questions Hypothesis Project Overview Methodology

Mods in videogames: speech, gender and reception Antonio José Planells de la Maza | University Center of Technology and Digital Art (U-tad)

Main questions 1.- Considering the gender studies perspective, why gamers choose specific mods in videogames? 2.- What kind of mods are most used by players?

Hypothesis • Male players choose mods based on sex and/or nudism following gender issues. • Female players use different criteria when choosing a sex/nudism mod.

• Aesthetic and visual mods sexualize only female avatars.

Methodology

Project Overview • This project aims to understand why gamers choose specific mods in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and the impact of gender issues in their decisions • Nexus mods is the main Skyrim mods database. We have analyzed the TOP 100 most downloaded mods using content and motivational analysis • We have used website tags (character attributes, theme and realism, objects,..) to catalog mods • We have connected the most relevant gender tags with game user opinions in each mod page, but only those texts, images and personal commentaries thatframe why gamers have installed that specific mod. • Following a gender perspective, decisions are made in a specific range: from feminist positions to male chauvinism ideology. We have not considered non related arguments or non clear gender positions

Content Analysis • We have analyzed TOP 100 mods in Nexus website • Website tags as analytical categories. • We are particularly interested in gender tags (see “Variables”)

Motivational analysis • Relationship between TOP 100 mods, main gender tags and game users opinions • Opinions as motivations through: • Text • Images • Commentaries

Gender tag motivations in TOP 100 Skyrim mods

Variables

100% 90%

Number of tags analyzed

Gender approach – Most relevant tags

Attributes

19

Balance

3

Attributes – For female characters

Components

25

Content and realism

10

Language

10

Content and realism – Sexy/Skimpy

Objects

25

Content and realism - Nudity

Requirements

4

Objects – Clothing – Female

Resources

7

Objects – Clothing - Male

General categories

80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30%

Attributes – For male characters Content and realism – Anime Content and realism – Humor, Joke or Just for Fun

Results and conclusions

20%

• When gender issues emerge, male chauvinism is the hegemonic ideology.

10% 0%

Attributes – For male characters

Attributes – For female characters

Content and realism – Anime

Content and Content and realism – realism – Humor, Joke Sexy/Skimpy or Just for Fun

Content and realism Nudity

Objects – Clothing – Female

Motivation not related to gender issues / no clear gender position Clearly male chauvinism Clearly feminist

Objects – Clothing - Male

• Male chauvinism is specially relevant in avatar visual design: female characters attributes, sexy content, nudity and female clothes mods are the most chosen under this perspective. Instead, male characters are not affected by a gender perspective. In this sense, gamers try to sexualize female avatars from an ideological perspective, while male characters mods are mostly neutral. • Anime represents a middle ground tag. Clear feminist positions defend Anime as a new female representation space (women strength, self-potential), , while male chauvinism perspective sees it as a fetichist idol with extremely sexualized attributes (big breasts and long legs).