Most MMORPGs, such as Maple Story, RF Online, and many others, allow players to experience a fantasy world filled with orcs, elves, dwarves, and many other exotic races. These games also allow players to choose what gender their avatars will assume. While playing as non-human races is not considered anything extraordinary, playing the opposite gender (called gender inflection) has always been a divisive issue. Current polls show that 85% of MMORPG players are men and that men are up to 5 times more likely to change gender than women. This means that, on average, at least half of all female avatars in a virtual world are played by men.
There are some very practical reasons why a man would prefer to play a female character online. For example, it is well known that other players are much more generous with the elements and in the orientation of the game to the female characters. Women who play a male character give up this gender-specific advantage, which probably explains the much lower tendency for female gender bending. It has also been observed that in third person MMORPGs many men prefer to spend their gaming hours staring at the back of a slim woman’s body rather than a bulky man. Many do not accept these utilitarian reasons alone as the explanation for gender bending. Some suspect that there are darker, more psychological reasons why a man will dress in women’s outfits, practically speaking.
The fact that a man wants to play a female character is often enough evidence for many in the online community to label someone as gay. But surprisingly, feminist organizations see gender bending as another sign of female oppression. In most virtual worlds, female characters barely dress and are blessed with what we will call “generous assets.” It’s sexism on the part of men to want to control these polished pleasure robots, or so the feminist argument goes. Certainly there is a small minority of men who use female characters to approach other men online, but doesn’t the ultimate responsibility rest with the individual to defend against unsolicited advances online?
The problem has gone so far in some places that game publishers and governments decided they should intervene. Recently in China, Shanda Entertainment, a major developer of virtual worlds, issued a new rule according to which anyone who wants to create a female avatar must first prove their gender to the company through a webcam. Interestingly, women who wish to play a male character would not need to go through this procedure. Many players faced character removal if their female avatars did not have a female face to defend on the webcam. Not surprisingly, players wore wigs and makeup to trick developers into allowing them to keep their avatars. Shanda may have found the perfect way to reverse gender bending trends between the sexes, placing additional barriers in front of male transsexuals and encouraging female gender bending. (forcing women to “prove” their sex) Soon China will have the first virtual world where half of the men are women!