Changing Link's Gender in Older Games
- Thread starter mαrkαsscoρ
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I don't have an issue with it. I think it's kind of weird that they didn't give an option for gender from the very first game considering that you can name your character anything you want. Link is very different from Mario. Mario is the same guy every game, and Link is a different character in most games that you can name after yourself or anyone you want. Link is more similar to the protagonist of a Pokemon game.
I like Link as a boy, personally, but I understand how some would want him to be a girl. I just don't think changing a whole main character to the opposite gender because some think that females should be a protagonist in every game is right. Equality, remember? I don't care if it's a boy or a girl, because I think of both equally. Some females think that they are better, and some males think they are better, but they're both equal. That's why I don't see why we need to change him to a girl if it's fine already.
Though I don't have a problem with the father, I think he's a good dad to his daughter for doing that. But making Link to the opposite gender always, and then making it canon, I don't agree with. I think in future games maybe they should make it so that at the beginning of each game, you choose whether to be a boy or a girl. That way, everyone will be happy. I'll be happy with him as a boy, and the people who want him to be a girl will be happy, and everything will work out well!
Though I don't have a problem with the father, I think he's a good dad to his daughter for doing that. But making Link to the opposite gender always, and then making it canon, I don't agree with. I think in future games maybe they should make it so that at the beginning of each game, you choose whether to be a boy or a girl. That way, everyone will be happy. I'll be happy with him as a boy, and the people who want him to be a girl will be happy, and everything will work out well!
ArmanaTheCustos
Inspiring Youtuber
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we have linkle, whose is bae, so we don't need a female link even in the older games. Samus was referred to as a he in the original Metroid so that way when the player beats the game they'd be surprised to see Samus was a woman. As for having a game with a female link, again I'd much rather it be linkle
Fraxinus
chunky plant goop
I can understand the sentiment behind this, but I'm not sure it's necessary, and it may actually be harmful. I think the outcome of this is the father basically convincing his child that she is unable/unallowed to relate to a character unless they happen to identify the way she does, and this is fueled by her father's assumption that she wouldn't want to play or would be uncomfortable playing a game because the character identifies differently than her. I think this will alienate her from a lot of games in the long run, because her father is essentially "sheltering" her from the idea of playing as a character that is a different gender than she is. She'll be in for a surprise later if he wishes to continue doing this and make this the normal for her.
I know this isn't really a concern for boys getting into games, as protagonists in a lot of titles are predominately male, but girls upon picking up a game for the first time should not feel like they're unwelcome to play a game because the playable character is male. And most don't. They don't care. Characters' relatability generally have very little to do with their gender, except maybe in games where adult themes come into play? But that should not be a factor for a child playing their first video games.
In Zelda games, you can literally name your profile after yourself if you want. A lot of girls are completely okay naming Link after themselves and do not feel uncomfortable with their name and the male pronouns being used interchangeably. My mom played Zelda and named Link after herself; my sister opts to just keep him as Link because she likes Link's character as his own thing. These are both perfectly reasonable ways to handle this; while Link does represent the player, he is also his own character as well. Link's gender by extension is a part of that character framework upon which the player is projected. In her father changing that gender, he is making a point to his daughter that the gender of the character is somehow significant, which it is not.
I know this isn't really a concern for boys getting into games, as protagonists in a lot of titles are predominately male, but girls upon picking up a game for the first time should not feel like they're unwelcome to play a game because the playable character is male. And most don't. They don't care. Characters' relatability generally have very little to do with their gender, except maybe in games where adult themes come into play? But that should not be a factor for a child playing their first video games.
In Zelda games, you can literally name your profile after yourself if you want. A lot of girls are completely okay naming Link after themselves and do not feel uncomfortable with their name and the male pronouns being used interchangeably. My mom played Zelda and named Link after herself; my sister opts to just keep him as Link because she likes Link's character as his own thing. These are both perfectly reasonable ways to handle this; while Link does represent the player, he is also his own character as well. Link's gender by extension is a part of that character framework upon which the player is projected. In her father changing that gender, he is making a point to his daughter that the gender of the character is somehow significant, which it is not.
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Where does it say the father assumed anything?
Most young girls don't play video games. It's a predominately male hobby, even today. You say they don't care, but every time I played games with girls as a kid, they would always pick a female character when given the choice. As an adult this is still usually the case, although nowadays there's usually more than just the lone designated woman character.
Have you met kids? Their brains are simple. Something like that is exactly why a character would be relatable to a child. You can't give nuanced character traits to childrens' characters and expect kids to pick up on them. Kids work more like "This character is blue. I like blue. I like this character." or "This character is a boy like me, so I will pick him." There's a reason characters like Link and Ganondorf have their entire personality/motives communicated through their appearance. They are simple characters that can be understood by even small children.
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@Ten Thousand Needles
I will never understand why this blatant lie amongst gamers persists? Plenty of girls have been playing videogames for decades. Some of them have been playing before you were born. Most have been playing since they were little kids. None of us ever said, I need the character to be me or I can't enjoy it or understand it.
I will never understand why this blatant lie amongst gamers persists? Plenty of girls have been playing videogames for decades. Some of them have been playing before you were born. Most have been playing since they were little kids. None of us ever said, I need the character to be me or I can't enjoy it or understand it.
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Because it's not a lie? There are simply more male gamers than female. If you're referring to my personal experiences with women playing games, that's true too, whether you like it or not.
el :BeoWolf:
When all else fails use fire
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This is straight up not true. While it is true more boys than girls play videogames it's actually only a small majority according to some polls. Others seem to imply more women play videogames actually.
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Ones that include games like Candy Crush, yeah.
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No its an idiotic lie. Just because you refuse to acknowledge that gaming has ALWAYS been for everyone, does not make it automatically true. Its just a plain sexist remark. Why don't you grow up?
And there's no good child-friendly girl protags? What a steaming load.
Samus Aran
Princess Peach
Dixie Kong
The Golden Sun girls
Shantae
The numerous Skylanders girls
Various Pokemon Trainers
Rydia
Chun-Li
And so many others
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Consequently, those of us who aren't are unfairly judged because of the words and actions of a vocal minority. It's just wrong. It's one thing to voice an opinion. It's another when your "opinion" is flatly untrue.
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I know many of you aren't, which is why I retracted my statement. My apologies. But unfortunately, there are plenty of mouthy, immature ignoramuses like him, who continue to perpuate that unfortunate negative view by being sexist and rude.
just because it’s meant for everyone doesn’t mean everyone enjoys it. It’s not a lie to state that more boys play video games than girls. Also the vast majority of characters on that list are pretty debatable as to whether or not they are protagonists or not.
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Let's see...
Samus: For older kids? Sure. Most little children are not going to enjoy any Metroid game
Peach: lol Yeah, Super Princess Peach from fifteen years ago? Sure, that'll keep your kids busy for ages
Dixie Kong: Secondary character who's most prominent role was in a game titled after a male who wasn't even playable
Golden Sun: Secondary characters
Shantae: If you're one of the seven people who give a **** about this franchise, sure.
Skylanders: The game about that male, Spyro? Which, aside from that, is notorious for butchering a classic IP?
Pokemon: Sure
Rydia: Who the ****?
Chun-Li: What universe are you in that Street Fighter is a game for little kids? This is a screenshot from Street Fighter:
