nitpicking I have no idea what your talking about so I won't comment.
Though other than nitpicking I have no idea what your talking about so I won't comment.
Armor King 108
Member
Personally, I prefer having more females in the party. I hate how only like 3 out of the 30 or so RPGs I've played let you have a full party of female characters. It's just the way I am.
That said though, I always try to balance things. Why? Because I want too. One of my most recent RPG ideas has 8 party members...4 female and 4 male. Two of them are humans, two of them are little rabbit people, two of them are lizard people, and two of them are bird people. Maybe it's kind of silly, but I don't really care. It's my game, I'll make it work out the way I want it too. Oh, and they aren't set up like that for "pairings" or anything like that. I haven't planned any romances yet in this idea, and if there was one, it would probably be interracial and/or homosexual. (actually, this game was going to have two "secret" characters, so the ratio would be altered for this)
Oh, and someone said something about "feminine" male healers...I admit to doing this. In several of my RPG ideas, the main healer is a cute male that looks like a girl, and dresses like a girl, and would sound like a girl if the game had voices...some of them even wear lipstick...Though they don't necessarily like men just because they look, dress, act, and sound like girls...
One of the reasons I prefer having more female characters is because the more of them there are, the more likely there will be a physical powerhouse girl. I just...really like seeing girls smack giant monsters with giant weapons.
That said though, I always try to balance things. Why? Because I want too. One of my most recent RPG ideas has 8 party members...4 female and 4 male. Two of them are humans, two of them are little rabbit people, two of them are lizard people, and two of them are bird people. Maybe it's kind of silly, but I don't really care. It's my game, I'll make it work out the way I want it too. Oh, and they aren't set up like that for "pairings" or anything like that. I haven't planned any romances yet in this idea, and if there was one, it would probably be interracial and/or homosexual. (actually, this game was going to have two "secret" characters, so the ratio would be altered for this)
Oh, and someone said something about "feminine" male healers...I admit to doing this. In several of my RPG ideas, the main healer is a cute male that looks like a girl, and dresses like a girl, and would sound like a girl if the game had voices...some of them even wear lipstick...Though they don't necessarily like men just because they look, dress, act, and sound like girls...
One of the reasons I prefer having more female characters is because the more of them there are, the more likely there will be a physical powerhouse girl. I just...really like seeing girls smack giant monsters with giant weapons.
Incognitus
Member
I prefer character driven plots. It becomes very hard to have them if one is giving oneself a checklist of character attributes which must be met therein.
:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
I was re-reading this topic, and i noticed the topic your talking about is my game, and you mentioned it right before i posted my immature anti-rmxp.org rant. thats just made me laugh becuase you where all right back then i was just stupid pissed you didnt even read the plot(as bad as it was)
Sic Semper Tyranosaurus
Sponsor
I feel that I shouldn't have to add a character of any gender just for the sake of some imagined sense of balance. If I don't have a good idea for a female character then, well, fuck it. I'm not going to redesign the damn sprites and faces just to appease people.
Armor King 108
Member
Incognitus":3ilnx9xq said:
You know what...this made me think a little. See, I've gotten several ideas for RPG Maker XP games where I will design all the characters myself (I have a lot of projects using default and/or other people's stuff, I want to change that)...and I usually try to have 4 females and 4 males...because I think 8 is a good number of party members. But sometimes, I feel like I have an imaginary "checklist of character attributes" and it makes me feel silly. For example, I usually do something like this: There's one little girl, at least one teenage girl, a woman over 20, and then there's another girl...at least one of them will have dark skin, at least one of them will have short hair...etc. There's one little boy, at least one teenage guy, a cool old dude, then some other guy, usually some kind of animal...at least one guy will look really girlie, at least one of them will have longhair...etc. Half the females are mages, the other half are fighters, same with the guys. It's really weird, and I need to stop doing it. I always think of most of the characters before most of the story...but sometimes, I overdo it.
Well, yet ANOTHER RPG idea popped in my head earlier today, and I want to avoid my imaginary checklist when designing the characters. Maybe this will be the original RPG that I finally start?