#female gamers

In the latest edition of the video game series Grand Theft Auto you can approach a female sex worker, choose what sexual act to engage in from a price list ($50 for a blow job, $70 for a half-and-half, $100 for everything), engage in the chosen act (and thus increase your life points), pay, and then kill the sex worker and get your money back.. You cannot, however, play a female character. The creators of Grand Theft Auto V have made it very clear: women are objects to be toyed with, not human beings.

This game, which allows the player to enter first-person mode, not only objectifies women, and particularly sex workers, it glorifies and trivialises violence against women. It turns it all into fun and games. The game allows you to kill a sex worker for no particular reason. It makes it cool to buy services from a sex worker and then physically harm her. It even rewards you for these acts!

Video game creators are free to create any scenarios and universes they want, yet this is what they choose to create. And this is what people chose to play. The existence of this game and its popularity are clearly a reflection of the misogyny in our society. There’s no doubt, we’re a long way from gender equality.