ADVERTISEMENT
Saturday, January 28, 2023
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions
Involve Africa
  • Home
  • All African News
  • Politics
  • Technology
  • Entertainment News
    • Travel
    • Tourism
    • Arts
  • Finance
    • Food & Agriculture
    • Business & Economy
  • Crypto News
  • Energy & Environment
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • All African News
  • Politics
  • Technology
  • Entertainment News
    • Travel
    • Tourism
    • Arts
  • Finance
    • Food & Agriculture
    • Business & Economy
  • Crypto News
  • Energy & Environment
No Result
View All Result
Involve Africa
No Result
View All Result
ADVERTISEMENT
Home Politics

Video game worlds are often devoid of children – here’s why

Involve Africa by Involve Africa
June 2, 2022
in Politics
0
Video game worlds are often devoid of children – here’s why
585
SHARES
3.2k
VIEWS
https://web.facebook.com/involveafricanews?_rdc=1&https://twitter.com/involveafricanews


While the potential benefits or drawbacks of children playing video games receives a lot of attention, little notice is taken of the place of children within video games themselves. However, the representation of children in media can tell us a lot about how they are viewed by society, and the rules, beliefs, and social systems that shape contemporary children’s place in the world.

My recent research looked at how children were represented in over 500 commercially successful and critically acclaimed video games, published between 2009 and 2019. These included games aimed both at adults and at children.

I found that there were many places in gameworlds where children simply weren’t welcome, and that representations of children followed particular patterns in terms of gender and race.

Although video games are often considered a children’s medium, I found that of the 506 video games I looked at, 331 did not contain any child characters at all. In the remaining titles that did feature a child character, less than half of them were significant characters. Child characters simply did not exist in the majority of gameworlds, reflecting children’s exclusion from many areas of society.

Making certain game environments “adults only” can protect virtual children from aspects of the game that involve taboo activities such as violence. But virtual children can only ever be placed in virtual danger. This suggests that concern for digital children is perhaps best understood as a need to defend an imagined, idealised version of “the child”.

How “the child” is treated in media like video games is a reflection of the morals of wider society. If a game treats children badly without explicitly condemning this treatment, it violates these morals.

This accounts for the absence of child characters in controversial open-world games such as those in the Grand Theft Auto (GTA) series, which predominantly invite players to steal cars, shoot people, and evade the police.

GTA games are often accused of being deliberately immoral and offensive because they encourage players to explore the boundaries both of what is possible and what is permissible. However, the game’s designers chose to systematically exclude children from the otherwise detailed and comprehensive simulated cities of GTA.

Children were absent from games that aren’t particularly violent, too. Child characters did not feature in the majority of sports games and racing games. They didn’t appear in training games or fitness games, and music games such as Guitar Hero, SingStar, SongPop, Rockband, and the Just Dance series represented all of the on-screen performers as adults.

In many of these games, the player’s progress is tracked as if they were climbing a career ladder in a real-world industry. Sports games in particular often pay homage to professional leagues and athletes. Because the majority of children are excluded from the world of work, games that simulate aspects of real industries represent virtual environments that are only populated with adults.

The imaginary child

Child characters in video games can also tell us about how society visualises the figure of the child. Research has found that adult characters in video games are more likely to be white and male. I found this same pattern in my research on child characters.

I found that where playable child characters were given a gender, 25 were male and six were female. The lack of playable girl characters reinforces the idea that boys are at the centre of the action and girls exist only on the sidelines.

I found that 18 child player-characters were white, and only three child player-characters were non-white. Because they were animals, fantasy creatures, or automatons, 15 child player-characters had no race. One child player-character had a customisable race and 9 child player-characters were categorised as “Mukokuseki”, a Japanese term usually used to refer to characters rendered in an anime style who could be understood as either white or Japanese.

Video game landscape with tigers
Animal or other non-human characters were more common than non-white child characters.
NotionPic/Shutterstock

This echoes a problem in western children’s literature. Research has found that non-human characters appear less frequently than white child protagonists but significantly outnumber child protagonists of all other races.

Western video games seem to equate childhood with whiteness. This has real-life parallels with the way non-white children are often treated as older than they are, a phenomenon known as “adultification”.

Common understandings of childhood still tend to see it as a natural, timeless, and universal phenomenon. Examining the digital kids that populate virtual gameworlds is a great way to show that how societies perceive “the child” is often in a narrow and exclusionary way.



Source_link

You might also like

Gandhi’s image is under scrutiny 75 years after his assassination – but his protest principles are being revived

SF Mayor’s Former Nonprofit Gets Millions While Flouting CA Law

How Wamkele Mene made African free trade a priority at the World Economic Forum

Previous Post

SABRE: NITDA Wins 2022 African PR Award for Excellence

Next Post

Four Places to Visit On a Road Trip to Florida

Involve Africa

Involve Africa

Related Posts

Gandhi’s image is under scrutiny 75 years after his assassination – but his protest principles are being revived
Politics

Gandhi’s image is under scrutiny 75 years after his assassination – but his protest principles are being revived

by Involve Africa
January 27, 2023
SF Mayor’s Former Nonprofit Gets Millions While Flouting CA Law
Politics

SF Mayor’s Former Nonprofit Gets Millions While Flouting CA Law

by Involve Africa
January 27, 2023
How Wamkele Mene made African free trade a priority at the World Economic Forum
Politics

How Wamkele Mene made African free trade a priority at the World Economic Forum

by Involve Africa
January 27, 2023
Ghana: Safeguard World Bank Carbon-Emission-Reduction Assistance
Politics

Ghana: Safeguard World Bank Carbon-Emission-Reduction Assistance

by Involve Africa
January 26, 2023
former Lebanon prime minister charged with homicide
Politics

former Lebanon prime minister charged with homicide

by Involve Africa
January 26, 2023
Next Post
Four Places to Visit On a Road Trip to Florida

Four Places to Visit On a Road Trip to Florida

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recommended

Challenges And Place of African Languages In Global Translation Literature – Tubosun

Challenges And Place of African Languages In Global Translation Literature – Tubosun

August 12, 2022
Top 6 Financial Challenges That LGBTQ+ Couples Regularly Face

Top 6 Financial Challenges That LGBTQ+ Couples Regularly Face

January 17, 2023

Categories

  • All African News
  • Arts
  • Business & Economy
  • Crypto News
  • Energy & Environment
  • Entertainment News
  • Finance
  • Food & Agriculture
  • News Videos
  • Politics
  • Technology
  • Tourism
  • Travel

Don't miss it

No Insurance? Here’s How To Get Cheap or Free Eye Exam and Prescription Glasses
Finance

No Insurance? Here’s How To Get Cheap or Free Eye Exam and Prescription Glasses

January 28, 2023
Astar launches new HRMP channels with Equilibrium
Crypto News

Astar launches new HRMP channels with Equilibrium

January 28, 2023
Photos from Everything We Know About Ted Lasso Season 3
Entertainment News

Photos from Everything We Know About Ted Lasso Season 3

January 28, 2023
14 Very Best Places In Provence To Visit – Hand Luggage Only
Travel

14 Very Best Places In Provence To Visit – Hand Luggage Only

January 27, 2023
AFRICA NEWS ROOM – Sénégal: Promouvoir la propriété immobilière à travers le PSE (2/3)
News Videos

AFRICA NEWS ROOM – Sénégal: Promouvoir la propriété immobilière à travers le PSE (2/3)

January 27, 2023
Total Telecom takes highly successful Connected event series to the U.S.
Business & Economy

Total Telecom takes highly successful Connected event series to the U.S.

January 27, 2023

Social Bar

Welcome to involve Africa The goal of involve Africa is to give you the absolute best news sources for any topic! Our topics are carefully curated and constantly updated as we know the web moves fast so we try to as well.

Categories

  • All African News
  • Arts
  • Business & Economy
  • Crypto News
  • Energy & Environment
  • Entertainment News
  • Finance
  • Food & Agriculture
  • News Videos
  • Politics
  • Technology
  • Tourism
  • Travel

Site Links

  • Home
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions

Recent News

No Insurance? Here’s How To Get Cheap or Free Eye Exam and Prescription Glasses

No Insurance? Here’s How To Get Cheap or Free Eye Exam and Prescription Glasses

January 28, 2023
Astar launches new HRMP channels with Equilibrium

Astar launches new HRMP channels with Equilibrium

January 28, 2023

INVOLVEAFRICA.COM

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • All African News
  • Politics
  • Technology
  • Entertainment News
    • Travel
    • Tourism
    • Arts
  • Finance
    • Food & Agriculture
    • Business & Economy
  • Crypto News
  • Energy & Environment

INVOLVEAFRICA.COM

What Are Cookies
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent.
Cookie SettingsAccept All
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT