Female Gamers - Not as Good as Males?

FarRockBF·Nov 10, 2014·4 votes·987 views

So WHY are there so few (are there ANY?) girls in LCS? Why are there so few females in Challenger?

Possibility #1: Girls just don't game as much. Because of this over 90% of players are males, hence over 90% of Challenger are male.

Still, this doesn't answer why there are NO girls in LCS? Also, WHY don't girls game as much? Is it because boys are naturally more aggressive?

Possibility #2: Girls just aren't as good.

This is a possibility. Perhaps because they get emotional more easily then men? We know girls physically are tuned to get emotional easier then men (especially at that special time of month). So maybe they just rage easier and therefore lose more often?

Not looking to hate on women - I'm married and love my wife. I just find it interesting.

Thoughts?

15 Comments

ValyrianBladeNov 10, 20146 votes

I'd guess it's: A) fewer girls playing B) any girl at a high level would get ridiculed/sexualized by the mobs of immature guys that pay this game, it would probably cause real problems in her life, so it's just not worth it. C) not as socially accepted, so girls can't commit the same amount of time that guys do in general D) possibly something hormonal that affects reaction times or something. I fully think girls can make strategic decisions equally as well as guys can, but I believe a few years ago I heard about a study that showed men have faster reflexes than women. If it's not only the average but the extremes as well (I.e. No woman who Games has reflexes as fast as the top male players) then perhaps they can't get in.

I'd say it's primarily the social stigma though. There's no reason to believe girls can't be just as good at video games as guys are with the same level of practice and support.

redniwediSNov 10, 20143 votes

A, B, and C are all valid points, but D is simply incorrect.

ValyrianBladeNov 10, 20142 votes

Probably true. If anything the cause and effect in that study was backwards/missing. The Social stigma resulted in more guys playing video games, resulting in higher average reaction times.

Hence my last sentence though ;)

MomoraeNov 10, 20145 votes

Most of my friends just don't get League. It's not that they would suck at it, but I think the competitive nature of MOBA doesn't appeal to them as much. Of course I love League as a female, being a naturally competitive person. But most of my girl-friends just like MMORPG's and social games much more than these kinds of things.

Also, the community as a whole isn't the friendliest bunch, and if someone figures out you're a female things can get hostile (or in some cases, uncomfortably far too friendly). And some people don't want to pretend to be someone they're not so they can fit in with the rest of the hyper-masculine community. I just got used to it and it doesn't bother me now, but back when I first started playing, the toxic environment really got to me sometimes.

As for why there are no females in LCS and Challenger: If the above reasons don't deter them from playing, I think it's the same reason there aren't as many female computer programmers and engineers. Most of my friends think I'm weird and maybe even socially inept for liking this game enough to play it everyday. It's like that for males too, but the stigma goes up higher if you're a female. So many times I see male friends getting together to play League and I envy them, as my own best friends are always trying to get me off that "lame nerd-game." It's hard to put in that much time into it.

As for the 'time of month theory'.....I myself haven't found much difference in win rates due to that. Lol.

If it's true that "girls are not as good" as men in the game, I would think that it's because they're just socially (in and out of the game) discouraged to play this game and thus cannot put as much effort into getting better.

Trust me, there's a lot of women playing League but guys don't pick up on them since most of us don't go around advertising it. Some people of course go full on gamer-grill but that's a minority of the female player base.

As for me I would love to see real female gamers out there in the pro scene. Yes there had been a few in the past, but they were pretty much in the service of male fans and I'm convinced that the requirement was "you should be kinda good at the game but you def need to look hot" which isn't good for anything competitive.

EMOFRATPARTYNov 10, 20143 votes

I understand you are trying to be constructive here, but your post is just blatantly wrong in many, many ways.

Possibility #1: Girls just don't game as much. Because of this over 90% of players are males, hence over 90% of Challenger are male.

Yeah, so, that's not at all true. According to the ESA (Entertainment Software Association), broad data suggests that 48% of all game players identify as female. That doesn't necessarily mean 48% of League players are female, but to suggest that 90% of players are men without data doesn't do other genders any justice.

Still, this doesn't answer why there are NO girls in LCS? Also, WHY don't girls game as much? Is it because boys are naturally more aggressive?

The landscape of gaming has become more accommodating to non-male gamers, but the change is occurring over time rather than immediately. I wouldn't be surprised if we saw non-male players in the LCS within the next five years. There are already a number of professional women's eSports teams, and I seriously doubt that number will decrease -- ever.

Possibility #2: Girls just aren't as good.

This is a possibility. Perhaps because they get emotional more easily then men? We know girls physically are tuned to get emotional easier then men (especially at that special time of month). So maybe they just rage easier and therefore lose more often?

If you play a Ranked game at any point, you'll understand that most players have a significant capability of showing emotion in League of Legends. Showing emotion also doesn't directly correlate to skill. Further, who's to say that women "get emotional" more easily than men?

There is a lot of assumption going on here. I hope this sheds some light on your ideas, because I don't agree with you in the slightest.

FarRockBFNov 10, 20141 votes

If you play a Ranked game at any point, you'll understand that most players have a significant capability of showing emotion in League of Legends. Showing emotion also doesn't directly correlate to skill. Further, who's to say that women "get emotional" more easily than men?

Science says so: http://heartiste.wordpress.com/2013/02/28/women-are-more-emotional-than-men-because-of-biology/

There is a lot of assumption going on here. I hope this sheds some light on your ideas, because I don't agree with you in the slightest.

Not assuming anything here; just wondering. I have no idea if it's 90% in League, was just throwing out a number. Your post fails to explain why so few pro players are girls though. If nearly 50% are females, having almost NO pro female players is something interesting.

And yeah, I am actually genuinely curious. I want my wife to get into League; been begging her for years. She just has 0 interest.

EMOFRATPARTYNov 10, 20141 votes

Not assuming anything here; just wondering.

...

Possibility #1: Girls just don't game as much. Because of this over 90% of players are males, hence over 90% of Challenger are male.

...

Your post fails to explain why so few pro players are girls though.

I mean, hell, it'd be great to see more equality on the pro landscape. But again...

The landscape of gaming has become more accommodating to non-male gamers, but the change is occurring over time rather than immediately. I wouldn't be surprised if we saw non-male players in the LCS within the next five years.

Rampant sexism has been a mainstay of the industry for the past few decades, and unfortunately that carried over as eSports started to grow. Luckily, that mentality is beginning to change, but it will take time. I can't tell you how long for certain, partly because I'm not a pro gamer nor a mind reader...regardless of my gender. But I can tell you it will happen, and there are already professional female teams featured in tournaments (See: The link in that previous post for the ESL). It's only a matter of time before that extends to the LCS or any of its developmental leagues.

And yeah, I am actually genuinely curious. I want my wife to get into League; been begging her for years. She just has 0 interest.

League is a hard game to get into, even for people who frequently play games. If she has a passing interest in games at all, perhaps try easing her into it -- I wouldn't force it, though. There are things people just don't like, and that's perfectly OK.

EDIT: You edited your post after I replied to it, making it look like I ignored an important point of your argument. That's...really unfair.

redniwediSNov 10, 20141 votes

It's not something that needs explaining, honestly. Take a moment to stop looking at statistics and look at the people behind them.

Professional gaming is a tough thing to do. You have to play a frustrating game that often brings high levels of stress with it every day as a job. Not many people would line up for it if the opportunity was there. On top of that there are not many openings in the LCS. I don't know how many professional players there are for League, but I would honestly be surprised if it was over 100. That's 100 professional players in a game that has millions of casual players.

People are not statistics. If the League community was 50/50 on gender it would be a statistical anomaly for the LCS to also have that spread. Each individual person has their own desires, and while trends do exist some details are simply not important. Our culture is moving in a direction where gender will eventually not matter for statistics like this.

I hope I'm getting my point across correctly, but in case I'm not here's a summary. Gender does not matter when you are looking at people. The same goes for race, religion, sexuality, and any other number of labels that get slapped onto a person with or without their permission. People are what matters here, nothing else.

KonidiasNov 10, 20143 votes

I have a few girl friends who play league... so they are definitely out there.

As to why there aren't girls in the LCS... well one main reason is that typically the teams live together... and I really don't see it working out to have a girl living with four dudes... Especially considering how socially inept most gamer guys are... meaning they are going to be severely distracted trying to flirt with their female teammate, or even fighting with one another about it.

That aside... I don't believe the garbage about girls being more emotional than guys. On the contrary, I've seen guys get far more emotional over things than most girls. Heck, we've all seen players literally crying over LCS losses. Guys are super emotional. They rage a lot, they cry a lot... they get upset over little things. They troll because they are just a big bag of emotions. So to say that girls are more emotional than guys because it might be "that time of the month" is just ignorant.

As for reflexes.... Honestly the majority of League doesn't really require insane reflexes. Mostly it's timing... and critical thinking... and reacting to the situation accordingly. Every once in a while you get in a situation where you need to make split second moves and land combos just right... but mostly it's a pretty slow paced game when compared to like... a FPS. I mean you are literally just clicking a mouse to tell the champ where to go... You aren't even 1-1 controlling the champ movement via keyboard.

It's just a male dominated game... it's not really surprising that there aren't as many women playing.

I don't think it proves female gamers are not as good as male gamers... If anything it just proves that it's a lot harder for a female gamer to go pro because of all the criticism and harassment they would face. We still live in a society where doing anything "like a girl" is considered weak. To the point where even girls make fun of doing stuff "like a girl". It's really sad.

So even if a girl does well, there will be plenty of guys to put her down and try to keep her from ever getting to the top. They will just reinforce stereotypes... if the girl wins they will mock the guys she beat and say "you got beat by a girl" or if she wins, they won't acknowledge her as a good league player, they will acknowledge that she is "good for a girl".

Honestly there's just a lot of ignorance and I really feel bad for my gender. As a male, it's pretty embarrassing how ignorant men can be.

FarRockBFNov 10, 20141 votes

I love the random downvotes when I'm not at all hating. Either all girls or guys just jumpin on the downvote train.

redniwediSNov 10, 20142 votes

It's not either/or, it's people not liking the tone of your post.

FarRockBFNov 10, 20141 votes

It's not either/or, it's people not liking the tone of your post.

Fair enough.

you're not trying to be offensive, I'm sure. But many of the statements and "possibilities" you offered are inaccurate enough to be offensive.

Fair as well.

Thank you both; I will work on myself.

Lumus AvatarNov 10, 20144 votes

you're not trying to be offensive, I'm sure. But many of the statements and "possibilities" you offered are inaccurate enough to be offensive.

I recommend doing some actual research before posting this next time. Offering conjecture based on misunderstanding an established system and then calling it fact is pretty offensive.