I was recently asked by a friend of mine to join his league in DCU Online as it is full of boys, and they need some motivation to stay in the group, and talk more to each other, building a team mentality etc.etc. so I started thinking about girls and how they affect groups in gaming situations.
The reasons for women’s importance in MMOs are obvious, there are very few “proven” women in the genre in the form of “Pics or gtfo”, World of Warcraft has about 20% of its users as real women, and that’s pretty high for an MMO. So when there is a proven woman her personality can have a much greater influence on the group than would happen in normal life.
I would say there are three general types on women in MMOs and obviously these are highly stereotyped and there are degrees between the types but there is one type that can bond the clan together, another that doesn’t affect the clan in any way and the third type either causes conflict or drama without knowing or intentionally and can damage the clan.
The first type of woman in the MMO world is the “Tag-along” type, the girl who joined because her boyfriend plays and she wants to share something with him. Unless her boyfriend is involved in some politics or drama in the group this girl usually stays out of the way, is good support in PK or PVP but doesn’t commit too much to the group, she does no harm.
The second type of girl is the “Drama Queen” type, the girl who loves playing MMOs and really gets into them, but is over reactionary to anything that anyone says. Either she flirts with everyone and tries to cause drama with the rest of the guild relationships or she acts out because she feels under-represented and hard done by because she is in the minority.
The third type of girl is the “Mother-figure” type, she cares about the MMO and loves to play it and care about all the people in the clan like it was a family. She helps mediate disagreements between the clan and keeps the clan working together. She can help motivate the clan and bond them into a team.
A mix of these women is ideal for the balance of a guild, the Drama Queen is usually great at taking her anger out or proving herself in PK or PVP, the Tag-along is a great support and the Mother-figure obviously does what she does. I figure I am a mix of the Drama-Queen and Mother-figure and I have written a quick quiz for you to find out which type you would be!
What keeps you playing?
a) The PVP!
b) Being able to spend time in a fantasy with my partner
c) The friends that I have made here
d) I'm a man
What do you want most?
a) Better equipment for the PK and to make lvling easier.
b) A teleportation system that means I can teleport to my partner or vice versa whenever we want.
c) More team activities
d) I don't know but I'm a man
What Pet do you have in game?
a) Anything that gives me the best boost for my stats, I wanna be MORE powerful!
b) Anything that matches my outfit and looks cute
c) A pet that balances my character and supports my style of play well
d) Something manly because I'm a man
Why did you join?
a) I looked around for a game with good PK or PVP that ran well on my PC
b) My partner found this game and enjoyed it, so I thought I’d give it a go too
c) My friends told me about this game, and even if I don’t play with them now, I have made some good friends here
d) I'm a man is why.
What graphics style do you like?
a) I modded the style anyway to make it run faster for the PVP
b) I’m not too fussed, I got used to the game because of my partner
c) I like it to be friendly and not too bloody
d) Any graphical style that appeals to my manliness as I am a man.
What needs to be improved in the guild you are in?
a) The way items are given out I’m not given enough stuff from the team activities!
b) Sometimes I feel that my partner and I aren’t taken seriously enough
c) Less trash talk of each other, I feel I need to stand up for a lot of people in the guild
d) As long as these 'improvements' don't interfere with me being a man then I'm cool.
What type of class do you like to play?
a) Anything with a lot of power; DPS or massive AOE damage
b) I play full support and work with my partner or a team
c) Support/Damage mix I’m all about the balance
d) As long as it's male I'm fine.
Mostly As: Yep you guessed it! You are the Drama Queen! You love having power and being able to survive without support, but these games have party and team areas for a reason, just be careful you don’t upset your team, or you will find out why they say the whole is greater than the sum of its parts!
Mostly Bs: You’re the Tag-along! I hope that you keep playing the MMO if you and your bf break up as there are a lot of lovely people in the game who would love a full support character to help them and you can always make friends or morph into the Mother figure!
Mostly Cs: Surprise surprise! You are the Mother-figure, people in the guild look to you for political support, fairness and justice in guild activities. Just be warned, your status in the guild might be resented by the Drama Queen who thinks that her role is more important or less rewarded than your own, and it’s your job to keep her calm!
Mostly Ds: You're a man. Or at least you claim to be.
The reasons for women’s importance in MMOs are obvious, there are very few “proven” women in the genre in the form of “Pics or gtfo”, World of Warcraft has about 20% of its users as real women, and that’s pretty high for an MMO. So when there is a proven woman her personality can have a much greater influence on the group than would happen in normal life.
I would say there are three general types on women in MMOs and obviously these are highly stereotyped and there are degrees between the types but there is one type that can bond the clan together, another that doesn’t affect the clan in any way and the third type either causes conflict or drama without knowing or intentionally and can damage the clan.
The first type of woman in the MMO world is the “Tag-along” type, the girl who joined because her boyfriend plays and she wants to share something with him. Unless her boyfriend is involved in some politics or drama in the group this girl usually stays out of the way, is good support in PK or PVP but doesn’t commit too much to the group, she does no harm.
 |
| Pictured: The Tag-Along |
The second type of girl is the “Drama Queen” type, the girl who loves playing MMOs and really gets into them, but is over reactionary to anything that anyone says. Either she flirts with everyone and tries to cause drama with the rest of the guild relationships or she acts out because she feels under-represented and hard done by because she is in the minority.
The third type of girl is the “Mother-figure” type, she cares about the MMO and loves to play it and care about all the people in the clan like it was a family. She helps mediate disagreements between the clan and keeps the clan working together. She can help motivate the clan and bond them into a team.
 |
| Visual representation of a protective mother. Dumbo is a Lv.12 Paladin at this point in the movie. |
A mix of these women is ideal for the balance of a guild, the Drama Queen is usually great at taking her anger out or proving herself in PK or PVP, the Tag-along is a great support and the Mother-figure obviously does what she does. I figure I am a mix of the Drama-Queen and Mother-figure and I have written a quick quiz for you to find out which type you would be!
What keeps you playing?
a) The PVP!
b) Being able to spend time in a fantasy with my partner
c) The friends that I have made here
d) I'm a man
What do you want most?
a) Better equipment for the PK and to make lvling easier.
b) A teleportation system that means I can teleport to my partner or vice versa whenever we want.
c) More team activities
d) I don't know but I'm a man
What Pet do you have in game?
a) Anything that gives me the best boost for my stats, I wanna be MORE powerful!
b) Anything that matches my outfit and looks cute
c) A pet that balances my character and supports my style of play well
d) Something manly because I'm a man
Why did you join?
a) I looked around for a game with good PK or PVP that ran well on my PC
b) My partner found this game and enjoyed it, so I thought I’d give it a go too
c) My friends told me about this game, and even if I don’t play with them now, I have made some good friends here
d) I'm a man is why.
 |
| Michael Jordan about to dunk a basketball. Just thought it was time for a picture! Trollface. |
What graphics style do you like?
a) I modded the style anyway to make it run faster for the PVP
b) I’m not too fussed, I got used to the game because of my partner
c) I like it to be friendly and not too bloody
d) Any graphical style that appeals to my manliness as I am a man.
What needs to be improved in the guild you are in?
a) The way items are given out I’m not given enough stuff from the team activities!
b) Sometimes I feel that my partner and I aren’t taken seriously enough
c) Less trash talk of each other, I feel I need to stand up for a lot of people in the guild
d) As long as these 'improvements' don't interfere with me being a man then I'm cool.
What type of class do you like to play?
a) Anything with a lot of power; DPS or massive AOE damage
b) I play full support and work with my partner or a team
c) Support/Damage mix I’m all about the balance
d) As long as it's male I'm fine.
Mostly As: Yep you guessed it! You are the Drama Queen! You love having power and being able to survive without support, but these games have party and team areas for a reason, just be careful you don’t upset your team, or you will find out why they say the whole is greater than the sum of its parts!
Mostly Bs: You’re the Tag-along! I hope that you keep playing the MMO if you and your bf break up as there are a lot of lovely people in the game who would love a full support character to help them and you can always make friends or morph into the Mother figure!
Mostly Cs: Surprise surprise! You are the Mother-figure, people in the guild look to you for political support, fairness and justice in guild activities. Just be warned, your status in the guild might be resented by the Drama Queen who thinks that her role is more important or less rewarded than your own, and it’s your job to keep her calm!
Mostly Ds: You're a man. Or at least you claim to be.
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