Impersonating Women On The Internet

I think we all know about guys playing female characters.  I’ve avoided that as much as possible.  I don’t have a single female MMO character.  The only time I have ever played a female character was in a game like League of Legends or Heroes of the Storm where you basically pick the entire character package at once, as opposed to being able to customize later.  So what’s the article tagline about then?  I’ll explain.  I just wanted to go on the record first as not being “that guy”.

Girls Make Video Games Better

I play a lot of Heroes of the Storm with friends.  We pick our characters based on playing in a lane together.  When the game starts, i’ll tell people in chat that we’ll be laning together, because we’re friends.  It seems about 50/50 as to whether or not I get a rude or smug remark back.  Another 50/50 as to whether the team will actually let us lane together.

One day, for fun, I was grouped with a friend and told the team that he was my boyfriend, and that we would be laning together.  Silence.  Technically he is my boyfriend.  He’s a boy, and my friend.  (Fxn, I’m in love, don’t be scared.)  I continued to play, not saying much else.  The game went pleasantly.

I did this occasionally, and started to notice that each match I did this in, the chat was so much nicer.  I have only had one bad experience to date, and that game I was ironically playing with an actual female friend who of course made no big deal about the fact she was a girl.  Mostly I have done this to entertain my friends, but partly to test a theory. I figure guys would be more hesitant to argue with a girl.  So far, I have had supremely better luck than just being another one of the guys trying to ask nicely.

Judgement Time

Do women make men behave better?  Seems that way to me.  I’ve known guys that use their female avatars to gain favors, gold, and various other loot.  Generally it just amuses the heck out of me.  I think this is partly to blame for guys making such a big deal over girl gamers.  Another part is just having young guys around who, let’s face it, would still say ridiculous things around women just as quickly face-to-face.  It’s more about getting over stereotypes than anything.  I’ve played online games alongside women from day one.  My first guild leader in EverQuest was female.  I met my wife in Star Wars Galaxies.  Girl gamers have always existed.  They’re just a lot more visible now with technology like VOIP and streaming.

So, all you girl gamers out there, am I OK to let angry internet trolls think I am one of you?  Just to make the internet a better place?  Or should I be tarred and feathered as an impostor?  Go easy on me.  I’m a delicate flower.