This is not about “protecting women.” It’s about cleaning out the sewers that our games have become. This will not be easy and it will not be fun. Standing up to these little jerks will require the same courage from us that women like Anita Sarkeesian have already shown. We will become objects of hatred, ridicule, and contempt. Our manhood will be questioned. But if we remember who we are and stand strong together, we can beat them. In any case we won’t be threatened with sexual violence the way women are. We have it easier than they do.

And wow, he is a doozy.  Just, whew.

In sum:  ”I’m not a misogynist, I just think all women are stupid, fat, attention-seeking whores who have never been good at anything.”

Horrifying misogyny aside, I am actually amazed at the outpouring of hate and vitriol directed at this woman who has done nothing more offensive or terrible than suggesting we ought to take a look at female tropes in video games.  It’s truly incredible, the amount of absolute psychopathy aimed at someone who is essentially a stranger.  

Internet Dudes everywhere have become completely and totally unhinged at the very suggestion that some woman, somewhere, might want to examine how females are treated in electronic gaming culture.  They have lost their heads.  They have taken leave of their senses entirely.  DDoS attacks on her site.  Photoshopped images of her being raped.  Misogynist memes created about her.  People trying to access and post her personal information (phone number, address, etc.).  The YouTube comments, of course.  Death threats.  Wishes that she would experience some kind of violence, usually overtly sexual violence.  Reporting her social media accounts as hate speech, terrorism, and spam.  I mean, really crazy stuff.  It’s insane.  They don’t even know this woman, but the tired old message they’re sending is coming through loud and clear:

Tits or GTFO.

think-progress:

Ryan Steiner has an insightful post on fighting back against Internet trolls, like the ones who welcomed news that Lara Croft will be threatened with rape in her next video game:

While writing this, I have asked repeatedly myself, so what? The trolls will be trolls no matter what I say. And that may be the case. But, by actively calling out terrible behavior and not allowing excuses, I can start to change the expectations. If trolls know that they are not going to be excused for their behavior, maybe some of the more timid ones will think twice about what they say.

Either way, we won’t know until we make an honest effort at condemning this hatred without exception or equivocation…

The Internet is filled with places to make your voice heard, and many of us participate in forums, Twitter,Facebook or other gaming communities. Instead of letting the trolls have the run of the show, make some noise. Let everyone know that the sexism and vitriol is not OK. Don’t let the trolls off the hook. And certainly, don’t make it easy for them to keep trolling.

Here’s the rest

I’m torn on this.  See, I’d love to see trolls get their comeuppance.  But there’s a reason most forums have the rule:  Don’t feed the trolls.  Yes, by ignoring them, you are implicitly allowing their behavior.  But by engaging with them, you are giving them what they want, which is to get a rise out of you.  To make you angry.  To make you attack them so they can laugh and pat themselves on the back for having pissed off some stranger on the Internet.  You’re not going to change their mind.  They’re not going to go “Oh, you know, you’re right, I guess that was pretty insensitive, I guess my behavior is unacceptable,” they’re going to go “HAHA FAGGOT I HOPE YOUR SISTER GETS RAPED BY A BAT WITH NAILS IN IT.”  I don’t know.  It’s a tough spot.  Ignore them, and be complicit in their abuse?  Or chastise them, and make them rub their scaly little hands together, cackle with glee, and turn it up to 11?  Sigh.

To clarify, I’m not suggesting we just not do anything and throw our hands and just be like “LOL, trolls, what can you do!”  I’m just saying… it’s difficult to determine how to deal with it.

(via lovelymissnallely)

Katie Williams writes for Kotaku of her experiences at E3, where, apparently, pretty girls do not play games.  One experience in particular is described below, as a PR representative for a game she had signed up to try out mistakes her amazement at the graphics for total lack of comprehension as to how PC games, shooters in particular, are played.

FTA:  “I think I better play it for you,” he said finally, prying my hands away and turning the keyboard towards himself.

And so there I was, hands twisted awkwardly and uselessly in my lap as a guy walked me through his game. In laboured detail, he explained to me simple mechanics that any shooter player would be well-acquainted with. He avoided the gameplay due to some apparent strange belief that I was not there to learn about shooting things in a shooter game, that perhaps my delicate girl senses might be offended by killing with guns and missiles. He pointed out rabbits in the grass with all the condescension of an adult trying to distract a noisy toddler, as if my interest in this simulation-grade shooter lay in some wildly misguided assumption that it would be full of adorable, fluffy animals.

I looked down the booth and saw gamers at the other computers playing their own games, their own hands controlling the avatars. No PR representatives were hovering at their shoulders, pre-empting that a lack of knowledge would lead to them playing the game “wrong”. I felt ridiculous and unwanted. I felt it ridiculous that I should feel unwanted.

I can’t with this.  ”Look at the bunnies!  See!  Look here, sweetie, let me do this for you.  Looky!  Pretty flowers!”  I would like to have punched that guy square in his condescending, smarmy, idiot face.  Why she just sat there and let this guy treat her like that is totally beyond me.