So, tell me

[Sylvia.4870]

        By the six! It is  already 2022 and  almost 2023.  I can't believe there are still some people  who love to look down on anyone who plays  an opposite gender character in the game -  a woman plays  as  a male character and  a man plays  as  a female one. What is wrong with the case much , especially the second one? Since when did it trouble you , harass  your life? Since when did it matter so much? If I prefer creating  the  female characters  to the male ones  and see some outfits  are fitting to them, is that strange much? If you think I created the female ones in order to just look at their arses, act like a woman, be my guest. After all, I can't convince you nor control your thoughts. 

   

 

Edited September 19, 2022 by Sylvia.4870

[Danikat.8537]

I'm sorry you had to deal with that.

It's been very rare that anyone has said anything about it directly to me, and when they have it's usually been surprise rather than criticism. But I'm not sure how many people who see me playing a male character in-game know I'm a woman. My guilds know and don't care, but I don't know how most people would realise. I have seen discussions about it on various forums (not just GW2 ones) with a very wide range of opinions and some odd assumptions about other people's decisions.

My thinking is that it doesn't matter what my character looks like, they aren't me even if I made them look like me. They do things I can't do, and wouldn't want to if I could, like killing other people. I used to say if I was me in a fantasy game I'd have to be one of the NPCs who stay in town and sell things to the adventurers or send them on quests, because there's no way I'm doing that myself. GW2 gave me a better answer when Siren's Landing introduced the idea that the Pact have people who go in after the threat is passed to help the land heal. That's not far off what I do in real life. (Although if real life is any indication I'd spend too much time stuck in Lion's Arch dealing with the logistics.) But still, I am not my characters and wouldn't want to be, I suspect they'd feel the same, so it doesn't matter if we look similar.

Also I'm obviously not a norn, charr, asura or sylvari and I don't understand why playing a different species seems stranger to some people than playing a different gender.

[Freya.9075]

I think it's best if you ignore players like that if you can. I used to play male characters to get away from male players getting creepy after finding out I am female. However it is better now as girl gamers are more accepted. So I rarely come across these kind of players now. Point being ppl have their reasons for choosing the opposite gender and that should be respected.

 

As a female playing male asura, I've not come across anyone shaming me for playing opposite gender. Only that I play the rat race. Which I don't take as an insult since I also call them rats. 

 

I think the male playing female character issue (if you can call it that) comes from a time when male gamers tended to go for female characters only to look at their butts and it became this joke many players bantered about. I've seen it countless times. Players in chat talking about their characters butt. "why would I want to look at a guys butt while playing" So it gets too easy for ppl to assume that's the main reason ppl choose the other gender. 

[casualkenny.9817]

My buddy and I discussed it years ago, and we think the key difference lies in whether a player sees the char as a virtual representation of themselves, or as a toon. The concept itself is very alien to them.

 

It can be hard to completely ignore assumptions that some people make. As with all skills, you hone them through practice. 

[Hotride.2187]

Why do you care to know though. Personally I always play female characters when I have the option. They just look way better on average. Except for dragon age 3, that game was horrible for getting your character to look good.

[SuavePuppy.2809]

I only have female toons because their fashion is nicer. I've never had this happen to me so I would say this is probably the exception and not the rule, so avoid interacting with those people

[Tsakhi.8124]

I never understood that myself. I mean, I have equal numbers of both genders 12 males and 12 females of varying races. Gender doesn't matter to me, their stories do. What makes them tick? What do they die to defend? As in real life, for me at least, gender is the least important thing to me; your heart and the beauty of who you are means much, much more. 

On a side note, I played a male cleric in Perfect World and was thoroughly amused by how our guild acted the first time they heard my husband and I talk. (He played a female character.) They were like:

"OMG, Miss Psycho sounds so f-ing adorable."

And my husband was like:  "No, that's Murcas. I'm Miss Psycho."

The chat went silent for a moment and then there was laughing. 

[Song of Eternity.8613]

I envision most of my character's as heroines or heroes in a story. Only one do I kind of relate to myself, but only vaguely.

[Danikat.8537]

1 hour ago, Tsakhi.8124 said:

I never understood that myself. I mean, I have equal numbers of both genders 12 males and 12 females of varying races. Gender doesn't matter to me, their stories do. What makes them tick? What do they die to defend? As in real life, for me at least, gender is the least important thing to me; your heart and the beauty of who you are means much, much more.

This is pretty much my thinking too. I approach it like writing a story, I imagine a character who will fit the role I intend them to have (or know they're going to have) in the story, and one of the things I enjoy about playing multiple characters is seeing how many different characters can fit into that same role.

I normally start designing them in my head long before going into the character creator, I take the reason I want a new character and what I know they'll do in the game and start imagining what sort of person they'll be. Sometimes it seems obvious to me to make them male or female, sometimes it's fairly arbitrary or comes down to the cosmetic options I'll get. I've currently got 5 male and 6 female, and I think it would feel stranger to me to make them all the same.

[Astralporing.1957]

Lol, i guess the times are indeed changing. There was a time (and not that long ago, btw) when noone would care, because everyone was already operating under assumption that all female characters are guys in real life, so if that got confirmed, hardly anyone was surprised.

[Farohna.6247]

9 minutes ago, Astralporing.1957 said:

Lol, i guess the times are indeed changing. There was a time (and not that long ago, btw) when noone would care, because everyone was already operating under assumption that all female characters are guys in real life, so if that got confirmed, hardly anyone was surprised.

Lol that's very true.  Being a woman who plays female characters I find it highly amusing when someone would suddenly find out I was an actual female.  Yeh well we are over half the population, surprise! 

I have known women who play male characters though so they are not asked "are you actually a girl".  Also know men who play female characters because they frankly prefer the appearance, and that's perfectly fine.  Honestly...it's a game.  Who the heck cares?

OP I'm sincerely sorry if anyone is being a rude kitten to you.  Ignore them, you play whatever you want and they can go be dreadful and regressed somewhere else. Play what you like people.  All my characters in game, if given the option, are non human.  Usually with a tail.  Possibly horns.  Clearly I look just like that irl. 💙

[JayHog.3280]

I made female asura, Sylvari and human for the sake of roleplay.

 

Although it did teach me that Asura have no bust or nipples, because wearing the barbarian armor reveals nothing.

 

Which makes me wonder why wear a full on swimsuit from top to bottom in the first place when just the lower half would help, but I ain't one to dwelve that deep into logic.

[Khisanth.2948]

On the one hand I agree that nobody should care about the genders of your characters.

On the other hand do you have a habit of announcing your gender on map chat every time you load in or something? How is this conversation even getting started?

[Ithlia.1830]

The first online game I played, many years ago, was a RP game. You had to be in character at all times. Being a female I wasn't comfortable RP'ing a male. Now I always play females out of habit I guess.  I personally don't care which gender folks play. Play what's fun for you because fun is what we are suppose to be having here after all.

[Batel.9206]

...why would anyone reveal to a stranger over the internet, the anonymous breeding ground of trolls and harassment, "Yeah I'm actually a dude/lady in real life."

I've mentioned I'm a woman on these forums purely to make a point at times (like my annoyance at someone nastily assuming everyone who was upset with the female human Canthan faces we got late last year must be a man who wants to make anime waifus...no, my good dude/dudette, I want to make an attractive character who doesn't look like she hates the world 24/7...). But never in-game, to total strangers in casual conversation, have I ever said I'm a woman. Why on earth would I? The less people know about me, the better.

[Linken.6345]

26 minutes ago, JayHog.3280 said:

I made female asura, Sylvari and human for the sake of roleplay.

 

Although it did teach me that Asura have no bust or nipples, because wearing the barbarian armor reveals nothing.

 

Which makes me wonder why wear a full on swimsuit from top to bottom in the first place when just the lower half would help, but I ain't one to dwelve that deep into logic.

Well it is because they can be misstaken as children I would guess.

Edit

And some guys like to play females since thirsty guys give them stuff for thinking they are females.

Sad I know.

Edited September 19, 2022 by Linken.6345

[Vayne.8563]

3 hours ago, Astralporing.1957 said:

Lol, i guess the times are indeed changing. There was a time (and not that long ago, btw) when noone would care, because everyone was already operating under assumption that all female characters are guys in real life, so if that got confirmed, hardly anyone was surprised.

We all knew what was what MMORPG stood for...Many Men Online Role Playing Girls

[LSD.4673]

3 hours ago, Astralporing.1957 said:

Lol, i guess the times are indeed changing. There was a time (and not that long ago, btw) when noone would care, because everyone was already operating under assumption that all female characters are guys in real life, so if that got confirmed, hardly anyone was surprised.

The skimpier their clothes, the more likely it's a guy -- picture the South Park WoW guy for the girls in the weird pants+stocking combo and you probably won't be too far off.

[Ashen.2907]

6 minutes ago, LSD.4673 said:

The skimpier their clothes, the more likely it's a guy -- picture the South Park WoW guy for the girls in the weird pants+stocking combo and you probably won't be too far off.

I dont know about that. A lot of the women in my guilds use their characters to embrace their inner exhibitionist.

[Sylvia.4870]

1 hour ago, Khisanth.2948 said:

On the one hand I agree that nobody should care about the genders of your characters.

On the other hand do you have a habit of announcing your gender on map chat every time you load in or something? How is this conversation even getting started?

       No, I'm not crazy to announce my gender on the map chat everytime  I log in. Not even once. If I was a madman, I would already be in a hospital instead of living in the society as I should. Too many times to count, I was insulted  as though I was as similar as other men who are obsessed with something of the lower part of a woman. No matter how hard I tried to say that I wasn't psychic, none of them believed me. That's why I'm so tired  and this post appears.

Edited September 19, 2022 by Sylvia.4870

[Farohna.6247]

42 minutes ago, Batel.9206 said:

...why would anyone reveal to a stranger over the internet, the anonymous breeding ground of trolls and harassment, "Yeah I'm actually a dude/lady in real life."

I've mentioned I'm a woman on these forums purely to make a point at times (like my annoyance at someone nastily assuming everyone who was upset with the female human Canthan faces we got late last year must be a man who wants to make anime waifus...no, my good dude/dudette, I want to make an attractive character who doesn't look like she hates the world 24/7...). But never in-game, to total strangers in casual conversation, have I ever said I'm a woman. Why on earth would I? The less people know about me, the better.

Absolutely agree as to why anyone would announce what they are, voice chat is the only time I've ever had people know what I actually am.  We're here to play a game, not worry over someone's gender.  Please do not tell people your real name, your age if it could be an issue, gender, etc.  If it's people yes I feel comfortable with, that's inform at your own risk.  

That being said, I'm surprised how many people like to dabble in the water colors and ask an attractive character if they're a girl irl.  It's creepy and peculiar.  Assume everyone who is playing is a toaster and move on.  

Going to assume OP had someone giving them rot about playing a female character if they're male for example and that the person making the offensive comment is insecure about themselves and can't play anything that doesn't exhibit their ideal gender traits.  Let's hope they grow up a little 

[Farohna.6247]

7 minutes ago, Sylvia.4870 said:

       No, I'm not crazy to announce my gender on the map chat everytime  I log in. Not even once. If I was a madman, I would already be in a hospital instead of living in the society as I should. Too many times to count, I was insulted  as though I was as similar as other men who are obsessed with something of the lower part of a woman. No matter how hard I tried to say that I wasn't psychic, none of them believed me. That's why I'm so tired  and this post appears.

Block them, and you do you.  Report hateful speech.  Play what you want, be happy.  Everyone be kind to each other.  Keep working on that psychic thing.

[Rune Darkmoor.3269]

Not gonna lie.  I've never particularly cared,  stabbed fun at some friends from time to time for way too overly sextualized characters, but to each their own.

 

Personally,  I've almost always played male toons.

 

Male Dervish,  Warrior, Monk, Assassin,  etc in GW1. Male Elyos Templar in Aion. T1 (male) in PSO2, but in GW2... no matter how much I try I can never find armor sets or mixes or looks I like for my Sylvari Guardian, and it started male at launch,  then swapped to female.  I've swapped back multiple times over the years to try to make it work but nope, the proportions of all the body types drove me nuts.

 

In GW2 female heavy armor is just better on Sylvari IMO, and I've TRIED.

[Zok.4956]

9 hours ago, Sylvia.4870 said:

I can't believe there are still some people  who love to look down on anyone who plays ...

There are always some players that look down on others for whatever reasons. 

 

10 minutes ago, Sylvia.4870 said:

Too many times to count, I was insulted

Just report and block them.

 

[Pheex.8932]

I've been playing MMO's for over 20 years and I've never had anyone tell me that, ever.