1. STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK (SUNY) COLLEGE AT OSWEGO
Breaking the Video Game Industry Meta:
Female Gamers Gaining Ground
Nicole Horn
Due: December 2nd, 2014
This essay examines the video game industry and the qualities video games possess that attract
and repel female consumers. The main focus of this essay is to identify the appeals of video
games as a whole and correlate the different attributes of games to the preferences of the female
demographic. Female consumers are broken down into three groups based off of their
consumption. Each of these groups possesses different life values, beliefs on video games, and
genre preferences.

2. 1
Table of Contents
Introduction ...................................................................................................................................2
The Video Game Industry.............................................................................................................2
The Appeal of Video Games ........................................................................................................3
Convergence of Ideal Self and Reality.....................................................................................3
Player Immersion & Gaming Experience.................................................................................4
Female Gamers ..............................................................................................................................6
Female Concerns with Video Games ...........................................................................................6
Gender Role Portrayal..............................................................................................................7
Violence....................................................................................................................................7
Social Interaction......................................................................................................................8
Competitiveness .......................................................................................................................8
Types of Female Gamers .............................................................................................................9
Power Gamer ............................................................................................................................9
Moderate Gamer.....................................................................................................................11
Non-gamer..............................................................................................................................12
Conclusion ...................................................................................................................................13
Bibliography ................................................................................................................................14

3. 2
Introduction
The industry of video games has been able to charm and capture the hearts of its
consumers over the course of its existence, becoming one of the fastest growing sectors in the
Unites States economy (ESA, 2014). This entertainment field has accomplished a great feat that
has powered its rapid success and given consumers the chance to become immersed in another
world where the impossible becomes possible through a novel experience. Traditionally video
games have been classified as a trade that favors males as its source of consumers (Terlecki et
al., 2011). According to the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), in 2008, 65 percent of
American households played computer or video games and 60 percent of those players were
males (MediaCT, 2008), but in recent years the industry has been able to capture the female
demographic. The attention that females have been given has opened up many new opportunities
and genre combinations in order to further tap into this market segment. In 2014, women
accounted for 48 percent of gamers, but the label of being a “gamer”, within the ESA’s data
collection, is extremely broad and incorporates everything from mobile game apps to computer
and video games (MediaCT, 2014). This large range in categories leaves room for a lot of
speculation into what types of games have been able to draw in and chase away female
consumers. The discrepancy of time investment in a game also poses as an oversight within these
statistics, but by identifying the appeal of video games as well as the different levels of
consumerism of video games among females, one can begin to understand the industry and the
ways in which it positively and negatively influences the female demographic.
The Video Game Industry
The video game industry has taken America by storm, creating, in 2013, more than $21
billion in revenue (MediaCT, 2014). The ESA reported that 59 percent of Americans play video

4. 3
games (MediaCT, 2014) and the market segments span across many categories. The statistics
recorded that 29 percent of gamers were under the age of 18, 32 percent of gamers were between
the ages of 18 and 35, and 39 percent of gamers were age 36 or older (MediaCT, 2014). This
industry has gained significant ground within the entertainment market and continues to grow
and innovate. The average number of years that a gamer has been playing video games for is 14
(MediaCT, 2014), which means that the business has a solid consumer base. By identifying the
appeal of video games one can gain insight into the reasons behind the ever-growing and
committed fan base that the industry holds.
The Appeal of Video Games
Video games, despite the vast range in genre, serve as an activity where consumers can
find enjoyment and fulfillment. Due to the massive variations in video games, opinions and
preferences greatly differ from one another but certain factors exist in order to attract consumers
which include the convergence of one’s ideal and actual self (Przybylski, Weinstein, Murayama,
Lynch, & Ryan, 2012), the appeal of the gaming experience, and immersion (Christou, 2014).
These three factors will be discussed in subsections to highlight their importance.
Convergence of Ideal Self and Reality
The use of video games allows one to bridge the gap between one’s actual self and ideal
self by allowing the player to explore and “try on” ideal traits (Przybylski et al., 2012). This
factor enables players to be intrinsically motivated and is linked to self-esteem which affects
one’s psychological well-being (Rogers & Dymond, 1954). One’s actual self can be defined as
characteristics one possesses, and one’s ideal self can be described as the characteristics the
person wishes to have. When discrepancies arise between the existing and ideal entity a person
can undergo feelings of dejection and disappointment (Higgins, 1989), which can negatively

5. 4
impact one’s self-esteem. When convergence of these two entities occurs one can experience
emotions of elation and joy (Carver & Scheier, 1998), which can boost one’s self-esteem.
Virtual realities serve as rich environments for one to culminate the self (Przybylski et al.,
2012) by promoting the creation and adoption of new self-representations (Turkle, 1994). Rigby
and Ryan (2011) made a statement based off of the opportunities that video games provided
where they concluded that one can obtain satisfaction and abilities that are hard to experience in
one’s everyday life. To further back up these findings, a study of two experiments was conducted
in order to identify the correlation between reaching one’s ideal self and a game’s motivational
appeal and emotional impact (Przybylski et al., 2012). The results concluded that when gamers
could lower discrepancies between their ideal and actual self, they experienced more enjoyment
from the game which increased their motivation and accounted for their variability in emotions
after playing the game (Przybylski et al., 2012). Overall, this factor allows gamers to become
more in tune with their ideal self which can be hard to tap into within one’s day to day life.
Player Immersion & Gaming Experience
A player’s immersion is the extent to which one can “lose” themselves in a game which
can cause people to actually feel like they are a part of the game (Jenett, 2008). This term is used
by gamers and reviewers and serves as an important criterion that determines one’s level of game
enjoyment (Jenett, 2008). A qualitative study was conducted by Brown and Cairns (2004) where
three distinct levels of immersion were identified to describe a player’s involvement. The first
level of immersion is referred to as “engagement” (Brown & Cairns, 2004). In order to achieve
this state one needs to be able to overcome the barrier of gamer preference by investing time,
effort, and attention to the video game being played (Brown & Cairns, 2004). The second level
was known as “engrossment”, which can be achieved by overcoming the barrier of game

6. 5
construction (Brown & Cairns, 2004). This means that a gamer needs to be able to become
unaware of the controls of a game and their emotions need to be directly affected by the
gameplay, causing the player to become less aware of themself and their surrounding
environment (Brown & Cairns, 2004). Simply put, a Zen-like state occurs where one’s hands
mindlessly know what to do and one’s mind carries on with the story (Brown & Cairns, 2004).
The last level was coined as “total immersion” which required a player to be able to ignore the
barriers of empathy and atmosphere (Brown & Cairns, 2004). A gamer is able to feel their
presence within the game and they become completely cut off from reality. This final level is
harder to achieve and is often a fleeting experience for gamers (Brown & Cairns, 2004). Other
studies have been conducted that have established different terms, such as “flow” and “cognitive
absorption”, which are similar to the effects of immersion and are composed of different
elements (Jenett, 2008).
Immersion also correlates with one’s gaming experience. This was further studied
through an experiment, conducted by Christou (2014), trying to find the relationship between
appeal, gaming experience, and immersion. The results of the study showed that the appeal of
one’s experience, not having played the game before, depended on what game was played
(Christou, 2014). Therefore, the type of game played and the content of the game served as a
critical factor to consider when choosing a game (Christou, 2014). A player’s ability to become
immersed in a game was determined by what game the player had chosen, which could be seen
in experienced and inexperienced gamers (Christou, 2014). In conclusion of the study, it was
determined that appeal is a factor in gameplay experience which is affected by and affects
immersion (Christou, 2014). Overall, player immersion and gaming experience maintain a
positive relationship with one another and affect one’s appeal of a game.

7. 6
The summation of these qualities creates an interactive experience that allows a player to
become immersed in another world. By combining creativity, innovation, technology, and
imagination, the video game industry has been able to rake in the benefits of its labor.
Female Gamers
Female gamers have been on the rise in recent years and the traditional view on video
games being a male activity is slowly evaporating. According to the Entertainment Software
Association, women who are 18 years or older represent 36 percent of the gaming population,
whereas boys who are 18 years old and under represent 17 percent of the gaming population
(MediaCT, 2014). Also, there was a 32 percent increase in the number of female gamers ages 50
and older from 2012 to 2013 (MediaCT, 2014). Unfortunately, these statistics have a broad
meaning of the word “gamer” and there is no indication of how much leisure time a consumer
invests in playing. In order to uncover the ambiguity of the relationship between gaming and the
female gender, one must uncover the qualities that deter females from the market and distinguish
between the different levels of consumerism.
Female Concerns with Video Games
Despite the recent spike in female players, an abundance of barriers exist that seem to
prevent women from finding gaming enjoyable or from viewing gaming as a co-ed activity. This
gender gap has received a lot of attention, and a study conducted by Hartmann and Klimmt
(2006) found four factors that account for this difference. The study found that three of the
variables pertained to content whereas the last variable dealt with structure of a game (Hartmann
& Klimmt, 2006).

8. 7
Gender Role Portrayal
The first factor that chases away potential female consumers is the archaic or
stereotypical gender role portrayal (Hartmann & Klimmt, 2006). Many games victimize women
who are weak and need to be rescued or protected by males. This can have a negative impact on
females, specifically feminists, because they might be offended by the depiction of the female
gender. Female characters are also over exaggerated in their physical and sexual attributes
(Hartmann & Klimmt, 2006). Women with unrealistic figures may attract the male demographic
but it can chase away females in the process, due to a barrier in identification with their virtual
sex which can lead to cognitive conflicts and annoyance (Hartmann & Klimmt, 2006). This
factor reduces the level of attraction to games, which reduces enjoyment, which in turn lowers
playing motivation (Hartmann & Klimmt, 2006).
Violence
The next variable pertains to the violence aspect of video games (Hartmann & Klimmt,
2006). Numerous amounts of research have commented on the abundance of video games that
have violent actions with an increasing degree of realism (Dietz, 1998; Sherry, 2001; Smith,
Lachlan, & Tamborini, 2003; Schneider, Lang, Shin, & Bradley, 2004). Studies have also
determined that males favor violent entertainment more than females (Slater, 2003). Bussey and
Bandura (1999) stated, “Females tend to display a very low preference for observing or
participating in conflicts and their resolutions through violence”. To further expand upon this
point, a study concluded that women found non-violent entertainment, such as comedy and sad
movies, to be more appealing (Oliver, Weaver, & Sargent, 2000). This variable proves to be a
hurdle for women due to the violent-content nature of video games (Hartmann & Klimmt) which
decreases females’ interest and consumption (Subrahmanyam & Greenfield, 1998; Jansz, 2005).

9. 8
Social Interaction
The third factor pertains to the amount of social interaction involved in gameplay,
specifically within single-player games (Hartmann & Klimmt, 2006). Research completed on
television programs discovered that females valued shows with a plethora of meaningful
dialogue and character interaction, and were less interested in shows that were action-oriented
and had taciturn characters (Mayer, 2003). Many video games have action-oriented structures
and minimal amounts of social interaction which correlates with their television program
preferences (Hartmann & Klimmt, 2006). There are exceptions to the norm, like The Sims, which
is an interactive game revolved on socialization (Hartmann & Klimmt), and this particular game
has a large female fan base (Steen, Greenfield, Davies, & Tynes, 2006). In essence, the lack in
preferred forms of media entertainment can cause women to shy away from gaming products.
Competitiveness
The fourth factor pertains to the competitive structure of games (Hartmann & Klimmt,
2006). Research in sports psychology has revealed that girls aren’t as attracted to and are
sometimes afraid to become involved in competitive sports compared to boys (Swain & Jones,
1991). Based off these results, Hartmann and Klimmt (2006) assumed that females would try and
avoid competitive video games as well. Due to the common competitive element to games,
females may turn to a different form of entertainment, despite the existence of exceptions
(Hartmann & Klimmt, 2006).
These four elements that are commonly found in video games enforce the idea in
females’ minds that gaming holds little entertainment value in correlation to their preferences.
The combination of these factors can cause females to feel indifferent, victimized, and

10. 9
unsatisfied (Hartmann & Klimmt, 2006). These characteristics will be exhibited and exemplified
in the next section addressing the different consumer levels of video games for females.
Types of Female Gamers
Female gamers, based off of a study conducted by Royse and her fellow researchers, can
be classified into three groups which include power gamers, moderate gamers, and non-gamers
(Royse, Lee, Undrahbuyan, Hopson , & Consalvo, 2007). These categories depict the amount of
time women, within the study conducted, invest in playing video games, their life values, their
beliefs on the gaming industry, and their preference in genre. In order to comprehend the
differing ideals and opinions of the female sex, each group will be discussed in subsections.
Power Gamers
Power gamers are classified as a group who play video games for more than 20 hours a
week (Royse et al., 2007). During an experiment, Consalvo and Treat (2002) collected gamer
data showing that 75 percent of men and 51 percent of women played video games, but there was
a large disproportion between the males who identified as power gamers (42 percent) and the
females who identified themselves as power gamers (15.6 percent). They also observed a
difference of males and females’ favorite genres, but both sexes deemed that the element most
important to gameplay was the ability to succeed (Consalvo & Treat, 2002). Based off of this
data along with other studies, Royse, Lee, Udrahbuyah,, Hopson, and Consalvo created rounds of
interviews which revealed more in depth information on power gamers, moderate gamers, and
non-gamers of the female gender.
Power gamers engage in playing games frequently while placing high importance on the
subject (Royse et al., 2007). They are also more comfortable with gaming technology and themes
showing that they have integrated gaming into their lives (Royse et al., 2007). Power users are

11. 10
also open to playing multiple genres because they distinguish the fact that different genres
provide different forms of pleasure, such as sociability, intellectual stimulation, and competitive
challenge (Royse et al., 2007). One of the biggest pleasures that this group of females draws
upon is the challenge of mastering the technical skills that a game demands and competing
against others (Royse et al., 2007). Despite the common deterrent of competitiveness to females,
these power gamers revel in the face of competition (Royse et al., 2007). During the interviews
held by Royse and her fellow researchers, some girls discussed the pleasures of being able to go
head to head against random people and blow them up in game, but these females also adamantly
expressed their femininity (Royse et al., 2007). A portion of girls embraced their feminine side
knowing that it was a paradox of sorts between the masculinity of some of the games they played
(Royse et al., 2007). This group even admitted to the hypersexualization of women in games but
they could successfully define games which they described as being about pleasure, mastery, and
control (Royse et al, 2007). This led to another controversial topic of the gender role portrayal in
video games.
Despite recognizing the inaccurate representations of women in games, some power
gamers found that this quality enhanced their gaming experience (Royse et al., 2007). One of the
interviewees, Kara, even commented on how she loves to be able to create ‘sexy’ characters that
are also strong (Royse et al., 2007). The reason behind the acceptance of this trait among power
users relates to the concept of choice and control (Royse et al., 2007). Choosing between
characters while being able to control one’s representation of their identity, which sometimes
challenged cultural norms, appeared to maximize the power gamer’s enjoyment and sense of
agency (Royse et al., 2007). This concept can be linked to the appeal of convergence in one’s
ideal and actual self within a virtual plane. Overall, these power gamers enjoyed exploring new

12. 11
definitions of their gendered self which was encouraged and empowered by technology (Royse
et al., 2007).
Moderate Gamers
Moderate gamers also gain enjoyment from playing video games but they set a clear line
between the real world and the game world (Royse et al., 2007). Like power gamers, they
identify control as a pleasurable factor in their gaming experience but the type of control varies
from the power playing definition (Royse et al., 2007). Within this group control is seen as an
environmental aspect (Royse et al., 2007). These women use games as a form of distraction from
their daily routine and they enjoy the idea of being able to interact within a controllable
environment (Royse et al., 2007). From this preference an observation was made that showed
women leaning towards the genres of role playing games (RPGs), puzzles, cards, and problem
solving games (Royse et al., 2007). Some women within the interview group enjoyed
competitive games but most expressed their distaste for violent games such as first person
shooters (Royse et al., 2007). They also showed favoritism to games that elicited winning
through strategic thinking and positioning rather than through competition (Royse et al., 2007).
These females not only distinguished between reality and the virtual world but also
between game genres that males play and game genres that females play (Royse et al., 2007).
Amy, a participant in the moderate gamer group, mentioned that she believed that men became
more immersed in video games then women did, while other members expressed their annoyance
with people who seemed to blur the line between real life and virtual life (Royse et al., 2007).
Despite their enjoyment of video games, these women still saw games as a predominantly male
activity that should never be taken too seriously (Royse et al., 2007). Overall, this group utilizes

13. 12
gaming as a stress reliever and do not commit themselves to being immersed in a game (Royse et
al., 2007).
Non-Gamers
Non-gamers do not partake in the activity of gaming and have strong views on gamers
and the industry (Royse et al., 2007). Non-gamers view gaming as a waste of time and the study
group had many harsh and critical opinions (Royse et al., 2007). This group showed concern for
the violent nature and sexual content of games, which they referred to as the ‘gaming culture’,
and were worried about the addiction of gaming (Royse et al., 2007). Non-gamers expressed
their issue with the inaccurate representations of women in video games claiming that it gave
men unrealistic expectations for women while others stated that is has ruined intimate
relationships. They also felt that gaming was an isolated activity that appealed to incompetent
socializers (Royse et al., 2007). Michelle saw the activity as extremely introverted and said that
her siblings, who were avid gamers, could talk normally with people online but didn’t know how
to function in a physical setting (Royse et al., 2007).
The biggest factor as to why this group of non-gamers refused to play video games was
due to time investment; most of the women expressed their qualm over this issue while labeling
it as ridiculous (Royse et al., 2007). These females talked about prioritizing their time due to the
fact that they had a lot of responsibilities, yet it also revealed that they had established a gender
role (Royse et al., 2007). These other responsibilities and priorities that they opted for aligned
with the traditional expectations of women (Royse et al., 2007). Kathy, another member of the
study group, shares her opinion on female responsibilities, discussing the time crunch when
dealing with working, laundry, cooking, and caretaking (Royse et al., 2007). This depicts the
traditional idea of femininity, yet she stresses the fact that she has adequate interpersonal skills

14. 13
and chooses how and what she spends her time on (Royse et al., 2007). In conclusion, these non-
gamers believe that video games take up too much time, are sexist, and do not fulfill their needs
of pleasure (Royse et al., 2007).
Although these groups were formed in order to perform a study, they give us insight into
the varying reasons as to why females accept and reject video games. Also, these groups allow
one to see the variance in opinion which can help one understand the ways in which the market
can better capture the defiant female population.
Conclusion
The video game industry continues to gain momentum as it steadily grabs a bigger
proportion of the entertainment market. PricewaterhouseCoopers states that the industry will
attract more non-gamers through social and casual gaming, and a new generation of gamers will
appear through the utilization of mobile devices (PricewaterhouseCoopers, 2014), while
innovation and change continue to fuel the growth of the business. Occulus VR, a virtual reality
technology company, is in the production stages of creating a virtual reality headset for 3D
gaming (Futter, 2014), which could be the dawn of a new gaming era. The industry has also
produced video games that are more socially interactive and story oriented, such as Heavy Rain,
to appeal to a broader market. Feminists have also taken up arms in order to make the video
game industry appeal more to women’s preferences and the industry has noted this new presence
within the market. As the industry adapts to the changing times and reinvents itself, consumers
continue to flock to this form of entertainment that captures the attention and affections of
consumers.

15. 14
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